Cult of the one knife man

I was one that had always loved knives, but could never afford the ones I was in love with. So, I carried whatever I could afford, paid no attention to blade steel or handle material or maker for that matter. If I needed a knife, and it looked good and was cheap I bought it and carried it. Most times what would get me buying another knife was if I lost interest in the previous one, or if I just plain lost it.

It was only after I came to BF in 2012, that I realized I could, if I wanted, buy more, carry more, and could afford better knives than the junk I had been buying. I have only recently started carrying more than one knife a day though. Usually a small and a large something or other.
 
I'm going to give this a shot. I'll be carrying this guy everyday I can. Although I may still carry a modern as a secondary knife, this will be my main knife for the foreseeable future.
by -FA Tre-
 
I recently picked up a GEC 73 in stag, and although I have some loose change kicking around my PayPal account, and am continually looking for another slippie to add to the collection, I just can't seem to find anything that I would want to carry more than my 73. I was hoping to build a smallish collection, maybe 4-5 knives, but am stuck at 2 (my other is a GEC 21).

Maybe I'll be forced to be a one knife man.

I also had a thought while I was attending a baseball game recently. As I passed through the metal detectors I thought that I should pick up a cheap slippie, something like a Case Peanut that doesn't break the bank and can easily be replaced if lost or confiscated, for special situations where there are security measures. Carrying it only a handful of times a year, surely wouldn't violate the one knife rule.
 
So after about two weeks, I've ended up changing the one knife from the boys knife above, to the case mini trapper below. I just found the boys knife profile a little uncomfortable in pocket. This trapper with a wharncliff, instead of a spey, has taken its spot and is just perfect for my needs.
by -FA Tre-
 
FA Tre said:
So after about two weeks, I've ended up changing the one knife from the boys knife above, to the case mini trapper below. I just found the boys knife profile a little uncomfortable in pocket. This trapper with a wharncliff, instead of a spey, has taken its spot and is just perfect for my needs.
by -FA Tre-
Click to expand...

ah i see! did that 15 have a lot of pocket time?
 
Not really. When I did carry, 'twas in the leather sheath. Didn't work well with formal work attire. Hence the profile in pocket issue.
 
I know I could not do it. I have an ocd inability to leave the house without 5 knives.....
 
Last edited:
Bigfattyt said:
I know I could not so it. I have an ocd inability to leave the house without 5 knives.....
Click to expand...

but what do you do with 5 knives. I work in a clinic and just carry one, a slimline trapper. i actually barely to almost dont need it at all. i switched from a cheap liner lock to a traditional because one of the doctors said thats a gravity knife! you can get arrested for that here
 
mrknife said:
but what do you do with 5 knives. I work in a clinic and just carry one, a slimline trapper. i actually barely to almost dont need it at all. i switched from a cheap liner lock to a traditional because one of the doctors said thats a gravity knife! you can get arrested for that here
Click to expand...
Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I am in court several days a week, and in and out of the jail most days. I get to the office, and put the knives in my desk. When I am done with court or the jail I will put them back in the pocket.

I don't use them a lot at work. But I do cut food, and open mail, and go general chores. One knife would be fine...... if I was not insane.

I will say that everyone in the office is always using one.
 
Bigfattyt said:
Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I am in court several days a week, and in and out of the jail most days. I get to the office, and put the knives in my desk. When I am done with court or the jail I will put them back in the pocket.

I don't use them a lot at work. But I do cut food, and open mail, and go general chores. One knife would be fine...... if I was not insane.

I will say that everyone in the office is always using one.
Click to expand...


do these have different blade shapes? ive seen this same doctor that told me it was a gravity knife, using a tongue depressor to cut open an avocado and ive offered my knife but he said no this will do
 
Bigfattyt said:
Nothing. Absolutely nothing. I am in court several days a week, and in and out of the jail most days. I get to the office, and put the knives in my desk. When I am done with court or the jail I will put them back in the pocket.

I don't use them a lot at work. But I do cut food, and open mail, and go general chores. One knife would be fine...... if I was not insane.

I will say that everyone in the office is always using one.
Click to expand...


jc57 said:
Pretty much sums it up for me too. :D
Click to expand...

Exactly! +1

I was the same, before retirement, when I was working for a NYS and Federal Govt. Contractor. I can't count the times a Prison Guard or Federal/State Office Building Security Guard had to hold my knives for me while I went inside. I was always forgetting to leave them in the office or in my car.
 
Well, never been really interested in trying out one knife one life stuff :confused:. I like variety in everything but here's the dilemma: you find a knife so handy or beautiful that it excludes all others but by so doing you may be overlooking an even finer knife:eek:

This 83 arrived last week and I'm overjoyed with it, it just MIGHT displace all others - for a bit:D

Good luck to all us knife enthusiasts,collectors, users, purists and iconoclasts:thumbup: Will

IMG_3482.jpg
 
mrknife said:
do these have different blade shapes? ive seen this same doctor that told me it was a gravity knife, using a tongue depressor to cut open an avocado and ive offered my knife but he said no this will do
Click to expand...

Yes, I see folks at work opening potato chip bags with their teeth. These are people unclear on the concept of man being differentiated from beasts by his ability to use tools. Sigh.

