Change of taste to a simpler time - am I the only one?

[Czechmate]

What would you call this?

http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q203/sodak_photos/inventory/gba_zpsv8z5zxmd.jpg

This thread has motivated me to take it out of my "collectible" pile and make it my edc. Very traditional wharncliffe, but modern materials and a liner lock. That makes it not traditional, but I think it gives a nod to the traditional patterns.

That's definitely a "gentical" right there... :thumbup:

My daily carry is almost always (disclaimer!) one modern and one smaller traditional folder; because I can't make up my mind LOL.

 

[Lee48]

Neeler is catching a lot of flak but I think some of it is misplaced.

"Some of those traditionals like GEC and Northwoods are not even users...."

Needler is right. Many people do buy those knives for collections with no intention of ever using them. But then again, some Benchmade, Spyderco, Zero Tolerance, Emerson, Chris Reeve, etc., are not being used either. I dare say many of the people on this forum own knives that don't get used along with knives they carry and use frequently (I'm one of them). A lot of us have more knives squirreled away than we could make practical use of in a lifetime. We joke about it all the time, our "addiction" to buying and collecting knives. So I can't disagree with him on that statement.

And, really, he's entitled to his opinion and preferences.

 

[AntCaps]

Iv got a decent collection of mostly tactical/modern folders and I love them, but recently I've been carrying a SAK more than anything. I also just bought my first GEC and I'm really stoked to give that some pocket time.

 

[Thalestin]

I was one of the guys that got really into the larger modern knives for a time. I often like how they look and such but just found they were terrible cutters. They can still cut because they are sharp but they are terrible compared to the fine thin blades of most traditional patterns. As I tried out more knives I slowly got pulled by utility and function more than having nice big blades and shiny titanium handles. I still like a modern blade once in a while for opening one handed but mostly just carry a slip joint these days. I prefer the more natural aging process that slip joints go through and just love them for cutting tasks. I am a professional and work with people daily and feel quite comfortable using a slip joint to cut a piece of rubber tubing or theraband for a client (Im a physiotherapist). Using a big modern folder would just be goofy.

TA Davison Custom Slip Joint by Mark LeGear, on Flickr

 

[22-rimfire]

Some of those tradtional like GEC and northwoods are not even users.

Needler's comments did catch my attention. But he did say "some" which is technically correct. KSF just released for sale a number of elephant ivory traditionals and for most of us, they aren't users. I'm tempted.... but spending $300+ on a factory slipjoint takes some convincing for me and they will probably all sell prior to my convincing myself that I really "need" one. I have one elephant ivory slip joint now, and I won't use it.

Like I said earlier in this thread, after you accumulate a small pile of knives, unless something revolutionary from your way of thinking comes out, most don't get used or barely used regardless of what people say. I use the hell out of my SAKs. Those are the only knives that I consistently use every day. I mean that.... every single day. The rest get moved from pants to pants, top of my desk, a shelf, or a dresser and are not used much. Most of my GEC's have not been used, so he is technically correct in my case, but I am not a collector, more of an accumulator.

 

[jc57]

...Like I said earlier in this thread, after you accumulate a small pile of knives, unless something revolutionary from your way of thinking comes out, most don't get used or barely used regardless of what people say. I use the hell out of my SAKs. Those are the only knives that I consistently use every day. I mean that.... every single day. The rest get moved from pants to pants, top of my desk, a shelf, or a dresser and are not used much. Most of my GEC's have not been used, so he is technically correct in my case, but I am not a collector, more of an accumulator.

That pretty much exactly describes me. I have a couple of Alox SAKs that are my primary users, and then I tend to carry some other slipjoint as well, though that is for enjoyment rather than need. I have a relatively small number of knives that end up in that rotation spot, only one of which is a GEC, even though I own about a dozen of them. Mostly I carry Case knives along with the SAKs since they handle whatever cutting tasks I may have just fine.

 

[hhmoore]

I've got about 25 Case knives that I've never carried. It started with receiving a few as gifts, making a few purchases, receiving a few more as gifts...over the course of a few years ('98-'01). When my interest in traditionalist was reawakened, I went first to those knives - and saw nothing I wanted to carry. As a result, I've got 3 GECs that I carry regularly; plus one that I don't carry because it is too stiff, and a Northwoods that I haven't been able to put in my pocket (yet! I will though).
I still like modern folders; I just carry both, now. I've probably got as many moderns that I've never carried - some due to rarity; but most just didn't feel quite right in my hand...it's usually a decision I make pretty quickly, and I'm pretty slow to sell the ones I don't use. I don't feel right without a modern folder in my pocket; but I'm far more likely to use the traditional around people.
(My biggest problem is with fixed blades - I'm not exactly obsessed with them; but I keep buying them...and, since I've only recently started purchasing 3-4 inch blade models, I've got a bunch that have never been used.)

 

[A.L.]

