Recommendation? Non threatning looking pocket knives? Help appreciated

[scdub]

If a non locking blade isn’t an issue, go look at the Kershaw Federalist. It’s not as strong as most other knives that are non locking and there’s enough blade to pinch it to open.

Wow - that’s a pretty blade!

MAM Operario, locking or non locking. Easy to open, useful blade shape

Wow - I’ve never seen this blade shape before and like it a lot.

For under ~$10-$15 I’m going to get one for a restaurant knife once I pick a model.

I’m assuming you can tighten the pivot with a hammer tap? How tight did yours come from the factory?

Never having held one, this would be my recommendation for your first pocket knife…

 

[dogstar]

Wow - that’s a pretty blade!


Wow - I’ve never seen this blade shape before and like it a lot.

For under ~$10-$15 I’m going to get one for a restaurant knife once I pick a model.

I’m assuming you can tighten the pivot with a hammer tap? How tight did yours come from the factory?

Never having held one, this would be my recommendation for your first pocket knife…

Read more here: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/the-elemental-folder-mam-operario-pocket-knife-ref-2037.1902518/

To directly answer, the pivot was tight enough to hold the knife closed, NIB. After I applied mineral oil to seal the wood, it was on the loose side, so I tightened the pivot with a c-clamp. That works better than peening for this particular knife.

 

[scdub]

Read more here: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/the-elemental-folder-mam-operario-pocket-knife-ref-2037.1902518/

To directly answer, the pivot was tight enough to hold the knife closed, NIB. After I applied mineral oil to seal the wood, it was on the loose side, so I tightened the pivot with a c-clamp. That works better than peening for this particular knife.

Just ordered the same model but with the liner lock!

My wife had an Opinel #8 before I knew her, and I tried to like it but never warmed up to the handle or the constant movement of the locking barrel during use. I’m hoping this is what I wanted the Opinel to be.

Haven’t bought myself a folder for years so I’m excited.

I’m planning on sanding off the badging on the handle and refinishing/sealing it with tung oil, and I’m likely to trim down the lock tab, but otherwise it looks great and I won’t be worrying about using it (lightly) on plates.

 

[Just Tom.]

Just ordered the same model but with the liner lock!

My wife had an Opinel #8 before I knew her, and I tried to like it but never warmed up to the handle or the constant movement of the locking barrel during use. I’m hoping this is what I wanted the Opinel to be.

Haven’t bought myself a folder for years so I’m excited.

I’m planning on sanding off the badging on the handle and refinishing/sealing it with tung oil, and I’m likely to trim down the lock tab, but otherwise it looks great and I won’t be worrying about using it (lightly) on plates.

The MAM has a bit of a flimsier feel to it than the Opinel, but is still a pretty good light-duty knife. I think you will find the logo too deep to sand out - I gave up trying when modifying this one a few years ago, and just worked around it. Also the layer of varnish is very thick so refinishing will require some work.

I more recently got an oak one, which looks nice as-is.

 

[Wild Willie]

The buck 424 comes to mind for me. I gave my first one to my grandad when the lock bar on the black cat I'd given him broke. He's in his 80s, with arthritis and a slew of other health issues that have affected the strength in his hands. He has no issues manipulating the blade or lock. For about 20 bucks you can pick one up and take the wife to dinner with the leftover money from your budget.

The only issue is it's a drop point over a sheepsfoot.

 

[tusk212]

When I'm looking for something less threatening looking for my uses, I've gone to an Emerson Mini A100 without a pocket clip. I just throw it in my pocket and go.

 

[James Y]

I recommend the Spyderco UKPK Salt. With its yellow handle, some people might think it looks like a toy, but it's no toy. Its a slipjoint (non-locking) pocketknife. I have the serrated version, but the plain-edge version would look even less aggressive. If arthritis is a big problem for you, it can easily be pinched open and pushed closed two-handed. It's also very thin and lightweight, if you wanted to just drop it down in-pocket.

Jim