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Am I having a mid knife crisis?

I started buying knives at $10 to $40 price range about 20 years ago.
2018 I decided to buy better knives $100 to $200 price range. I buy less and am happier with the knives.
I gave away quite a few knives. Basically have about 14 knives.....
there are couple I might buy this year.
 
growing up, and into my 20s its always just been a folding buck and a few saks... also had fixed blades but they were old & well used & not really worth much

then got a spydy delica 4th gen when they were still new (2006), & realized there was this whole quality folder industry... (this was before finding bladeforums, which came some years later) ... (buck & saks were quality, but because it was an old standard, I never truly appreciated them back then... just useful tools)

honestly, prior to finding that spydy I dismissed most 'folding' knifes for years as rather junky cuz my reference was truck stop folders (which I refused to buy)
...
after that point is when I actually starting reading about & collecting a few... (I've never subscribed to a safe queen concept), but I can understand it if others do
 
My addiction ended several years ago. Yeah, it can happen.

Here's my story-

When I was a kid I bought, or traded for, as many knives as I could get. It was a compulsion. Anytime another kid pulled out a knife in my presence I tried to buy it from him, or trade something for it (Playboy and Penthouse magazines were good for that).

Later, as an adult, I would buy knives just to buy knives. I did it purely for the thrill of having a new knife. Some of them were $100, some $200, the most I ever spent on a "compulsion" knife-buy was $300.

For most of my life I had regular need for knives. Whether it was outdoor recreational activities like camping and fishing, or work, where I used knives on a daily basis, often all day long.

But eventually buying new knives just to buy them lost it's thrill, and spending hundreds, or thousands of dollars on knives I had no need for just seemed like a waste of money.

I lost interest in outdoors activities in my late 20's, so I no longer need knives for that. And I retired in 2020, and since then I have had almost no need for knives at all.

I don't have a lot of knives, certainly not compared to some here, but I have more knives than I could ever possibly need. Occasionally I will see a knife that appeals to me, and I'll feel a spark of desire, but that spark is quickly extinguished by two thoughts, 1. That I have no use for it. And 2. That I'd rather keep the money.

I sometimes wish I had more need for knives, more things that needed cutting, so that maybe I could wear-out some of my current users and justify in my own mind buying more knives. But I don't, so I can't.

I bought a few inexpensive knives last year, on a whim, thinking they would give me a cheap thrill like when I was younger. But the thrills were short lived, and I just ended up regretting the purchases. More knives I don't need, and more money spent. Fortunately they didn't cost much. But they were the last, and I don't plan on ever buying any more. The "itch" to buy a new knife is gone.

There are a few knives I would like to own, but they cost from several hundreds of dollars to as much as $1500, and there is no way I can justify the expense, particularly since most of them are autos, and I can't legally carry them.

And that my friends, is the story of a former knife addict. Now, instead of seeking happiness in acquiring new knives, I find happiness in the knives I already have :).
 
A very familiar story indeed. The only advice I'd offer is as you're moving up in price give some thought to getting knives that are not easy to get, make it a hunt (which is a big part of the fun) and make sure there is a good market there to be able to sell later on for at least close to what you paid. That way when that grail knife loses its glow, which most likely will happen, you'll be in a good spot to slide into something else without losing money. I think the big mistake I made early on was buying too many knives that didn't really hold their value well, so consolidating into nicer knives ended up being a more expensive proposition.
 
I'm REALLY glad I don't have the addiction for high end knives like many here. My Brother David took me to the Blade Show in 2007 and I decided to collect rare,odd,1of1 and prototype Buck 112's. I display about 70 or so at the Gator Show here in Florida and in Atlanta. A really rare and interesting 112 might cost $250.00 to a max of $400.00 ..That's peanuts for many here! Many Buck collectors gravitate to the Old Custom shop knife's from the early 80's to 1993 but even there $1,000.00 buys something special. All USA made limited supply. And if bought right and fair steadily go up in value. I have a lot of fun in my little niche of collecting! My advice is to find YOUR niche and comfort level of price and kind of knives. Ever see a dog chase his tail? Some frantic collectors are like that..
 
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