Anybody else give up on high-end carry?

Comeuppance said:
I gave it a real shot several times, but the practical and budget-conscious part of my combines with my knife hobby in a way where I see no point in having a $300+ knife when I could instead have two $150 knives that cut things at least as well and are of roughly the same quality of assembly.

I’ve carried Hinderers, Striders, Chris Reeves, expensive limited release ZTs, customs, etc - None of them are a better cutting tool than a Manix2, and none of them are appreciably “tougher” than a Recon 1.

The trend towards budget knives having immaculate assembly quality (Stedemon, Civivi, Maxace, etc) has also eliminated the only remaining reason I would consider spending high amounts on a knife: flipper pivot action. I’m not going to spend $900+ on a Shiro just so I have a knife that might be better than a Civivi, since the difference in flipping action and edge retention is definitely not going to be in proportion to the price difference (~2000%)

Similarly, if I wanted maximum cutting performance, Spyderco already makes production Maxamet and S110V versions of full-flat-ground highly-utilitarian knives that are available for under $200.

Not being on instagram has probably saved me thousands of dollars over the years; I just don’t care to carry around $500 wallet chains and $700 knives so I can flex on people with better spending habits.
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Better spending habits is the way I ve always characterized getting high value folders. Defined as folders that are relatively cheap considering their quality. Which is why I no longer consider buying a $400 plus knife when I can get essentially the same performance for $200 or less. Ability to buy has little to do with it. It s more about susceptibility to marketing.
More money in my wallet, and less clipped IWB.
All part of my education about the hobby of collecting and using edc/work knives over the years.
 
whp said:
Better spending habits is the way I ve always characterized getting high value folders. Defined as folders that are relatively cheap considering their quality. Which is why I no longer consider buying a $400 plus knife when I can get essentially the same performance for $200 or less. Ability to buy has little to do with it. It s more about susceptibility to marketing.
More money in my wallet, and less clipped IWB.
All part of my education about the hobby of collecting and using edc/work knives over the years.
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In a strange but consistent way, the amount I pay for a knife directly influences how I perceive and use it. I see the Recon 1 in S35VN that I got for $90 as a nearly-perfect tool that I can use for anything even remotely befit to a folding cutting tool, but the Spyderco Caribbean that cost me ~$40 more, and is arguably a better cutting tool in most ways, will probably never be used as frequently.

This falls in line with the spirit behind the term “budget beater”, where a less-expensive knife becomes the default tool for anything that might prove harmful to the knife or its appearance. Being aware of the practical value of a knife I won’t hesitate to use is no small part of why I don’t like to buy high-price knives for anything other than appreciation of craftsmanship... which leads to them finding new homes in a short amount of time since I see this significant amount of money just sitting there in knife shape, clearly not getting any work done.

I guess what I’m saying is that, for some people, an inexpensive knife is functionally superior to higher-end knives. Certainly, I am much more impressed with a $45 Civivi than a $300 WE knife, since the latter just seems like an extravagant expense that I feel like I should expect to be perfect, but the former is a tool that has a similar feeling of quality while still being inexpensive enough to use with reckless abandon.
 
Wowbagger said:
Yes but how does it cut ? ? ?
Is it any good ? Hows the geometry ?
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Absolutely! And: Is it comfortable? Does it have good deployment? A solid lock with no blade play even in a tight grip?

Ajack60 said:
I like to use a knife that will bring a smile to my face when I'm working.

ma0O59M.jpg
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That knife is completely screwed! :D

Comeuppance said:
I see the Recon 1 in S35VN that I got for $90 as a nearly-perfect tool that I can use for anything even remotely befit to a folding cutting tool, but the Spyderco Caribbean that cost me ~$40 more, and is arguably a better cutting tool in most ways, will probably never be used as frequently.
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I just posted about this in the "Three Favorite Spydercos" thread, but if that's how you feel about the Caribbean, then if you had a Resilience, you'd probably never use anything else. I've mostly traded in my "high end" carry for my modded Resiliences. I have a feeling I will be buying a couple more to mod in the future as well. Out of the seven I've owned and modded, here are the ones I still own:

Spyderco Resiliences 4.JPG

Here is the one I lost:

Resilitary Lost.jpg

Here is the one I gave to my best friend:

IMG_5538.JPG

And there were the first two I owned, both which I eventually sold, after losing enthusiasm for the mods I made to them. Both I ground waves into, and one I ground a finger choil into, which I came to regret, so I reground again it into a recurve. I was still pretty green at modding back then.

