Allow me to introduce myself & a few questions.. take it easy me (new guy).

D

DoctorAutomatic

Joined
Aug 12, 2017
Messages
18
I've been reading as much as I can, I know how people steeped in hobbies/passions can become quite annoyed with beginners so I'm hesitant and asking for your patience. I almost titled this post "new to knives" but obviously that's not exactly correct, having used them all my life really, just never gave a single thought to it. A knife has always just been a sharp piece of metal to me is all.

Not sure what prompted this recent deeper dive into this arena. I often had a multitool or SAK in my pocket but for whatever reason I woke up one day and thought to myself "Doc, it's time to get a dedicated knife, it will be both enjoyable & useful, and you can finally get a glimpse of what so many others are really into". Which is frightening really, I have a propensity for capital intensive hobbies/interests/obsessions and have actually made a concerted effort many times to avoid some things i know I would love too much with the knowledge that if I even dipped my toe into it my bank account would suffer & I'd spend way too much time on it.

A little about me... My day job is developing industrial automation (so robotics and various other mechatronic instruments). I love shooting (talk about an expensive hobby), nearly all outdoors activities though I never have time to do as much as I want, love me some college football, and I love bringing my work home and automating whatever I can, even if my wife doesn't always appreciate being the beta tester for it. Also, well versed in CAD/CAM and CNC machining so anything mechanical that's made out of metal (wood too) I'm drawn to figuring out how to make.

Now that that's all out of the way, I'll get to my questions. My first knife, since that epiphany described earlier, was a Mini Grip (G10, plain edge, deep carry pocket, thumb stud). I freaking love it. Love how I can whip it out, open the blade, open a box, and close the blade, all in damn near a blink of an eye, with little effort and using only one hand. I do however think of myself as a so called "gentleman" and have felt I'd prefer similar functionality but in an aesthetic form factor that looks the part (eg. wood & more sophisticated) and less prone to raise nearby eye brows (eg. less "tactical" looking or whatever).

So I went and bought a Benchmade Small Summit Lake which I love the look of but I really prize one handed operation so I'm not over the moon about it. And I bought a Benchmade Crooked River, yea I know, it was totally impulsive, I loved the look of it and somehow convinced myself it would be reasonable but I now realize it is ridiculous in the "not eye brow raising" department.

And then I stumbled upon a MCUSTA Bamboo with cocobolo scales. It was love at first sight. Checked off every item on my wish list (small, "gentleman" style, wood, one hand operation, and deep carry pocket clip). It is somewhere in the sky over the Atlantic on it's way to me. So, finally we get to my question... I'm starting to worry that I will be scared shitless to use it due to how nice it is. I don't normally subscribe to such thought, I use everything like a tool really. Can anyone share their experience or thoughts on using a knife of similar quality, similar or even more costly, and aesthetics day in and day out? Was it regrettable or did it not matter and became even more endearing with use and the resulting imperfections?

Sorry for the novel, I felt I owed a first post that was more than a 1 sentence question. For those that made it this far, I appreciate it, and appreciate your opinions on this.
 
welcome, Sir.

use it. knives are tools to be used. nothing sadder than a great knife never used.
 
Use the hell out of it, Boy!

Only way I can gain the full appreciation for a knife is to use it. Otherwise, it's just taking up otherwise useful space in the house.
 
Short answer is use it, the way a knife is supposed to be used. Don't use it as a pry bar, don't hammer on it, don't dig in the dirt with it, it'll be just fine! With normal knife duties it will get a little bit of character and still function perfectly.
 
I know when I first started with knives I thought my $60 crkt was top of the line and too good to use for some things. Now that I have been into it for a good while I don't think anything of pulling out my microtech, Hinderer, or sebenza for doing an everyday task. It's all about using the knives as they are supposed to be used. For cutting things! No sense in abusing them the way some people torture test blades, but using them for their designed task absolutely
 
Welcome!!
Use it and you'll love it even more!!
I have a couple Mcustas and they slice like demons! Not hard to sharpen either!
They are really sweet looking knives and carry very well.
USE IT!! Not to break up concrete, cut some stuff!!
Joe
 
Welcome to BFC!!!!!!
Knives are tools, but they're also works of art. So, you either use it as a tool, which is easier said than done with a piece of art or you fall into the rabbit hole, deny you've become a collector and have similar users. The hardest part of having a knife that is a work of art is getting that first scratch/ ding on it. After that, it's an easier pill to swallow.
I'm no psychic or seer, but I'm betting that you'll wind up with "all my knives are users" category and the really nice ones will be for " light duty" which equates to carrying on special occasions, in a sheath, only to be used to cut a piece of rouge thread ;)
Ask me how I know....
 
