Question for my fellow lefties

J

jaseman

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Jul 28, 2016
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What side to you carry your knives on?

I’m left handed, but living in a right handed world, like must lefties, I’ve adapted over my 50+ years on this planet, and find that there are a lot of things I do right handed almost by default - and even am more adept at. Not having left handed equipment in gym classes in school, I learned to throw, catch, bat, golf, whatever, right handed. Scissors, can openers, all sorts of everyday items have forced many of us to adapt….. knives are no different. Most pocket knives back in the early 90s didn’t have reversible clips, so I got used to having to carry them in my right pocket. And liner and frame locks all tend to be right handed. Fixed blades are no different really, as the sheaths that come with them are generally right handed.

Here’s the rub, I primarily use a knife in my left hand. So I end up pulling and opening a knife with my right, and switching to my left hand to cut with. The only exception is when I wear a small fixed blade in horizontal cross draw. The problem is, because of years of carrying this way, it still feels more natural to have a folder in my right pocket.

This is something I never thought of until I was opening Christmas packages with my new Ultratech (nice gift from the wife). So I reversed the clip, and slid it in my left. This still feels very weird to me after decades of carrying on my right.

So, fellow lefties, do you carry on your left, even going so far as buying left handed knives when possible? Or, like me, has living in a right handed years groomed you into carrying on the right?

(FWIW - I still shoot and carry a firearm left handed)
 
I'm a part time lefty.....I'm kinda ambi. somethings i do left and somethings right. knives either hand, but prefer right mostly due to what ya already said...majority setup for right hand use. I prefer to shoot southpaw. so I carry a pistol in my left pocket, knives go right side. my setup of hands use, makes it easy for me.

if I was full time lefty and didn't carry a gun in my pocket, i'd carry in my left pocket. fixed blade I'd carry strong side also, so left side.
 
jbmonkey said:
I'm a part time lefty.....I'm kinda ambi. somethings i do left and somethings right. knives either hand, but prefer right mostly due to what ya already said...majority setup for right hand use. I prefer to shoot southpaw. so I carry a pistol in my left pocket, knives go right side. my setup of hands use, makes it easy for me.

if I was full time lefty and didn't carry a gun in my pocket, i'd carry in my left pocket. fixed blade I'd carry strong side also, so left side.
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Bonus that you have prehensile feet, too!
 
I have a great answer for you.

ALl of the knives which I have ORDERED from custom makers have left handed sheaths.

Despite my vast collection there are really only two which I typically carry. Sometimes A helle Jegermeister in a left handed sheath that I made if I want a blade big enough to run something through.

My usual carry is on my left side I carry my Kimber scorpion in 460 Rowland. Immediately infront of that, between that and my left front pocket I carry my favorite knife my Helle Harding in a RIGHT handed sheath so it is technically pointing forward. Scandi knives are very thin and light weight despite having long blades. Due to this the sheaths are low profile practically cylindrical. Many of them are low profile enough that they will ride well inside a hip pocket. This makes them unnoticable on the belt. As far as oddness of drawing a knife pointed the wrong way, I have long arms and since i hang out between 8000 and 12000 feet I typically have lots of heavy clothing and a large pack on. This means it is easier to draw with an overhand grip so I have to turn the knife anyways before I use it.

On very rare ocasions I will carry a ka bar usmc. Then it goes on my right side due to the space it occupies.

Hope this helps.
 
My older Brother ('He ain't heavy') is a 'leftie'. I became 'ambidextrous' after he beat me up, more times than I can count.

I changed up my SHF-L to be carried in my left pocket. My Hinderer XM-24, in my right. 2 1/2 years now.

'Lefties' exist.

Knife designers and makers simply have to know how to say the alphabet backwards out loud.

'Lefticus': more difficult than Calculus.
 
jbmonkey said:
I'm a part time lefty.....I'm kinda ambi. somethings i do left and somethings right. knives either hand, but prefer right mostly due to what ya already said...majority setup for right hand use.
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Same here. Interestingly I carry my main folder in my rear right pocket but often put it in my left hand before cutting with it.

But I have a left cargo pocket knife and a neck knife usually as well. My fixed blade is right hand hip carry and gets the switcheroo treatment too.

My neck knife is actually set up to be grabbed left handed which is the hand I usually use it in.

If I ever need to use a knife to persuade some creature in the dark at night that I’m off the menu, it will be right handed though, because despite writing and using a fork and spoon primarily left handed, my more gross motor skills (like throwing, swinging) are more developed right side.
 
In grammar school the nuns would wack my hand with a ruler when I used my left hand to write..........
That stopped after I told my parents who are both lefty and up they went.........Quite hereditary in my family on both sides.......my dad, thehe.oldest.in his family, my mom, the oldest.in hers, me the oldest of 3, my oldest daughter is lefty...My younger sisters first born is.lefty.....This goes back another generation too to my parents parents and grandparents..... CRAZY...........

Like the OP, I got by, by becoming ambidextrous but anything meaningful to me anyway is done left handed😉
Knives really offered no choice for decades so I'm a right handed knifer.😉
 
jfk1110 said:
In grammar school the nuns would wack my hand with a ruler when I used my left hand to write..........
That stopped after I told my parents who are both lefty and up they went.........Quite hereditary in my family on both sides.......my dad, thehe.oldest.in his family, my mom, the oldest.in hers, me the oldest of 3, my oldest daughter is lefty...My younger sisters first born is.lefty.....This goes back another generation too to my parents parents and grandparents..... CRAZY...........

