A bicycle and a pocketknife

Railsplitter

Railsplitter

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What I'm about to post can only be understood by knife enthusiasts and even some of those people might think (or find out) that I've gone off the deep end.

When I was 10 years old, I bought a knife by mail order from an advertisement in the back of a Boys Life magazine. When I had that knife in my pocket, I felt like all I needed to conquer the world was a bicycle and a pocketknife. I could do anything as long as I had those two things.
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I'm sitting here this morning playing around with one of my Buck 703's and that feeling came over me again after all these years. I've had plenty of knives that gave me that warm, fuzzy feeling but this is a little bit different. I'm 62 years old now and I haven't had that same exact feeling since the early 1970's. Something about the 703 brought that feeling back. I didn't see it coming and it kind of hit me like a ton of bricks.

Obviously, I'll be carrying my 703 for the foreseeable future.

Do any of you folks have a knife that makes you feel like there's nothing you can't do as long as you have that knife in your pocket? Whether it requires the use of a knife or not?
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Unfortunately my youth knives long gone. Did however have one very similar to the first one pictured with the black handle back around 63-64! Could make the blade propel with a flick pushing the rear tab. Small but looked like a switchblade. Good to see it again.
 
Nice! I'd add my Marbles waterproof match container, nickle-plated brass, that could hold those big strike-anywhere wooden kitchen matches. It was knurled so you could light the matches on the side. Good thing to have handy when you went out on your paper route in the dead of winter, never knowing when you'd have to kindle a fire to survive.
 
Ahh the memories.

That little stiletto you pictured is an exact duplicate of my very first folding stiletto. The one that started it all for me.

It originally belonged to a kid in my 6th grade class. I was already fascinated with folding stilettos, and I would always ask the kid to let me see it, which he would. I was poor, but I really wanted it and would always ask him to sell it to me. Then one day I offered him something like $3.50, and I guess that was the magic number because he happily sold it to me. It was the first knife I ever bought, and it was my treasure.

Just like you describe Railsplitter, carrying around a knife in my pocket as a kid gave me the feeling that I was ready to face whatever challenges the world had to offer.

I eventually broke that knife, but it led to bigger and better things-

My next stiletto was this Kissing Crane, I carried it for 15 years.

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Then I started customizing these.

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And those led me to make switchblades like this.

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And then I started doing these.

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Wow, switchblades aren’t really my thing but now I’m interested. Had a couple as a kid, read West Side Story in play form, broke them, moved on to other knives that stood up to my outdoor abuse better.

Similar to what the OP describes, is how I felt when I got my first Buck 110, a used one from a nearby pawn shop in my late teens. I had just hired on to my first construction job, got my first paycheck, and had some disposable income left after paying bills.

As I recall, they wanted 12.99 for it, but I wheedled them down a couple bucks because the sheath had a bad cut in it. A good friend was into leatherworking, and made a new sheath after I helped him set trusses on his garage.

Yeah, I was strutting around the jobsites for a while. Good times.

Parker
 
Yep those stilettos sure look racy and appealing. Actually wish I would have held onto a couple of the old folders I had as a kid. Especially the Boy Scout knife. Wasn't dangerous enough looking so probably got traded for fireworks. Man the choices today incredible compared to 1964. Can see where collecting today can be an expensive habit!
 
Railsplitter, we're the same age and yep, my brother and I and maybe a cousin a or friend all had those same knives ordered from the back of a magazine, too! Sure mines around somewhere, still. I will add a bb gun to the list of what made me feel invincable at ten years old! Fun times, thanks. Ben
 
Railsplitter said:
What I'm about to post can only be understood by knife enthusiasts and even some of those people might think (or find out) that I've gone off the deep end.

When I was 10 years old, I bought a knife by mail order from an advertisement in the back of a Boys Life magazine. When I had that knife in my pocket, I felt like all I needed to conquer the world was a bicycle and a pocketknife. I could do anything as long as I had those two things.
View attachment 2367824View attachment 2367825
I'm sitting here this morning playing around with one of my Buck 703's and that feeling came over me again after all these years. I've had plenty of knives that gave me that warm, fuzzy feeling but this is a little bit different. I'm 62 years old now and I haven't had that same exact feeling since the early 1970's. Something about the 703 brought that feeling back. I didn't see it coming and it kind of hit me like a ton of bricks.

Obviously, I'll be carrying my 703 for the foreseeable future.

Do any of you folks have a knife that makes you feel like there's nothing you can't do as long as you have that knife in your pocket? Whether it requires the use of a knife or not?
View attachment 2367826
View attachment 2367827
Click to expand...
Bought that same knife myself (63 years old). Can't remember if it was from Boys' Life or a comic book ad. Wasn't my first knife--that was a scout knife--but I sure loved that stiletto! Wish I still had it.
Bought a couple of switchblades this year (so far), one based on the stiletto (Kershaw Launch 8, which I can't show on the Porch except when I post in the "Traditional and Modern Pairings" thread).
Thanks for posting!

Edit: I can post it here--thought I was on "The Porch"! Maybe tomorrow: late at night and finishing my second bourbon.
 
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Railsplitter said:
What I'm about to post can only be understood by knife enthusiasts and even some of those people might think (or find out) that I've gone off the deep end.

When I was 10 years old, I bought a knife by mail order from an advertisement in the back of a Boys Life magazine. When I had that knife in my pocket, I felt like all I needed to conquer the world was a bicycle and a pocketknife. I could do anything as long as I had those two things.
View attachment 2367824View attachment 2367825
I'm sitting here this morning playing around with one of my Buck 703's and that feeling came over me again after all these years. I've had plenty of knives that gave me that warm, fuzzy feeling but this is a little bit different. I'm 62 years old now and I haven't had that same exact feeling since the early 1970's. Something about the 703 brought that feeling back. I didn't see it coming and it kind of hit me like a ton of bricks.

Obviously, I'll be carrying my 703 for the foreseeable future.

Do any of you folks have a knife that makes you feel like there's nothing you can't do as long as you have that knife in your pocket? Whether it requires the use of a knife or not?
View attachment 2367826
View attachment 2367827
Click to expand...
I'm betting those credit cards will get you a lot further than the knife and bike. But yes, I feel naked without a knife in my pocket.
 
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