autos included several with second- ary safeties, several without safe- ties and one with Darrel Ralph’s SAS sliding button mechanism. In each case, I carried the knife for a few days and practiced draw- ing and opening it numerous times throughout the day. At the end of each phase, I tested myself with sev- eral dozen high-stress deployments. Half of these were done by drawing and opening as quickly as possible from a partner’s cue and half were done after repeated empty-hand hits on a striking pad to amp up the adrenaline and simulate gross- motor-skill override. Although not highly scientifi c,
to help quantify the speed of the draws, I videotaped them and used single-frame-advance playback to get an idea of relative speeds. The knives that produced the least-confi dent
slowest, deploy-
ments were automatics with the secondary safeties engaged. These knives had to be drawn and oriented in the hand before the safety could be removed and the button fi red. The smaller the safety, the longer this process took, but even the most ergonomic autos took well over two seconds to draw and deploy. Automatics, without secondary
safeties, and the SAS mechanism were quicker but not dramatically so. After drawing, they still required careful positioning in the hand and indexing of the button before they could be fi red. Depending upon the design and the manufacturer, these knives were also the least predict- able, as going too fast or trying too hard to index the button early in the presentation could cause a “knife ND” (negligent discharge). The SAS mechanism, since it is by design both a safety and a fi ring button, was the best of this breed. The next fastest group included manual knives that were opened with
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a standard thumb-opening tech- nique. The relative speeds of deploy- ment varied in direct relationship to the design of the “thumb purchase” on the blade. Large, easily indexed contact points that were positioned well above the blade’s pivot pin were the easiest to fi nd in a hurry and pro- vided the best leverage. Even though they required a manual effort, the fact they were easier to index under stress made them faster and more positive in action. Second place in speed went to
my preferred opening method: an inertial opening of a manual knife. Although this is the most skill- intensive method, it does not re- quire any contact with the blade of the knife and is therefore the most gross-motor-skill-oriented. Once you achieve a solid grip on the knife, draw it from the pocket, ro- tate it briskly around the pivot pin, stop the handle and let the blade pop open. Admittedly, this is also my most practiced opening, but the fact that it allows me to draw and open a blade in less than a second makes it worthy of that distinction. The fastest opening was, not sur-
prisingly, the Emerson Wave. Since the blade opens as the knife clears the pocket, it eliminates the need to ori- ent the knife in the hand before the opening takes place. However, it can also be hard on your pockets and, un- der stress, is not infallible. If you miss snagging the hook, be prepared with a backup manual opening.
What Does It Mean? There’s absolutely no denying
the fact automatic knives are fun. Modern autos are also every bit as capable as the best-quality, manual- folding knives. However, a spring- activated blade doesn’t guarantee faster deployment in a fi ght — espe- cially when emotion is high and fi ne motor skills are low. *
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