Curmudgeon before my time?

Rsmith_77

Rsmith_77

Joined
Jun 4, 2010
Messages
4,210
Let me preface this by stating I am 36 years old, so perhaps early middle aged i suppose?

But i have been reading all these threads in the traditional forums because i just so enjoy the stories, the glimpses into the lives of others than share my passion and the generosity of this forum is perhaps only topped by the beautiful photographs folks take of their knives.

And lets be honest, there are some really beautiful knives out there. Whether we are talking about one of Charlies legendary charlows, or Primbles red bone case knives and many MANY others, there are some really beautiful knives out there.

Was just reading the a post on the new #77 washington bolstered jacks and the new forum knives, both of which look a heck of alot nicer than i imagined they would from the design drawings. Money has not been right this year and there was never any chance i was going to be able to get in on either of them. But i can (AND DO!) admire the pics of functioning art.

All that being said, i am sitting here at my computer, just cleaned and stropped my case sodbuster and it hit me...These other knives sure are purty, but I am betting they dont cut any better than this $25 sodbuster jr. As someone with limited finances when it comes to "extras" this is both reassuring and a bit depressing.

While most of us realize that we have more knives than we would ever need in a lifetime, it sort of hit me. Even if i never buy one of these beauties I am well set for life.
Combine this with my realization that no knife really has the versatility of my wenger SI and its sorta hit me like a ton of bricks. I dont NEED any more knives. Sure i can and most assuredly will lust after this or that knife, but will it do anything the sodbuster or wenger si wont?? Except be pretty not really.

I dont know, just some late night musings.

That being said, i want to ensure that I am not slighting anyone that has gifted me with knives over the past 4-5 years. I have some real beauties that i would have never been able to buy for myself. My 85 in ebony, my 92, my white owl, my razor jack charlow, my 23 ...well lets see i am about 50/50 between knives i have bought myself and knives that were gifted to me. I am tremendously grateful to be able to get a chance to put hands on knives that would have been forever out of reach in normal circumstances.
So yeah, started off curmudgeonly and ending this thankfully.

Hope ya'll dont mind the ramble

Ryan
 
Hey, get off my lawn!! Oh, different kind of curmudgeon. ;)

Yeah, this forum is a great porch to hang out on, make friends, and even talk knives. The people here are generous with their time, their expertise and even their resources. It's a microcosm of how the world should be. I love that we focus more on the things that bring us together, than potential differences we might have.
 
If you don't want to be tempted to drink, don't hang out in bars.
 
As someone in the same boat financially I'm right there with you. And the only reason I am able to get the Washington jack is I am selling a Marshall half stack guitar amp that could purchase a custom if I wanted. But it was my baby for years before my sons came along and hurts the heart a little, but I digress! True my tinker is all I need but the beauty in form of one of Charlie's knifes gets me. And I have succumbed. But if my dad says anything about when I finally get to see him this Christmas. It's staying in Texas with him and come February another will come into my life if luck is on my side. I love this forum and all it's greatness and knowledge. It makes me feel like there ARE good people in this world on my bad days. And that may be the best thing I get from this place. And the amazing pictures! :)

Ok rant over. Sorry for that. Stream of conciseness. But I do have to agree with you the majority of the time.
 
Interesting post, Ryan.

I had much the same thoughts years ago when I did my great downsizing. It's like I woke up one morning and looked at the stuff I had and asked myself do I really need all this? I sent lots down the road. The past few years I've been cutting back still more, and I had a program; one in, then one goes out. I've done give aways, both here and local, and now am down to where I was once upon a time long long ago.

Yes, I have a Wenger SI that I like. I like it a lot. A whole lot. And it will do anything I need from a pocket knife and then some. But while I'm sure a diet of bean sprout salad and bottled water is good for me, I like a steak done right, or even a hot dog over an open fire now and then. A nice drink of a smooth whiskey in the evening with slowly smoked pipe is nice too. So, I keep some other knives around that sooth that need. NIce horn and wood with carbon steel.

I'm down to just 5 pocket knives now, and three of them are from friends on this forum. They will never go, they're here and with me until I have the big vapor lock. My Wenger SI may be my salad and water, but those others are my steak and potatoes.

