3 months of edc carry, thoughts

Rsmith_77

Rsmith_77

Joined
Jun 4, 2010
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I know we just had one of our own post that he has carried his barlow for over 1 year everyday. I would like to offer my congratulations and respect for such an accomplishment.

As for me, April 1st makes for 3 months solid carry of my case texas jack. I figured that as i near 3 straight months of everyday carry I would put down my thoughts. First, it was tough, i keep eyeballing this that or the other knife, so at times i have been sorely tempted. This was compounded by me picking up like 4 new knives during these three months. That wasn't the smartest thing I could have done lol. And the 2nd thing that is relevant to these ramblings is that i have paired the texas jack with an alox sak every one of those days (either wenger SI, thew new Pioneer or the farmer). I was VERY good about never using the sak for the knife, just the tools, so i don't necessarily feel that this compromised the experiment. And the last part, I had originally decided to carry the texas jack until may 1st. That is just too optimistic for me. I am struggling to make it to a reasonable point (ie April 1st) So 3 solid months is plenty respectable in my eyes.

Ok so my thoughts.
1) The texas jack is a beautiful knife, i have no complaints about its performance it fulfilled its role beyond admirably. This is probably no surprise to anyone, but just getting that out there. I was surprised to find that I far and away preferred to use the pen blade. NORMALLY I just use the main blade and ignore the secondary blade ...or perhaps leave it as a backup. But in this case it was just the opposite. I don't think i used the main clip blade but like 5% of the time, mostly when i was operating in a hurry or not paying attention to what i was doing. The little pen blade was just awesome.

2) As much as i considered the texas jack "my precious". I don't think it is, if it was i don't think it would have been this hard for me to complete 3 straight months. Its not that it wasn't adequate, cause it is, its not that it isn't purty, because its that too. I don't know for sure, but i keep thinking if it was "the precious" i wouldn't have so much curiosity about other patterns. But at the base of things, i keep thinking if i had to pare down to just 1 (or 3 lol) knives, would it be "the one". And it just isn't. I am pretty sure i know which one i would pick, but i'll get to that later.

3) I've come to the conclusion that carrying 2 knives of the same size (in this case i believe they are both 3 5/8" is just redundant and unnecessary. If I am going to carry an alox sak i would rather carry a smaller slip joint (a buck 309 or a pen knife) for options. Which is what i think i will be doing come April 2nd lol

4) If i had to come down and pick my "ONE knife forever" it would be one of my alox saks. I feel tons better about leaving the house when i know i have more tools than just a blade. Granted the sak blade might not be as good as the case cv steel, but there is alot more i can do with my pioneer than i ever could have done with just a jack knife. Now narrowing it down between the farmer, the pioneer and the standard issue is another topic :D

I know Carl always like to talk about using the tool that you expect to need 98% of the time and improvise the rest rather than carrying big and heavy (or multiple) tools, but i feel better knowing that the saks give me options that a normal knife does not. Even working in a warehouse i dont use a knife so very much or so very hard that the sak blade steel is an issue for me, and as he also likes to say, there is always a piece of ceramic or a car window or a pocket honer to touch up if necessary. On the other hand i DO use the awl at work nearly as much as the blade, and even the screwdrivers on a occasion (and even AS screwdrivers from time to time :D). In addition, my saks allow me to trade out the 2nd blade which i almost never use for other tools which means the knife isnt taking all that much more room than the texas jack did in the first place.

So, these are my conclusions after (nearly) 3 months of carrying my texas jack paired with an alox sak. I may either post more thoughts as they come to me or edit this post if necessary, but i wanted to get my thoughts down. These are not new thoughts, been considering all this for like 3 weeks now. I do believe that i will end up trying a farmer and a boker pen knife for a little while after the first of the month, we will see how that goes.

Anyways, i hope this was of some interest to somebody besides myself lol
and i appreciate ya for reading this far ;)
 
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Thank you for keeping us up to date and traveling along with ya this last three months!!!! :thumbup:
 
Thanks for the report. The TJ has caught my eye since your Cult thread a couple months ago. It's a darned good looking knife and looks to be a handy size and blade combo.

