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About folding knives
A
folding knife is one that has a pivot between handle
and blade, allowing the blade to fold into the handle. Most folding
knives are small working blades, and pocket knives are usually folding
knives. Some folding knives have a locking mechanism:
The most
traditional and commonplace lock is the slip-joint. This is not really
a lock at all, and is found most commonly on traditional pocket knives.
It consists of a backspring that wedges itself into a notch on the tang
on the back of the blade.
The
lockback is the simplest true locking knife. It is
found on most traditional locking knives. It is like a slip-joint, but
the lock consists of a latch rather than a backspring. To disengage,
one presses the latch on the spine of the knife down, releasing the
tang.
The
linerlock is the most common today on knives,
especially so-called "tactical" folders. Its main advantage is that it
allows one to disengage the lock with one hand. It consists of a liner
bent so that when the blade opens, the liner presses against the rear
of the tang, preventing it from swinging back. To disengage, you press
the liner to the side of the knife from where it is attached to the
inside of the scales.
The
framelock is a variant of the linerlock, however,
instead of using the liner, the frame functions as an actual spring. It
is usually much more secure than a liner lock. Many folding knives
(particularly locking models) have a small knob, or thumb-screw that
allows the user to open the knife quickly with one hand.
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