Welcome aboard.

What you need to do is cultivate an appreciation for how a knife wears. Yes, a brand new knife is a thing of beauty. There's no point in pretending that it's always easy to just "ruin" our pocket jewelry. You have to learn to appreciate a worn knife.

You start by fearlessly using it. Then you learn how to maintain it. How to sharpen and clean it. After using and maintaining it, you start to appreciate the knife's character apart from its appearance. All the wear becomes "history." Eventually, you start to enjoy a knife with a bit of history and character, even if it once belonged to somebody else.
 
D DoctorAutomatic
Value can be ascribed many different ways. I have one knife that many outside of the knife culture (and some that are into knives) would consider "Valuable". But I can honestly say that I have not been able to put a valuation on it since, to me, it is worth Much more than what I paid.

Let me back up a bit. Value can be attributed to initial cost, memories made, materials used (if sentimental) ie; bolsters made from stabilized birch used for place holders at your wedding reception, or a CRK Sebenza made on a wedding date or child's birthday.

In my particular instance, 10 months after my daughter was born, I found a Large 21 Sebenza on the exchange here, and it was made on the day she was born. I jumped at the chance to purchase it. I immediately received some messages on here and via email about folks willing to buy it from me for a profit due to the date, but I had to decline.

I have since called CRK to see how many were made on that day, and there were seven (7) Large 21's made. It has been 2.5 years, and I have yet to see another with the same date in the exchange here, though I have not been checking regularly.

I paid a little under $300, turned down an offer for $500, because to me the knife is priceless.

All of that being said, it is a knife and I use it. The blade has two chips in it, it has a bunch of snail trails (marks on the Ti handles), and a leather lanyard, I think I disposed of the factory one. I also polished the edges, most likely destroying any warranty on them in the process.
It is irreplaceable, and I get a particular sense of joy using it.
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Welcome.
Like others have said, use it to get the full enjoyment out of it. Its stainless steel so expect to see some scratches. Just when you admire it angle it in such a way that light don't hit them and don't focus on them. Maybe stay away from cardboard in the beginning until you ready to "peal the plastic off" sort of speak. you know the one they put on new items fresh out of the box.;)
 
Welcome a lot of great knowledge here also a lot bs just typed from some to type. That being said use it use the heck outta it. Your knife selection has been great so far buy and use what you like.
 
Hi and Welcome :) ! I have two Mcustas (a Fuji Kamon Crest and a Bushi Sword, latter in rotation this week :)) and, in my opinion, they are very nice gentlemen’s knives :thumbsup:. I regularly use these for all my EDC tasks (I’m also in the engineering field).

OK, let’s say I’m not going that tough (like I do with my "working" folders :)) with them on the factory floors or in warehouses (cutting pallet straps, heavy duty zip-ties, extra thick cardboards, removing metal staples, piercing HDPE tanks, prying open chemicals containers, etc.) and they would not be my first choice as hiking/camping companions :), but they are really well built knives and very nice in the look department, at least for me :cool:. Use them, don’t abuse them and enjoy! You’ll not be disappointed :thumbsup:!
 
Dear Mr dude man new guy I'm pretty sure in the knife community people are happy to help bring new ones into the addiction
Also
My two most used knives are my CRK inkosi and hinderer xm-18 and I have used the CRK to do stuff like tree trimming and other camp chores that I should have used a fixed blade for.
 
Does Benchmade still make the North Fork? It's kinda the love child of the mini grip and summit lake.
 
Eventually you will decide that it's no fun to own it if you don't use it, so use it. Start carefully if you have to, consider it an experiment to discover what it is capable of without damage, but use it.

Oh and whatever you do stay away from Spyderco brand. Most of them aren't made to be pretty, they are made to work well. You will find that you sell off all of your other brands and own nothing but Spyderco.
 
Welcome Doc!
I don't own any knifes I haven't used, although some are used more often than others of course! Nothing like using a quality tool to do what it was meant to do!
Enjoy your knives and enjoy the forums!
 
jbarsquat said:
Short answer is use it, the way a knife is supposed to be used. Don't use it as a pry bar, don't hammer on it, don't dig in the dirt with it, it'll be just fine! With normal knife duties it will get a little bit of character and still function perfectly.
Click to expand...
Pretty much what I think. It takes a while (at least for me) to become comfortable using a more expensive knife day to day and not simply using the less expensive or one I am most accustomed to. But, give it some time and I think you'll use it. There will be other knives down the road to oooh and aaah over if your interest continues. The pile grows.....

Added: I'm still struggling with using a TA Davison custom slip joint that cost in the $500 area that I got in March 2017. I intend to get another one also.... So, I know precisely how it is.
 
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