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A pocket knife is a folding knife with a blade that fits inside the handle and that is small enough to fit in a pocket. Blades are typically no larger than 3 to 5 in. (8 to 13 cm) in length. Pocket knives are very versatile tools, and may be used for anything from opening an envelope, to cutting twine, to slicing an apple.

Heinr. Boker Baumwerk Gmbh – founded in 1869, has been producing the very popular Boker Tree Brand knives for over a century. The name "Böker Arbolito Tree Brand" has got nothing in common with the agricultural or forestry industries, contrary to what the name would seem to suggest.

A Swiss Army knife  is a multi-function pocket knife or hand tool. Generally speaking, a Swiss Army knife has a blade as well as various tools, such as screwdrivers and can openers. These attachments are stowed inside the handle of the knife through a pivot point mechanism. The handle is usually red, and features a white cross, the emblem of Switzerland. The knife model that is actually used in the Swiss Army has a knurled aluminum handle. It was originated in Zurich, Switzerland around 1920.
 

Buck Knives Inc. is one of America's best known manufacturers of quality knives used for hunting and fishing. Operating near San Diego, California, the company is run by the fourth generation of the Buck family, which is deeply religious and prides itself on quality workmanship. Buck Knives is also known for its innovations over the years. In the beginning its tempering process set it apart from the competition. Later on, superior knife design was important in establishing the brand. The introduction of a folding hunting knife in the 1960s was a key factor in the company's growth, as was the MP bayonet developed for the military in the 1980s, as well as the Crosslock Series of knives, named knife of the year in 1994, and the more recent BuckTool, a popular multi-tool utensil. In all, Buck Knives offers hundreds of knife styles, most of which are produced at the company's 4.5 acre El Cajon, California, manufacturing facility. It also crafts expensive limited-edition commemorative knives that are highly valued by collectors. More recently Buck Knives has begun to extend its brand to a wide range of outdoor products via licensing agreements.

W.R. Case & Sons Cutlery Company is an American manufacturer of premium, hand-crafted knives that are built to be passed down for generations. Based in Bradford, PA, Case’s offerings include a wide variety of Case knives that fit virtually any need, from convenient, traditional pocketknives to fixed blade sporting knives to limited edition commemoratives and collectibles. The company’s rich history began in 1889 when William Russell (“W.R.”), Jean, John, and Andrew Case began fashioning knives and selling them along a wagon trail in upstate New York. Today the Case Company is owned by Zippo Manufacturing Company (makers of the world famous Zippo® windproof lighter), another family-owned business based in Bradford. And Case knife XX

The Cattaraugus Knife Company was started by John Champlin and his son Tint in 1882. It was first incorporated under the name J.B.F. Champlin and Son as a wholesale distribution company based in Little Valley, New York.  The business proved to be a successful endeavor, and it soon branched into a knife production company named Cattaraugus.  

In 1890, Mr. Champlin purchased cutlery manufacturing equipment from a failed business called the Beaver Falls Cutlery factory.   Because Champlin started in the knife business as a wholesaler for a company who Imported German and English knives he had great knowledge about the cutlery business.  As a wholesaler, he knew the market well, and he knew the shortcomings of the U.S. knife manufacturers.  His plan was simple.  He believed that the business would thrive if he could providing the highest quality cutlery available.  In order to achieve this goal, he hired the best cutlers and provided them with the highest quality materials.  This combination proved to be successful.  Champlin brought in cutlers from Germany, England, and other U.S. manufacturers.  The knives that were created in these early years set the quality standard by which all other U.S. manufacturers were measured.

Gerber Legendary Blades
is a maker of consumer knives and multitools headquartered in Portland, Oregon. Currently Gerber is a sub-division of Fiskars Brands Inc, owned by the Fiskars company of Finland. Gerber was established in 1939, and has a reputation for making quality knives of innovative design, designed by famous knife makers.
Designers who have designed knives for Gerber knives include: Bob Loveless, Paul Poehlmann, Blackie Collins, William Harsey Jr., Fred Carter and Ernest Emerson. Former Gerber employees who started their own successful knife companies include Al Mar and Pete Kershaw. Gerber also sells a family of folding knives based on designs of Rex Applegate, and authorized by Applegate.

Kershaw Knives is a company which manufactures many types of moderately priced knives, from kitchen cutlery to pocket knives and outdoor knives.

PUMA Knife and Puma Knives are one of the famous trade-marks that gave Solingen its name " City of Knives " . Founded in 1769, the Company's first rule was, and still is today, first class quality which is reflected in their hunting and sporting knives. Since then, the skill and workmanship has been passed down from father to son, resulting in a combination of unsurpassed quality between the artisan and his art. Continuous contacts with other manufacturers, custom knife makers and designers, from all over the world led and lead to technical cooperation, exchange of experience and new models which complete the manufacturing program. A precondition for cooperation is that quality corresponds to our own high standard submitted to strict quality control. The PUMA knives guarantee stands for the utmost quality and the very best materials and craftsmanship.

