Folding Knife
Locks
A folding knife is only safe when you know how its lock works. These are the three locks you will meet most often, and how to close each one without a finger in the way.
Fingers out of the slot. The blade folds into the slot in the handle. Nothing you want to keep goes in that slot while the blade is closing.
Which Lock Do I Have?
Open the knife and look in two places: inside the handle just behind the blade, and along the back of the handle.
Liner Lock
A thin metal strip inside the handle has sprung across and sits behind the base of the blade.
Frame Lock
The same idea, but the strip is a thick slice of the handle itself. One side of the handle is solid metal with a long cut in it.
Lockback
Nothing sits behind the blade. A bar runs along the back of the handle instead, with a dip you press with your thumb.
Yours looks different? Some knives use a button, a sliding bar or a twisting ring, and some small knives have no lock at all. Check the leaflet or the product page, and treat a knife with no lock as one that can fold at any time.
Liner Lock
When the blade swings fully open, a springy strip of the handle lining snaps sideways and sits behind the base of the blade. The blade cannot fold until you push that strip back.
Open and Check
- 1 Hold the handle by its sides, fingers clear of the slot
- 2 Swing the blade out by its stud, hole or flipper until it stops
- 3 Listen and feel for the click
- 4 Look: the strip should sit squarely behind the blade
Close It Safely
- 1 Hold the handle by its sides with the sharp edge facing away from your palm
- 2 With your thumb, push the strip sideways, away from the blade, until it clears
- 3 With your other hand on the blunt back of the blade, fold it a little way, just until the blade holds the strip aside
- 4 Take your thumb out of the slot
- 5 Fold the blade the rest of the way home
Frame Lock
It works like a liner lock, but the locking bar is cut from the handle itself, so it is thicker and easy to spot from the outside.
Open and Check
- 1 Hold the handle without squeezing the lock bar. Pressure on the bar makes the blade stiff to open
- 2 Swing the blade out until it stops and clicks
- 3 Look: the bar should sit behind the blade, not just touching its corner
Close It Safely
- 1 Hold the handle by its sides with the sharp edge facing away from your palm
- 2 With your thumb, push the lock bar outward, away from the blade
- 3 With your other hand on the blunt back of the blade, fold it a little way
- 4 Take your thumb out of the slot
- 5 Fold the blade the rest of the way home
Lockback
A rocker bar runs along the back of the handle. A hook at its front end drops into a notch in the base of the blade. Press the back end of the bar and the hook lifts out.
Open and Check
- 1 Hold the handle by its sides, fingers clear of the slot
- 2 Swing the blade out until it stops with a firm click
- 3 Look: the bar should sit flush along the back of the handle
Close It Safely
- 1 Hold the handle by its sides with the sharp edge facing away from your palm
- 2 Press the dip in the bar with your thumb until the blade goes loose
- 3 With your other hand on the blunt back of the blade, fold it part way
- 4 Let go of the bar and check your fingers are clear of the slot
- 5 Keep hold of the back of the blade and fold it home. Many lockbacks pull the blade shut over the last part
Every Knife, Every Time
Four habits that matter more than which lock you have.
A lock is a backup, not a guarantee.
Locks wear, clog with grit and can let go under load. Cut as if the blade could fold.
Before You Cut
- With fingers clear, press gently on the back of the blade. It should not move
- Cut away from your body and away from your other hand
- Use it for cutting only. No prying, twisting or stabbing into wood
When You Close It
- Stop, look at the knife, then close it
- Use two hands until it is second nature
- Never flick it shut or close it against your leg
Passing and Storing
- Close it before you hand it to someone
- Fold it and put it away the moment the job is done
- Keep it out of children's reach. When they learn, an adult is beside them
Keep the Lock Working
- Blow out pocket lint, sand and grit
- A drop of oil on the pivot now and then, and wipe off the extra
- If the lock slips or sticks, or the open blade wobbles, stop using the knife
A Tool, Not a Pocket Habit
Everywhere in Australia you need a lawful reason to have a knife with you in public, and the detail differs from state to state.
What Counts
- Work, camping, fishing and similar activities are the kind of reasons the law accepts
- Self-defence does not count as a lawful reason
- Some knife types are banned or restricted outright, and the list differs by state
What To Do
- Going to and from the job or the campsite, keep it packed away with your gear
- Check your own state or territory police website for the rules where you live and travel
- Selling knives to under-18s is an offence in WA and most other states, which is why we check ID
Tools Worth Looking After
Folding knives, fixed blades and the sharpeners that keep them working.
More From Know Your Gear
This guide is general information only and is not legal advice. Knife laws differ between states and territories and change over time, so check the current rules where you live. Always follow the instructions that came with your knife. In a life-threatening emergency, call Triple Zero (000).