slipjoints vs. locks, what's up with it?

[TheCarbideRat]

I think there's a chance many people are not are not in tune with slipjoints as they maybe don't have the flair or rep of say a Seb or a ZT, and many knife passionistas do not even own one slipjoint as they get passed over in the search for what is the best folder.

I'm just asking for some reflections on these cool knives, how they are unsung heroes and they are where folders originated. Also how did some of us lose our collective way in appreciating them, although that can be because the appreciation never had a chance to start.

Strength and durability, slipjoints are said to have them let's hear about that too.

 

[moonwilson]

Check the Traditional forum. You'll find plenty of love for slipjoints there.

Personally, I'm crazy about 'em. "Modern" folders like Spyderco etc. certainly have their place, and they're great, but they can't touch good ol' slipjoints when it comes to style and grace. :thumbup:
I own a "few" slipjoints. Lately, I've been carrying a 60 knife roll back and forth to the office, so I can fondle, clean, sharpen and enjoy while I'm at work.

 

[PropThePolecat]

I own slipjoints made by Victorinox, Fallkniven, and Spyderco. All are capable and excel at their intended purpose which is cutting. As long as you use the right tool for the job, the slipjoint will handle its business properly and safely.

 

[Ken44]

Don't fully understand your post. Slipjoints are very hot right now, and many makers that never made them are starting to.

I'll just say I love slipjoints, and have for 40 years. I also have plenty of locking knives, and fixed blades I love as well.

I've almost always have a sebenza(or some other locking knife), and at least one slip joint on me. Many days a fixed blade as well.
I like all knives except very tactical looking ones.

 

[yablanowitz]

I believe that in our increasingly urbanized world there are fewer people who have been taught how to use a folding knife. They never had someone see them doing something with a knife that they shouldn't, slap them on the back of the head and growl "That's a knife, stupid. It's not a _______ (insert name of proper tool here)". They want the strongest lock and the thickest blade and the stoutest tip because they have no idea how to use a folder safely, much less what a knife is for. They say "hard-use knife" when they actually mean "sharpened crowbar" or "long axe". A lot of those people are dumbfounded by some of the things I do with slipjoints on a routine basis.

 

[jackknife]

I believe that in our increasingly urbanized world there are fewer people who have been taught how to use a folding knife. They never had someone see them doing something with a knife that they shouldn't, slap them on the back of the head and growl "That's a knife, stupid. It's not a _______ (insert name of proper tool here)". They want the strongest lock and the thickest blade and the stoutest tip because they have no idea how to use a folder safely, much less what a knife is for. They say "hard-use knife" when they actually mean "sharpened crowbar" or "long axe". A lot of those people are dumbfounded by some of the things I do with slipjoints on a routine basis.

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

I was going to say something, but that summed it up quite well.

Carl.

 

[A.P.F.]

I believe that in our increasingly urbanized world there are fewer people who have been taught how to use a folding knife. They never had someone see them doing something with a knife that they shouldn't, slap them on the back of the head and growl "That's a knife, stupid. It's not a _______ (insert name of proper tool here)". They want the strongest lock and the thickest blade and the stoutest tip because they have no idea how to use a folder safely, much less what a knife is for. They say "hard-use knife" when they actually mean "sharpened crowbar" or "long axe". A lot of those people are dumbfounded by some of the things I do with slipjoints on a routine basis.

Damn, Jack, you just shot a whole bunch of people right between the eyes with the truth! I can already hear the squirming. :thumbup:

 

[brandonc]

I have never thought of strength as the advantage to a locking folder. I prefer locking folders because they can generally be opened quickly with one hand, also because they are easy to clean. Not saying slipjoint's don't have a place, just that locking knives are better choice for me.

That said, I do have 2 US made carbon steel Shrades. A Stockman and Mini-Stockman as well as a few SAKs. I will often slip one into my watch pocket.

 

[GRIM 62]

I love a good slipjoint,they're what got me into knives in the first place.

 

[UpChUcK]

I have many slippies, more than a dozen SAK's, and couple Buck, and Case as well. Slipjoints are OK and I know how to use them just fine and have use them for decades, but I prefer locking knives. It's not like I am uneducated in the proper use of a slipjoint. I just like locking folders better. It's just that plain and simple.

