"Carl's Lounge" (Off-Topic Discussion, Traditional Knife "Tales & Vignettes")

I almost posted a big thread about how I lost my Case peanut. Empyting my pockets yesterday at bedtime(the peanut gets a little bit of use, but mainly use my Vic Farmer or Spyderco Bob T), and no peanut. My gut goes to the floor. I check all over inside and outside. Retrace my steps. Stopped for gas on the way home. I was damned depressed, even when thinking about which peanut to get to replace mine.

Lo and behold, I found it at work. My usual parking spot. Stepped out, and there she was, giving me a "where the hell have you been" look. Must've jumped out to explore when I fished my cellphone out. She's got a fine gentleman to keep her company, my Case swayback gent, for today.

Hopin' she doesn't bite me to spite me! :D
 
That was a close one. Glad you found your friend.
Give it some attention to show you're sorry. :) And maybe it won't be spiteful.
 
I thought long and hard about Carl’s post before I decided to respond. I sit here at my computer and I look around the room at all the ‘stuff’ my family and I have accumulated. Not cherished items, just ‘stuff’. A lot of it was impulse buys, things that we looked at and said “oh, that will make things so much easier, faster, blah, blah blah…” or “we need to get one of those. We will definitely use it a lot and it will pay for itself in no time.” And there it sits, collecting dust. Unused.

Since finding the Traditional Forums and reading Carl’s tales, as well as posts from other knowledgeable members around here talking about a simpler, easier-going way of life, I have really taken time to reexamine my priorities and what I really need to be happy. My wife, kids, food/ water, shelter, and a few basics. That’s it. Everything else is ‘stuff’.

I have started to downsize and simplify what I carry and how I approach things. Sort of a return to simpler times. Gone are my tactical folders; now a traditional knife or two sit in my pockets and a Sears craftsman 4 way screwdriver is on my keys. Gone is the need to rush out and pick up the next greatest “as seen on tv” gizmo; now it’s “I wonder what I have laying around that can get that job done.”

I think one of the biggest things that has changed is the proliferation of advertising and technology. I’m 41 years old. Older than some, a wet behind the ears pup to others, but I remember growing up the lack of advertising that existed. The best advertising at that time was word of mouth. If something was built to last, worked as it was supposed to, and allowed a person to do what needed doing, then they told their family and friends and they picked one up. And you only needed one of whatever it was because it lasted.

Nowadays, word of mouth has been replaced by the internet and tv. Type whatever you need into the search engine of your computer, and instantly you can have 100’s if not 1000’s of choices/ reviews to choose from. And they give you a deal if you buy more than one, because you never know if the one you have will break or wear out (which it will). Advertising companies and businesses hand out coupons giving “$10.00 off a purchase of $50.00 or more”. But is it really necessary to spend all that money on things you don’t need just to save $10.00?

With the state of our economy and the financial situations of some, I think a return to a simpler existence would benefit people. mnblade makes a great point.. “So it's up to us to learn when to step back from the metaphorical buffet and put down the metaphorical fork. It's up to us to slow down, learn contentment, learn to value the things you've earned, and not get distracted by the things some plastic-faced twit on television tells us we need.”

I’ll be putting my fork down now.

I apologize if this rambles a bit or seems a little disjointed. The original draft I wrote was lost when my computer decided to crash, and I tried to rewrite it from memory. Just another example of where a pen and paper would’ve been simpler than this computer.

John
 
Good post, John.

It seems like the early 40's are a turning point for some. You're 41, and I was in my easy 40's when I first felt the vague disquiet that all was not well. It started with a feeling of being too crowded, too saturated with the hype of all the advertising. And you're right, we never had all the advertising when I was a kid that we have now. People didn't have so much stuff, yet they were happy. They hadn't been told how deprived they were, so they went right on with life not knowing any better. I can only presume my folks were putting on a brave face for us kids. That dad was really unhappy when he was cooking the ham urges and hot dogs on the charcoal grill they had saved the green stamps for. That we kids were just under privileged having to live in a normal brick rambler home in the 'burbs instead of a MacMansion with twice the bedrooms than were residents in the home.

Dad was a civil servant making a decent wage to live in the suburbs. He didn't really want for anything that we didn't need. Like a lot of people back then, he drove a normal sedan type of car. SUV's hadn't been invented yet, nor did they seem to be needed. I remember more snow back then when I was a kid. When we got a foot or more of snow, dad jacked up the Pontiac, and put the tire chains on, then went anywhere we needed to go. Dad's way of thinking, like a lot of folks back then, was why buy a car with capabilities only needed a few days a year? Just like he never carried another knife, he had "A" knife, so he never thought to buy another knife. The one he had did just fine.

