Folding Knife

About this category

A folding knife stows the blade inside the handle, which makes it safe to carry and usually openable one-handed — the everyday and outdoors default. Three things decide it: the lock (liner, back lock and crossbar each trade off differently; a slip joint is for light work only), the steel (stainless is low maintenance, powder steels hold an edge but cost more and chip more readily), and how it opens (thumb stud, flipper or hole decides one-handed use). For daily carry, 7–9 cm of blade is the practical range; above roughly 10 cm many jurisdictions restrict it.