What constitutes a "tactical folder" in your opinion?

Nyfeguy said:
Hey man everyone can use a little understanding. I give it to get it! If people would just read a post before responding maybe we would be swirling in the chaos eh? Anyways I am glad you had the tools and training to come out of your jobs safely in the past and I am also glad you have options for today, gotta love the EDC:D
Click to expand...


Don't take anything in this thread personally. This type of discussion is par for the course here. Certain definitions have become so construed by personal option/opinion and mostly by marketing strategy's that knife companies use to sell as much as possible. This is a good place to be, the people are good and you will be hard pressed to find another site with so much knife info. My membership is maintained to solely support the site as an invaluable source of information and contacts for one of my favorite hobbies that I can still afford. Stick around, this place has tons to offer. Just ignore the curmudgeons, nothing to see here.:D
 
SOLEIL said:
LOL, gotta throw the BS flag on this one. There are plenty of so called "tactical" shovels and pens out there. There would be tactical pencils and butter knives if someone thought they would sell. There are tons of slipjoints that could fit into the "tactical" realm just by looks alone. You just don't get it, it is a label, not a style. At one time it may have been. But now it is just a selling point.
Click to expand...

Looks alone doesn't dictate "tactical". Yes, there are SOME tactical shovels and yes Cold Steel and other manufacturers make tactical pens. Tactical objects are DESIGNED specifically to do harm to another living being. So a sword isn't tactical? Its only INTENDED purpose is to kill people. A Cold Steel OSS isn't tactical? What is the main purpose of its design if not to injure or kill another being? I don't mean what it CAN be used to do, but what it was MADE to be used for. The logic you're going on, an AR-15 or an FN Five-seveN isn't tactical either. Tactical is definitely a style of blade.
 
BladesB4Firearms said:
Looks alone doesn't dictate "tactical". Yes, there are SOME tactical shovels and yes Cold Steel and other manufacturers make tactical pens. Tactical objects are DESIGNED specifically to do harm to another living being. So a sword isn't tactical? Its only INTENDED purpose is to kill people. A Cold Steel OSS isn't tactical? What is the main purpose of its design if not to injure or kill another being? I don't mean what it CAN be used to do, but what it was MADE to be used for. The logic you're going on, an AR-15 or an FN Five-seveN isn't tactical either. Tactical is definitely a style of blade.
Click to expand...

Looks alone apparently do dictate tactical. Use your ar-15 example. You can buy a .223 rifle with a wooden stock and the exact same capability and nobody would call it tactical. Hell, Remington even makes a black model 700 that they call their tactical model. Only difference is it's black. I think maybe we are confusing tactical and tacticool.
 
Surfingringo said:
Looks alone apparently do dictate tactical. Use your ar-15 example. You can buy a .223 rifle with a wooden stock and the exact same capability and nobody would call it tactical. Hell, Remington even makes a black model 700 that they call their tactical model. Only difference is it's black. I think maybe we are confusing tactical and tacticool.
Click to expand...

Yes, there is a difference between tactical and tacticool. As for the .223. Can a regular .223 hunting rifle hold 30 +1 rounds? Tactical is meant for the purpose, tacticool is to just look.. Well.. Tactical. When it may or may not actually be tactical. I think we may have this figured out :thumbup:
 
Surfingringo said:
Ahh, found a link. Don't believe? Here is Remington's model 700 "tactical" bolt action rifle. And in case you aren't sure if it's tactical or not, just read the description. Remington laser engraves the word tactical right there on the barrel!! ;)

http://ca.wholesalesports.com/store...rifles/model-700-sps-tactical/prod251845.html
Click to expand...

I can agree that it can be used as a selling point, and usually is. However, that isn't to say tactical knives/objects simply don't exist, or are based on looks over performance. The problem is everyone slapping "tactical" on everything, when it clearly isn't. You just have to wade through the BS to know what is tactical and what is tacticool :D
 
I agree with all the people saying that tactical is a marketing word; IMO it's equivalent to the grocery store term "all-natural." Tactical is too related to "situational" to actually carry a useful description. Case in point: a chef may find that a ceramic knife is tactical in the kitchen, as it will not affect the taste of food, but a camper will find a ceramic knife as useful as tits on a bull as the blade is way too brittle for any field work. Conversely, the same camper may find a folder to be tactical for stripping bark off kindling, but the chef will find the folder too short for efficient cutting and too thick for delicate tasks like cutting sashimi.
 
I just wait for nutnfancy to tell me what is or is not tactical... or to spray paint a knife and triple the price for me


maxresdefault.jpg


Thanks nutnfancy, where would we be without you :thumbup: :rolleyes:
 
BladesB4Firearms said:
Yes, there is a difference between tactical and tacticool. As for the .223. Can a regular .223 hunting rifle hold 30 +1 rounds? Tactical is meant for the purpose, tacticool is to just look.. Well.. Tactical. When it may or may not actually be tactical. I think we may have this figured out :thumbup:
Click to expand...

Would the Mantis Laser guided chopper be tactical or tacticool? I mean imagine the precision you could get when being guided by a laser :eek: ...