Like the OP, I got by, by becoming ambidextrous but anything meaningful to me anyway is done left handed😉
Knives really offered no choice for decades so I'm a right handed knifer.😉
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St. Wenceslaus was my Hell, er school.

Toshiro Mifune and his Katana vs Sister Ester and her Ruler?

Sister Ester 24-7-365!

Sister Ester was a 'leftie'...a smart bomb sort of 'leftie'.

I went off topic, sorry.
 
Delgadonine said:
St. Wenceslaus was my Hell, er school.

Toshiro Mifune and his Katana vs Sister Ester and her Ruler?

Sister Ester 24-7-365!

Sister Ester was a 'leftie'...a smart bomb sort of 'leftie'.

I went off topic, sorry.
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Saint Clare's was thehe name of my personal hell, I'm mean school.😉....Being the largest parish in this boro of NYC, (Staten Island) we also had the had .pleasure of priests too who were.much more.into corporal punishment......😡
 
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I’m ambidextrous too. Do what ever works for you.

My first 2 kids started lefty, we told them nicely (no rulers involved) to try using their right hand instead. They said ok and did it. My daughter was a natural switch hitter in little league and the best hitter on her team.

My 3rd is a definite lefty, switching to righty to write was not an option. I haven’t seen him struggle with any tools or knives.

I taught my kids to shoot based on eye dominance. All are right eye dominant.

My daughter wouldn’t “cross the center line”. She would write to the middle of the page and change hands to finish the line. They called us in to tell us she was special needs and would have all sorts of issues.

I looked at her and said just use your right hand to write from now on please. She said ok. They seemed disappointed. 😂

Moral of my story is: If you lean towards being ambidextrous it is a gift, train with both hands
 
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IMG_5650.jpeg

Knife, pen, utensils, throw and power tools - left hand

Pistol, rifle, Bow, punch, catch and handshake - right hand

*Left is right and right is wrong

Being a lefty is a blessing and a curse. 3 ring and spiral ring binders, fountain pens and right hand paper were a nightmare growing up. Catholic school didn’t help either 😂.
 
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I carry a left handed knife in my pocket while a right handed knife is clipped to my right pocket. Never have carried a left handed knife clipped. Out of habit, it’s natural for me to open right handed and switch hands. Just about all of the CRK’s I have are lefty’s. Over the last couple of years, there are more companies that offer left handed knives than before. Most of the time, fixed blades can come with a left handed sheath if requested. Some knives I prefer right handed if that makes any sense.
In the knife world, it’s good to be left handed now because the most desired knives don’t fly off the shelves.
 
Well if you look at it scientifically the left.side.of the brain runs the right side and.vice versa!!!!
So it appears us lefties are the ones using the RIGHT side of our brains.....😜
 
I carry left side. Well, also right side, but left is the main user. Just like everyone else, I learned to adapt and use both hands/sides as needed, sometimes you just have to. That’s an advantage to being a leftie I think, learning to be semi-ambidextrous. But I will not buy knives that are right-hand only, that is a choice I do have.
 
I am definatly right handed but find that the pattern of my my "pocket dump" in some ways is'nt characterisrtic of a rightie: My wallet goes in my left back pocket. I comes out in my left had and I access the contents with my right. I often see other righties reach for their other back pocket when getting out their wallet.

keys in the left front pocket and manipulated much like the wallet. The EDC (Leatherman Wave) gos into the right front pocket or a horizontal belt pouch in the right kidney position where some might holster a pistol. Cell phone goes in the breast pocket of my golf style polo shirt.

At other times, some of this stuff goes into a "fanny pack" worn on the left front. This is handier when going through airport security, then flying for hours.
 
I'm ambi as well. However, my dexterous hand is mostly my right, due to damaging a tendon in my left little finger 20+ years ago.

I still prefer to carry my handgun on my left if I can and it makes sense. I shoot revolvers left handed. I tend to shoot semi autos right because of me favoring a 1911 and bumping and Ambi safety off on accident more times than I was comfortable with, so I just carry a standard safety now.

As far as knives go, my folders and fixed blades go on my right as they are generally used in that hand and switched to my left if I feel they are prudent there. A lot of my defensive blades go on my left if I am not carrying a gun because I general keep my left thumb resting closer to them in a pocket or belt loop anyway, and my left arm is slightly stronger than my right.

My nonscientific guess, most people who are aware enough to watch your threat level as a target probably fixate on what you are doing with your right hand. Lefties are a sneaky bunch ;)
 
I'm a lefty for pistol, eating, writing, and knife usage. I shoot basketball lefty and throw a baseball or swing a bat right handed. I am right eye dominant, so I shoot long gun right handed. My first grade teacher tried to get me to switch, I told her no.

For pocketknives, I carry in front left pocket. I primarily carry CRKs in a lefty model. The only full righties I carry that way are Koenig Arius', Arno Bernard iMambas, and the Grimsmo Norseman. Those three models also have dialed in enough detents that I trust them in my pocket. Anything else I own has at least ambi usage and clip, or I don't buy it. So a shout out to the three makers who've made good enough knives to be trusted, at least until they put lefties out on the market.
 
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