Pocket knife
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A pocket knife is a folding knife with a blade that fits inside the handle and that is small enough to fit in a pocket. Blades are typically no larger than 3 to 5 in. (8 to 13 cm) in length. Pocket knives are very versatile tools, and may be used for anything from opening an envelope, to cutting twine, to slicing an apple.
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[edit] Slipjoint knives
Most pocket knives for light duty are slipjoints. This means that the blade does not lock, but, once opened, is held in place by a spring device that allows the blade to fold if a certain amount of pressure is applied.
These knives often have more than one blade, including an assortment of knife blade types (serrated, plain edged, saws) as well as a myriad of other tools such as bottle openers, corkscrews, and scissors. A large tool selection is the signature of the Swiss Army Knife. These knives are produced by Victorinox and Wenger and issued to the army and sold to the public. The German Army knife is large but light, with two blades opening from each side. It has hard plastic grips and aluminum liners. The United States Army knife, made by the Camillus Cutlery Company, used to have carbon steel blades and brass liners (both vulnerable to corrosion), but is now more durable with all-stainless steel construction. It has four blades opening from the same side. The handle, as manufactured, has rough edges, but these can be rounded, yielding an excellent and versatile knife.
Some names of blade shapes are:
- Clip—the upper part of the blade is cut away to form a sharp point directly in front of the handle.
- Spear—edge and back curve together to a point
- Pen—similar to a spear but smaller
- Sheep's foot—wide with straight edge and no point, common on boats and ships
- Spay or spey—clipped at the back to form a sort of point, but the clip is very short. These were originally for castrating live stock and are used for delicate work.
There are many traditional types of folding knives:
A pen knife is a small and often thin knife with one or two pen blades, that does not interfere with the appearance of dress clothes, when carried in a pocket. They were originally intended for making and sharpening quill pens but are versatile and have remained fairly common. Knives with three or four knife blades are also common. A whittler is slightly larger than a pen knife and has tree blades. A stockman has a clip, a sheep's foot and a spay blade. They are usually middle-sized. A trapper is large, with a clip and a spay blade.
The Leathermans and similar combination tools now compete with multi-bladed knives, but most of these are rather large for carrying in a pocket. The "main blade" is typically a pair of pliers and there is typically one non-locking knife blade.
[edit] Locking knives
The 1900s brought a new system to the knife world with the popularization of locking pocket knives. Companies such as Buck Knives, Benchmade, Camillus, Gerber, Kershaw, Leatherman, Spyderco, to name a few, have created a wide range of products with locks of all types. The most popular form, the lockback knife (or buck knife) is similar to a slipjoint, except that instead of the user releasing the blade with pressure, the user has to press on a lever located on the back of the knife handle to release the blade, adding a level of safety. There are other types of locks; some of the more popular ones are the liner lock, the frame lock, and the Axis lock (a Benchmade patent). Even the Swiss Army knife product range has adopted the locks on some knives. Leatherman tools are now available with locking blades.
Most locking knives have only one blade, as large as can be fit in the handle. An electrician's knife typically has a locking screwdriver blade but a non-locking knife blade.
[edit] Other features
Traditional knives were opened using nail-nicks, or slots where the user's fingernail would enter to pull the blade out of the handle. This became somewhat cumbersome and required use of two hands, so there were innovations to remedy that. The thumb-stud, a small stud on the blade that allows for one-handed opening, led the way for yet more innovations, such as the opening hole (a Spyderco patent where the user presses the pad of his thumb against a hole and opens the blade by rotating his thumb similarly to using the thumb-stud), "assisted opening" systems pioneered by Ken Onion and his "Speed-Safe" mechanism, as well as the Emerson Wave system, where a hook catches the user's pocket upon removal and the blade is opened during a draw. One of the first one handed devices was the automatic spring release, also known as a switchblade.
Another innovation of Sal Glesser, Spyderco founder, was the clip system, which he named a "Clip-it". Clips are usually metal or plastic and similar to the clips found on pens except thicker. Clips allow the knife to be easy to accessible, while keeping it lint-free and unscathed by pocket items such as coins.
[edit] Legal issues
- Wikipedia is not a reliable source of legal advice. Always check your local laws.
Nearly all pocket knives are legal to own in most countries, but they increasingly face legal restrictions on their use. While pocket knives are almost always used as tools, they do have the potential to become weapons. In many places it is illegal to conceal knives larger than a certain size, or with certain locking or opening mechanisms. They are often banned or heavily restricted in secure areas, such as schools and airports. Switchblades and other "auto-openers" are banned from interstate shipment by the U.S. Government and prohibited entirely in many places, including 37 US states, though nearly all statutes prohibiting switchblades allow an exception permitting ownership by the one-handed. It is illegal to carry knives of any type with blades over 3 inches in the UK[1], unless with good reason[2].
Nevertheless, they retain a significant following, associated especially with the outdoors and those who enjoy camping, hunting, fishing, and so on. The Boy Scouts offer merit badges that involve knife work, such as Wood Carving.
[edit] References
- ^ Westminster University UK Legislation page. Retrieved on 2006-11-05.
- ^ British Knife Collectors Guild 'The Law' page. Retrieved on 2006-11-19.
