What's the point of assisted open folder?

A long story but I will abbreviate: Years ago a friend got is arm caught in a corn picker and had to cut his forearm off at the elbow. I asked him what was the hardest part of cutting his arm off, he said getting my folder open with one hand. I well remember his words.
 
Ed Fowler said:
A long story but I will abbreviate: Years ago a friend got is arm caught in a corn picker and had to cut his forearm off at the elbow. I asked him what was the hardest part of cutting his arm off, he said getting my folder open with one hand. I well remember his words.
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WOW. OK, that is a horrifying thought... both getting your arm stuck in a corn picker and having to cut it off. Illustrates the point of an having an AO knife....
 
I've been spoiled by the A/Os now. Although I have had my Flash II open in my pocket, so I keep the safety on (not intending to use them for SD). I'm carrying a BM 581S right now - love it.
 
The thing people don't appreciated about an assisted open is how easy they are to open and how consistent they are. Just move that blade past the point where the spring takes over and that's it. With a manual you can always fumble with it and not get it quite open enough especially under stress. It's more full proof from a technique perspective.
 
Only time I ever fail to open a knife is with non-assisted no-bearing flippers like my Nirk Tighe or XM-18. Aside from that, opening has been pretty much 100% consistent. As well the only knife I can't open with one hand are those old fashioned knives with the nail nick(cannot for the life of me imagine what the point of that nail nick is).

And I sometimes find that the AO mechanism provides more resistance that if it was just a manual opener, best case for that being my BM 581 VS my BM 710-1. Gimmicky for the most part, but I can see why no one would attempt to have a ZT 0301 as a manual opener:thumbup:. Might have better possibilities for fat-bladed tank flippers.
 
This is kind of like the argument people would have, manual or auto gear box

They both have their pros and cons. I can't afford 5 of each cars, but I can afford 5 of each knives, for different occasions.

For me, my most freq EDC are Spyderco Sage 2 and Benchmade 470 Emissary. Two similar knives but one is A/O and other isn't.
 
I haven't found that your average non-assisted opener is difficult to open or that I fumble with it.... I can't say I have had to open it "under pressure".... but I really can't imagine it would be that hard. In many cases, I feel non-assisted flippers are easier to open and you can actually do so faster than many AO knives.
 
Personally I bought a few Kershaw knives because they are perfect for when I walk my dog. I've got a large dog so if I need a knife in a hurry it would be tough to open a regular lock blade since I'm using one hand to hang onto the leash. With the AO Kershaw's I'm able to pull out my knife, open it with one hand, use it and even fold it back all with one hand. They are far more handy in this type of situation than just about any other knife. The only other option would be a fixed blade and those are generally far more bulky and difficult to carry.
 
OK,I'll say it....lazyness!
I'm a lazy sob & love my Kershaw Shallot with Speed Safe AO.
One hand open & close,nice solid frame lock & sexy recurve blade.What's not to like?
I've been EDCing my Shallot since I got it in 08 & haven't had any issues with it.
I love it & wouldn't carry anything else.
 
Ed Fowler said:
A long story but I will abbreviate: Years ago a friend got is arm caught in a corn picker and had to cut his forearm off at the elbow. I asked him what was the hardest part of cutting his arm off, he said getting my folder open with one hand. I well remember his words.
Click to expand...

After watching the movie 127 Hours, I threw out every "junk" knife we had. And I mean "junk," not just low-end or low-cost.

Every knife owner or user who has not seen the movie must do so. It will make you evaluate the composition of your collection.
 
Short answer: Instant one-handed deployment.

I've been EDCing a Kersaw Scallion for months and it never has opened in my pocket.

I used to think assisted opening was just a gimmick. No more. I now wish that more of my favorite knives had AO.
 
I like AO too, but restricting them is just another law. It seems like there is more and more laws, and there isnt a law that takes the old ones away.
 
I don't get what you don't get. It is very convenient to have a knife open quickly and reliably with 1 hand.

Most of these arguments are pretty feeble IMO. You can get good A/O knives starting around $30, if that is too expensive for someone then maybe knife buying shouldn't be part of their budget to begin with. Likewise opening in the pocket seems a straw man--what in my pocket is going to push this knife open? You could say the same about any knife that doesn't lock shut. Post above is the 1st time I've ever even heard of this happening.

Yes the spring can wear out or break. But what people seem to miss when making this argument is that even with my broken spring, I STILL have a functional knife! It's not like a/o spring failure makes the entire knife fall apart, I can still open it with the thumb stud or flipper the way you do a non-assisted opener, just as quickly.
 
I've carried AOs for at least 10 years. I would like to say, that it's never been an issue but, I did have one open in my pocket. It cut straight through my jeans and I didn't realise it until I sat down on a couch, at a car dealership. I heard the rip as it sliced through the arm of the couch. Luckily, they didn't seem to care that much. It probably would have been a different story, if it had been the leather seat of one of their SUVs. Anyway, once in 10 years isn't that bad a record.
 
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