Do you hoard knives, and how to break out of this obsession?

As long as the hoard of knives are all solid users, they may be better than gold someday. Same for ammunition.

Now is not the time to waste money on anything you dont need. Im glad my hoard is already bought and paid for.

Super old thread. The OP hasn’t been back since before the pandemic started. So much has changed in the world.
 
killgar said:
I'm kinda the same way. In the past I've been reluctant to mention certain obscure vendors who sell hard-to-find switchblades. I didn't want to risk the knives I was interested in being bought up and then I'd be out of luck if I decided I wanted one. It can take me a long time and a lot of deliberation before I decide to buy something, so I wanted to give myself plenty of time to think about it.

Although I now consider my knife-buying days to be over (unless I come into a large windfall), there is a particular knife I still won't mention because I'm concerned that if I do, others might Google it out of curiosity, and someone might buy it. There's only one available that I can find online, I just checked, and it's still there. It's over $1k, so I have no plans to buy it (though I did seriously consider it for awhile), but it's one of the few knives (switchblades) that I'd really like to own, and I just like knowing that it's there, and still available, if I ever change my mind (or have an extra grand to spend).

This knife thing of ours can make a person a little kooky sometimes. ;)
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What are you doing?! You never mention this thing of ours! 😁

Hey, that sounds like a reasonable way to go about things, though. Waiting until you can get something that you TRULY want and know you want. That is the way!
Oh man, my reaction when I read "ANOTHER 49 knives" though...
 
colin.p said:
An entertaining thread and somewhat sobering at the same time. I think if most were to take an honest look at their knife stock they might be rather perplexed as to why they have so many items that they really have no use for. We can joke around about "one is none and two is one", but at the end of the day we have to answer for our choices, to ourselves and to those who are closest and perhaps reliant on us.

Whenever this topic comes up (rather frequently I might add) I remember a forum member who whittled away her knife collection down to one knife. As far as I know, she is happy as a clam and hasn't thrown herself in front of a bus because she is down to "only" one knife.
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I am not joking around when I say "One is none and two is one". I have some backups. Not for EVERY KNIFE, but moreso... a backup knife! Somebody here was talking about how, they had a bit of an accumulation and were thinking of selling it to buy just one really nice custom knife. I said, sure, that makes sense. If you have a bunch of mid-tier Benchmade, CS and Spyderco, it makes sense to sell 4 Delicas, 3 CS XLs and your Bugout or whatever for a nice custom knife. But, just to have around in a useful capacity, I would keep one or two knives like, say, a RAT and an Opinel, just to have, just to use in your life. EDC the fancy, but keep a serrated knife in your car, keep the RAT in your garden or toolbox, you know?

That is what I mean when I say that, not getting four PM2s. (Which is also something I have). That is somewhat the addiction of it. But, it is a much healthier addiction than others. So long as one is not harming themselves or their finances. It seems that this is the distinguishing line, this guy is obviously hurting in other areas in his life and his knife buying is to his detriment. I did some grief-buying of knives, and ended up with 9 Spydercos, a Boker auto, new RAT, new Espada XL in like, a couple months. But, I stopped in a timely manner before I got into too bad of a hole, and now I just have a lot of great knives to use over time, to learn to sharpen and maintain, etc.
 
ferider said:
1) wrong place to ask this, I feel
2) it’s cheaper than cars, boats or girlfriends, so don’t worry so much :)

Seriously though, like any other addiction it’s only a real problem if it negatively affects other people.
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Actually, I think a lot of people have given great advice as to how they have curbed their knife-buying, how they maintain, how they realized they had addictions to buying themselves and how they dealt with it... you wouldn't expect the knife forum to be the place to help, but it really can. Just like how addicts on a drug forum can be the first to give genuinely helpful and insightful advice about, say, quitting a habit, from experience.
 
JAF1973 said:
I was actually thinking of something similar. I been thinking about taking a sledge hammer and busting up my most expensive knife and giving a $300 tip to the local coffee shop lady who makes my drinks. Or donating to a cure for cancer cause.

What you say makes a lot of sense.
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Don't do that, man.... sell the knives and donate the money, if you are so inclined. Do not just destroy perfectly good knives... I'd love to work with you on buying them and helping find buyers and finding a charity that is not fake, if you are so inclined. Just don't do that.
 
