Automatic knives, often referred to as auto knives, are defined as any knife which opens with a button, lever or other style of actuator that releases or engages the energy of a spring when pushed or triggered. Auto knives are extremely popular amongst military and law enforcement officers. Many people also collect automatic knvies.

There are two main types of automatic knives. First, there are side open automatics. These knives, when actuated, have a blade with comes out from the side and locks into the open position. This is similar to a normal pocket knife but the blade is triggered with an automatic button of some sort.

The second type of automatic knife is the Out the Front knife. Sometimes referred to as slide knives, these knives have a blade with comes right out the front when triggered. Normally thinner, these knives are particularly popular amongst military and collectors.

 Just recently, Gerber came out with another fabulous automatic knife.  For me, this could be the best auto knife by Gerber yet.  The Covert automatic is designed after their wildly popular Covert fixed blade knives.  Designed by Applegate-Fairbairn, this knife has a very generous oversized trigger button that makes it easy to open.  The slide safety is mounted in the front and locks the blade closed and it locks it open if the user wants.  On the slide safety, there is a red "flag" that warns you that the knife is live, or ready to be utilized.  Made with a great looking spear point blade, Gerber has then coated the S30V black and made it part serrated.  This is a great knife.   It also has a deep pocket clip for discreet carry.

SPECIFICATIONS:

Overall: 8.75"
Blade: 3.75"
Blade Material: S30V
Handle Material: Type 3 Anodized 6061 Aluminum

ProTech automatic knives are some of the best production knives in the world.  Made in the USA, these knives feature top quality components and craftmanship that rivals many of the companies that do handmade jobs.  The Brend 1 was essentially an automatic sword.  The knife is huge.  The Brend 2 is designed exactly the same but about 33% the size of the 1 series.  Much better for pocket carry, I think the Brend 2 series could be one of the best, traditional shape automatic pocket knives on the market.  The video just to the right features the Brend 2 with a carbon fiber inlay.  It looks good.  The "Baby Brend" is the perfect gift for a knife enthusaist that likes the best.  

SPECIFICATIONS:

Blade:  154-CM Stainless Steel,
2.9" Long Blade, .110" thick, 59RC 
Handle:  T6-6061 Anodized Aluminum, grey with carbon fiber Inlay, .40" thick, .80" wide 
Open Overall Length:  6.6" 
Closed Overall Length:  3.7" 
Weight:  1.9 ounces

 ProTech has come out with a new dual action knife named the Defiance.  A dual action knife (D/A) is able to be opened manually or with an automatic trigger.  On these knives, the trigger is typically hidden so that the knife appears to be a manual open knife.  For the most part, I don't love these knives.  Not so with the Defiance.  This Dual Action Automatic is incredible.  The hidden trigger actually is hidden.  And it works.  The blade is a beautiful shape--and like so many of ProTech's knives, this knife has all of the best quality materials available.  Here, to the side, is a short video showing this knife in action.  Check it out!

Out the front automatic knives, or OTF's as they are sometimes known, are automatic knives that have the blade shoot out of the front (or top) of the knife instead of swinging open out of the side. These knives are incredibly popular. The biggest issues confronting a buyer of an OTF knife is to determine the quality (speed and dependability) of the action and whether the blade locks up tight.

Let me explain. On some OTF knives, the blade comes out slow--or it doesn't come out every time. To close these knives, the same trigger is used in the reverse direction. When triggered back, the blade shoots back into the knife. I sometimes refer to the blade as being on "rails". Although it isn't exactly accurate, it gives you a good idea of what the blade is doing as it slides in and out of the handle. On cheap OTF knives, the blade often comes off of the rails. When this happens, the blade is no longer able to be triggered by the button or slide actuator and the blade actually just "flops" around. To fix it, just hang your knife upside down and the blade will slide (flop) almost to the fully open position. Grab the blade gently and tug it down until it "pops" back onto the rails. The real issue is, you don't want to always be doing this.

Some great quality brand name OTF manufacturers are Microtech, Piranha, and Benchmade. One of the best non-brand OTF knives I have seen are the Lightning (Taiwanese not Chinese made). The Concord AKC's coming out of Italy are also really great.

The second issue facing a potential buyer of an out the front knife is how well it locks up. Once open, some OTF's have an inordinate amount of wiggle or play in the blade. This means you can move it from side to side or from front to back. Not a good thing. The best knives I have seen in the market are Microtech OTF's. They have no wiggle at all. The Lightning is also really good in this department.

I have included a couple of short videos you can watch to see some out the front automatic knvies in action. Watch and enjoy!

There are a few brands which really stand out from the crowd. Each one seems to have it's own little niche. My favorite brand for OTF knives is Microtech Knives. They specifically manufacture knives for military and police type situations. Their machining tolerances are nearly unbelievable--the "fit and finish" of their knives is the best in the industry.

A couple of my favorite manufacturers for side opening automatics are Spyderco and SOG. Spyderco generally makes side open manual folder knives. They branched out a while back and made both the Citadel knife and the Embassy. These are both extremely high quality, well made side opening automatics. SOG makes knives specifically for high intensity combat situations and all types of inclement weather and temperatures. I specifically like their SOG-TAC knife line. These knives are unbelievably thin, work very well and have a good look to them as well. You can get them with a black or a stainless steel blade and you can get them serrated or plain edge. Actually, all of the knives I have discussed in this paragraph come in all four of these variations.

I have found very few dual action knives that I like.  I would recommend the ProTech Defiance and none other.