The elusive search for The Grail knife can last nearly a lifetime for some. Some never find it in fact, or don't want to! I for one am still watching and evaluating various knives. I do feel that I'm close, homing in on The One I believe. I'll tell you the #15 is becoming an increasing fascination to me. I have a TC Barlow and have been carrying it for a bit over 3 months now, having missed only a handful of days where it has not been in my pocket and even on my nightstand while I sleep. The fascination with this Barlow continues to grow. It's African blackwood scales are so soothing and pleasant to the touch. I have a #15 Radio Jack w/caplifter on the way and am really looking forward to that one. Also the single spear #15 Boys Knife in Ebony. Is the 15 The One for me? Perhaps it is, we shall see... :)

I only have a few traditional folders and even fewer modern folders. A few fixed blades also. They each serve their purpose, but the traditional GECs are my absolute passion without a doubt. All the others are just tools to me, I have no attachment to them. My GECs are a different matter. I find that I appreciate their beauty and quality, their usefulness and reliability. I've never cared for SAK's myself - I have an old battered Leatherman that I've EDC'd for 20 years now, so no real need for Tools per se beyond what it has. The pocket knife is my blade - I don't view the Leatherman as a knife, I see it as a tool.

The fun and thrill of experimenting with various models and styles is addicting. Enjoy your quest and thanks for your insights and thoughts on the TJ.

PS: We're gonna need some pics of that TJ you know... :)

 
coop7 said:
arizonaranchman, do you prefer the spey over the spear on the 15?
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You didn't ask me, but I'll put in my two cents. IMO, the spear is a little more versatile. The spey on this pattern just looks cool….. and the etch is pretty darn cool. To deal with the fact you don’t have as much tip, you need to keep the blade real sharp. Which is a good thing anyways.
 
coop7 said:
arizonaranchman, do you prefer the spey over the spear on the 15?
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Coop,

Gosh I think it depends on the uses you typically put your knife to. In my case it's a contest between the Spear and the Spey as to which I like best. If you need something more like a point to your blade the Spear is best, but in my case having been using the Spey for routine life tasks like opening pachages, mail, cutting hay bale strings and at the dinner table on chicken, steak, etc I've found the Spey to be perfectly fine. I rarely if ever need a pronounced POINT on my blade The Spey sort of does have enough of a point at the tip to still get most things done - it's not perfectly round at the very tip. If I need at actual POINT then my second knife (lately a wonderful little smooth Antique bone Peanut) usually always has a clip or spear point to step up to the plate.

Another thing I really like is how LOW PROFILED the Spey rides in the closed position. Very sleek. The Spear is plenty sleek in most pocket knives, but the Spey really lays low which I like alot. For this same reason I don't care for Clip blades due to how high the spine rides. Same with the Sheepfoot which I otherwise really like.
 
Woodrow F Call said:
You didn't ask me, but I'll put in my two cents. IMO, the spear is a little more versatile. The spey on this pattern just looks cool….. and the etch is pretty darn cool. To deal with the fact you don’t have as much tip, you need to keep the blade real sharp. Which is a good thing anyways.
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WFC is right here, the Spear is def more versatile. If you carry two knives and the #2 can fulfill the needs of a Pointy blade then no worries, but if not then the Spear would be a better choice.
 
Well as you may recall I have been shadowing your experiment myself, also only carrying the Case Small Texas Jack and a Victorinox Alox Cadet since the first of the year.

I don't know if it's a cause, effect, or just correlated, but I've noticed a couple of changes in my thinking and behavior.

First - Knives have reverted back to being pocket tools, rather than being a primary interest or fixation. I do the occasional maintenance or sharpening of those two but otherwise they just go in the pocket, and get used when needed.

Second - I haven't wanted to buy any new knives. I did buy one off the Exchange forum here, my only knife purchase of the year. It was a GEC pattern I had wanted that I passed up a chance on once, and when a second opportunity came around I went ahead and got it. Where before I would have jumped on it, this time I had some reluctance to break my 'knife fast' and even waited a couple of days, hoping someone else would buy it first. But I went ahead anyway. When it showed up, it was a fine example of the knife I had wanted but yet the owning of it gave me no particular pleasure, and reaffirmed to me my initial hesitation on buying it in the first place.

I am not especially looking forward to a time when I will end the experiment, if that's what it is. The longer I have stuck with it, the less I have had a desire to carry something different. I suppose I may change up at some point but for now this is working for me.
 
Carrying just an alox pioneer or bantam has shown me how little knife I actually need, as well as how handy the non-knife tools are.

