Large Folding Knives -- A Little Perspective

[ArfinGreebly]

Having recently begun carrying a large sodbuster, I have had occasion to explain it's "bigness" in relation to other commonly used knives.

I haven't had to justify it's "wickedness" or "aggressive" appearance, as there it just about no more pedestrian blade profile out there. But size has come up a time or two.

In explaining that it's not really that large, I've made the comparison to common paring knives, citing the fact that it was unlikely there was a knife in [his] kitchen with a blade any smaller.

So, a couple of nights ago, I set about documenting that comparison. It turns out I have one knife in my kitchen that's smaller than a large sodbuster, and not by much.

Here are a couple of the shots:

Top to bottom: 3"paring , 3.5" soddie, 3.75" picnic, 4" paring, 5" utility

FWIW, everything but the soddie is Chinese in manufacture.

That little yellow-orange picnic knife is very similar to the Joyce Chen "My Handy Knife" except that the Joyce Chen knife (Japan) is way better made and costs $8 MSRP, while the little no-name (China) is cheap-cheap and is $3 MSRP (and $1 IRL).

The red-orange paring knife is an Australian design (RR Gusto) of somewhat higher quality, at $12.50 MSRP ($10 IRL). It's not bad, but I wish I were more impressed.


Arranged a little differently:

(You'll notice that I cleverly left out the slicers, carvers, chef's knives, and a little knife that got its start as a stand-in for the movie Psycho. No point in going overboard.)
​

It's interesting how context changes the perception. In the kitchen, 3.5 or 4 inches is simply not noteworthy. In a pocket, that same blade is "huge."

Some of it, to be sure, is the business of the handle having to be slightly longer than the blade on any folder, contributing to an overall verdict of "big," but it seems to me that context plays a larger part.

Also of interest is the difference a yellow handle makes. Hard to say "cute" of a large folder but, when asked about it, I usually just say it's "for safety" and that "visibility never hurts when it comes to farm tools."

So far, 100% of those with whom I've had any discussion had no idea what "sod buster" meant. "Y'see, it's a design that's been used on farms and ranches for more than a hundred years. I guess I'm just old fashioned. Heck, if John Deere made a car, I'd probably drive it."

And no, I'm not likely to start wearing bib overalls. At least not this month.

I think the Kershaw in my other pocket might take offense.

 

[jackknife]

It's interesting how context changes the perception. In the kitchen, 3.5 or 4 inches is simply not noteworthy. In a pocket, that same blade is "huge."

Welcome to the world of the suburban America.

Since the early post war years of the 20th century, America began a population shift from rural agracutlural to urban industrial type of habitat. Very few people live on farms these days, with 98% of modern schook kids thinking milk comes from the grocery store in some mysterious manufacturing method. With htis shift in population came a downsizing or even elimination of the carrying of a pocket knife for most people who now were office workers.

Now 53 years after the start of that population shift, we have had a change in mental attitudes as well to go along with it. Most people are accostomed to seeing things they themselves use in a day to day life. If something new and strange comes into view, it tends to ring an alarm bell in the head. Most people even in the midst of a big city will not flinch at the sight of a small pen knife or one of the sak's. But take out a sodbuster, and its something new, unseen before. They don't carry and use one, soe they ask why you have that big knife.

The fact that it's not really a big knife is not the point, as you pointed out they use much bigger knives at home in their kitchens, but that is their point. The kitchen knife is at home in the kitchen but a pocket knife like yours is out of place in modern society.

It really is all a matter of perspective.

I worked with a guy named Rolland. Like alot of us in the shop, he carried his lunch from home in a lunchbox. Durring lunch break he would have a piece of fruit for desert and in his lunch box he carried a plastic handle serrated edge kitchen knife with about a 4 1/2 to 5 inch blade. Nobody in the cafferteria blinked an eye at his kitchen knife at work, because he was using it in a way they expected, in a surrounding that seemed fit for it. That was their perception of it. But what would the perception have been had he reached into his pants pocket and taken out a large folder?

Like it or not, now in the 21st century we are getting more urbanized or suburbanized by the year. Peoples perception has changed a great deal since I was a kid, and even since my kids were kids. It takes a pretty small pocket knife to escape comment these days. Colors like red and yellow seem to lower the knifes profile to a more acceptable level. They accept a sak without question. Many times I've taken a small sak out to cut something, and a nearby strange will comment "Oh, a Swiss Army Knife. I gave my grandson one last Christmas." or maybe "Cool, a Swiss Army Knife. I had one when I was in the boy scouts a few years back, I should dig it up and carry it again." The sak has achieved urban acceptance. Yellow handle knives seem to be acceptable. When I would use my yellow handle peanut I had many people comment that they had a old uncle or grandad who carried a yellow handle pocket knife. If the person observing was old enouhg to have been around in the 50's, they remember the yellow handle "fishing knives" that had the yellow handle with sometimes a hook sharpener glued to it. Traditional pocket knives in general seem to have a much lower profile on the radar. So many times I've used one of my pocket knives in public, and had some younger person comment that they had a grandfather who had a knife like that. No matter if it was my grandads Hen and Rooster, my dad's old peanut, or my own stockman knife. If I had used a small assisted opener with the black tactical look, it would not have been accepted nearly as easy.

It really is all about perception.

 

[Blues]

Moving this over to General Knife Discussion where it is a better "fit".

 

[jlfletcher83]

I recently bought a yellow sodbuster jr. People react so much better to it than my tactical knives. Its great.

 

[Absintheur]

For some reason multi function knives seem to be more PC than the same size knife with a single blade. My wood scaled laguiole folder is big enough I carry it in a belt sheath but because it has a cut out to cut cigars it doesn't seem to bother anyone. However my Kershaw which is all black is seen as a "weapon" rather than a pocket knife.



It is all about perception and the fact that some people consider any thing that is all black (not the rugby team...lol) to be a weapon or dangerous, the AR is a perfect example...a black AR is a "bad" gun while a wood stock Mini 14 is ok. It is the same with knives sadly enough.I generally just ignore what people say and don't even try to explain if someone makes a comment in public. You won't change their mind and it only gets you frustrated.

 

[harryf3]

I recently bought a yellow sodbuster jr. People react so much better to it than my tactical knives. Its great.

That's funny. I ordered exactly the same knife yesterday night for the same reason. Another reason was that I wanted a knife as a second EDC for night fishing. So much easier to spot it in the dark.

I found out that a knife with funcy materials can be accepted as a jewel or fetish and is not so scary. Nobody knows that it's razor sharp.
And as mentioned, the SAKs are great for discretion.
I carry only small folders without pocket clips. So they are not visible. Of course I need more time to take it out.