Imperial Schrade closed their doors July 30, 2004, after 100 years of business. We will not be able to restock our Schrade knife inventory as it sells out. There will be no more original Schrade knives produced, making the few Schrade knives we have left extremely collectable. If we can, we will buy these items on the secondary market when possible. Get a piece of Schrade history while you can

Slipjoint knives

Most pocket knives for light duty are slipjoints. This means that the blade does not lock, but, once opened, is held in place by a spring device that allows the blade to fold if a certain amount of pressure is applied.

These knives often have more than one blade, including an assortment of knife blade types (serrated, plain edged, saws) as well as a myriad of other tools such as bottle openers, corkscrews, and scissors. A large tool selection is the signature of the Swiss Army Knife. These knives are produced by Victorinox and Wenger and issued to the army and sold to the public. The German Army knife is large but light, with two blades opening from each side. It has hard plastic grips and aluminum liners. The United States Army knife, made by the Camillus Cutlery Company, used to have carbon steel blades and brass liners (both vulnerable to corrosion), but is now more durable with all-stainless steel construction. It has four blades opening from the same side. The handle, as manufactured, has rough edges, but these can be rounded, yielding an excellent and versatile knife.
Stockman's penknife with clip, pen and sheep's foot blades; wooden grips, brass bolsters and liners
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Stockman's penknife with clip, pen and sheep's foot blades; wooden grips, brass bolsters and liners

Some names of blade shapes are:

* Clip—the upper part of the blade is cut away to form a sharp point directly in front of the handle.
* Spear—edge and back curve together to a point
* Pen—similar to a spear but smaller
* Sheep's foot—wide with straight edge and no point, common on boats and ships
* Spay or spey—clipped at the back to form a sort of point, but the clip is very short. These were originally for castrating live stock and are used for delicate work.

There are many traditional types of folding knives:

A pen knife is a small and often thin knife with one or two pen blades, that does not interfere with the appearance of dress clothes, when carried in a pocket. They were originally intended for making and sharpening quill pens but are versatile and have remained fairly common. Knives with three or four knife blades are also common. A whittler is slightly larger than a pen knife and has tree blades. A stockman has a clip, a sheep's foot and a spay blade. They are usually middle-sized. A trapper is large, with a clip and a spay blade.

The Leathermans and similar combination tools now compete with multi-bladed knives, but most of these are rather large for carrying in a pocket. The "main blade" is typically a pair of pliers and there is typically one non-locking knife blade.

Locking knives
Medium-sized lockback knife with deer-antler grips, nickel-silver bolsters and brass liners
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Medium-sized lockback knife with deer-antler grips, nickel-silver bolsters and brass liners

The 1900s brought a new system to the knife world with the popularization of locking pocket knives. Companies such as Buck Knives, Benchmade, Camillus, Gerber, Kershaw, Leatherman, Spyderco, to name a few, have created a wide range of products with locks of all types. The most popular form, the lockback knife (or buck knife) is similar to a slipjoint, except that instead of the user releasing the blade with pressure, the user has to press on a lever located on the back of the knife handle to release the blade, adding a level of safety. There are other types of locks; some of the more popular ones are the liner lock, the frame lock, and the Axis lock (a Benchmade patent). Even the Swiss Army knife product range has adopted the locks on some knives. Leatherman tools are now available with locking blades.

Most locking knives have only one blade, as large as can be fit in the handle. An electrician's knife typically has a locking screwdriver blade but a non-locking knife blade.

Other features

Traditional knives were opened using nail-nicks, or slots where the user's fingernail would enter to pull the blade out of the handle. This became somewhat cumbersome and required use of two hands, so there were innovations to remedy that. The thumb-stud, a small stud on the blade that allows for one-handed opening, led the way for yet more innovations, such as the opening hole (a Spyderco patent where the user presses the pad of his thumb against a hole and opens the blade by rotating his thumb similarly to using the thumb-stud), "assisted opening" systems pioneered by Ken Onion and his "Speed-Safe" mechanism, as well as the Emerson Wave system, where a hook catches the user's pocket upon removal and the blade is opened during a draw. One of the first one handed devices was the automatic spring release, also known as a switchblade.

Another innovation of Sal Glesser, Spyderco founder, was the clip system, which he named a "Clip-it". Clips are usually metal or plastic and similar to the clips found on pens except thicker. Clips allow the knife to be easy to accessible, while keeping it lint-free and unscathed by pocket items such as coins.


Nevertheless, they retain a significant following, associated especially with the outdoors and those who enjoy camping, hunting, fishing, and so on. The Boy Scouts offer merit badges that involve knife work, such as Wood Carving.

 Schatt & Morgan knives are produced by Queen Cutlery and
are arguably the finest work knife made today. The fit / finish
is now rivaling all competition. This combination is working
hard on the collectability of this brand.