Pocketknife

A collection of pocketknives
A Swiss Army knife made by Victorinox

A pocketknife is a knife with one or more blades that fold into the handle. They are also known as jackknives (jack-knife), folding knives, EDC knife, or may be referred to as a penknife, though a penknife may also be a specific kind of pocketknife.[1][2] A typical blade length is 5 to 15 centimetres (2 to 6 in).[3]

Pocketknives are versatile tools, and may be used for anything from whittling and woodcarving, to butchering small game, gutting and filleting small fish, aiding in the preparation of tinder and kindling for fires, boring holes in soft material, to opening an envelope, cutting twine, slicing fruits and vegetables or as a means of self-defense.[4]

Pocketknives may also be used in conjunction with other tools and equipment for woodcraft and bushcraft.[5]

Specialised designs are also used for mushroom hunting[6] and gardening. Pocketknives designed for gardening include pruning knives, which are folding knives with long curved blades used for pruning, trimming cuttings, taking buds and preparing material for grafting.[7]

A typical pruning knife, made by Opinel
  1. ^ "Handy with His Jack-Knife" (PDF). The New York Times. St. Louis Republican. 1884-06-25. Retrieved 2011-02-04.
  2. ^ "Question: How Did the Jackknife Get Its Name?". Junior Editors Quiz on Words. The Norwalk Hour. Norwalk, Connecticut. May 31, 1961. p. 29. Retrieved 2011-02-04 – via Google News.
  3. ^ Lake, Ron; Centofante, Frank; Clay, Wayne (1995). How to Make Folding Knives: A Step-By-Step How-To. Krause. p. 190. ISBN 0-87341-390-3.
  4. ^ Stewart, Ron; Ritchie, Roy (2000). Big Book of Pocket Knives: Identification & Values. Collector Books. p. 348. ISBN 978-1-57432-178-4.
  5. ^ Sears, George Washington (1963). Woodcraft and camping. New York: Dover Publications. ISBN 978-0-486-31695-6. OCLC 853623397.
  6. ^ "N°08 Mushroom knife". Opinel.com. Retrieved 2022-01-24.
  7. ^ Reader's Digest Illustrated Guide to Gardening. 26-32 Waterloo Street, Surry Hills NSW: Reader's Digest Services Pty Ltd. 1979. p. 52. ISBN 0909486735.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)