Why have locking single-blade folders replace stockman/barlow/pen style knives?

As has already been mentioned, the reasons include one-handed opening, pocket clip, locking blade, ease of use, etc.
 
I tried to use a traditional for a while. I even ordered one special, just to see how it went-- a Case large stockman in CV, carried exclusively for about 3 weeks. I just couldn't get around the... inconvenience of using it. Say what you will about tradition, aesthetics, or "warmth," it was just a nuisance to have to put down what I was working on, fish down to the bottom of my pocket, dodge my keys, fingernail open the blade I used (pretty much exclusively the clip point, never had a need for the spey or sheepsfoot), have the blade slip closed on occasion before I could open it all the way, finally get the blade out, pick up where I was when I needed to cut something, it was just a hassle compared to a blade that was always accessible, infinitely easier to open, more comfortable in my hand when I needed to put a little oomph into cutting through heavier plastic... it was really no contest. I wasn't out to enjoy the experience of using the same blade my great-grandpappy would have used, I just wanted to get work done and get it done without breaking my workflow. Traditionals just can't fulfill my needs.
 
I got my first lock back in the 1980's. But I never carried one much till I was in Grad school. I still Carry Trandtion daily.
 
If ease of use, convenience, accessibility and strength are the major concerns a small traditional fixed blade, like a Bird & Trout knife would be ideal.

In the end ya carry what ya like, just as long as you carry, the less people see knives bein' used in everyday tasks the easier it is for them to imagine a world where there is no need to carry a knife and that's a world I don't wanna be a part of.
 
Hickory n steel said:
People are in such a hurry these days that they can't even stand to spend one extra second opening their knife, even though whatever they're cutting will still be there in need of cutting a second later ( obviously life or Death situations are a different story )
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I usually don't jump into many threads like this, and nothing against you Hickory, but I hear stuff like this so much it just has started to grind my gears haha. I do a lot of audio engineering, lighting, stage setup, etc. for bands (some pretty big names lumped in there) and when you've got "X" amount of time to get wire ran and tied and whatnot that saved time is important, especially if its a larger scale show (think Rammstein). The more efficiently I can use my time the better; for the client and myself. Its not just because of "being in such a hurry." My time is valuable to me so the better I can utilize it efficiently the more it pays off in the end.

To end this lengthy post, I carry a traditional from time to time as more of a beater just because I know if its something sketchy/risky I need it for its a lot easier to replace a $30 Case. On the other hand I'm quick to give away said Case knives to non-knife havers as well haha.
 
T. Erdelyi said:
If ease of use, convenience, accessibility and strength are the major concerns a small traditional fixed blade, like a Bird & Trout knife would be ideal.

In the end ya carry what ya like, just as long as you carry, the less people see knives bein' used in everyday tasks the easier it is for them to imagine a world where there is no need to carry a knife and that's a world I don't wanna be a part of.
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I'll argue clipped modern folders beat belt knives for convenience as well as traditional folders. Hard to beat pick it up, slide it into your pocket. Fixed blade EDC also can be a complicated tangle of work limitations, legalities and social norms. Great option for many, though.
 
I tend to forget the need foe ease of access for work, when I was workin' full time as a mechanic I was quick to jump on the one hand opener. As I mentioned earlier I bought the first model Spyderco the C01 Worker which was quickly followed by a BM AFCK. Nowadays my urgency isn't there like it used to be. I don't find myself hangin' 30' off the found on a man lift or boom truck.

Now even though I reach for a traditional for 90% of my cuttin' chores I still always have a small Sebenza 21 clipped RFP just in case and I still check out and have modern one handers in fact I've been turned onto ZTs by a good friend and member here. I guess as I age and my needs change and my choices change my edc evolves but more than that I still carry both because the reality is in today's world there's no one definitive answer and the best solution is to carry both. That is at least for me the best solution.
 
People own more knives. Rampant consumerism & higher standards of living mean we buy & own more knives. Collecting has become a valid pastime. We don't need to buy the one or two knives that will suit us, we can buy 5 or 10 knives a year & have an EDC rotation.
I suppose I'm saying the OP's use of "replacement" may be incorrect: we all own a crapload of knives of many different kinds.
 
People asserting that traditionals cannot be one hand opened are showing a pretty serious lack of knowledge. There's a word for that - lack of knowledge - and due to a lack of coffee it's escaping me.

Regardless, Opinels, Sodbusters, EO Jacks and lockbacks like the Buck 110 can all be easily opened one handed. It's not like workers around the world were dropping their work on the floor to dig out their folding knife for the past many centuries until Glassner came up with the Spydie hole. If people are having a hard time opening a traditional knife one handed then a) they're using the wrong pattern and/or b) the simply don't know how to.

@Hickory N Steel: You're too young to remember this probably but the Buck 110 was THE tacitcool knife of the Vietnam war generation and became the predominant knife on the belt of construction workers, soldiers, cops and...wait for it...biker gangs during the 70s and well into the 80s. Related, the Buck 119 has the dubious honor of having been used in more slasher horror movies than any other knife, by virtue of it's (perhaps inaccurate) association with the Manson murders. There is a reason why the 110 and 119 have been perennial best sellers for Buck and it's not because the 110 and 119 are the best possible hunting knives. As Buck's top end hunting designs show (Omni, Vanguard, Open Season), the drop point or skinner type blade is better for most hunting uses. The 110 and 119 sell because the blade looks menacing. Just compare the stock 110 to the drop point variants.
 
