My neck knife: looking for a different chain.

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  • Spear Dane

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    I recently bought a neck knife that came with a military style ball chain. What ever it is made of, it seems to have rusted(?) as it's now a nice shade of brown. I want something better. What do the high speed, low drag people use? I must be tacticool and I want it strong enough to withstand one handed snatches from the sheath. Thank you.
     

    rhino

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    I recently bought a neck knife that came with a military style ball chain. What ever it is made of, it seems to have rusted(?) as it's now a nice shade of brown. I want something better. What do the high speed, low drag people use? I must be tacticool and I want it strong enough to withstand one handed snatches from the sheath. Thank you.

    I use stainless steel ball chains. You can find them on amazon in different sizes (ball diameter), lengths, and quantities.
     

    Sylvain

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    Nov 30, 2010
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    Paracord... though I'm low-speed, high-drag at best.

    If you use paracord you might want to use one of those stop cord bead thingy.
    Instead of having just one loop of paracord with a solid knot around your neck.

    No idea what they are called. :dunno:

    61qB%2BQFRw4L._SY355_PIcountsize-30,TopRight,0,0_AA355SH20_.jpg


    Some neck knives come with one.
    You don't want to be strangled by your lanyard (during a fight or by accident) but it should still be strong enough to snatch the knife one handed.
    It will break if too much force is applied just like with the chain thingy.
    Also it will allow you to change the lenght of the cord very easily without having to remove a knot each time.

    CR-2384K.jpg
     

    Vigilant

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    If you decide to go paracord, I would gut it first and use the outer nylon. You can tie it in a knot that will break before it strangles you, and it's not near as thick and doesn't print as much.
     

    rhino

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    Based on this topic, I snagged a small bag of cord locks on amazon.com.



    In the reviews, some people say the locks are useless because they won't hold para cord tightly enough. For this application, that's a good thing. They hold well enough to easily support a neck knife and a few other things if you choose, but if you pull on it, the cord will come out.
     

    cosermann

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    ... You can tie it in a knot that will break before it strangles you, and it's not near as thick and doesn't print as much.

    Do you mean a knot that will break to prevent strangulation, or are you saying the cored sleeve will break before it strangles you? The reason I ask is that I'm curious if you have a particular knot in mind as I'm confident the cored sleeve is strong enough to potentially cause neck injury.

    By way of comparison, the typical tensile strength of the #3 ball chain most commonly used for this sort of application is 12/20/25/20 lbs for aluminum, carbon steel, stainless steel, and yellow brass respectively. For #4 ball chain (a little heavier) it's 18/30/45/20 lbs for those materials respectively. [1]

    By way of comparison, the sleeve of 550 cord has a working weight of about 200# and a tensile strength of 305 ish. Even if one tied a knot that halved the strength it would still be more than double the strength of stainless #4 ball chain.

    OP, did you have any issues with your prior ball chain breaking? If not, then what's the issue? Moving to stainless as rhino suggests will get you 5-15# more strength over the carbon steel you currently have without going so high you might start to get concerned about neck injury. Personally, I'd be a bit leery of going larger than #6 ball chain.

    [1] - http://www.ballchain.com/chain_sizes.html
     
    Last edited:

    hammerd13

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    Oct 20, 2015
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    I like to take 550 chord, gut it, then run your drain-chain thru it. Kind of a pain in the ass, but feels better on the neck and much quieter.

    I do exactly what Tradertator has suggested. Using stainless chain is also a must, as was mentioned by Rhino.

    Just to elaborate a bit...I finish it off with heat shrink at the ends of the 550 paracord to keep it positioned correctly on the chain. I also attach the finished product to the sheath with a girth hitch (keeps the knife flat against my chest). Lastly, I position the clasp so that it's NOT at the back of my neck which is where most of the force tends to be (makes it more comfortable).

    Below are pictures of the clasp, hitch, and overall setup. You can visit Amazon for the chain. I bought the 30" chain.
    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008MFVN1K/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1


    clasp.JPG hitch.JPG overall.JPG
     
    Last edited:

    lonehoosier

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    I do exactly what Tradertator has suggested. Using stainless chain is also a must, as was mentioned by Rhino.

    Just to elaborate a bit...I finish it off with heat shrink at the ends of the 550 paracord to keep it positioned correctly on the chain. I also attach the finished product to the sheath with a girth hitch (keeps the knife flat against my chest). Lastly, I position the clasp so that it's NOT at the back of my neck which is where most of the force tends to be (makes it more comfortable).

    Below are pictures of the clasp, hitch, and overall setup. You can visit Amazon for the chain. I bought the 30" chain.
    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008MFVN1K/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1


    View attachment 58700 View attachment 58701 View attachment 58702
    Nicely done!
     

    Vigilant

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    Do you mean a knot that will break to prevent strangulation, or are you saying the cored sleeve will break before it strangles you? The reason I ask is that I'm curious if you have a particular knot in mind as I'm confident the cored sleeve is strong enough to potentially cause neck injury.

