I am a wife, a mother, a BSA Asst. Scoutmaster and I usually carry a pocketknife. My husband carries a pocketknife at all times and has since he was a lad. My son (age 11) carries a knife when he is not attending school. We live in Washington State. I didn't like carrying a knife until my hubby found me a very low profile knife that didn't make a large bulge in my pocket. It is nice and flat and that makes it much nicer to carry. I also have super-sharp small keychain-sized knives in each vehicle hung right on the turn indicator stem. These get much more use than I ever anticipated. They are really handy and though not quite as easy as carrying a knife in pocket, they are conveniently located. Try this for your wife. Once she sees how often she uses the blade, she might see for herself why some people choose to carry a pocketknife.
Laura

would you mind posting the brand, the problems you describe (bulge) are exactly the same as my fiancee has with caring a knife. Thanks,

Marc

Erm... sorry. I have no idea of the maker. He got it at a gun and knife show and it has no markings. It is a single 3.5" blade, has no pocket clip and is fairly thin, especially for the size. It has scales made from mahogany or some such attractive wood. Another of my shopping needs was that it not be too expensive because the more it costs the quicker it will get lost/misplaced/mangled/borrowed/dropped in a river. I also needed it to be easy to open. My fingernails aren't overly strong and I didn't want a knife that I needed another tool to open! He thought I was being too fussy, but when he found the right one, it was perfect.... for me at least.

I also have an RSK. I came home one day to find that my WIFE had borrowed my knife to cut up some cardboard boxes in the garage! She commented on how freaking sharp it was, then proceeded to show me how she had learned to FLICK it open one-handed!!! <img src="/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />...........Needless to say, I got her her own folder! <img src="/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

ETA: Oh, and now she carries a Leatherman Squirt in her purse......

A tragic tale:

Back in the day when I still liked to tip a brew or two or twenty, I was talking to an attractive woman at a party as we tipped back a couple, and she mentioned she firmly believed all men should carry a pocket knife, a comb and a handkerchief.

Had she not been already married, I'd have proposed. <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

An aside: In grad school, I also EDC'd a bottle opener on my keychain, as returnable Hamm's were perpetually on sale. You'd be surprised how many women you can meet in college by opening their brewskis for 'em.

I double checked and it is marked with "Timber Wolf". I did a search and found a pic of it. It is called the Timberwolf Woodman Folder. I like it rather well. TimberWolf Woodman Folder. A decent knife for the price. I lose anything that costs more than $20 so this suits me just fine. <img src="/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" /> Oh, it has a 2 3/4" blade, not the 3 1/2".

Hi! Newbie here. How is the Leatherman Squirt Xe6? <img src="/images/graemlins/ooo.gif" alt="" /> I'm thinking of getting one for me and one for my girl. Although I just got her a SAK. Can't remember which model. But the Xe6 seems to have more features. My Victorinox WorkChamp is a bit heavy for EDC.

The Xe6 is part of the Juice range rather than Squirt range. I have one but found it had too many features, making it a bit heavier and bulkier than I like. Also it has an odd number of layers, making the pliers a bit off-centre. It just didn't feel well-designed.

I'd recommend thinking carefully about what tools you actually need, then looking at one of the others in the Juice range before the Xe6. I now have a Cs4, which loses the file and serrated blade, and I much prefer it. However, the build quality still isn't great compared to, eg a Swiss Tool. The entire Juice range compromises for the sake of size.

I have an XE6 and really like it. It basically has all the features but is more compact than the other models. This makes it a good tradeoff for me.

However, keep in mind it is nearly as heavy as the other models. Take a look at the specs. If weight is a big issue, this may be an issue.

-john

My Squirt Xe6 has been great, I have been using it quite a bit since I deployed from PHX and it has yet to fail me. I normally prefer a larger blade (like in my WAVE) but both of the blades on the Xe6 are ok and hold an edge well. THe weak link is the can opener, it doesn't work as well as the WAVE but it still works.