I remember him being a bit mystified at my knife buying. He'd spot me with a new knife, and he'd ask what happened to the old one. I'd reply nothing, I just felt like buying new knife. He's just shake his head really not getting it. These days, I'm not sure I get it either. I remember when I finally came home for good, with all my stuff and a new family. I remember the first time dad saw my Randall knife. He looked it over carefully, nodded his head remarking that it was a very nice knife, and it must have cost close to a hundred dollars. When I told him it was 200, he looked it over again, and asked me in a puzzled tone, "Son, I don't mean to be a smart ass, but for 200 dollars just what does it do besides cut?"

I went to answer him, then stopped. I really couldn't tell him because just at that moment I had the light bulb over my head go off. It was the start of my disquiet with advertising and hype. Somehow, in a innocent moment, dad asked me something that made me stop and think. Dad never read gun, knife, car, or any other cult worship item magazine. He just would buy what he knew worked, and he knew what he knew, and that was that. I don't think dad was ever moved or persuaded by advertising. He was too practical. I looked at dad standing there waiting for my answer, and I had to say, "Nothing really, it cuts like a regular knife, it's just a bit heavier and nicer."

It's a funny thing how we humans are so susceptible. When I stopped reading gun magazines, I stopped buying more guns. I don't read knife magazines, so I don't feel the need to buy more knives. It took quite a while for Karen and I to work up to our big downsize. It was so liberating, I don't want to go back, no matter what the ad guys in New York tell me.

Carl.
 
My collection is just now starting to grow and yet i see the wisdom in slowing the growth if not stopping it and being satisfied with what I have.

However having just started I think Ill keep going at least a little longer, I still enjoy collecting enough that I can hold off on downsizing.

Thanks for keeping me thinking guys,

-Andrew
 
I have nothing to contribute that has not already been said better than I could say it.

Carl has lived a far different life than I have, but in the 1940s through the late 1950s, most (certainly not all) Americans lived lives without want or envy. Most schools in America taught the same History and Civics in English. Most of us worked and could count and make change without a cash register or calculator.

I always drove my cars until they absolutely quit. Both of the cars that my wife allows me to drive are over 15 years old.

I always bought the best Cameras, optics and guns that I could afford. I do not think I bought a gun (unless forced to change a Duty weapon) since 1980. Every gun I have shoots better than I can and is probably older than any of my nephews.

I helped Jeff Cooper acquire the land and physically do the shovel work to build Gunsite. He taught my wife and I to shoot. He also taught me to become totally familiar with what I can use well without having to think. I am not a great thinker, so I only own a few guns.

Knives are different for me. I used and carried a very sharp knife from a very young age. My family and my various bosses usually gave me the knives that they thought best suited the work I was doing for them. A knife was a tool that I did not choose.

I am only beginning to discover the knife world that Carl grew up in.

I wish to thank everyone for sharing their experience and knowledge in this wonderful place.

Mike H.
 
Blade_Crazy said:
My collection is just now starting to grow and yet i see the wisdom in slowing the growth if not stopping it and being satisfied with what I have.

However having just started I think Ill keep going at least a little longer, I still enjoy collecting enough that I can hold off on downsizing.

Thanks for keeping me thinking guys,

-Andrew
Click to expand...

It's all fun. :-)

I never stop collecting even in those years I go without buying anything. But I am VERY choosy. And one contradictory thing I've learned is to correct mistake buys ASAP. I preach measure twice and cut once but we all make mistakes. We have all bought a knife that just didn't fit with what we expected. I've learned to immediately return it, sell it, or send it down the line. The last thing you need is a half dozen knives that you really don't care for cluttering up your drawers.

I liken it to some hunters I know. Always buying a new rifle that does just about the same thing as the other 17 they already own. Nothing wrong with that but I'd rather have a couple that serve different purposes and that I know very well. Save the money for the other 15 and go chase elk in Montana or big bucks in Iowa or make a trip to salmon fish in Alaska. Or just go see the Grand Canyon. I always thought the saddest stories are when a guy tells me he has 7 elk rifles and has never went elk hunting. Sad and you see it a lot.

Will
 
DrPenguin said:
Save the money for the other 15 and go chase elk in Montana or big bucks in Iowa or make a trip to salmon fish in Alaska. Or just go see the Grand Canyon.
Click to expand...

