Tip up vs tip down.

irishpunk

irishpunk

Joined
Jul 29, 2010
Messages
41
Hey all, I hear a lot of talk about tip up vs tip down, what are the benefits of each one ? I have some of each, and can tell no advantage in either one. Thanks for any opinions on this matter.
 
Preference of carry is simply for convenience, sometimes safety.

What I do is, first, I put it in my pocket tip up to test: If the knife is short enough (or rides high enough) that when I reach for it, my thumb lands right on top of the stud/hole/plate, it stays tip up. Otherwise, tip down.

Flippers and Waves are always tip up.

That's just me though.
 
It depends on the knife, like nopyo said. I prefer tip-down so my thumb is automatically in the hole / on the thumbstud as I grab the knife, and I don't have to shimmy my hand up the knife to open it.
 
on small to mid sized knives i can see benefits either way, it's up to you.

On larger knives(4.5" handle or more) tip down is king.

I was firmly a tip up guy until I got my Spyderco Military where tip down is clearly so much more efficient. Otherwise you have to reposition your hand multiple times just to get it open.
 
I've always liked tip up carry. It feels right and it makes for much smoother to draw for me.
 
nopyo said:
Preference of carry is simply for convenience, sometimes safety.

What I do is, first, I put it in my pocket tip up to test: If the knife is short enough (or rides high enough) that when I reach for it, my thumb lands right on top of the stud/hole/plate, it stays tip up. Otherwise, tip down.

Flippers and Waves are always tip up.

That's just me though.
Click to expand...

Same with me. However I typically go tip down when I carry in my back pocket as I have had a few knives open on me.
 
there is a personal preference aspect that I cant speak for, one just may feel more natural to you

however, i'd like to point out that if you have absolutely no preferences at all, then go with tip up, as more knives are made with tip-up only, than tip-down only
 
Personal preference really. Every knife I had till the ka-bar dozier which I got less than a month ago was tip down. Now I have a tip up knife, it is still slow to draw. My definition of slow which is still lightning fast for most people, probably takes me about another half a second if that in reality compared to a tip down knife. Doesn't feel as natural to me.
 
I think it depends on shape of the knife. My first knife AFCK tip down only and it's perfect that way because the knife's slim profile, easy to access for opening. Spyderco PM2 tip up makes more sense because of the width of the knife around the spydiehole. When i had the PM2 tip down I kept scraping my hand on the jimping when going for the keys which was annoying. IMO having a knife tip down is faster to deploy the way I grab it, but I guess it all depends on what your training is.
 
I like tip up better because your thumb falls right on the Spydie hole or thumb stud when deploying the knife. However, I carry a pocket gun on my strong side, so my EDC folder rides in my weak/left side pocket. In that configuration, tip down works better because I have to transfer the knife from my left to right hand. I have also been stabbed more than a few times from knives opening in my pocket with tip up carry (usually when keys, etc. get in the Spydie hole), and tip down carry resolves that problem.
 
I always carry tip up except for afew smaller knives that don't give me the option. I find it is easier to draw. I could see the use of tip down on larger knives but only if the handle was redicously long and didn't have a wave or the old steel thumb plate thing.
 
tip up you haved to "climb" up the handle to get a good grip on the knife. maybe 3" handle folders you dont but anything longer...I prefer tip down as mentioned it puts your index and thumb at the pivot and the handle naturally drops into the palm and your thumb is where it needs to be to open the blade. but I carry any liner or comp. lock folder tip up with the blade spine tight against the outside of my pocket. Seems like blade detents and retentions is gettinig lighter and weaker these days cause everyon has to have a lightning fast deployment to fend off all those ninjas. I have had blades open in pocket. I dont know whats worse a blade opening tip down or tip up. I just picture the blade going into my thigh . had it go into my finger tip up when it wasnt clipped properly. I wish there folders with more robust detents which is why I prefer lockbacks for blade retention when closed.
 
I've fought this fight with a lot of people. People that like tip down usually will have a reason related to how the knife works with their draw. People that like tip up usually feel stronger about it but don't explain why.

My first Benchmades were tip down and it made sense to me according to how I did the draw. Then I bought a mini-grip which is tip up. It worked fine for me too. Then I bought newer longer folders that were tip up and I can not make them work. I've watched videos on youtube to try to understand and I've tried it with my own knives but have not learned how to make it work.

I think it is very much a personal preference thing. Obviously to me it depends on the size of the knife. It depends on the type of opening- thumbstud/thumbhole vs. flipper. It depends on which pocket you want to use, not everybody carries right front pocket. It also seems to depend on what type of clothing you are wearing. I wear tight jeans and you aren't getting anything more than your thumb into my pockets in addition to the knife. I've watched people on youtube trying to demonstrate tip up carry and they do it wearing loose sweatpants and even pajamas. Well if you have loose pockets and you can fit both hands in there then you can probably pull the knife out differently. And lastly some people are concerned about the knife opening in their pocket. Carried tip down with the knife oriented so that the blade is away from your hand and against the side of the pocket would seem to be safer in that regards.

So it is real easy to see how different people can justify different types of carry. I still don't understand how right-front pocket is more efficient. Someday when I get assistance I am going to take some photos of my carry and draw procedure and why tip up won't work for me. I would like for someone to post still photos of how they do tip up draw and opening so I can see how it works. The youtube videos are almost like a sleight of hand expert trying to show you something that doesn't exist in reality.

I own and carry big knives that are tip up and others that are tip down. Fortunately I don't need to pull them quickly for self defense as I would be lost with the tip up models. I find it interesting that Spyderco for instance sells knives that have both options, and some of them come from the factory set for tip up (Gayle Bradley folder) while others come from the factory set for tip down carry (Para 2).
 
For SD, tip up, for security and safety in a rugged environment, tip down.

This is one of the reasons I used to carry more than one knife clipped to my pockets.
 
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