Introduction
Perhaps the most unsung heroes of all tools are folding knives. From pocket to full-sized multi-tools, these knives are discreet and safely folded up to prevent needless accidents. After all, most adults remember when they received their first pocket folding knife, right?
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, with blades no larger than 3 to 5 in. in length. These knives are very versatile tools, and can be used for anything from opening an envelope, to cutting rope, to slicing fruit.
A pocket or folding knife is one of the most useful tools and can be practical for camping, hiking, woodworking and first-aid kits. They are very popular because they can also hide and store specialized tools, such as pliers, tweezers, files and secondary blades.
Most light duty pocket knives are slip joints, which means the blade does not lock, but once it's opened it locks in place by a spring device that allows the blade to fold with a certain amount of pressure applied.
Locking Pocket Knives became popular in the 1900's. Companies like Buck, Benchmade, Camillus, Gerber, Kershaw Letherman and Spyderco, to name a few, have created a wide range of products with locks of all types. This most popular form is similar to a slip joint, except that instead of the user releasing the blade with pressure, the user has to press on a lever 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.
Because of their extreme usefulness, many people keep pocket knives hooked on keychains, lanyards and ropes. They are perfect for glove boxes and medical kits in addition to boats, RV's, fishing tackle boxes and hunting tool kits. Pocket knives make great gifts for young adults, fishermen, craftsmen, or friends looking to always have a toothpick, nail file or box-opening blade handy.
How to choose the right pocket knife will depend on your needs. If you want something to carry around with you at all times, a smaller, multipurpose pocket knife might be best. For professionals, a nice engraved pocket knife that has a knife and possibly a few other tools will be perfect. They can be purchased at home improvement stores, accessory stores and knife stores. Executive pocket knives can fit into a purse or briefcase easily and look elegant as well. They retail between ten and fifty dollars and can be personalized as well.
For more practical knives, such as a kind you may keep in your automobile or for use on camping trips, go for the multi tool pocket knives. The Swiss Army knives are the most popular and there are a variety of sizes available. These tools range from approximately thirty dollars to two hundred dollars. There are multiple tools that will go with them such as different sized blades, nail file, scissors, saw, corkscrew, screwdriver, can opener, toothpick, tweezers and magnifying glass among other options. The multi tool pocket knives are a little thicker than smaller knives but they still are small enough to fit into a pocket, purse, briefcase or backpack.