Sosa said:
Thanks for your contribution your majesty. show us some pics of your slip joint cutting sacks of cement.
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Just get an Opinel #10 and ignore the locking.

You may need to read up on how to adjust the pivot tension of a friction folder, but you can bury an Opinel in sand or concrete mix or whatever and it will still open and close just fine.

Ah..Next you are going to tell me that you want to stab into bags of concrete with you locking folders whose mechanism is fouled with concrete?
 
To quote Henry Ford "If I asked the people what they wanted they would have said a faster horse." Modern folders eclipse traditional folders in many ways as they tend have better ergonomics(PM2), steel(rare to find anything better than CPM-154 in traditionals), pocket stability as a result of their pocket clip, and perhaps most importantly their lock provides a security that a nice backspring cannot offer.
 
I understand that traditional style knives may not be for everyone, but I see a lot of ignorance and misconception being spread here.

A traditional folder will do any cutting task just as good (often better) than many "modern" knives. If you wanna chop, pry, stab, spine whack, etc. then get a fixed blade (or use your folder, I guess:rolleyes:).

I carry both a clipped folder and a traditional everyday. The modern folder is "quicker" to strip a wire or what not, but a traditional will complete the same task but maybe take 2 seconds longer...the agony! Typically, a traditional will have better blade geometry and cut more efficiently regardless of steel type. A 1/4" of M390 sooper-steel ain't gonna cut any better than a 3/32" traditional with 1095, and that's a fact!
 
Blues Bender said:
I understand that traditional style knives may not be for everyone, but I see a lot of ignorance and misconception being spread here.

A traditional folder will do any cutting task just as good (often better) than many "modern" knives. If you wanna chop, pry, stab, spine whack, etc. then get a fixed blade (or use your folder, I guess:rolleyes:).

I carry both a clipped folder and a traditional everyday. The modern folder is "quicker" to strip a wire or what not, but a traditional will complete the same task but maybe take 2 seconds longer...the agony! Typically, a traditional will have better blade geometry and cut more efficiently regardless of steel type. A 1/4" of M390 sooper-steel ain't gonna cut any better than a 3/32" traditional with 1095, and that's a fact!
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True dat :thumbup:
 
Blues Bender said:
I understand that traditional style knives may not be for everyone, but I see a lot of ignorance and misconception being spread here.

A traditional folder will do any cutting task just as good (often better) than many "modern" knives. If you wanna chop, pry, stab, spine whack, etc. then get a fixed blade (or use your folder, I guess:rolleyes:).

I carry both a clipped folder and a traditional everyday. The modern folder is "quicker" to strip a wire or what not, but a traditional will complete the same task but maybe take 2 seconds longer...the agony! Typically, a traditional will have better blade geometry and cut more efficiently regardless of steel type. A 1/4" of M390 sooper-steel ain't gonna cut any better than a 3/32" traditional with 1095, and that's a fact!
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Very true!:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
 
mtangent said:
People own more knives. Rampant consumerism & higher standards of living mean we buy & own more knives. Collecting has become a valid pastime. We don't need to buy the one or two knives that will suit us, we can buy 5 or 10 knives a year & have an EDC rotation.
I suppose I'm saying the OP's use of "replacement" may be incorrect: we all own a crapload of knives of many different kinds.
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I feel pretty comfortable saying that modern knives outsell traditional knives (at least 2x and probably 4x). Collecting knives has been a hobby for many many years. It didn't just start with the 'me' generation. Whether or not you choose to buy and use a traditional knife is up to you. As Pinnah said in his post, I don't think workers have been ill served by traditional knives for the last 200 years. It is a matter of taste and perceived convenience.

Consumerism is part of the equation in terms of what and how many knives are acquired by folks that like and use them. You actually think that carrying two pocket knives is something new? It didn't start with pocket clips and modern knives.

The biker gangs liked the Buck 110. Switch blades were made illegal to carry from their media exposure in the 50's. I however carried a Schrade 250T back when everyone who worked outside needed to carry a "110".
 
pinnah said:
People asserting that traditionals cannot be one hand opened are showing a pretty serious lack of knowledge. There's a word for that - lack of knowledge - and due to a lack of coffee it's escaping me.

Regardless, Opinels, Sodbusters, EO Jacks and lockbacks like the Buck 110 can all be easily opened one handed. It's not like workers around the world were dropping their work on the floor to dig out their folding knife for the past many centuries until Glassner came up with the Spydie hole. If people are having a hard time opening a traditional knife one handed then a) they're using the wrong pattern and/or b) the simply don't know how to.

