Tactical Folding Knives

Tactical knives, although originally designed for use during combat, have much more versatile uses today. They can still be used as fighting knives, but much more often they serve as practical tools for everyone from avid outdoor enthusiasts to law enforcement. Determining your purpose for purchasing a tactical knife will greatly influence what the size, shape, and style of the knife should be. 

Because most tactical knives are no longer used for combative reason, users don't typically need the blades to be as readily available. Perhaps that's why the majority of tactical knife purchases are no longer fixed blade knives. Instead, most people opt for either a tactical folding knife or tactical pocket knife. Like all tactical knives, tactical folding knives and tactical pocket knives come with a variety of blade shapes and handle materials, and are made from a wide range of steel. The blades of both of these knives fold into their handles. The major differences between the two are size, whether or not the blade folds into the handle manually or automatically, and user profile. Tactical folding knives tend to be a bit bigger than pocket knives, house only one blade, and are a favorite among hunters and military. In fact, they're often marketed as "folding hunting knives". They typically open with some assistance, such as a thumb stud or thumb hole, as many that open completely automatically are now illegal in some states. Spyderco pioneered the thumb hole mechanism, as well as many other traits of today's tactical folding knives, and continue to be a leader in their manufacturing. When it comes to automatically opening knives, Emerson is the way to go. They patented a mechanism called "The Wave" that deploys the blade when the spine of the knife rubs against a pocket and is drawn. Many tactical knives feature a blade locking system that must be deployed before the knife can be completely closed to avoid injury. Benchmade created a locking system that is used on all of their knives, and also holds an exclusive license to use the AXIS lock system, which is often thought to be unparalleled in the industry. Another feature tactical folding knives tend to share is a pocket clip for quick access. These clips are made from either metal or plastic, depending on how much wear and tear the user expects to get out of it, and how much they want to spend. 

Tactical pocket knives typically serve much more practical uses such as opening envelopes and packages, although in some cases they are still used by medical personnel to perform tasks as serious as emergency tracheotomies. They're much smaller, and generally contain multiple tools that fit inside their handle instead of just one blade. They still fit inside the pocket, but generally don't clip to it. Unlike tactical folding knives, tactical pocket knives typically don't come come with the option of a serrated blade. Their blades are most often plain. 

The tactical pocket knife is the ideal knife for anyone thanks to its functional versatility.