3 Ways to Customize Your Modern Folding Knife

The way we look at it, you own a knife the moment you buy it -- but it doesn't become your own until you've lived with it for a while.

Over time, as we get to know a knife, many of us feel the itch to tweak it some, and modern folders are among the easiest knives to customize. Here are a few ways to make that happen.

1. Adjust the pivot. This may seem obvious, but you'd be surprised to learn just how many folks don't take advantage of this opportunity to easily tailor a folder to their liking.

Here's the deal -- each of us has a preference for how we want a knife to feel. Some people like a blade to swing smooth and easy, while others favor a tad more resistance. Either way, it's a simple matter of adjusting the tension (tightness) of the pivot screw.

The goal is to find the "sweet spot," and exactly where that is will depend on your personal preference. Make a slight adjustment, live with it for a while and then (if need be) fine-tune the tension 'til it suits you.

Naturally, you don't want the pivot so loose that the blade flops open in your pocket. Over-tightening the pivot, on the other hand, can make the knife downright unusable and cause premature wear.

2. Change the position of the pocket clip. This is another easy (and often overlooked) way to make a folding knife your own.

Some (but not all) modern folding knives equipped with a pocket clip -- like those from Benchmade, Zero Tolerance, Kershaw and others -- allow more than one position for the clip, accommodating either left- or right-handed carry, or even tip-up or tip-down carry. Look at the current position of the clip on your knife, as well as how it attaches, and then examine the handle scales for vacant holes or grooves in a similar pattern at the other end (and on the opposite side).

Simply remove the screws holding the clip in place, move it to the new position and replace the screws. (Applying a tiny amount of blue Loctite to the threads of each screw is a good idea.)

3. Install custom handle scales. Okay, we admit it -- this is a plug for something we sell. It also happens to be one of the coolest things we sell, perhaps the ultimate custom upgrade for certain models of Benchmade folding knives.

So if you love your Benchmade Griptilian or Barrage but find yourself wishing for something a bit, well, sexier, this is for you.

Our custom G-10 handle scales are machined specifically to fit the full-size Griptilian (550, 551, 553), the Mini-Griptilian (555, 556, 557, 55X) and the full-size Barrage (580). Available exclusively from KnivesShipFree, they completely change the way these knives look and feel.

All the hardware you'll need is included. And to help you make the swap, for Griptilian models we created illustrated instructions and a step-by-step video.

(Need a Torx driver to help you work on your favorite folder? We recommend the Benchmade BlueBox tool kit.)