@Hickory N Steel: You're too young to remember this probably but the Buck 110 was THE tacitcool knife of the Vietnam war generation and became the predominant knife on the belt of construction workers, soldiers, cops and...wait for it...biker gangs during the 70s and well into the 80s. Related, the Buck 119 has the dubious honor of having been used in more slasher horror movies than any other knife, by virtue of it's (perhaps inaccurate) association with the Manson murders. There is a reason why the 110 and 119 have been perennial best sellers for Buck and it's not because the 110 and 119 are the best possible hunting knives. As Buck's top end hunting designs show (Omni, Vanguard, Open Season), the drop point or skinner type blade is better for most hunting uses. The 110 and 119 sell because the blade looks menacing. Just compare the stock 110 to the drop point variants.
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pinnah hits on the gorilla in the room that few talk about. The weapon aspect.

I witnessed the growth of the Buck 110 in the late 60's, before a lot of you were born. By the 1970's is was actually at one time advertised in Iron Horse magazine as the 'Official Biker knife' to carry. It became far more notorious than famous in those days as a weapon. Like Dave said, it was the first choice of the Manson gang and other high profile murders. Police evidence roomshad many on the shelves. In the 1980's Lynn Thompson got on the bandwagon and pretty much started the tactical knife trend. His advertising of being able to drive a knife of his through a car door was an advertising of how well the lock will hold up in a stabbing situation. The ball started rolling and didn't stop.

I do believe that a large number of the so called modern knives are sold to young guys who think they need a weapon to bolster them up. Like the switchblades of the James dean era, that I also am old enough to remember, it becomes a badge of status, of "cool" factor.

Yes, some people really do like the one hand opening feature and use it on the job, but in the past workmen just used a sliding blade Stanley Utility knife. But that's no cool factor, so the tactical knife is a tool/weapon of choice. And there is a weapon factor. I see so many posts in this forum about needing a knife "in case someone gets on me" that I think there is a huge uncounted number of sales just for that reason. It's funny that in the past, there were single blade knives with locks, but they never gained that much popularity with working men that made livings as plumbers, carpenters, cowboys, sailors, and freight wagon drivers. They had locking blade knives well back in the 1800's, but knives like the premium stock knife and barlow outsold them. This was when people were out there doing real work in the outdoors, not in some air conditioned office cubicle.

I grew up in the 1950's, and I have a clear memory of seeing Schrade and Hammer brand switchblades in the case at the hardware store. They were legal then, and you could buy a two blade Schrade with both blades being spring operated. Yet they didn't sell that well. By the time switchblades were banned, most stores had stopped stocking them because they were not moving. It was a different era and men then had a different outlook. Most men of that era looked down on a knife as a "punks weapon" to paraphrase my Uncle Charlie. The most common knife of that era was the small two blade jack or pen style of pocket knife. If a man though the needed a weapon, he'd either carry a gun or stick a blackjack in his back pocket. They were legal then, and I had some family members that swore by them. Like my Uncle Charlie, who worked for the government printing office in Washington D.C., down on North capital street. Not a neighborhood to be in at night, yet he worked the night shirt as a press mechanic. Somehow he survived as did the rest of us back then with no magic one hand opening knife with a lock that can hold the weight of a deuce and a half.

Times change and people don't drive stick shift cars anymore, or use revolvers. Yet those have their fans to this day. Each to their own. If you just want a cutting tool, any piece of sharp steel will do. The bells and whistles that are highly hyped are questionable options. Some feel a need, others don't. But the weapon aspect of the sales hype of the tactical knife is undeniable.
 
22-rimfire said:
The biker gangs liked the Buck 110. Switch blades were made illegal to carry from their media exposure in the 50's. I however carried a Schrade 250T back when everyone who worked outside needed to carry a "110".
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I have pretty much the Buck equivalent of that Schrade, a 317 I think it is. I HATE that thing, as it will fold up on you in a heartbeat if you're not simply cutting with it.
 
I have a AG Russell large Sowbelly Trapper that is very prone to fold back on you if you are not simply push cutting. It has what I would call a weak spring and no half stop. I like the knife, but it has never really gotten used much in the last year since I bought it. As far as folding back on you, I guess all I can say is knives are designed to cut stuff. A knife like the Sowbelly would be a poor weapon for stabbing. I would actually rather use a SAK for that which is also a poor weapon. The weapon factor is a significant sales driver especially with the sub-30 year old crowd (probably sub-20 mostly). If I am that worried about protection, I carry a gun as it has a bit more reach than a knife and you're less likely to get blood all over you. But if you want to carry a knife as a potential weapon, carry a fixed blade.

I don't recall my Schrade 250T ever folding back on me. But that is not to say it couldn't.
 
Because I most often need my knife when I'm in the stock room, and in that situation, I often have something in one hand already, so one handed opening is pretty much mandatory. Likewise, I have enough crap in my pockets as is, I don't need more crap rattling around in there, so pocket clips are likewise useful. And while I don't find locking blades mandatory, I do feel better/safer knowing the blade IS locked.

Has nothing to do with being "tactical", iit has nothing to do with "use as a weapon", it has nothing to do with "self defense", it has to do with functionality.

Yes, in the old days, people got by with Barlows and stockmans. And they also got by with horses and wagons, and soldiers got by with muzzle loaders. Times change, better tech emerges.
 
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