Old Resiliences.jpg

I promise the bottom one (my first Resilience ever by the way) didn't always look that horrible!

IMG_1555.JPG

But its final iteration, though much better, is still not something I would be super proud of today. Still, not bad for a back and forth salvage job on a misguided initial mod.

Resilience 1, final.jpg
 
My regular carry knives range from $220 - $1k, with the most carried usually falling around $350 - $500. I don't often carry knives that are worth more than that.
 
I don't remember precisely what every knife did cost... But if I like one of them, I will just carry it, use it, clean it, sharpen it, use it again. It's my pleasure.
 
I never mind purchasing users because it usually means I can get the knife at a discount and I’ll be more likely to use it. If I purchase a high end knife in mint condition, I’m more likely to keep it that way.
 
I have jumped in the knife world looking for users
It is still my first motivation : using my stuff

for sure the price limit has increased but i use all my knives and if I don’t use one then I end selling it

it like frn, g10, titanium ... cf and aluminum less but still ... :)
 
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It sorta depends on the knife. It's funny, I have a couple thousand dollars of pocket jewelry made by ZT that has never been used. I bought an Inkosi and I have used it every day since November.

The CRK, while more expensive than the ZT, has a practicality about it. You feel the $$ is going toward a knife that can take a beating and keep its tolerances tight for a generation of use.

I dont mean to, but I adding up the cutlery on my person I am sitting at about $1,100 over 4 knives/tools. The least expensive I have on me is about $130 and is my multitool. It sees the most use simply because it's designed to handle the most diverse work.
 
I discovered a long time ago that my interest in knife collecting is entirely disconnected from knife use. On the one side I enjoy the lore and aesthetics of a finely made or historically relevant knife; and I will be happy to buy it for the right price and just as happy to trade it for the right exchange. The only relevant issues are that I be familiar enough with the item to estimate a fair value for it, and the real fun comes from studying for and reaching a level of comfort where I and my trading partners are happy with the results and can enjoy the interaction.

However, when it comes to actual knife use, the calculus is entirely different. It then becomes a question about which knife would be the most practical tool for the job. Those knives tend to be much less expensive, but only because my daily habits fall short of needing any form of extreme survival tool, and I have found that very basic tools can accomplish everything that I need to accomplish. It is almost with a sense of pride that I have met my needs with such simple tools.

My EDC over the last 25 years has been a basic no frills stockman knife, which is always in my pocket and meets 95% of my needs. It has become a very comfortable low stress go-to-tool, that just seemingly magically materializes in hand whenever I need to cut something. I certainly didn’t plan it that way; and I remember that when I first put in my pocket, it was with the expectation that the thing would fail within weeks. But, oddly enough it works for me so I see little reason to change it.

n2s
 
David Mary said:
You mean use more expensive knives around Hobbits?
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Sorry for the typos ;)

mues, that is what has happened to me
My first expensive knife was a 0350
I was used to go for hikes and I was looking for a folder for the short ones

I was so impressed by its performance (compared to the cheap knives I was used to have) that I started to be interested into the hobbit and to want to test more

in my approach, I am looking for experiencing the knives.... kind of hype vs reality approach

so even if the knives I have now are sometime expensive, I use them
 
I've been thinking about this lately and I feel like I'm about to. At my current job, I don't need a knife, but I like to carry nice knives because I appreciate the engineering, machining, ect. But it seems like I have the bad luck ordering knives, in that I always seem to get one with fit & finish issues that I think shouldn't be coming up at that price point ($200-300) . To the point where I'd believe there was a mass conspiracy among knife retailers to give me the stinkers (exempting older ZTs). My most expensive knife purchase, a WE Malice, had white "specks" on the flame ano and backspacer so misaligned that you could see the locating pin when looking at the back of the knife.

