Agreed. It's almost impossible to wave out of suit pants or other pants with slanted pockets. The wave hook needs a firm corner to function properly, so any fairly sturdy jeans or chinos with "jean-style" horizontal pockets will work well. Some chinos and cargo pants have slanted "dress-style" pockets, so if you intend to wave as your primary opening method, you might want to consider what kind of clothing you usually wear.
Waving from your strong-side front pocket is stupidly easy, and it takes only minutes to master. It's never a bad idea to start with a trainer, but I never bothered- it really was just that simple. Grab the handle scales firmly, tug sharply up and to the rear, and the blade slams out with a very confident
sssssnick! Some people also like to twist the handle slightly clockwise, and this may make it easier to wave out of pockets with more difficult shapes. Honestly, though, I cannot say enough good things about the wave. It is absolutely the fastest opening system available on any knife in the world- the blade is open exactly the moment it leaves your pocket. You will have an open blade and a ready knife before I've even touched the firing button on, say, my Auto SERE or Troodon.
Some people can even wave out of their strong-side back pocket, depending on how it's clipped in. That takes a little more practice, but it can be done. The wave's only weakness is that it
must be deployed out of a pocket. I've seen people come up with creative ways to wave; the most curious method involves using the fly of your jeans to catch the wave hook. I'm not sure I'd ever want the very pointy tip of my Mini 7B coming anywhere near my bedroom equipment, though. You cannot wave IWB, you cannot wave off a belt, and you probably will not be able to wave out of a pouch unless you use one of EKI's wave-feature holsters. In those instances, you'll have to fall back to the thumb disc, which is reliable and easy but quite a bit slower.
Regardless of how you open, you might be tempted to back out the pivot screw a little to let your blade open faster. Some say that's just a matter of taste, but I'll say
do not do it. You're sacrificing a lot of lockup strength and blade stability for what is, in the long run, only a small amount of additional speed. Tighten down the pivot screw as much as you can, so long as you can still thumb the blade out smoothly and easily. This is not a lockback or an Axis- don't expect the blade to flick out super fast. This is an Emerson, not a Benchmade, and you'll start to love it for what it is as you use it.
Final word on waving: while Ernie Emerson heartily allows waving and thumb/wrist-flicking to your heart's content, keep in mind that this
will cause accelerated wear on your stop pin and lock bar contact face. That may be important to you or it may not, since EKI are always happy to freshen up your knife for a small fee if you send it in. Just something to keep in mind.
:thumbup:
Works great, even when not expected! 