Could I have accomplished that task

[VictorLouis]

…with a smaller knife? This is a question that I can most often answer with a yes. I’m slowly realizing that the reverse is not so commonly the case.

We ate at a soup and salad joint last night, and they give you a large chunk of baguette on the side. I whipped out my OHO, which is a 3.5” blade. Naturally, I cleaved it into two manageable halves with one pass. My g/f handed her’s to me for similar alteration. Could I have done it with my 91mm SAK main, or my 3.25” stockman clip main? Yes, no doubt in my mind. It just would’ve required working the blade around the loaf 360, as I would do with a bagel, for example.

Then I got to thinking. What about the past several uses of that stockman and SAK. I’d used the sheepsfoot in cutting the end off of a large panel of Styrofoam insulation for my sliding glass door. That would’ve been awkward, or perhaps even unsafe, done in the same way with the larger knife. Now, if I had laid that panel down onto a sawhorse, or even table top, and extended the panel’s edge outward…no problem. But, I merely laid it onto the pile carpet, knowing that small blade would only be going into the top ¼” of the pile, doing no harm.

I used the small SAK blade in cutting open the small plastic bottle of dressing for my co-worker to get the rest of the goodness out w/little waste. Extremely awkward to attempt with a longer, wider blade. Cleaning under my nails? That’s a small-blade no-brainer. Food packages, opening the average boxes and clam packs? Control is the name of that game. Admittedly, nothing trims the excess ‘neck’ off of a dwindling bag of chips like this knife, LOL. But I’ve done so with the little guys, too. I just fold over the excess and cut along the fold.

Has anyone else migrated to smaller EDC/s with this sort of reasoning? Or, what reason/s, do you maintain for continuing to carry a blade, say, over 3”?

 

[screened porch]

I like a stockman or jack for the selection of long v short blades.

 

[CUTS LIKE A KRIS]

I tend to carry a small slipjoint for the small tasks such as you mention, but can not abide an EDC that can not cleanly cut through a grapefruit, so that tends to be my EDC cutoff for a single knife. All small tasks I can accomplish by choking up on the tip, but I can't extend an 1.5" blade to cut a 2" radius. I do tend to pull out my smaller knife more often, so usually my smaller knife looks better than my larger knife- but not always. And sadly I a not a neophyte member of the Peanutcult, but do have a couple new OLD peanuts to add to the rotation- if the Norfolk Whittler or Queen Humpback Whittler give them room.

 

[black mamba]

I have found that I can do just about any reasonable thing a knife should be expected of with a roughly 3" main bellied blade and a roughly 2" straight-edged blade. Any 3¾ to 4¼ inch stockman fits in this category, as do 2-blade jackknives with a Wharncliffe, coping or sheepfoot secondary. So does my alox Electrician. A secondary pen comes close, but is not as useful to me as a straight-edged blade.

 

[Shotgun]

I have a hard time answering this. My edc is a 2.5" bladed slippy and I could TECHNICALLY use it for everything but for me the whole point of carrying a knife is for convenience. So, when I may eat on the go like on a car trip with my wife I carry a 3.5" blade or bigger for that job. But that's in addition to the slippy.

 

[pmew]

I have never carried a pocket knife (for EDC) with a blade longer than three inches. I routinely carry just a peanut at work and have not needed anything larger apart from when I've used kitchen knives. Nobody finds a peanut at all threatening either

 

[Halfneck]

I was on a 10 mile hike with our Boy Scout Troop. I was carrying a TOPs C.U.B. fixed blade with my yellow Case Peanut in my pocket. At only a mile or so in I noticed one of the new Scouts lagging behind who kept shifting his pack around. Caught up with him to see what the issue was. The nylon pack strap had frayed and finally broke. There was not enough left connected to the pack where we could tie/lash the 2 pieces together. So I thought for a second, then pulled out the Peanut & some paracord. Using the small pen blade I punched small holes through the broken pack strap sides. Then I just ran the paracord through & tied them together. The Scout went on to finish the 10 miles with no more pack problems.

Could I have done it with the Tops C.U.B. fixed blade? Certainly, but the tip is not as small & would of required a lot more finesse to avoid making a bigger hole. I gained a new appreciation for slipjoints & smaller knives that day.