Asking how to stop buying knives in a forum dedicated to the collection and use of them is just wrong...
It's kind of like going into into an adult movie theater, and complaining about "impure thoughts"...
 
for me the worst thing is ebay, seeing rare or discontinued knives constantly poppping up for good prices, it makes me feel like im losing out on a great deal if i dont buy it
 
ferider said:
1) wrong place to ask this, I feel
2) it’s cheaper than cars, boats or girlfriends, so don’t worry so much :)

Seriously though, like any other addiction it’s only a real problem if it negatively affects other people.
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Addiction always negatively affects the addict. They just cannot see it.

Erasmus; As a nail can drive out a nail, so can one habit drive out another.
 
Does that mean smoking crack can cure our knife addictions?
I'll stick with knives!
 
I agree with those suggesting to reduce your number of backups. Maybe an extra 1 or two, if it's a model you really like. But cap it at that.
 
For some collecting is a trait/natural talent. It is the same natural behavior that we often formally ascribe as the scientific method. The gathering and organization of things in such a way that they begin to tell a story. So you have 20 PM2s and that is way more than you could ever “use”, but the collector see additional uses, and by putting those items side by side can see and enjoy the evolution in materials, marketing and production methods.

Cutting may not even be primary use for a collector. We often see books or blogs or even elaborate real world displays that collectors assemble; I would argue this is the way that most collectors see the world. That whether you have taken steps to manifest it to others, the order and images and information is always there as a collector‘s mental image of their collection.

I find collectors to be an interesting lot. It doesn’t really matter what they collect; a fine collection of tea cups can be entertaining - even to a non- tea drinker.

n2s
 
colin.p said:
An entertaining thread and somewhat sobering at the same time. I think if most were to take an honest look at their knife stock they might be rather perplexed as to why they have so many items that they really have no use for. We can joke around about "one is none and two is one", but at the end of the day we have to answer for our choices, to ourselves and to those who are closest and perhaps reliant on us.

Whenever this topic comes up (rather frequently I might add) I remember a forum member who whittled away her knife collection down to one knife. As far as I know, she is happy as a clam and hasn't thrown herself in front of a bus because she is down to "only" one knife.
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I am happy to report I have not thrown myself in front of a bus, and yes, I'm still happy as a clam having only one knife :) My minimalism journey has definitely improved my life. However, it is a continuous process, and it doesn't mean all compulsions go away. I still have one aspect of my life that I haven't been able to fully conquer, and that is my obsession with hats. I still own 20+ and while I do wear them all, I understand that's a ridiculous amount.

Here are some tricks that have helped me counteract the compulsion that others might find helpful:
> Think about what the money could be better used for
> Identify whether the item is a H*LL YES! or not. In other words, is this the absolutely perfect item you've been looking for for years or does it have this aspect and that aspect that doesn't fit your needs or likes as much as you'd want? Simply put, when you already have your needs met, then a new item needs to be a H*LL YES or it's a no.
> Think about the hidden costs of this new item. Will it require upkeep and cleaning? Will it require you to buy other things to go with it or maintain it? Is it going to add more things on your to do list or more clutter in your home, or is it actually going to help alleviate some of those burdens?
> What is the realistic use and intent of this item? Not your fantasy self or some hypothetical future, but what actual concrete needs will it be put to use to tackle?
> Does the want/need of this item actually justify a new purchase or can it be handled by something you already own? For example, if it's a one day a year need, then maybe you can tackle the project with something else you own or maybe rent/borrow one from someone else.

Another thing I try to keep in the forefront of my mind lately is that when I've needed an object, the universe has always provided. None of us is getting out of this alive. Enjoy the journey, and in my opinion, part of the way to do that is to stop spending so much time stressing over a bunch of cluttered possessions.

Yes, own things. Use them. But realize that the illusion of control you feel by owning 5-6 of the same knife as backups is just that--an illusion. The world will quickly show you that you don't have as much control as you think you do whether that might be through a house fire or WWIII or a significant medical issue that leaves you paralyzed or whatever. And if any of those things do happen, having 5-6 extra of a particular knife wouldn't make any of it better for you.
 
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