Should I Buy A P'Kal?

C

Chandler49

Joined
Sep 28, 2012
Messages
6
Hey guys I've been around on the forum for a while, just reading reviews, tips and such. Never really engaged in any discussions though. I bought a zt 0561 off here a while back as well.

So here's my dilemma, I work for the usps, sorting mail in a factory all day. My job is to keep a very fast machine running by continuously feeding it mail. Some of this mail is wrapped in plastic bands which slow down my progress. Currently I use a yojimbo 2 to cut these bands, and it performs excellently thanks to it's wharncliffe profile and compression lock. I absolutely love my yo2 and have edc'd it for well over 7 months now.

Anyhow, today I was looking at knives and noticed the p'kal. It seems that this blade has the potential to perform excellently for my needs given it's hawkbill curvature and emerson wave deployment (speed is king in my arena, nobody at work cares about the "scary factor"). My only concern is how well the knife would function in a standard, non-reversed grip. I also have never owned a caged ball lock knife and I'm curious if it's easy to disengage the lock with one hand. Sorry for the paragraph, but thanks for reading!
 
Go for it. I have trained to use it in the traditional forward draw, edge in grip, but I mostly use it as a standard grip EDC style knife. I cut everything from gaff and PVC tape to rope and cables with it. Never had it disengage either. Keep in mind that the tip is fairly pointy so I wouldn't put it through excessive hard use. :)

I broke my dominant hand a few months ago and the P'kal was the only knife I carried during the 7 weeks my hand was really messed up. It carried and deployed easily on my weak side. Outstanding design on this knife. I plan to buy a backup for sure. I carry many different blades, including some very pricey customs, and this one consistently stays in my EDC rotations. Cheers.
 
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Hi Chandler,

Welcome to our forum.

The model is well made with good steel and good edge geometry for cutting. The Emerson opening pin is removable if it gets in the way. The question will be comfort in use. Do you cut the bands forward grip edge up?

sal
 
Thank you for the quick responses guys, I really appreciate some user input! Sal, I am right handed so I typically cut them in a forward grip with the edge facing to my left. This is the only way I can cut them without damaging the mail.

I probably would flip the clip over to the other side if I owned the p'kal so that way I could deploy it in the typical emerson manner and have a forward grip on the blade as soon as it comes out of my pocket, that is, if the design will allow the method I just mentioned. The advantage of a hawkbill for me would be having more leverage on the cutting material without the chance of it slipping off the edge.

I have transitioned from a para2, which I loved, but the belly of the blade would sometimes allow the plastic bands to slip off before being cut. I always keep my blades shaving sharp, so dullness wasn't a factor. It was simply the strength of the bands at work. When I began using a yo2, I noticed a dramatic increase in cutting force with much less slip. The new problem i face is that I sometimes poke into the letters when trying to fit my blade between the bands and the mail itself. The way that the hawkbill curves inward might allow me to slip the blade between the mail and the bands without doing any damage to the mail.

I can also really appreciate the s30v steel because I use my edc at least 30-40 times on a light duty day. I have to sharpen my Yojimbo about once a week as it stands now, but I do use it for light cutting tasks outside of work as well. It's amazing to me how well SD blades perform outside of their primary roles.
 
I''ve always like the design and deployment. I went to my local knife dealer to buy it and Michael's Yojimba 2 ended
up in my pocket.
 
The P'Kal is a pretty much a purpose built knife. I have one and have found that it's not comfortable to hold in a standard grip. The ergos are all wrong held like that. It's a personal defense knife primarily for a specific type of martial art, and it's designed to be used in a reversed grip.
 
I don't find it particularly uncomfortable in a standard grip, but when held that way it does lack the melt-in-your-hand ergos that my other Spydies have.
 
For the purposes you explained I'd get a Superhawk or at least handle one and the P'kal and decide from there.
 
You work on the OCRs! I was ZMT with some time on Advanced OCRs back in the 1970s. Then I made supervisor and was in charge of OCRs at Church Street in NYC. Even as a supervisor, I cut plastic bands and sheeting every day. USPS even supplied us with knives -- not nearly as good as Spydercos! :)

I like the idea of the P'Kal. If you can't try one out first, I'd say pick it up anyway. Last night, I was just playing with some knives I haven't used in a while. The Spyderco Karambit should work for you almost as well, but it doesn't open real fast for me. (fat arthritic knuckles)
 
Esav Benyamin said:
You work on the OCRs! I was ZMT with some time on Advanced OCRs back in the 1970s. Then I made supervisor and was in charge of OCRs at Church Street in NYC. Even as a supervisor, I cut plastic bands and sheeting every day. USPS even supplied us with knives -- not nearly as good as Spydercos! :)

I like the idea of the P'Kal. If you can't try one out first, I'd say pick it up anyway. Last night, I was just playing with some knives I haven't used in a while. The Spyderco Karambit should work for you almost as well, but it doesn't open real fast for me. (fat arthritic knuckles)
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Yeah I'm at the sort facility in Asheville NC, I run a dbcs all night but you know how it is; I work priority, flats, even the docks occasionally. The people where I work are pretty laid back about working outside of your department. I also supervise automation on the weekends. And yeah ever since day one I haven't even picked up a band cutter. Those things are a joke haha. I bet it's a whole new world working in NYC.
 
Chandler49 said:
I bet it's a whole new world working in NYC.
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In some ways, mostly outside the actual post office, NYC can be a jungle, but it is my home town. You get used to the crowds and everything else falls into place.

We used to go for management classes every year or so with supervisors from around the country. There is a reason the Postal Manual is the same for all of us. The work is largely standardized, especially with automation. We all saw much more in common than the few local peculiarities.

"The people where I work are pretty laid back about working outside of your department." That's something you don't see everywhere. We do in NYC. But I met supervisors from Los Angeles, of all places, who had no interest and little knowledge of the operations across the workfloor.
 
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