Largest traditional knife that disappears in your pocket?

N

NativeCraft

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Oct 27, 2006
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I posted a similar thread under the General Discussion, but I'd like to limit this discussion to traditional knives only.
We all know that a tiny pen knife or even a Case peanut will practically "disappear" in most any pocket, but some larger knives have a shape that helps them feel smaller than they are.
What do you find is the largest knife that feels pocket friendly?
For me, currently, it's a Case small saddlehorn. The roundness of it's shape makes it easy to tuck away even in a pair of slacks. The Case trapper even works well in the back pocket of a pair of slacks because its straightness allows it to sit on the outside of a wallet and out of the way.
 
Depends on how you carry it, and beyond that, how flat it is. A Case Backpocket knife is big, but it is flat. Carried vertically in a leather sheath in a back pocket, it's hardly noticeable.

I have also carried a Case Trapper the way you describe, vertically beside the wallet, and the bulk of the wallet makes the knife pretty much not noticeable.

I also find that rounded bolsters are more pocket friendly. A larger knife that seem to disappear for me is the Case 3347 Stockman with yellow Delrin handles. The Delrin is flatter and thinner than bone so it rides easily in a jeans watch pocket. Big bricks like the 6375 Large Stockman with squared bolsters are noticeable no matter how you carry them.

If you wear jeans that have big watch pockets (Duluth Trading jeans have a huge watch pocket) then you can carry pretty much anything that will fit there and thinness becomes the key factor. Levi's are a little smaller, so length matters more.
 
Case slimline trapper. 4-1/4" long but so thin it disappears

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Northwoods Madison Barlow, but it's too big for my taste. The biggest knife I like that rides the pocket well is the Northwoods Esky Zulu. I know the pattern is widely used by GEC, but the Esky Zulu is my favorite.
 
Unfortunately women's pants tend to have stupidly small pockets so real estate is somewhat limited. The largest I'll go is my 77 or IRJ in a slip. I think the fact that they are not particularly fat (single blades) really helps. Much larger and it they just don't fit comfortably.
 
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4" closed R.Bose Stockman, you'd think it'd be a potato in the pocket but it's actually an extremely comfortable carry for me.
Or a 4" R.Bose Teardrop Jack. Both are the largest I have/the thickest but they handle very well, the length actually keeps them from jostling around in my pocket.

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All depends on the pants. What will disappear in a jeans or Dockers is one thing, but dress pants another.

I've found that weight sometimes is more important than size, again depending on the pants. In loose fitting dockers a number 7 Opinel can be more un-noticed than a case peanut. The opinel is crazy light for it's bulk and will carry better inspiteof the bulky round shape.

Knives in the 3 1/4 range like the Buck companion and Boker 240 pen are pretty un-notocable in business casual or dress pants. Very basic 84mm light weight SAK's like the bantam and waiter are very light and fairly flat. I've carried a bantam in dress pants with no problem.

Jeans change the whole equation. What feels like a rock in dress pants will almost be un-noticed in jeans. Sodbuster, medium size stockman and the smaller jacks ride easy.
 
As jc57 mentioned, flatness matters. To me it matters a lot. I hate a knife that rolls around in the pocket.

Personally my 3 1/2 inch single spring pen knives are the largest knives I own that just aren't noticed. These knives are the GEC model 66 white owl and model 68 slim. The 68 slim serpentine is slightly more invisible but both are outstanding edc carry knives.

Will
 
I'm fairly big, tall and broad-not overweight at 6'1", although the smallest of the men in my family, and I umm...can carry an 8 2/3" L.T. Wright fixed in leather sheath in my front pockets. I often do so with a self made dangler(sounds funny), so it's suspended weight from my belt, and no one even notices it the vast majority of the time. As far as folders alot has to do with the bolsters and thickness. I've got a Queen #49 in a pocket now and it's fine(4 1/4"). Certainly carried bigger comfortably. Oddly it's some of the smaller ones that bug me-toothpicks, some pens, etc. One huge caveat would be that I wear dress pants only to weddings and funerals,sooo... I don't know if that answers the question but it's in the ballpark I think😎
Thanks, Neal
 
I'm with neal70. I have carried fairly large knives with no problem. I don't know if I'd say my 23 disappears in pocket, but I definitely forget it's in there at times so that has to count for something. A full sized sodbuster or trapper aren't noticed at all. I put on dress pants less than once a year on average, so that probably has something to do with it. (anything other than jeans are dress pants in my world) For really easy carry my new 65 Ben Hogan absolutely disappears and it's 4 1/2" long closed.