    By way of comparison, the typical tensile strength of the #3 ball chain most commonly used for this sort of application is 12/20/25/20 lbs for aluminum, carbon steel, stainless steel, and yellow brass respectively. For #4 ball chain (a little heavier) it's 18/30/45/20 lbs for those materials respectively. [1]

    By way of comparison, the sleeve of 550 cord has a working weight of about 200# and a tensile strength of 305 ish. Even if one tied a knot that halved the strength it would still be more than double the strength of stainless #4 ball chain.

    OP, did you have any issues with your prior ball chain breaking? If not, then what's the issue? Moving to stainless as rhino suggests will get you 5-15# more strength over the carbon steel you currently have without going so high you might start to get concerned about neck injury. Personally, I'd be a bit leery of going larger than #6 ball chain.

    [1] - Ball Chain Sizes | Beaded Chains Size Chart
    I meant a knot that will break, the nylon sleeve is still plenty strong enough to strangle a feller!
     

    DanO

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    Traderator is right on. As Paratroopers, we ran the stainless chain from our dog tags through striped out paracord. Comfortable, but still safe. Straight up paracord with a know is like giving someone a tourniquet to tighten on your neck!!
     

    szorn

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    I carry / wear neck knives frequently. I recommend simple para-cord without any bells and whistles. Chains, depending on the type tend to make noise and can become uncomfortable at times.

    The whole "you might get strangled with your own cord" thing is moot if you have some basic unarmed and knife use skills. In theory it does seems to be problematic but I have yet to hear of one story where a potential defender was strangled or choked with their own cord, necklace, necktie, etc. IF it did happen it's likely they were untrained. Considering that a neck knife is generally worn concealed the likelihood of anyone being able to grab it during an altercation is pretty slim anyway.

    Steve
     

    hammerd13

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    I carry / wear neck knives frequently. I recommend simple para-cord without any bells and whistles. Chains, depending on the type tend to make noise and can become uncomfortable at times.

    The whole "you might get strangled with your own cord" thing is moot if you have some basic unarmed and knife use skills. In theory it does seems to be problematic but I have yet to hear of one story where a potential defender was strangled or choked with their own cord, necklace, necktie, etc. IF it did happen it's likely they were untrained. Considering that a neck knife is generally worn concealed the likelihood of anyone being able to grab it during an altercation is pretty slim anyway.

    Steve


    Valid point, but consider this...the risk of strangulation (or worse) can come from a source other than a person.

    For example, if you hike, boat, fish, etc. with your neck knife you could slip and fall and catch the cord on a stationary object (e.g. tree/root, boat, etc.). Even a car accident could potentially get your neck knife caught up in something. My point is, your neck won't win the battle if you've got 550 cord tied securely around it.
     
    Last edited:

    tradertator

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    I carry / wear neck knives frequently. I recommend simple para-cord without any bells and whistles. Chains, depending on the type tend to make noise and can become uncomfortable at times.

    The whole "you might get strangled with your own cord" thing is moot if you have some basic unarmed and knife use skills. In theory it does seems to be problematic but I have yet to hear of one story where a potential defender was strangled or choked with their own cord, necklace, necktie, etc. IF it did happen it's likely they were untrained. Considering that a neck knife is generally worn concealed the likelihood of anyone being able to grab it during an altercation is pretty slim anyway.

    Steve

    Valid point, but consider this...the risk of strangulation (or worse) can come from a source other than a person.

    For example, if you hike, boat, fish, etc. with your neck knife you could slip and fall and catch the cord on a stationary object (e.g. tree/root, boat, etc.). Even a car accident could potentially get your neck knife caught up in something. My point is, your neck won't win the battle if you've got 550 cord tied securely around it.

    ....not to mention if it comes down to spine VS a piece of 550 chord, the 550 chord is going to win every time. If it's going on my neck, it needs to have a breakaway feature of some kind.
     

    rhino

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    I carry / wear neck knives frequently. I recommend simple para-cord without any bells and whistles. Chains, depending on the type tend to make noise and can become uncomfortable at times.

    The whole "you might get strangled with your own cord" thing is moot if you have some basic unarmed and knife use skills. In theory it does seems to be problematic but I have yet to hear of one story where a potential defender was strangled or choked with their own cord, necklace, necktie, etc. IF it did happen it's likely they were untrained. Considering that a neck knife is generally worn concealed the likelihood of anyone being able to grab it during an altercation is pretty slim anyway.

    Steve

    As the others mentioned, a person trying to choke you is not the only concern. In my opinion, it's probably the least concern. Getting your knife or the cord/chain caught on something else can result in serious injury. I've broken a ball chains that fortunately saved me from being hurt when they got caught on something. As an aside, TOPS won't replace a neck chain that you break unless you pay them. :)

    This week I snagged some breakaway lanyard "barrel connectors." They work pretty well. They're plenty strong to hold what you need to hold, but they pop open when you give it a good tug.

    71JhpHkr5lL._SL1500_.jpg
     
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