I like this. Reminds me of my stock advice whenever someone in the general forum posts something like "I'm off to college in the fall and want to buy a new folder. Budget is $200." $200 for a knife for a college kid!? :eek: Forget that! Spend $20 or $30 on a SAK or Case and spend the rest on beer and chicks, or put it toward a killer spring break canoe adventure, etc.

-- Mark
 
mnblade said:
I like this. Reminds me of my stock advice whenever someone in the general forum posts something like "I'm off to college in the fall and want to buy a new folder. Budget is $200." $200 for a knife for a college kid!? :eek: Forget that! Spend $20 or $30 on a SAK or Case and spend the rest on beer and chicks, or put it toward a killer spring break canoe adventure, etc.

-- Mark
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When I was in college I carried a Buck 703 that I bought at a sporting goods store for 36 dollars in a clamshell case. I wish I still had it.
 
Hello Richstag. Here is a picture of an old 703 along with an even older 303. I had to replace the shield on the 703. I do love this knife. From my research, it appears to have 440C steel, and from the edge holding, I believe it. The sheepsfoot blade is second only to my straight razor in being my thinnest, sharpest blade. I understand why you miss it.

P1010005.jpg
 
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Hello Kbrasmodeler! That is one nice looking 703. Its funny you mention the spey blade. It was my most used blade on the knife and it was sharp! Thanks for posting that. It makes me want to track down another.

Cheers!

Kevin
 
I have a couple of those 703's myself. It was my all time favorite knife some years ago. I lost the one I used to carry and I've only moderately carried the one in the first pic. Mine are both two spring versions but I've read comments from folks who have three spring 703's. Somewhere along the line Buck added another backspring.

1986Buck703Colt.jpg


1979to1985Buck703Colt.jpg
 
Man Rick those are nice too!! Mine was the same. It had the spey opposite of the main clip. Mine was a three spring I'm sure, though at the time I didn't even pay attention. I just know I bought it around 2002.

David Martin was so helpful with history on these for me. I would like to track down a 440c version.

And I really want to keep with the spey opposite of the clip. I have found a lot with the sheepsfoot opposite.

Thanks guys for bringing back fond memories :)
 
Thanks, Kevin! That was an interesting read. Lots of info and I really like that series photo in post #15.

I don't know if you would find this helpful or not but the knife in my top pic is a 1986. That was the first year that Buck used the little symbols as date codes. You can barely see it in my pic but the symbol is just to the right of the 3 and it looks like this < The knife in my bottom pick was made sometime between 1979-1985 because there is no date code symbol on it.

The steels that Buck used in any given year has been a source of confusion for me. I have read conflicting information and I'm not sure if mine are 440C or 425M. Maybe I have one of each.:confused: I'm not really sure but in my personal records I have them both listed as 440C. Just can't remember exactly how I came to that conclusion.

For a while there my plan was to collect one 703 from each year of production but that kind of fell by the wayside. I had a good start with these two but I guess I got distracted by other knives. This discussion has me thinking about it again.

Thanks for the link.:thumbup:
 
richstag said:
Hello Kbrasmodeler! That is one nice looking 703. Its funny you mention the spey blade. It was my most used blade on the knife and it was sharp! Thanks for posting that. It makes me want to track down another.

Cheers!

Kevin
Click to expand...

Sorry Rich, but I named the wrong blade. All three blades on this knife are deeply hollow ground, but the sheepsfoot is like no other knife I've seen. Almost paper thin at the bevel. If you look closely at the picture, you can see where I sharpened it straight razor style. Man-o-man what an edge! Of course, the spey is crazy sharp too, and very useful to me. I hope you can find one.
 
reader1 said:
I helped Jeff Cooper acquire the land and physically do the shovel work to build Gunsite. He taught my wife and I to shoot.
Click to expand...
Really? WOW! Much respect to you sir. :cool:
Jeff Cooper was an icon in his day, as well as one of my hero's for his work and research in his field. ;)
-Bruce
 
I'll second that, he was a real legend. A young guy starting out his hunting and shooting career could save a whole lot of trouble by just looking up his newsletters and doing some lunchtime reading.

Will
 
Thanks Rick! You know a lot more about these then me. I appreciate you sharing.

I guess when it comes down to it whatever steel it is doesn't matter. I had no complaints with mine :)

I think your idea from every year would be awesome!


Kbrasmodeler,

I see now :)
 
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