 

[kamagong]

All small tasks I can accomplish by choking up on the tip, but I can't extend an 1.5" blade to cut a 2" radius.

This. :thumbup:

- Christian

 

[Squashfan]

This is why I try to carry one large and one small knife. A smaller blade can sometimes do the work of a larger blade. But a larger blade usually has more trouble with the job of a smaller blade. And then you have the times when ONLY a large fixed blade will do.

 

[jackknife]

Ah, the old "how much do we really need" question.

Of course in modern life, 99% of the time 2 to 2 1/2 inches of blade is plenty. With my minimalistic outlook, I've never been a large knife person. Boy scout knife when I was 12, army issue ML-k knife for most of my 20's, a Buck 301 for the next 25 years, and a Buck cadet for another 5 or so. And most of the time when I was carrying a stockman, the sheep foot blade got the most use. Downsizing to a peanut, it still took care of most of my cutting chores. Heck, if we admit that in modern suburbia there's a real shortage of 'injuns on the warpath, man eating wolves, or hostile paratroopers dropping out of the sky, we could get by with a Vic classic most of the time.

But we're knife knuts, so we need more than the regular Joe who just carries the minimum, if a knife at all. I've very often used the analogy of car nuts. The car guy will go to any length to convince himself that he needs that Porshe 911 or Shelby Mustang to commute to work or go get a loaf of bread at the super market. But like us, he's the very small percentage. Most regular Joe's get by with a Honda or Toyota, and get very good service from them. They are happy because they don't care about anything except that it work well and not break down much.

We knife knits will collect many knives, most of them overkill for our lifestyles, but we're happy because we're engaging our whims. Somehow a little 2 inch blade is not manly enough for some, while a very real few may need more knife because of job requirements or physical reasons like arthritis or a large hand that needs a bit more to hang onto. Dealing with food is one of the oft sited reasons for carrying a larger knife, but most of the time I'm dealing with food I'm in a kitchen, with real kitchen on hand. Out in the woods, I'm not making a three course dinner but just dealing with some snacks type food, so a small knife is adequate for that. Using a peanut I've had no problem slicing up some French baguette and some cheese, or length of hard dry salami. So even for for use, a couple inches seems to do it. On our last camping trip Karen and I had down to the Assateague Island National seashore, my little Sardinian resolza did everything I needed, and the blade is a tad bigger than the peanut. Most of our food was of the non cooking type, so it just needed to be sliced up and served.

Sometimes we need something more because we like it, and that's okay. The famous ice cream place wouldn't have 31 flavors if there wasn't a demand for variety. I guess that's why those wonderful old Case displays in the wood cases down at the hardware store had jacks of all types, stockmen, trappers, canoe's, and even peanuts. A knife for every taste. And those tastes change as we age, because our outlook and view of things change as well.

Yes, most things I need a knife for can be done with a smaller knife, leaving more rom in my pockets for other stuff that I find handy to have along. We have to balance need vs want, or if we like mint chocolate chip or rocky road. I find I like the vanilla caramel swirl!

 

[knarfeng]

I like a stockman or jack for the selection of long v short blades.

Me too. Then I can choose the most appropriate blade for the job at hand.

 

[kamagong]

Ah, the old "how much do we really need" question.

I've adopted your minimalist approach but from a different angle. Experience has shown me that I favor knives in the 3 3/4" range. That's the sweet spot. Small enough to still be a pocketknife, with just the right amount of handle.

The mimimalism comes from the single blades I now carry. My first exposure to slipjoints was the stockman pattern. Still a sentimental favorite, but I don't need three or even two blades. As you've observed many people get by without any knife at all. I can make do with a single blade knife, even if it isn't always the optimal size.

Sometimes we need something more because we like it, and that's okay. The famous ice cream place wouldn't have 31 flavors if there wasn't a demand for variety. I guess that's why those wonderful old Case displays in the wood cases down at the hardware store had jacks of all types, stockmen, trappers, canoe's, and even peanuts. A knife for every taste. And those tastes change as we age, because our outlook and view of things change as well.

As the years pass I realize that is all the reason I need. I'm an enthusiast, no point in bothering with knives I don't like. I've long passed the "need" stage. If I get a knife it's because I want it.

