Thumb hole, stud or disk

Well, I'm really surprised that this discussion has gone on for so long with no mention of the issues I'm going to bring up.
I really prefer the thumb hole, if it's done well - yes, I've seen knives with small or chamfered thumb holes that are awkward or difficult to use, but I've also seen knives with small disks and smooth studs, making them hard to use. But the thumb hole technique, when done well, has one MAJOR advantage over any other type of opener - it doesn't get in the way!
I have had problems in two ways with non-thumb-hole knives:
1) When making deep draw-cuts, such as through canvas or cardboard. If you're using a blade-down ice-pick hold and pulling the blade toward you, the blade just naturally moves into the material toward the handle, and the stud or disk gets hung up in the material.
2) Sharpening - the stud or disk will interfere with some sorts of sharpening mechanisms, or just stropping. Obviously the hole can't interfere in any way.

If they are well designed, you can get a snappy open with any of the three mechanisms after you get a little practice, but only the hole has the advantage of keeping totally out of the way.

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I like holes, especially if they're big. Spyderco's Military (which has a monster of a hole) is much easier to open than their Howard Viele (which has a relatively small hole). In general, I think holes are the best because they: 1.) are quickest and easiest to deploy (in my opinion, at least), 2.) are ambidextrous, 3.) do not get in your way when cutting, and 4.) allow you to open your knife with gloves on.

However, good design counts for quite a lot. Thumb discs like Bob Terzuola's work real well. As far as studs go, I like designs where they double as blade stops (ex: Benchmade Sentinel, MicroTech SOCOM) because it results in a shorter throw and gives the least interference while cutting.

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Win
Knife lover, Philosopher, Humanitarian, and All-around nice guy
(all right, so I'm just a knife lover)
 
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