I was one of the guys that got really into the larger modern knives for a time. I often like how they look and such but just found they were terrible cutters. They can still cut because they are sharp but they are terrible compared to the fine thin blades of most traditional patterns. As I tried out more knives I slowly got pulled by utility and function more than having nice big blades and shiny titanium handles. I still like a modern blade once in a while for opening one handed but mostly just carry a slip joint these days. I prefer the more natural aging process that slip joints go through and just love them for cutting tasks. I am a professional and work with people daily and feel quite comfortable using a slip joint to cut a piece of rubber tubing or theraband for a client (Im a physiotherapist). Using a big modern folder would just be goofy.

Well said! Another reason why I love traditionals is that many of them have very practical driven blade geometries. I myself love thin, narrow blades. Just my preference as I have my specific needs, but nothing against "hard use" blades as some really might need them. Also well said about the natural aging, even though some modern knives look good beaten up too in their own way.

 

[upnorth]

Most of my farting around is done out of town so I want something that can be relied upon for harder use like wood processing. So, not really. But our views can change with time, never say never.

 

[knifeprofessor]

I think this is a great thread. It is nice to hear people express feelings about how their tastes in knives have changed. My tastes have also changed, but they have in some sense gone full circle. When I started carrying a knife many years ago (I am 66 now), I carried a William Henry carbon fiber similar to the one below



It was a bit plainer, but I loved that delicate, extremely light weight (a little over 2 ounces) but very effective cutter. However, after carrying it for many years, one day I reached for it in my pocket and it was gone! I was depressed.

After that, I started carrying more substantial knives, like the Spyderco Stretch, the PM2 and the ZT0770CF. However, as much as I think the Stretch and PM2 are good knives, I just don't find them "elegant" enough to carry any more. I do still carry the ZT because it feels good in my hand, is lightweight and the carbon fiber scales are good looking.

However, I am now returning to the William Henry knives. I think they are the most elegant knives I have even seen. Unfortunately, they are not cheap, so I look for older ones that are out of production. Here are a couple of photos





By the way, if you are interested, please check out my new book on folding knives called "A Primer on Folding Knives". It is written for all users: new and experienced. The link is www.knifeprofessor.com. Please excuse the commercial.

 

[22-rimfire]

....My biggest problem is with fixed blades - I'm not exactly obsessed with them; but I keep buying them...and, since I've only recently started purchasing 3-4 inch blade models, I've got a bunch that have never been used.)

I like them too, but have little need for them overall. Never even owned a fixed blade for my first 30 years of life but used knives since I was a little kid. Now well, I have a goodly number from fairly inexpensive stuff to customs/handmade's. I carry one in the woods now, but almost always do my cutting with a folder even in the woods and that includes field dressing deer. The only thing I won't do with a folder is baton with it. But I really don't need to baton anything. So, as it turns out, I was right all a long for the first 30 years of life to finish out the remaining 50 years of life. It is all in what you get used to to put it simply. We're all creatures of habit and change is or can be difficult. It is one of those things of "why change?" when what you do works for you.

So, I buy all these knives ranging in price from $10 to $500 (more or less), but I use a $25 SAK for almost everything. Doesn't make a lot of sense. I just ordered a AG Russell slip joint (large one) to try out and I think I WILL try it out as the blades match my typical preferences. Looking forward to it actually. But will it displace my SAK? Not likely. So, why did I order it in the first place? Who knows? I'm a knife guy.....

 

[jrawk]

When I started searching for my personal "perfect" modern folder 2 years ago, I thought i'd never buy anything over $100 and all those traditional slip-joints clogging up the "new arrival" pages on store websites were lame and annoying.

Now i'm telling myself i'd never buy anything over $200 and refresh those "new arrival" pages multiple times per week specifically for traditionals.

But so far I have only purchased 1 knife I will never use and keep mint in packaging. I did however purchase a second one to pocket daily to use and enjoy

 

[hhmoore]

22-rimfire, my first knife was a Buck 110 style folder...no idea of it was actually a Buck, probably not, though. I can still visualize the display case at our local department store, featuring a few different sizes of that same knife, lol. I carried that style knife through high school - literally.
I was given my first fixed blade at 8 or 9 - the only reason I know that is I remember using it to make a carving for a 4th grade project. I wasn't allowed to carry it most of the time; but my grandparents lived "in the country", and I was allowed to carry it there (and I was there quite regularly). My pocket knife was normal, an everyday item...but that first fixed blade (a "hunting" knife, with a stacked leather handle) was prized. Thinking about it now, I think fixed blades have stayed that way in my mind (or perhaps my heart). Since childhood, I have never NOT had a fixed blade; even though, most of the time, they were something that I simply had (as opposed to being tools that I used regularly).

I've spent the last half hour in this post - remembering things I haven't thought of in years. Ahhhh, nostalgia...
Thanks for the memories

 

[mitch4ging]

Still love both, guess thats why I like the crkt pal...kinda both worlds. Carrying it today...

[/URL][/IMG]