I’ve had the pleasure of swapping between a handful of test pocketknives for the last several months. I know, hard life. Who doesn’t love a good blade? I mean, would you turn down a box of free knives offered to you for testing?

Naturally, the first thing I did when I got my own free box was pull out the coolest-looking blades. There were some sweet CobraTec and Templar OTF knives that spit out the blade with just the push of a lever. Then, of course, there were some classic folders. The fun lasted for about an hour, but you do have to leave your house occasionally. (I’ve heard it’s often frowned on to carry around a box of random knives when you do that).

So, I eventually had to pick a blade to actually stick in my pocket. The real question was whether it would be a mechanically awesome out-the-front knife or a traditional folder? 

Should I Pick A Slick OTF?

I’ve carried folding blades for most of my life, but OTF knives haven’t spent much time in my pockets. These types of knives use a mechanical system to eject and retract the blade directly out the front of the knife. They’re flat-out cool, so I stuck one in my pocket for a few days. I’ve now rolled back and forth between various folders and OTF options for around a year.

The advantages of the OTF knife – beyond coolness – are fairly obvious. Need to cut something? Pull out your knife and flick the switch. Need to cut something, but your other hand is preoccupied? Pull out your knife and flick the switch. Need to look awesome while cutting something? Yeah, same story.

Blades like these are often seen as a bit more tactical or oriented toward self-defense. While a blade shooting out of your hand does give off a “back the heck up” vide, the knife blades themselves also tend to be leaner, often double edged, and more functional for piercing than dicing a tomato. That being said, there’s something super satisfying about using one even as a daily knife tool. I certainly was able to cut rope, open/stab boxes, and generally do knife things fine.

Or Do I Stick With a Classic Folder?

The classic folding knife is where I started my pocketknife journey, like most folks I would guess. Without breaking down the many types again here, I’ll just say that I usually carry something that is more of a cutting than a fighting blade. I could quibble about there being multi-tool options that the OTF style doesn’t have – like a Swiss Army knife – but I carry a very small multi-tool regardless of my primary pocketknife. 

I will say that I like the blade profile options on folding knives. OTF knives offer bullet-like opening systems, but folding blades can generally host more designated cutting blades that aren’t as constrained by the shape and size of the grip. As a fast, general rule, they can just offer more meat to the blade relative to the knife’s size. I’m personally a fan of having one with a wider belly that’s either gently recurved or serrated.

That said, yes, I have found myself fumbling with a folding knife to open it when I had to only use one hand. It’s not often true, and some folders are better than others at one-hand opening, but they aren’t truly “ejecting” out the blade on command. 

Still, it’s not all great only having to flick a lever or push a button to open the blade. I can see the appeal, yet I generally find that I spend almost as much time positioning my hand to activate the OTF mechanism as I do just opening a folder one-handed. If you practice, you can even achieve that faster action with something like a Kershaw CQC folder, which uses a lip to open the blade as you draw it out of your pocket. Folders are also just nice and simple in operation. You don’t require a folder to have internal mechanics to open. There’s a beauty in that. 
 

Winners and Losers?
 

While I thoroughly enjoy the OTF design and concept, I will say it is not my current choice as an everyday carry knife even with the cool free options I got to pick from. If you happen to have one that you love, great. It’s still not where I would tell someone to start their pocketknife hunt. If you have the luxury of swapping out knives, more power to you. Some people do it with watches, so why not a timeless tool as well.

OTF designs do tend to run heavy relative to the blade size, and they are often more expensive. I hate losing anything, but losing expensive things is normally worse. At the end of the day, however, there are two main things that really keep me going back to my folders.
 

First, mechanical things can fail. The OTF knives I have tested will not fully open if anything as significant as cardboard blocks the blade. After that, you have to reset them manually, often with two hands anyway. I think that’s good because getting stabbed in the leg is unenjoyable. While a folder can also get jammed, I know I don’t have to worry about getting into its guts to fix it. In three decades of carrying a knife almost every day, that has not been a need with a folding knife. 

Regardless, I would still prefer a simple folder like a Swiss Army knife if it was going to be the only blade I carried every single day. That mostly comes down to my preference in carry knives. I just prefer more utilitarian blade designs over the more tactical shapes and functions. That means I want a knife I’m as happy to cut ropes and boxes with as dice fruits and veggies for dinner. The same goes for my choices of favorite fixed blades. With that stated, and I say this in all honesty, having an OTF is still pretty dang fun and a nice thing to toss in the pocket from time to time.