I used to drive an old beat up car that did its job of getting me from point A to point B. But now I have a new, nicer, faster, more comfortable car with all the options I like. If my beater was a collectible, I'd keep it and drive it for fun and nostalgia every now and then, but for the most part, I'm driving the new car.

 

[texasflyfisher]

A knife has pretty much one purpose; to cut. Traditional slipjoints do that as well and in some cases better than the modern locking folders.

 

[BryFry]

I believe that in our increasingly urbanized world there are fewer people who have been taught how to use a folding knife. They never had someone see them doing something with a knife that they shouldn't, slap them on the back of the head and growl "That's a knife, stupid. It's not a _______ (insert name of proper tool here)". They want the strongest lock and the thickest blade and the stoutest tip because they have no idea how to use a folder safely, much less what a knife is for. They say "hard-use knife" when they actually mean "sharpened crowbar" or "long axe". A lot of those people are dumbfounded by some of the things I do with slipjoints on a routine basis.

Isn't there another thread going on right now about people supposedly bashing slipjoints?? I never hear much slipjoint bashing, but there seems to be no shortage of this kind of drivel. ^

As for myself I can apreciate a good slip joint for what it is. Some are very nice, and certainly very useful in there own way. But I (like many others) also apreciate the benefits and improvements that we see in many modern folders.

I don't understand the narrow minded hate so many slipjoint people seem to have towards these sturdy, user friendly, locking folders?

Just because YOU do not use your knife in a certain mannor, or for certain tasks, why do you insist that nobody else should either?

To me it's like saying ...well my grand pappy drove an ancient Oldsmobile everywhere he went, even drove it on back trails when camping, and I do the same. So all those people who think they need those fancy, over built 4x4's and tricked out sports cars must not know how to drive a car properly.

....I say, to each his own. carry what you like, and admit that they all have their good points.

 

[greater]

I think multi bladed slip joints can offer more in a smaller package therefore being more practical than locking folders in a lot of cases.

I am not knocking locking folders and the above does not always apply. I depends on what the individual needs in a knife but slip joints are in my opinion usually quite small and very very handy.

 

[thejamppa]

Some like locks, others prefer slippies. Its just matter of preferance... I am traditionalist and I do love good slipjoint and I don't need locks in my knife but that doesn't mean I don't use lock blades Good knife is good, locking or slippie...

 

[swamp]

Isn't there another thread going on right now about people supposedly bashing slipjoints?? I never hear much slipjoint bashing, but there seems to be no shortage of this kind of drivel. ^

As for myself I can apreciate a good slip joint for what it is. Some are very nice, and certainly very useful in there own way. But I (like many others) also apreciate the benefits and improvements that we see in many modern folders.

I don't understand the narrow minded hate so many slipjoint people seem to have towards these sturdy, user friendly, locking folders?

Just because YOU do not use your knife in a certain mannor, or for certain tasks, why do you insist that nobody else should either?

To me it's like saying ...well my grand pappy drove an ancient Oldsmobile everywhere he went, even drove it on back trails when camping, and I do the same. So all those people who think they need those fancy, over built 4x4's and tricked out sports cars must not know how to drive a car properly.

....I say, to each his own. carry what you like, and admit that they all have their good points.

I am pretty sure that is why he started this thread, because of the other one.

 

[NeoClassic]

Slipjoints from Great Eastern Cutlery are currently my favorite types of knives.

They are high quality, simple in design and function, strong and beautiful. Most modern folders at a comparable price point (I paid $60-ish for the one below) have some of those attributes, but few have all of them.

The back springs on GECs are so stout, I never miss having a locking mechanism -- ever. It's so simple and rewarding to use. And gorgeous, too.

I've given up trying to find a modern folder that pleases me as much as the GEC Scout 73 in Bocote wood pictured below (just bought another so I could make the one I already have a real user, with less remorse).

So that's a long-winded way of saying what I think of slipjoints.

 

[freq18hz]

I believe that in our increasingly urbanized world there are fewer people who have been taught how to use a folding knife. They never had someone see them doing something with a knife that they shouldn't, slap them on the back of the head and growl "That's a knife, stupid. It's not a _______ (insert name of proper tool here)". They want the strongest lock and the thickest blade and the stoutest tip because they have no idea how to use a folder safely, much less what a knife is for. They say "hard-use knife" when they actually mean "sharpened crowbar" or "long axe". A lot of those people are dumbfounded by some of the things I do with slipjoints on a routine basis.

:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

Yeah you really don't catch a lot of HARD USE TEST videos for slip joints. Instead of spine whacks, people just go out and use the knives for what they are for: cutting things. A revelation!

-Freq

 

[yablanowitz]

Isn't there another thread going on right now about people supposedly bashing slipjoints?? I never hear much slipjoint bashing, but there seems to be no shortage of this kind of drivel. ^

As for myself I can apreciate a good slip joint for what it is. Some are very nice, and certainly very useful in there own way. But I (like many others) also apreciate the benefits and improvements that we see in many modern folders.

I don't understand the narrow minded hate so many slipjoint people seem to have towards these sturdy, user friendly, locking folders?

Just because YOU do not use your knife in a certain mannor, or for certain tasks, why do you insist that nobody else should either?

To me it's like saying ...well my grand pappy drove an ancient Oldsmobile everywhere he went, even drove it on back trails when camping, and I do the same. So all those people who think they need those fancy, over built 4x4's and tricked out sports cars must not know how to drive a car properly.

....I say, to each his own. carry what you like, and admit that they all have their good points.

I'm carrying a Spyderco Military in S90V and Carbon fiber in my back pocket that has seen more honest to goodness hard use than most folks dish out in a lifetime, but it has only been used for a knife. It hasn't been used for an axe, or a crowbar, or a screwdriver, or a splitting wedge. I read people whining about the tip being so thin and weak on the Military, when to me it is too thick for any fine work. Why would I feel that way? Because I've done so many things with blades half as wide and a third as thick at the tip. Learn to respect the tool, learn to use the tool within its limits and you just might discover just how capable that tool really is. Of course, that will entail investing some effort into aquiring skill, which people seem to be allergic to these days. It is so much easier to demand that technology provide a way to convert brute force to an acceptable result than personally developing the skill to produce the same result with minimal effort. It makes me sad to realize there is an entire generation out there who can use a GPS but can't read a map, can drive a car but wouldn't know what to do if the ABS failed on a slippery road, and don't even understand that tools are not all interchangeable.

 

[singularity35]

I'm carrying a Spyderco Military in S90V and Carbon fiber in my back pocket that has seen more honest to goodness hard use than most folks dish out in a lifetime, but it has only been used for a knife. It hasn't been used for an axe, or a crowbar, or a screwdriver, or a splitting wedge. I read people whining about the tip being so thin and weak on the Military, when to me it is too thick for any fine work. Why would I feel that way? Because I've done so many things with blades half as wide and a third as thick at the tip. Learn to respect the tool, learn to use the tool within its limits and you just might discover just how capable that tool really is. Of course, that will entail investing some effort into aquiring skill, which people seem to be allergic to these days. It is so much easier to demand that technology provide a way to convert brute force to an acceptable result than personally developing the skill to produce the same result with minimal effort. It makes me sad to realize there is an entire generation out there who can use a GPS but can't read a map, can drive a car but wouldn't know what to do if the ABS failed on a slippery road, and don't even understand that tools are not all interchangeable.

As you say use the right tool for the job. Thin, low beveled knives with pointy tips have their uses. As slicers, they excel but their job is slicing. As for hard use folders their job is hard use, and this is what they excel at. Hard use folders don't excel in cutting cheese so they shouldn't be used in cutting cheese. Thin pointy tips are for fine work and that's what they should be used for. Thick hard use tips are for well, hard use. So they can't be used for taking out the tiny little splinters that you cry about. Oh, BTW, a hypodermic needle or a scalpel is the right tool for taking out splinters.

Are you then going to ask me what hard use folders are for? That's been answered in the other thread too.


PS: I carry both slicer and hard use. So I don't bash any of them.

 

[arty]

I don't distinguish between locking knives and slip joints in terms of "hard use," since that is for heavy fixed blades. If I want to chop something, I grab an old tough Kukuri. If I want to cut something, I may use one of my kitchen knives or a pocket knife.
I prefer fixed blades for carving.
If you have ever cut yourself by a slip blade that closed on your finger, then you will understand and appreciate lockbacks or linerlocks.
I see locking blades as a safety device.
I certainly don't think of any pocket knife as a tough, hard use blade. If I have to carry a knife in a sheath, I'd rather have a fixed blade, unless I plan on fishing or sitting with it.