Gravity knives have come a long way since.
#Gravity knife free
To free themselves, they needed a knife that was small, concealed, and could be opened with one hand. Sometimes, their parachutes would get caught in trees. Gravity knives were first used by German paratroopers in World War 2. Compare that to gravity knives, which are, what I like to call, all-round. Take hook knives as an example, they were built for one purpose and one purpose only. We’ve looked at some knives with very specific uses. And like every other knife, these are incredibly useful tools. Gravity knives are so much more than a cool toy that you can flick open. Today, a lot of modern gravity knives still have these. This was an extra tool to help untangle ropes. The original gravity knives all had an awl that one could pull out from the side of the handle. The blade will fall right back into place, safe within its handle. When you’re done using your knife, press the lock lever again and hold your knife upwards. Once it’s out, the locking system will hold your blade in place. To open, flick your knife and let inertia pull the blade out. If you don’t like that method of opening, you could also go for what I call the flick-switch.
The blade will slide right out in the most badass fashion. To open, all you have to do is point your knife downwards and press this lever. Imagine how many people would hurt themselves with that.Ĭlassic gravity knives have a little lever on the thumb for this. It would be crazy to have a knife that opens every time it faces downwards. This is whether they unfold from the side, or slide straight down from the handle.Īside from that, gravity knives also have a locking system. Any knife that uses gravity to open is a gravity knife. What sets these knives apart is how they work. With gravity knives, there are no visual cues. The thin looks and single-edged blade of these knives let you spot them with a glance. This is not like a knife such as, say, dirks. What I mean is that two knives can look miles apart from one another, and still both be gravity knives. Other states are considering legislation that includes lifting bans on some type of “automatic knives,” which in some states can include gravity knives.Unlike some of the knives we’ve looked at together, gravity knives aren’t a particular type of knife. Other states are considering laws to lift the ban on gravity knives, including Ohio. Some countries outlaw gravity knives, including the United Kingdom and Canada. That’s why the knife is so popular as a tool for tradespeople.Īgain, commonsense has not always prevailed when it comes to laws governing these knives. Gravity knives are designed to open with gravity or a flick of the wrist so that they can be opened one-handed while the other hand is occupied. In other states – such as New York until the change this year – lawmakers had put gravity knives in the same category as a switchblade, which opens into a locked position with the push of a button. However, in the majority of states, a gravity knife is legal. Part of the issue with the legality of gravity knives has been the definition of the knife, which can vary from state to state.
However, the knife is still illegal on the subway system. State lawmakers later voted to repeal the ban. The court ruled that the ban on the knife “afforded police and prosecutors almost unlimited discretion to arrest and prosecute people for carrying knives commonly sold in stores across the state.” District judge considered a lawsuit by a sous chef who was arrested for carrying a gravity knife, according to Reason magazine. In almost every case, those arrested were working people who carried the knife as part of their job.Įarlier this year, a U.S. That resulted in about 70,000 people being arrested in New York between 20. Gravity knives had been thrown into this list. The list included brass knuckles, “Kung Fu stars” and switchblades. The 1958 law had been passed by lawmakers at that time to get rid of what they felt were dangerous weapons. Gravity Knife Ban LiftedĪ New York ban that led to law-abiding citizens getting arrested simply for possession of a gravity knife has been repealed.
However, a recent victory for knife owners in New York will make gravity knives legal again and spare citizens from unjustified arrest. Unfortunately, common sense has not always prevailed when it comes to the laws that govern gravity knives. Many workers use a gravity knife as part of their job every day, but some have been the victim of questionable laws used to arrest people for possession of the knife.Ī gravity knife is a common knife used by many tradespeople, from carpenters and dock workers to stagehands. A gravity knife is a small knife that is easy to open, usually with just a flip of the wrist.
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