My newest knife, a M4 Shaman, came with a fairly long scratch on the DLC coating that wont rub off. I don't really mind scratches, but I'd at least like to be the one who puts them there. Its like buying a new car with door dings already on it. I'm probably just too picky or maybe its life telling me to stop spending so much lol. I'm now more content with budget knives like the RAT 1 or Civivi. They might have a few finish issues, but at least I'm paying much less for them.
 
I never even got into high end carry, or high end at all.
And why would I?
Carry knives are very likley to get lost or stolen, so why would I risk getting $500 or 500€ knife lost when a knife for around 1/10th of the price will be more than sufficent for my needs?

Not to mention, I don't want to pay that much for a knife anyways...
 
Smiling said:
I never even got into high end carry, or high end at all.
And why would I?
Carry knives are very likley to get lost or stolen, so why would I risk getting $500 or 500€ knife lost when a knife for around 1/10th of the price will be more than sufficent for my needs?

Not to mention, I don't want to pay that much for a knife anyways...
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...yet.

(I’ll finish that sentence for you. ;) lol)
 
Another SAK fan and carrier here.

I think it's just personal preference--some like to put their expensive knives to use, and some like to collect them in pristine condition. In terms of utility and daily usage, I love carrying a SAK along with a folder.
 
My favorite carry knife used to be a top rate knife at a very decent price, now that it’s no longer made its just not worth the price they are getting for it. So I have found myself looking at higher end knives to get the quality to justify the price.
When I bought my mini sere it was $125 but I felt it was worth every penny of that. Now they want @250. The knife just can’t pull of those numbers...
 
Guess I've pretty much been a low-end knife guy the whole time. I only own a handful of knives that cost me over $100 in the first place, and the most expensive of those was $130. My daily carry and use knives are mostly in the sub-$50 range. Some Case, some Victorinox. Occasionally a Buck or GEC. My fall down the rabbit hole was in the area of quantity and variety, primarily in the traditional slipjoint area.

I have way more than I practically need, and maybe only regularly carry a fraction of them, perhaps a dozen, out of maybe 150 knives.

Financially speaking, it would have been wiser to just have a dozen high quality knives, and not a shelf full of unused knives warehoused until I get around to selling them (or dying and leaving them for the estate sale). But we all have our journeys through the collecting or accumulating phase of the hobby, with varying levels of regret (or none). So that was my folly. Quantity and variety versus quality.
 
Ah, materialism - worshipping things. The vast majority of us are guilty of it to some degree now and again - especially here in BF.

Despite the good fortune some have had, I see the biggest threat to a folder as being loss (or theft) not lock strength or other such use related hazards.

I have knives that give me pleasure of ownership by taking out of the safe (or drawer for the lesser value ones) and admiring from time to time while others give me satisfaction with their ability to be used and abused with abandon ... some are a little bit of both. That last category can be frustrating as the scratches and dings that use can bring can adversely affect the ownership experience. The marks, scars and tattoos acquired on my close-out sale AUS-8 CS Voyagers, some RAT-1s and like are badges of honor and actually enhance the ownership experience for me.

I've got too many knives and too much money ties up into knives; I sense that I may not be alone. To the point of the OP, I don't carry my Box Elder Sebenza but there's not many days that I don't have an Emerson or Cold Steel user on me - sometime along with a SAK and/or Leatherman. A ZT630 (great knife and great value IMO) is about as "high end" that I carry on a regular basis. Even though I have a back-up for it, the fact that it is discontinued gives me pause if the use may be abusive. The CS Voyagers I have - bring it on, whatever the task.
 
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