BTW, your doctor "friend" is incorrect about your modern knife being a "gravity knife". If it has a detente to keep it closed, it is not a "gravity knife".
 
PythonDR said:
This brings up an interesting question: most of the people here, myself included, could not easily adapt to carrying one single knife. I accept that.

However, could you adapt to carrying more than one knife - two, three, whatever - but the same selection every single day? For instance, I always carry my Vic Explorer and am searching for "THE" knife to carry with it. Once I find that one, I'll happily carry just those two for perhaps a decade or more to come, never needing or wanting to replace either with something different (except for a specific task outside of daily life, of course.)

Could you do that - commit to carrying your normal number of knives, but always the same ones?
Click to expand...

This is where I'm at now. I carry my 77 Sheepfoot Barlow EVERY SINGLE DAY, it's with me 24/7. However in my watch pocket resides my yellow Peanut for more genteel tasks. On my belt in a sheath is the Vic Farmer or Pioneer (which is more of a "tool" to me than a knife, despite it having a plenty adequate blade). These three comprise all that I've carried for months now. The 77 Barlow has not been out of my pocket since it arrived in mid-February.

Occasionally when I have an unusually nasty/dirty/possibly harmful task I'll grab my yellow Case Sodbuster which is my beater knife. Otherwise the three above are my constant companions. The others rest quietly in my gunsafe.
 
Last edited:
There was about a 5 month period where I carried the same two knives every day. Victorinox Alox Cadet and Case Small Texas Jack. At the end of that period I replaced the Small Texas Jack with a Buck 303 for about another 3 months. After that, a Case 6318 Medium Stockman for a couple of months (the Alox Cadet was a constant).

After a while of doing that, a several of things became clear. One, I could do that indefinitely with no particular problem*. Two, it really didn't matter that much what the specific knife pattern was, I was able to make do with any of them about equally well. Size and ease of carry was the determining factor. Three, I had tied up a lot of money in too many pocket knives that I didn't need.

The net result is that it rather dramatically quelled my desire for any additional knives. I have added a few so far this year, but I only have one more knife purchase planned and then I should be done.


(* Exception would be for specific tasks like weekend home fixup projects, where a larger knife or one with specific tools like a Vic Farmer is needed)
 
knarfeng said:
Yes, I see folks at work opening potato chip bags with their teeth. These are people unclear on the concept of man being differentiated from beasts by his ability to use tools. Sigh.

BTW, your doctor "friend" is incorrect about your modern knife being a "gravity knife". If it has a detente to keep it closed, it is not a "gravity knife".
Click to expand...

yeah i told him. he was half kidding i suppose. he has the sheeple definition of gravity knife in his head. i switched to a traditional for most of the doctors' sake in the office. the highest up attending did give me an odd look when i took out a cheap slippie to help her with her package
 
Cory Hess said:
As for the contest, I don't know if I'd qualify. I've carried the same knife every day since 7/20/14, but I've carried other knives with it. It has done probably 90-95% of my cutting whether that be food, wood, leather, rope, rubber, etc. I have carried it in church, camping, working in the shop, and everywhere in between.
Click to expand...

Well, I broke this streak on 7/20/15. This thread inspired me to leave all my other knives behind and just carry my 23. I found that I really missed my #92 and wished I had it with me. On 7/21 I left my 23 at home and have been carrying the 92 every day since. I have carried my Queen 03 on several occasions, but for the most part it's just the 92. It has done everything I've needed, and I haven't really missed my 23. When I get my double bladed 77 barlow in I'm expecting it to take the place of the 92 in my pocket. I really like the blade combination of the spear main with the coping secondary. Like jc57 reported, I've found that my desire to buy new knives has diminished significantly since I've been carrying just the one knife every day. I'll report back after I've gotten the 77 in my hands and can say whether it has taken up residence in my pocket or in my stash.
 
knarfeng said:
Yes, I see folks at work opening potato chip bags with their teeth. These are people unclear on the concept of man being differentiated from beasts by his ability to use tools. Sigh.

BTW, your doctor "friend" is incorrect about your modern knife being a "gravity knife". If it has a detente to keep it closed, it is not a "gravity knife".
Click to expand...

mrknife said:
yeah i told him. he was half kidding i suppose. he has the sheeple definition of gravity knife in his head. i switched to a traditional for most of the doctors' sake in the office. the highest up attending did give me an odd look when i took out a cheap slippie to help her with her package
Click to expand...

It probably wouldn't satisfy the actual definition of a gravity knife but the LE in this area are very aggressive and "open" in their interpretation of "gravity knife". Best not not carry a locking knife or one that can't be opened and locked easily in 1 motion. Luckily, I became aware of this shortly after I actually started carrying knives and early in my MOHO career. I then carried a Vic Cadet before getting my first non-SAK traditional, a CV Case Mini Trapper in Chestnut bone.

Still, back to one knife, I'm not sure I could do it. I could maybe restrict myself to carrying 1 of maybe 4 knives at most depending on the situation but I find it enjoyable to try and use all these different patterns, steels, and cover materials. Those 4 would be a smallish pen knife, a larger jack, a larger single blade knife, and a 58mm Vic for the key ring.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top