CompetitionCutter.jpg
 
An inanimate object really can't be "tactical." It can be tactile though, so that's what I consider a "tactical use" knife... Sure handed, light and fast.
 
Nyfeguy said:
About the paint, there was more to that than you may have realized. I was defending myself poorly. Long story short, you are right there is no difference but originally I was trying to say to another member color in itself does not make a tactical folder just like a Spyderhole doesn't make a tactical folder. Other qualities must be present as well, and that Must not have come across right. I am new to the forum and I obviously didn't see how my simple question was being steered into the path of that age old discussion, otherwise I may have been able to navigate it better. Anyway I got the information I wanted and your post here was helpful as well. Thank you.
Click to expand...

I'll give this one more shot, and let your thread continue in peace.

When you say that a Spyderhole and some other characteristics make/constitute/define a tactical folder, you are saying that any knife that does not possess all the characteristics on that list, like a ZT or Emerson, is not a tactical folder. I don't think anyone would make that claim. And, honestly, I don't believe you believe that either. Yet you keep claiming it. I'm sorry, but that's what make/constitute/define mean.

I mean, you can say "It's not a BLT without applewood smoked bacon." but its just not true. You got a sandwich with B, L, and T on it...and its a BLT regardless of one's preference for applewood smoked bacon. (and Hellmans/Best Foods mayo...Miracle Whip gak! ptui! :barf:)
 
SOLEIL said:
Don't take anything in this thread personally. This type of discussion is par for the course here. Certain definitions have become so construed by personal option/opinion and mostly by marketing strategy's that knife companies use to sell as much as possible. This is a good place to be, the people are good and you will be hard pressed to find another site with so much knife info. My membership is maintained to solely support the site as an invaluable source of information and contacts for one of my favorite hobbies that I can still afford. Stick around, this place has tons to offer. Just ignore the curmudgeons, nothing to see here.:D
Click to expand...

Not at all man, nothing personal here. I actually am glad i asked this volatile question, now I know a hot button topic and how the hell to avoid it In the future :D! Kidding aside, I got a lot of good info from everyone. If we weren't a community of thought provokers, good bad or otherwise, well it would be pretty boring wouldn't it? I am not going anywhere and I am looking forward to Many fine debates in the future. Than you specifically for the encouragement and have a good one!
 
-3.5" minimum blade length
-Handle material/design which promotes no-slip grip.
-Secure lock up under hard use
-Blade must deploy easily with either right or left hand.

That last one is particular to we conceal carry folks who SHOULD be carrying their knives on their weak side (opposite their gun side). I've gone almost exclusively to flippers now, but Spydie holes do make weak hand deployment pretty easy too.

-John
 
marcinek said:
I'll give this one more shot, and let your thread continue in peace.

When you say that a Spyderhole and some other characteristics make/constitute/define a tactical folder, you are saying that any knife that does not possess all the characteristics on that list, like a ZT or Emerson, is not a tactical folder. I don't think anyone would make that claim. And, honestly, I don't believe you believe that either. Yet you keep claiming it. I'm sorry, but that's what make/constitute/define mean.

I mean, you can say "It's not a BLT without applewood smoked bacon." but its just not true. You got a sandwich with B, L, and T on it...and its a BLT regardless of one's preference for applewood smoked bacon. (and Hellmans/Best Foods mayo...Miracle Whip gak! ptui! :barf:)
Click to expand...

I will try one more time to convey my meaning. Look back, post 1, I said these(my list, spyderhole, ect) are my personal requirements in a TF, and asked what other peoples requirements are. I did leave room for some generalization or accepted requisites, but it's all personal. Also, remember 'minimum' was also in that post. I'm sayin I do like applewood smoked bacon and I want to know what you put in your sandwich. Saying "did I miss anything?" Was my way of asking the question, maybe that was confusing in itself, but That's all Marcinek, no BS definitions, ect. Forget all that. I should not have even attempted to define anything but I was at a loss because I didn't realize "tactical" had so many implications for so many people. Make/constitute/define has the academic meaning but there is actually more room for a personal meaning in there as well. What do you think makes a great movie ? What do you think makes a sound investment plan? What do you think makes a hot chick? While there are base definitions, opinion will most often be the first response. I like IrAs! I like the money market, I like big boobs. Hardly ever is it a textbook definition, even though one may indeed exist. Your responses seem to indicate that there is indeed a definition, and you just don't like mine. That's ok if that's true, it's personal man!
I am not saying that what I look for in a TF is the only configuration possible. My question actually suggests there could be infinite more configs and that's what Im looking for. Many great folders out there fit the bill, but the things I threw out fit ME. My experience, my abilities, and my comfort level dictate these things are for me. So now I am asking, you PERSONALLY, Marcinek, what do you put on your BLT bro(ugh miracle whip:barf:)
 
Last edited:
Rolex John said:
-3.5" minimum blade length
-Handle material/design which promotes no-slip grip.
-Secure lock up under hard use
-Blade must deploy easily with either right or left hand.

That last one is particular to we conceal carry folks who SHOULD be carrying their knives on their weak side (opposite their gun side). I've gone almost exclusively to flippers now, but Spydie holes do make weak hand deployment pretty easy too.

-John
Click to expand...

Thank you very much John. I like your answer a lot.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top