- Christian

 

[arizonaranchman]

In my life's routines these days a 2.0"-2.5" edge is plenty for 99% of what I do with a pocket knife. I nearly always carry two pocket knives - a Peanut or Pemberton (the 2.0") and usually a 3.5" (the 2.5" edge) folder such as a Barlow, #55, or one of my other #15's. In the past year now since I've gone back to traditional pocket knives I can't think of anything I came upon that one of these two couldn't handle easily. Now granted, I'm not a construction worker or lumberjack, so I don't generally have a need for a super robust pocket knife. Even if I was in one of those professions, I'd select the right tool for the job if a 15 Boy's Knife or similar wouldn't suit the job.

Of course a mandatory knife pic...

 

[Phil in Alabama]

I like my pocket knives to be around 3-1/2" to 3-3/4", so this leaves the longest blades at about 2-5/8". Works perfectly for most cutting chores.

 

[jec88]

I too, like kamagong above stated have adopted the minimalist approach from the opposite angle. I find the larger single blade can fill the needs of a small knife as well as any big jobs and I'm ready for any situation. Been carrying the ecolite Buck 110 for 6 months straight and don't think I could ever go smaller or would want too. It weighs less than most smaller knives. Rides upright in my pocket without falling down like a smaller knife, but you know it's there so I won't lose it. The fine tip on the clip blade is great for the smaller jobs and then you have the whole knife for larger jobs. I use it for everything from hunting, fishing, camping, hiking, working around the house in garden, cutting hoses when working on a tractor, opening letters, and boxes at work, cooking. Works for everything I need and self defense, which hopefully I won't have to ever use it for. I'm not into one handed opening, but I don' t like nail biters either and this can easily be opened. I could slice an onion with a smaller knife, but can do so easier and quicker with the big blade.
I'm not knocking anyone carrying a smaller blade, I see the appeal of that too. This is just works for me. Sometimes I do add a swiss army knife if I'm going to be using the tractor or something so I'm not tempted to use the 110 as a screwdriver. But I definitely see the appeal of the small knives because I am missing out on the great pocket worn look, and the patina that comes with a carbon blade. That's the main thing I don't like about my 110 paperstone ecolite. After 6 months of constant carry and all kinds of uses, it still looks like brand new.

 

[Dale Gribble]

Honestly, I've not yet ran into a situation where my SAKs or an Opie 6 wasn't enough blade for day to day chores. If you tackle it with the right mindset, even the largest apple can be sliced up with the main blade of a peanut. Anything more is usually for convenience or bragging.

 

[silenthunterstudios]

I've been debating getting rid of a ton of knives I don't use. I carry a peanut every day, but outside of work, I switch to a CRK folder and a Case Tribal Spear. I was carrying a Charlow, and then added a swayback jack to that. I just have too many I don't use and had to make it easier on myself, I only carry the CRK, Case and my Remington peanut. While cutting down, I realized that I do just fine with the peanut, but I have to have something more substantial to pair with it. I honestly could get by fine with just the peanut (reverse psychology I guess) , but I like the option of a bigger blade. So, while I email back and forth with a slipjoint maker about a folder, and send in my next payment on a one hand wonder high end midtech folder, I am cutting down on the knives I don't carry. I figure the Charlow size is just about perfect for me, for an all around user, but I am continually surprised at how versatile the peanut is. Sometimes I have forgotten about putting my Insingo and Tribal Spear back in my pocket.

 

[markpmc]

I'm in the middle of moving. That's another way of saying that I'm making home repairs everyday as the close date approaches. I've found the Madison Barlow and a GEC #61 Congress make the perfect combo. The Madison handles the big jobs (10%) while the sheepsfoot on Congress (90%) performs every other task perfectly.

 

[VictorLouis]

Using the small pen blade I punched small holes through the broken pack strap sides. Then I just ran the paracord through & tied them together. The Scout went on to finish the 10 miles with no more pack problems..

Love that ingenuity!

And then you have the times when ONLY a large fixed blade will do.

That's what I'd like to hear, about THOSE TIMES, LOL. I mean, aside from 'outdoors' type chores, where I can quite easily invision batoning, chopping, etc. Even my AZRanchman brother gets 'r done with smaller ones.