Crummy coworker knives

PURPLEDC said:
Honestly? If you knew this guy the more likely story is he was completely full of it. I dont think he fully understood how much I was into knives and since he didnt know what he was looking at really assumed he had an amazing knife on his hands. I honestly dont think his grandfather gave it to him. The guy class A know it all. The ones that no matter what subject it is they think they are an expert and it only takes 2 seconds of listening to know its nothing but a bluff. I dont know if he lied all the time because he didnt have any friends and wanted attention or if it was the lying behavior that led him to not have any friends. But he was literally one of those guys that when someone brought up a new topic of conversation, any conversation he would interrupt and start spouting nonsense. I honestly think the guy stole the knife from wal-mart right before coming to my house.
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Ahhh gotcha... I've definitely run into a few of those.
 
Lot's of great comments :thumbup: My final thought - as long as the guy doesn't come to work with a 10" kitchen knife tucked in his belt:eek:, carry whatever you like:D;):thumbup:
 
RedLynx said:
I also enjoy having a chuckle at threads like this, and I would likely never buy the knife in the photo (I've heard of a lot of obscure cheap brands but never this one), but really, I think we can get too hung up on this stuff (which is not directed at the OP or a reflection of him, just a general observation. Nothing wrong with the thread).

It's a knife 99.5% of us would never buy... but at least the guy carries something, likes it enough to do a self-repair, values it, and probably doesn't view knives with fear and mistrust. A win win in my book, even if it's a gas station knife he carries.
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I have to be honest, my intention with this thread wasn't to bash my coworker, but more to show his knife, which I think is pretty funny. You know what they say about good intentions. Most of the guys I work with know I'm a knife aficionado, but very few ever want to spend more than $10. I'm fine with that. I usually only use my cheap beaters at work and use the nice ones after. I do have an Emerson in work rotation occasionally though.

My coworker is actually a pretty interesting guy. He's originally from another country. He doesn't fear knives, but last summer he almost passed out when I cut my thumb pretty bad, amazingly not with a knife. Turns out that several years ago some guy had tried to stab him with a really large knife used for cutting cheese wheels. It hit his belt buckle and he grabbed the blade with his hand. Apparently his thumb was dangling from his hand afterward. The scar is huge. Gotta give him credit for not being afraid of a blade.
 
badjujuboy said:
Lot's of great comments :thumbup: My final thought - as long as the guy doesn't come to work with a 10" kitchen knife tucked in his belt:eek:, carry whatever you like:D;):thumbup:
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And even then, I'd be more worried about him than me. ;)
 
draggat said:
I have to be honest, my intention with this thread wasn't to bash my coworker, but more to show his knife, which I think is pretty funny. You know what they say about good intentions. Most of the guys I work with know I'm a knife aficionado, but very few ever want to spend more than $10. I'm fine with that. I usually only use my cheap beaters at work and use the nice ones after. I do have an Emerson in work rotation occasionally though.

My coworker is actually a pretty interesting guy. He's originally from another country. He doesn't fear knives, but last summer he almost passed out when I cut my thumb pretty bad, amazingly not with a knife. Turns out that several years ago some guy had tried to stab him with a really large knife used for cutting cheese wheels. It hit his belt buckle and he grabbed the blade with his hand. Apparently his thumb was dangling from his hand afterward. The scar is huge. Gotta give him credit for not being afraid of a blade.
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I totally wouldn't blame him for being afraid after that, glad he isn't!

I am glad he is okay but that full story of cheese wheels and knives has to be kinda interesting.

Like I said in my other post, I get a good chuckle here too, especially as you say, he has a Dragonfly. I just thought his DIY repair was cool because I would never do that with a cheap knife, it's kinda cool that he went to the trouble.
 
