The Evil Slipjoint

FlaMtnBkr said:
Haven't read the whole thread but I have had a knife close on my fingers 3 times I can remember through the years, all with locks that failed. All were me pressing into something with the tip with some force. I now won't own cheap knives (once) and don't trust liner and frame locks (the other two times).
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Maybe for that sort of tasks you should consider using a fixed blade?
There are plenty of options for EDCing a neck or pocket carry fixed blade:
ESEE Izula
ESEE Izula II
Becker BK-11
Becker BK-14 EsKabar
etc
You've already discovered that cheap knives, liner lock knives & frame lock knives can't be trusted, it doesn't seem like a big leap to stop trusting folding knives for pressing hard with the tip and switch to your EDC fixed blade for those tasks.

I feel that all of us could get away with a fixed blade + a slipjoint without any problems or danger. I do own locking folders and I do like them, but I never trust them with my fingers - I try to handle them the same as I would handle a slipjoint.
 
Got myself with a Buck Stockman when I was young. I still have a visible scar on my right index finger. Good reminder. I was doing something unsafe due to age and inexperience. Learned a good lesson about slippies. Even if the knife has a lock, I treat it like a slippie.

Slippies are not evil. They just like to bite you if you don't treat them right.

My son's first knife is a SAK. i want him to become comfortable with a slippie and not dependent on a lock.

Ric
 
Generally, if it needs large amounts of poking, prying, twisting, hacking, etc. I find some other tool to use besides my pocket knife. Pocket knives, regardless of the occurrence of a lock, are precision tools intended for fine work. I wouldn't use a chisel to split an oak round.

That being said, I still use my SAK to drill holes in a hearthboard. I just pinch the blade (same as I do my BRKTs and ESEEs) to avoid putting undue stresses on the knife.

A basic understanding of physics should suffice to keep the user from injuring themselves. However, we all end up doing stupid stuff with our knives and occasionally we get bit as a result of our transgressions.
 
The guy not having a carry knife with him all the time proves one thing! He does not need one to get through the day. You gave him a nice knife though!
 
chouse said:
The guy not having a carry knife with him all the time proves one thing! He does not need one to get through the day.
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I reckon that's true. I still don't understand it though. I use my knife many times every day. Guess I don't need to but...:rolleyes:
 
chouse said:
The guy not having a carry knife with him all the time proves one thing! He does not need one to get through the day. You gave him a nice knife though!
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Most adults in developed countries can make it through a day without a knife on them. But when they do, it is knifenuts to the rescue! I get a warm feeling helping people do things they need assistance with.

Most of my daily tasks are easily done with a slipjoint, but cutting thick cardboard feels a lot safer with a locking folder. I've had close calls trying to free up a SAK in heavy cardboard, and don't use one for that if I have a locking blade on me.

Here in CA, concealed FB's are illegal IIRC, and sheathed belt knives are inconvenient in town. A locking one-hand folder meets a practical need for me.
 
my SAK tinker is the worlds worst, but i use it in all aspects of my job so it's abused every hour for atleast 12 hours a day and i can't count the times the blade, screwdriver or some other tool on it has closed on my fingers allowing me to practice my curse words...but I still carry it daily because it's the best damn knife I have.
 
Had one close on me when I was in 3rd grade I think. Love SAK's and small Leatherman's to go along with a larger lock blade.
 
I'd never even think about picking up any knife that doesn't lock. A few years ago I was opening a box with an old slipjoint and the damn thing snapped shut on my fingers chopping the ligaments on my index and middle finger. To this day I still have trouble moving those two fingers normally.
 
I have had a knife close on my hand.

Quite recently, actually... It was a Kershaw Tanto Blur that I was misusing terribly. It was the first time I've needed stitches for a self-inflicted wound, come to think of it. Cut right into the bone and needed four stitches. In hindsight, it was probably because I got overconfident that the lock wouldn't fail so I started doing something that would generally be very unsafe with a folding knife. If it had been a slipjoint or something, I probably would have been more careful...

On that note, I've never had a non-locking folder close on my hand. I've known a few people who have closed their knives on their hands (ie: they were closing their knives and accidentally got their fingers/hands in the path of the blade), but the only other time I've heard of someone's locking knife closing on their hand was a case of a friend using his POS folder to pry open a paint can.
 
BackwoodsBummin' said:
Welcome, Atraleo.

Accidents do happen, as it seems you have discovered. But I think that you would admit that the accident was a result of your carelessness and not a fault of the knife design.

I would think that a 50 something year old hunter (the pops-in-law to be) would understand something like that. I wouldn't expect him to earnestly repeat some uninformed hearsay as fact.
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I will definitely admit that it was pure carelessness. With many things that involve some risk, I always say that as soon as you disrespect the nature of the "beast" it will be in that moment that it bites you. Well, I wont be making that mistake again. Haha.
 
People are so different in many ways. And there is no use to teach those who do not feel they need to learn. So I just try to respect them for the good qualities and the skills they do have, or avoid those who do not have any.
The man knows next to nothing about knives - so what! He has managed to survive for quite a number of years, so the chances that he hurts himself continuing not knowing about knives and not carring them are quite slim. On another hand the chances that he hurts himself with the new tool he is not used to and does not appreciate could be quite substantial.
This is pretty much the case of buying a present to somebody using your own value system. No harm in that. But some say that a good present must be something you would never buy for yourself. :)
 
if you use it correctly and that means to cut, you'll never have a problem
if they were dangerous they wouldn't have existed for nearly 2 centuries

been using slipjoint knives for 20 years probably, since I was 5 or so and none close on my fingers, oh...and I use them to CUT
Maxx
 
I guess you can all dispense with you airbags since ya'll planning to use your cars correctly.

Oh and while you're at it, cut off those pesky seatbelts too.
 
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singularity35 said:
I guess you can all dispense with you airbags since ya'll planning to use your cars correctly.

Oh and while you're at it, cut off those pesky seatbelts too.
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Haha, that might be kind of witty, except I don't have to worry about drunk drivers, stupid buggers who fall asleep at the wheel, deer/moose running out in front of my car, morons who think using their cellphone while driving is perfectly safe, or someone going full-retard and crashing his/her motor vehicle into me ever time I operate my pocket knife. :rolleyes: Maximum analogy fail.
 
Dorito Monk said:
Haha, that might be kind of witty, except I don't have to worry about drunk drivers, stupid buggers who fall asleep at the wheel, deer/moose running out in front of my car, morons who think using their cellphone while driving is perfectly safe, or someone going full-retard and crashing his/her motor vehicle into me ever time I operate my pocket knife. :rolleyes: Maximum analogy fail.
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I guess without all these idiots and disasters that you'll never make an error huh? Pretty dang good! :p

And oh, airbags and seat belts are relatively recent innovations which people have not been equipped with for a long time. So taking your logic further, seatbelt and airbags are not necessary because poeple have done without them for a long time. :p

The point is, that your argument that seatbelts and airbags are third party insurance is a strawman. The second point is that seatbelts, airbags, and folder locks are insurance for when things go wrong no matter that you don't accept the fact that it is impossible for you to make a mistake.
 
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