Collection is okay. I think there's something in our genes that drive up to do that. People collect all sorts of things we don't need. Stamps, coins, beer cans, art work. At least with knives we have a useful tool. I mean really, what use is that Upper Slovenian 1923 mint postal stamp? At least with a Case Texas Jack or a GEC 15, or even a Tony Bose custom, you can drop it in your pocket and use it for a purpose it was designed for. And unlike an expensive luxury car, or Rolex watch, everyone can afford a good pocket knife or three. Heck, saving up the loose change in your pocket at the end of the day will do it. A new knife a few times a year.

But sometimes you do get to that point where you pass the materialistic thing. It's still fun to look, but now you look and while you enjoy looking, you do realize that nothing you are seeing will work any better than what you have.
 
Good post. I got into this knife thing a little over a year ago, before that I used a basic Vic Soldier and threw it in a tool box most of the time. I'll say flat out that for what I need a pocket knife to do, that Vic would have been ample. A friend of mine showed me the Opinel and I got interested. Some little bird in my head said get one. I did and in the process of finding it I found a number of other interesting "budget" traditional folders, the Douk Douk, the K55K, TL29, Case Sodbuster, Aitor Castor, etc etc. I was interested in the working history of these knives. So that little bird said start a collection of these inexpensive workers and use them in rotation. And thats what I did. But I kept adding new ones, then I found GEC. Well I held out for quite a while before I got my first Boy's knife, but after that I've kind of gone on a bit of a spree. Not too bad, but enough to make me shake my head and say "what are you doing?" I do feel though that I've got to a point where I know better what I'm really after. I can foresee a radical reduction of my "collection" to a few EDCs and a couple focus areas in the future. The toothpick is one focus area. The other day I was reading a thread started by a newcomer who was looking for his first knife. He only wanted the one to use everyday. I was excited for him. Well after a couple days of suggestions he was in for a half dozen folders. To be honest I was a little sad. It would have been kind of great in a way if he could have just gotten through the gauntlet with the one case Stockman and enjoyed it for its workhorse nature. Most of us are already goners :D but I always keep an eye out for the one who can get by with just the one.
 
Rsmith_77 said:
All that being said, i am sitting here at my computer, just cleaned and stropped my case sodbuster and it hit me...These other knives sure are purty, but I am betting they dont cut any better than this $25 sodbuster jr.
Ryan
Click to expand...

You have discovered a real truth there Ryan, and the truth can set you free. As long as it has a good edge, practically any knife can serve your needs.


jackknife said:
Interesting post, Ryan.
But sometimes you do get to that point where you pass the materialistic thing. It's still fun to look, but now you look and while you enjoy looking, you do realize that nothing you are seeing will work any better than what you have.
Click to expand...

Interesting post indeed Carl. I admire your ability to be part of this great porch, and remain steadfast in your non-accumulation. I realize that I could make do with whatever knife I have in my pocket, on any particular day, probably for many years if need be. I hope to reach a state of contentment similar to yours someday...still struggling.
 
I carried a Buck 110 for many years and never even THOUGHT about getting another knife. Well...I must say I always had a sort of draw to a yellow case trapper, but my 110 always served me and I didn't want it any other way. We'll I finally pulled the trigger one day and bought that case I wanted...then it started. I found out case had a lot of really cool knives out there, so I picked one up here another one there, then one day I realized I had 10 or 12 case pocket knives (and 2 more buck 110's). The knife I carry most now is that yellow trapper, and of course the ever present Peanut :thumbup: but I've got all these other knives that rarely see pocket time. They're nice to look at and play with, but I still rarely slip one in my pocket. I was looking into getting a gec recently, until I ran into an old cowboy friend of mine who has carried the same case trapper for 20 years, jigged bone handles worn almost smooth from the pocket of those wrangler jeans. It made me take a good long look at just how many knives I have, and how many knives sit on the dresser most of the time. I got by with my 110 for many years, it became a very good friend to me along the way, why did it become so hard to only have one or two knives? I think I'm gonna stick with the ones I've got and enjoy them. I myself would rather have one or two knives that have been in my pocket day in and day out for 30 years than have 10 or more that see my jeans once a month for 30 years. Just a certain bond that gets built, like an old friend as I said earlier. My dad has always told me that you're only going to have a handful of really great friends throughout your life that are always there no matter what, maybe the same can be said about our knives...
 
