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According to their site the assisted-opening knives are legal in all states, whereas switchblades aren't, so there must be some meaningful distinction (unless t
by mtraven 14y ago
According to their site the assisted-opening knives are legal in all states, whereas switchblades aren't, so there must be some meaningful distinction (unless the law just hasn't caught up yet).
- badgar 14y agoThe "meaningful distinction" is that "assisted-opening" knives require a non-zero amount of force in the direction that the knife actually opens. Switchblades can just have a button. The former takes a few minutes of practice to open smoothly, the latter doesn't. There's no reason to buy an assisted-opening knife if switchblades are also available. So yes, they absolutely exist to exploit a loophole. Loopholes in laws do tend to create (often short-lived) markets.
- anigbrowl 14y agoThe former takes a few minutes of practice to open smoothly, the latter doesn't. Having once owned a switchblade, it takes a bit of practice to hold it such a way that you can operate it but not block the path of the outswinging blade with your fingers. Watching the demonstration in this video, there doesn't seem to be any more force employed in operating the switch that there was in pressing the button. I agree that this is probably a short-lived thing that will fade away following a minor regulatory clarification.
- jlgreco 14y agoHaving used assisted opening knives, I can say with confidence that the practice is necessary to make yourself comfortable holding the knife while still being able to deliver the necessary, and not negligible, force to open the knife. They are really very little alike.
- badgar 14y agoTo be clear, the opening force almost all comes from the wrist. The force you apply to the knife with your finger to get it going is quite negligible.
- jlgreco 14y agoWell perhaps I open them wrong then. I flick my (not assisted) boxcutter open with my wrist but open my assisted opening folding knife exclusively with my thumb on the thumb-bar. As I see it, not having to use your wrist is basically the point of the spring assist.
- sirmarksalot 14y agoHow would it compare with the amount of practice required to smoothly open a balisong?
- jlgreco 14y agoI have no idea, I've never used one. Those have always seemed like very silly knives to me.
- anigbrowl 14y agoI'm pretty sure it's the latter. I strongly suspect 'legal in all states' means that it just hasn't come to court yet. It's possible that the legal definition of a switchblade is so specific (eg about the button being on the handle of the knife and a safety switch being present) that this new design doesn't qualify, in which case this new design would be legal unless or until states see fit to prevent its sale.
- NoPiece 14y agoFolding knives aren't new, and aren't primarily intended as an alternative to switchblades. Folding the blade into the handle just makes an easy to carry package, with your are a contractor, or a sportsman. Knife regulation is mostly around the length, not whether it folds or not. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buck_Knives http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buck_Knives
- anigbrowl 14y agoI'm not talking about folding knives; I have on in my pocket hanging off my keychain right now and I understand the difference. I'm talking about the spring-assisted mechanism.
- NoPiece 14y agoThe spring assistance in these knives doesn't cause the blade to move, it just makes it easier to pull them out. That's basically the definitional difference between them and switchblades.