I have been, like most people, clipping my knife on the inside of my strong-side pocket. When I don’t have a gun with me I’ve clipped the knife in the location where my gun normally would be: strong side hip IWB.
I recently moved the knife to strong-side IWB in the appendix carry location using a tip-up clip orientation so that the butt of the knife sticks out. I’ve found I can access, and open, the knife with either hand from this location. I’d be a little happier if I could find a knife that has a slim overall profile and a finger hole (like a karambit) and am also thinking of messing with a Spyderco or Emerson with Wave to see if the hook will catch from here.
Anyone else tried this location? Come up with any downsides (other than those of you that carry your gun here)?
can you put it back pretty easily with one hand in that location? it’s harder for me than the strong side pocket, although i do see some advantages (clip covered by a t-shirt, won’t scratch you car paint).
i can still reach over with my weak hand and draw a knife from the strong side pocket though.
i really like zero tolerance’s ‘speed safe’ flipper. for me, it’s faster to open than any other non-auto knife i’ve used.
the ZT0360.SKD has been my daily carry/utility knife since i’ve had it.
i usually have a 2nd knife on me as well - usually my HAK (it’s mounted to a belt) and sometimes one of the little 888 professional knives clipped to my shirt.
I carry my gun appendix, my knife goes strong side inside my pocket. It’s more of a utility tool than a weapon, but I still practice with it and can access it from either side, albeit a bit more difficult from the left side.
I used to clip my knife to the top of my strong side pocket.
My problem is scraping the paint in my car. Too many times I had to squeeze out of my door in a tight parking spot… or try to put my son into his car seat… and find that I’d scraped the paint.
Now I just let it fall to the bottom of the pocket.
That pocket only has:
Keys
Flashlight
Knife
The flashlight has a short lanyard on it, for easy ID/retrieval. The Keys don’t feel like the knife.
Easy ID. But not as easy as keeping it clipped to a pocket.
(my phone by itself goes in the support side pocket)
I’ve come up with a few issues with reaching the knife with it in the pocket. One is access while seated in a chair with arms or in the car with the seatbelt on. The other is when flat on my belly it’s harder to reach across and under my whole body than reaching under. Yes, reaching under has the potential for sticking myself, especially if I go the Wave route, but it’s still easier for me to get to.
Yes, it’s harder to “reholster” in the IWB appendix location but I can also always put it away in the front or rear pants pocket if I need to do it one-handed.
and as for not always having a gun, not everyone works in a holster factory.
This is where I carry mine. I carry my gun (and usually a BUG) everywhere though, so I view my knife as mostly a utility device. I typically carry folders that have the facility to cut seat belts without opening the blade, and know I’m much more likely to get into a car wreck than a life-or-death struggle with another person, and my knife is much more accessible while seated in a car in my left pocket.
I carried a small fixed blade last resort knife for a little while and typically kept the sheath about 1" behind my gun. The main drawbacks were the ones you mentioned, though.
Left handed here & carry it clipped in my right pocket closest to the outside seam. That way it doesn’t take up much room in my pocket. I have hung the clip on things before and bent it and even scratched the car, but those instances occur far fewer than the number of times I carry and don’t mess something up.
How some of you carry all that stuff in your pockets is beyond me. I carry a slim wallet, cell phone, knife and keys on a carabiner and that is it. When I get home it all comes out of my pockets except the knife.
EDC knife (waved Emerson with a lanyard) always carried in front, left (weak side) pocket with nothing else over there. G19 is carried on right (strong side) either in VM-2 for IWB or Atomic Dog for OWB. Spare magazine carried on left side with mag pouch that matches holster o’ the day.
The clip sticks out a little when I’m dressed in suit/tie, and I’ve scraped the side of my truck. I now make sure that I turn my back to my vehicle when sliding through between cars…
Using the Wave, I can easily get the Emerson out of my pocket, opened and ready for business if needed. I’ve worked with it both seated and prone/supine, and I don’t seem to have any issues. Of course, those “tests” weren’t full speed and under pressure.
I remember reading somewhere about carrying the blade on the weak side so that it is accessible if grappling with someone for my Glock or if my right hand is otherwise occupied. I’d appreciate anyone jumping in and letting me know if that’s correct or not.
I carry a Spyderco/Shivworks P’kal strong-side front pocket.
Even with a waved knife, the ease of in-fight weapon access (IFWA) is abysmal with folders. Even mild pressure from a training partner makes a successful draw extremely difficult.
I think it’s problematic to try to apply handgun concealment techniques to folding knives. A pistol carried IWB still allows a full fighting grip to be acquired prior to draw (assuming a properly designed holster). This cannot be said for any folding knife. When you add a cover garment into the mix, the folder becomes more and more problematic.
If IFWA isn’t a concern, then carry location becomes primarily an issue of convenience and personal preference. If IFWA is a concern, then a couple good training buddies and a few helmets will offer the best answer. Carry methods that do or do not work will very quickly make themselves apparent in drills and evolutions.
My primary pistol (G-19 with X-300) is carried on the right hand side.
My primary knife is a Spyderco Ronin fixed blade, carried in a custom pocket kydex sheath in the left front pocket. Even faster than a waved knife to deploy.
The secondary blade is either a waved Emerson Mini-CQC-7, or a Kershaw Blur assisted opener.
BUG is a 642 with Crimson Trace laser grips.
I carry a knife to cut someone’s hand off my pistol. I have a multi-tool for other stuff. Mike Janich has some very good techniques for martial blade craft, using a knife to assist with weapon retention.
I also like Mike’s thoughts on a continuum of force. He recognizes that a pistol is NOT the answer to every problem. He also understands that “can” is not the same as “should”. His classes are a very good bargain at $75 or so for a day’s instruction.
ive carried a knife longer than i have carried a pistol. my main reasons have beent taught from my grandfather from cutting a burger in half to cutting seatbelts in a wreck. i like to think of it as a back up weapon but like many others have said if its gone that far that means both of my 13 rnd mags from my g21 have been shot up. if i cant difusse the situation with 26 rnds of 45acp theres a problem