It makes a non-sak folder seem bulky and limited by comparison. This is not necessarily a welcome realization for someone with a drawer full of non-sak knives. :)
 
Dangerously said:
Carrying just an alox pioneer or bantam has shown me how little knife I actually need, as well as how handy the non-knife tools are.

It makes a non-sak folder seem bulky and limited by comparison. This is not necessarily a welcome realization for someone with a drawer full of non-sak knives. :)
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I know what you mean. When I got my first Alox Vic Electrician and carried it for a while there was sort of a horrible feeling that I had sure spent a lot of money on knives just to discover that I didn't need any of them other than a $25 SAK. Then came the Cadet and sealed my fate.

I've actually taken to carrying just the Cadet some days recently and leaving the Case STJ at home.
 
I carry SAKs and reg pocketknives together nearly everyday. The reg knives are there because I want/love them...the SAKs are there because I need them. Does that make sense? I love my SAKs as well but their utility makes them indispensable to me.

Case in point.

From my post in "Multi-purpose Knives" area of the forum.

"I walked out the door without my Pioneer last week and as the screen door slammed shut, the lock engaged (very old screen door). I had a nice traditional old folder that I wouldn't risk damaging so I walked around till I found something to carefully jimmy it open...I rediscovered the value of an EDC knife with extras like a screwdriver blade that I had taken for granted for so long. "
 
jc57 said:
Well as you may recall I have been shadowing your experiment myself, also only carrying the Case Small Texas Jack and a Victorinox Alox Cadet since the first of the year.

I don't know if it's a cause, effect, or just correlated, but I've noticed a couple of changes in my thinking and behavior.

First - Knives have reverted back to being pocket tools, rather than being a primary interest or fixation. I do the occasional maintenance or sharpening of those two but otherwise they just go in the pocket, and get used when needed.

Second - I haven't wanted to buy any new knives. I did buy one off the Exchange forum here, my only knife purchase of the year. It was a GEC pattern I had wanted that I passed up a chance on once, and when a second opportunity came around I went ahead and got it. Where before I would have jumped on it, this time I had some reluctance to break my 'knife fast' and even waited a couple of days, hoping someone else would buy it first. But I went ahead anyway. When it showed up, it was a fine example of the knife I had wanted but yet the owning of it gave me no particular pleasure, and reaffirmed to me my initial hesitation on buying it in the first place.

I am not especially looking forward to a time when I will end the experiment, if that's what it is. The longer I have stuck with it, the less I have had a desire to carry something different. I suppose I may change up at some point but for now this is working for me.
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That's exactly what happened when I took off for a 5 week cross country road trip with only two knives on my person. After a few days, I stopped missing the others, and they knives I had with me wen tot being just a cutting tool I had along. It was like a drunk getting away from the bar. The focus of the obsession great shrunk.
 
jc57 said:
[...]I had sure spent a lot of money on knives just to discover that I didn't need any of them other than a $25 SAK.
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Agreed. So it's not about need then. I just carry the others in full knowledge that it's about their beauty or other exotic properties, rather than sheer utility.
 
I agree. I got my first SAK at Christmas, an alox Electrician, and already think if I could only have one pocket knife this would be it. Needs met.

But I just like the cutler's art, fine acrylic, wood, bone, horn and stag too much not to carry something else as well. Not need, just desire.
 
jc57 said:
Well as you may recall I have been shadowing your experiment myself, also only carrying the Case Small Texas Jack and a Victorinox Alox Cadet since the first of the year.

First - Knives have reverted back to being pocket tools, rather than being a primary interest or fixation. I do the occasional maintenance or sharpening of those two but otherwise they just go in the pocket, and get used when needed.
Click to expand...

I definitely agree with this! This leads me into re-deciding that the pioneer/wenger SI is "the one". there is NOTHING my texas jack can do that the pioneer cant and LOTS the pioneer can do that the texas jack cant. Plus i LIKE the black alox!!

Dangerously said:
Carrying just an alox pioneer or bantam has shown me how little knife I actually need, as well as how handy the non-knife tools are.

It makes a non-sak folder seem bulky and limited by comparison. This is not necessarily a welcome realization for someone with a drawer full of non-sak knives. :)
Click to expand...

EXACTLY!
although i'll be honest, now i am wanting to get more alox, an alox bantam is high on the list, and a cadet, maybe an electrician :D
 
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