Ramble away Ryan :)

Great post Carl, good philosophy my friend :thumbup:

Jack
 
I can appreciate your thought process here, even see the wisdom in it, but I just have it in me to want the ones I like. I have a budget that doesn't allow for many new purchases though. I know myself well enough to say that I would have an amazing collection if funds were not an issue. That being said I know what my budget will allow me to buy reasonably and don't push to the point of no return. In the last past five years I have purchased just four knives. One that my wife wanted for personal defense, one for my son, one Wostenholm Senator from before WWI and this year's forum knife.

Along the way I have been fortunate enough to be on the receiving end of some amazing generosity, a Charlow from Paul in a recent epic GAW and a Gary Crowder trapper from Gary. Those two see daily pocket time.

So while I appreciate and admire the guys that can have the one pocket knife I know I am not geared towards that.

Chris
 
Hey Ryan,
thank you (and everyone else) for your insights. By the way, I'm your same age and I consider myself as far from middle aged just as from the cradle :D
We all know that need is not really a point here. I can spend days without using my pocket knife, so that is not the main point in carrying one, although it's a nice tool to have around.
I own a handful of folders, and I'm about to give away a couple here as well. Instead of wishing for more knives, I often wish I had more use for my knives.
Yet, the only thing that matters is what makes you happy. I probably own less knives than the majority of people here, yet I carry a custom slipjoint daily, because I like it alot and it makes me feel fine.
Other people are fine owning and carrying just a peanut (or no knife at all), while others can change knife every day for months without repeating. It's all good if it makes you happy.
And if the knives you own already fulfill your soul (and knife enthusiasm), there's no point in trying to change it...at least for now :rolleyes:

Fausto
:cool:
 
Well said Quattro. I think it's definitely a matter of to each his own. I know for myself the main reason I carry knives is for an appreciation of the craft and the personal connection to each one. The frenzied accumulation leaves a bad taste in my mouth sometimes because I'm like "now that I have this knife I'll want to use it and there will be that much less pocket time for my other favorite knives." For me it gets to the point that it's harder to forge a real bond with an ever increasing collection of knives. But the new additions are quite tempting. I'm personally glad that there are large sectors of the knife population that at least for now don't really phase me. Living in a city and only camping a handful of times a year I don't really need much in the fixed blade department, I have no interest in moderns, and I think I'll stick with production knives if only because I've always been more interested in users and working knives. But I totally understood Ryan's sentiment. In the moments of calm after I've passed up a knife or been forced to say I just can't afford it and don't really need it, I'm often more grateful for wht I have. And it goes without saying that the crowd here is just extraordinary in many ways.
 
A Dodge Mini Van or a Jaguar will both get you to Soccer practice. Which would you rather drive?
 
I have 13 knives. There are realistically only two or maybe three I would never get rid of, my Grandpa's pocket knife, the beautiful charlow I just received as a gift from Chief (an act of kindness I will never forget, thankyou) and perhaps my war torn swiss army knife. I only have real feelings for these three, I would love to keep my sheath knife and opinel 8 too but I would not shed too many tears if these left too. In short we ony really need one knife but if colection makes you happy then go ahead, at least it is a useful hobby!
 
To me, the whole traditional, folksy, curmudgeonly ethos goes hand in hand with austerity and an old school sense of responsibility of the sort preached by personal finance guru Dave Ramsey. Owning and carrying a knife or two is just something a man should do. Beyond that, fancy, high-dollar knives are really just toys. Now there's nothing at all wrong with owning some toys. But that only comes AFTER you've taken care of your family, including paying off all debt and regular investing for retirement. And the hobby has to fit within the scope of your income. And they're never ever purchased on credit. Own your stuff, don't let it own you.

-- Mark
 
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It's wonderful to be able to afford a variety of knives, and to see them shared (sometimes literally here).

Even more wonderful is to be able to be happy with the knives we are fortunate enough to be the temporary custodians of!
 
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