This seems to be pretty common. On the flip side, I have a guy that works at my shop who I always see using these crappy old Buck knock offs with the brass bolsters and wood handles. And he is always feeding them to the grinder and then running them on a dry stone. One day we are looking over some blueprints and I had asked him to cut something I was holding. He pulls out this knife and I was surprised to see an actual quality blade. So I ask to see it and open it and ask him about it. He goes on to tell me he acquired it in a card game from some kid who was over to his house visiting his daughter. Well I knew it was nice but didn't recognize the maker stamp so I started looking and found out who made the knife and determined they sell for about $250 on the makers web site.

So I tell the guy that he really does have a nice knife and I'm actually wanting it at this point. He didn't seem to care. Its still grinders and dry stone for that poor knife. It will look like an ice pick by the time he is finished. To each their own.
 
I defend the co-worker in this case because not everyone is into knives. Before I became interested in knives, I had a cheap Chinese knife that had a plastic frame, spray-painted silver, and a polished 3-inch blade that served my needs quite well. Its edge-holding retention wasn't great, but it opened packages at work that came taped up, cut cord and generally did everything I needed to do. As I used it, paint would flake off the knife's frame, but I had a cheap Lansky 20-degree sharpener I kept in the closet and used to keep the knife wicked sharp. I still have it in a box somewhere and occasionally carry it for old time's sake.

My point is, a knife is a tool. It can be used for office use, opening boxes, cutting thread, cardboard and even cutting food. And whether it's a cheap Chinese liner-lock or a Sebenza, knives do the same thing. I have an old Chinese knock-off of a S&W Homeland Security made by Frost. Cost me $13 and I only wish I had bought several. The finish is spray paint on the blade, full tang, a surprisingly sharp blade and the knife would be impervious to brutal batoning. It also is easy to sharpen, can and has been used to clear ice away from the cars in the winter. It's the quintessential "crummy knife" of the age and as I said, it's a knock off of a Smith & Wesson, no less! But in a bug out bag, it wouldn't be the last knife I chose. It can be sharpened on a creek stone and would last a lifetime.

So as far as crummy knives go, even if you gave this guy a nice knife to replace the one he "fixed," what would it avail him? If what he has does the job, why does he need a replacement? He clearly doesn't appreciate knives -- probably doesn't have a box full of them under the bed like many of us do. So why worry? If it falls apart, he'll either fix it again or get a new one. But even if he gets a Spyderco Military or Endura, he won't most likely won't view it as anything more than a tool, like a screwdriver. So how does one change that?? Or want to??



The Frost (top) is cheap but functional. The Maxam (bottom), another cheapie, has a 5-inch blade, and was another knife that I used frequently at work. Both now ride in my car trunk. In a way, if they hadn't existed, I might have never have gotten into better knives.
 
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Not to change the topic but how many other people carry a knife just to let co-workers borrow so they won't trash your higher end knife?
 
A coworker found out I was into knives/sharpening and gave me this:


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I thanked him for the kindness, and sharpened it up like I do everything.
 
I work construction and most fellas ive worked with over the years that know that buying a good tool means you wont be buying another 6 months later, so I see alotta Buck knives and even some have taken my advice and bought spyderco, Kershaw, and benchmade knives....oho does come in handy at times. seems that its the younger guys who work thru the summer that generally show up on the jobsite with a 5 dollar tape, 10 dollar hammer, and a knife I would consider junk. that being said, I understand theyre on a tight budget, so ive given away several Rat I knives.
 
Mine is sort of a different take on this story.
I used to work under a chef that had OK knives. Mostly Henkel master chef and the like. He did have one nice looking Japanese petty that he essentially used for everything.
My curiosity got the better of me and I had to know what it was. Apparently It was worth "over $700" and had been a gift from a former employer.
He let me hold this amazing knife, which turned out to be a run of the mill miyabi petty, and was just as dull as every wal-mart and dollar store knife in the restaurant.
 
draggat said:
I have to be honest, my intention with this thread wasn't to bash my coworker, but more to show his knife, which I think is pretty funny. ....
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I give him credit for having a knife. Frequently, a co-worker will say "who needs a knife", and they then proceed gnaw open a package with their teeth. The truth is that most real work is done by cheap knives. The vast majority carry whatever the big box stores sell, if they carry at all, and you are probably using an equally cheap set of kitchen knives and have been using the same set for decades.