On a related note, cell phones just keep getting bigger and bigger and I think that dictates to a degree what I think of as a big item in my pocket. My Ben Hogan is pretty large by traditional knife standards, but it is dwarfed by my cell phone. When I carry them in the same pocket, which is the only way I've carried the Ben Hogan so far, the knife isn't noticed at all.
 
This all depends on which pocket, and as Carl notes, which pants.

For front pocket carry in slacks, thin for the win. I can carry my Buck 500 in dress slacks without any noticeable imprinting. The rounded bolsters and thin frame help but also make it the most likely to pocket eject with no warning.

Buck 500 Duke and Micra by Pinnah, on Flickr

For jeans, I can carry either a Case Sodbuster (not the junior, but the full sized one) or a flat-sided Opinel #9 with ease. The #10 Opinel is too much for me.
Untitled by Pinnah, on Flickr

Untitled by Pinnah, on Flickr

For rear pocket carry, I run a seam up the side of my right rear pocket. This allows for easy and comfortable carry of a Buck 110 or larger even. Better than holster carry for me.
Buck 110 by Pinnah, on Flickr

Schrade 51OT by Pinnah, on Flickr

That last one, the Schrade 51OT, is a hoot to carry. Dwarfs the 110. Big ol' slab of a blade.
 
Very worthwhile thread. As usual, some excellent choices and opinions to mull over.:thumbup:

Generally, I favour a smaller knife say 3.1-3.6" my main dislike is weight and cumbersome knives in the pocket. Some housebrick weighing down the pocket uh uh, can't stand belt sheathes for folding knives either!:barf:

However, it is nice to carry some bigger types ( winter is the time as they go in the topcoat but I know this is about trouser carry) and I found last year's Forum Knife to be a grand carry. It's long -4" - but being Shadow, single-spring and wood it ensures lightness. A big Opinel wrks for the same reason, lightweight. I agree with the Slimline Trapper and in Barehead it's carrying no excess weight either.

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The CASE Large Stockman is a knife I admire but I won't carry it unless in a wintercoat, too square, chunky and heavy! Whereas, this GEC 82 Dixie Stock knife is much more svelte, streamlined and really will carry nicely. That said, I would revel in the idea of a 3.5" scaled down version too:cool:

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I can go up to 5.25" comfortably, my Dads old Schrade folding Hunter, because it's thin, enough that I can forget it's there after a bit... But that's not really disapearing... And I have to back pocket it to do it. my Queen singleblade 5" toothpick is as slim and thin as possible, but won't disapear in front pockets. Biggest I can do that disapears in normal front pocket carry is 4.25" in 2 blades only, like my case 75 moose. or 4.5" in 1 blade and slim... Case cheetah or a Queen I have in that pattern.

My newest, a 47 stockman at 3-7/8" disappears perfectly, but Ive had some 4" and even 3.5" trappers and stockman(stockmen?) that don't... The difference? Thickness. but some even when thinner, but with square cut bolsters are easier to feel in the pocket.

But yeah, given a normal 3 blade, even 3 spring thickness max, I can go 4" fine. Usually.

I wear jeans or canvas pants normally, and only really considered this for my normal front left pocket carry.. The rare times I wear dress pants/slacks etc, I find weight is the problem, not size... In them I can go to 4.5 in a single blade(my queen swing guard is one of my favorite dreas knives!). But anything more than 1 blade and slim, and I have to drop to 3.5 range for dress pants carry.
 
RR improved muskrat is right at 4" closed, and thin. It goes nearly unnoticed.
Mercator Black Cat is 4 1/2", but flat as a Douk-Douk; it vanishes almost completely.
Filmam Douro is a hair under 4 1/2", light as an Opinel, but with flat sides, so it carries quite well.
I flattened the sides and rounded the heel on an Opinel No.8 to get much the same effect in a slightly shorter knife. Otherwise, the flared end of the handle makes for an intrusive lump.
The champ on my shelf has to be the Opinel No.10 Slim at 5". RR large toothpick has about the same dimensions, but the weight is noticeable.
 
Lightweight ( not sure the weight though ), not to big ( 3.25" closed )
This is the biggest I'll drop loose in the pocket.
 
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