I have been collecting and trading knives for well over 40 years. Yet despite having access to many knives, I have had EDC'd the same cheap Camillus made Remington R12 stockman for over 20 years. It works, does what I need, comfortably fits my pocket and doesn't upset the locals. IIRC, I had just purchased a bunch of knives and antique swords, the cashier had handed me back some loose change and she had a shoe box of misc. knives on the counter. I had only bought it, because I was wearing light clothing, wanted to get rid of the change and figured I would try something smaller and lighter than my tactical folder on a short hike. Probably the best buck that I ever spent.

n2s
 
In general, I guess we sometimes forget that people not into knives genuinely might not know much better stuff is out there. I'm thinking specifically of the knives gifted to forumites in this thread, or to myself, by non-knife people, over the years. They really might assume the average cost of a decent knife is X, or that a decent knife contains materials like Y, and that's all there is to it. Sure, we sometimes have a chuckle about it, but there are MANY aspects of my life where I am sure I am not using the best products for the job. I use a cleaning product called "Green Meanie" because it's available at the store next to my building. It does seem to be quite strong and effective for my needs so I haven't done research, but likely there are better products out there that "cleaning aficionados" could recommend. Just an example.
 
I guess I fall into the co-worker category. My EDC knife is a Smith&Wesson beater, but was given to my by someone very special, so I carry it every day.

I do admire a good knife, though. I'll own one some day.
 
edler9 said:
I guess I fall into the co-worker category. My EDC knife is a Smith&Wesson beater, but was given to my by someone very special, so I carry it every day.

I do admire a good knife, though. I'll own one some day.
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I've kept all cheap knives given to me by friends and family.

What other brands are you into?
 
Blues Bender said:
Don't judge a man by his knife, rather judge him by how he uses it...

I see a lot of cheap knives since I work in construction. I see these knives being used for everything though; from workers prying rocks out of their boots, to a guy picking away at a "half-cured" concrete wall. I carry a Sebenza everyday to work, but my tasks are different than theirs. I don't need a "pointed prybar", I need a good knife with reliable cutting preformance. I don't look down on them for carrying cheap knives, because what they use them for, they work fine. They need a cheap disposable tool that's readily available in their pocket. There's nothing wrong with that IMO...

When people ask me why I carry a $500 knife, I just tell them I have a passion for collecting fine knives. I usually tell them that only a "knife nut" would be able to tell the difference between a $25 knife and a $250 knife, and price mostly comes down to build quality and materials. 9/10 times, they understand my point...
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My thoughts exactly...
 
RedLynx said:
I've kept all cheap knives given to me by friends and family.

What other brands are you into?
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I've got a couple Buck folders, a Schrade folder of the mid 70's vintage, a CRKT folder and a fixed blade, a Frost Bowie that was given to me by another friend that has since passed, plus several no names that I have accumulated over the years. Nothing fancy or high end.
 
Gavin S. said:
Exactly my experience too. I used ask folk what they were carrying when I noticed a pocket clip, but I've stopped doing that. Most people don't really care.
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I don't even bother anymore either, seen one $10 knife you have seen them all.
 
edler9 said:
I've got a couple Buck folders, a Schrade folder of the mid 70's vintage, a CRKT folder and a fixed blade, a Frost Bowie that was given to me by another friend that has since passed, plus several no names that I have accumulated over the years. Nothing fancy or high end.
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Buck, Schrade Classic and CRKT are all pretty good in my opinion. But I'm a big fan of quality inexpensive knives.

I was gonna send you another good knife but I guess it wouldn't be any better than a decent Buck or CRKT. ;) I still will though if you PM me your address.
 
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