View attachment 1151929 View attachment 1151930 This William Henry B-15 has been getting more expensive as I continue to modify it, but it has been an EDC for a long time.
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Expensive knives you actually use
- Thread starter kent_michaels
- Start date
ChazzyP
Platinum Member
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- Dec 27, 2014
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- 8,100
I got rid of many of my drawer queens--just kept a few that are unique, collectible, or have some sentimental value. Everything else gets carried and used, though some are work users and others light users. I have both levels of users by makers such as Shirogorov, Cheburkov, CRK, RHK, Olamic, RJ Martin, Strider, lionSTEEL, Les George, plus Sydies, BMKs, and ZTs.
- Joined
- Oct 11, 2013
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- 21,686
I sit at a desk all day, so even my "hard use" knives tend to look like new. That said, I carry nearly all of my nice/high end knives and use them, though I only tend to use knives for knife-like tasks like cutting things, so they remain in pristine condition. I always love the look of a beaten used-hard knife. None of mine look like that!
GronK
Gold Member
- Joined
- Apr 1, 2001
- Messages
- 19,289
That's the joy of Sebenzas. Even light duty leaves snail trails to show use. Mine look like ten miles of bad road with just light use and hanging out in my pocket with keys and such.
View attachment 1152385 When my Sebenza was attacked by snails, I had it anodized. It is now much more resistant to such attacks.
GronK
Gold Member
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- Apr 1, 2001
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- 19,289
Nice thing about the standard finish is that a trip to the spa makes it like new again. If your anodizing is anything like that on BM and ProTech aluminum handles it will get nasty as well as being slick compared to the blasted titanium.
tony281sc2
Gold Member
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- Feb 13, 2017
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Most carried knife here is probly my ZT 0801bw. The blackwash hides just about all the scratches, so that’s a plus. Think I paid around $200 for it. Sometimes I’ll carry a 0452, which is a little more expensive, but it is one of MY most expensive knives.
I really really want a Hinderer Eklipse Tanto, but I doubt I would have the balls to carry a $400+ Knife :-/
I really really want a Hinderer Eklipse Tanto, but I doubt I would have the balls to carry a $400+ Knife :-/
View attachment 1152496 I don’t anodize Aluminum. The process is complicated and involves noxious chemicals. The standard finish on a Sebenza is no finish. The relatively soft raw Titanium offers little resistance to snails. I have experienced snail trails on the bare Titanium of other brands. I now anodize most of my unfinished Ti knives.
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- Jul 5, 2019
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- 4
Wanting to trade that stitch?
sgt244
Gold Member
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- Mar 15, 2010
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- 1,315
I carry any and all knives I own today, including Sebenza's, hinderers (mainly xm 18's - 3"s and 3.5"s) , along with a strider that I have and a couple microtech socom elites I've fallen in love with recently, not only do I carry them but I do not shy away from putting them in to use as well!
10 years ago I would find myself more hesitant to carry my nicer / higher end knives that I had at the time, and would find they'd be laying dormant in my collection while I opted to carry something like a BM 710 or kershaw skyline and put the use on those only to fondle the higher end knives I had at home.
Over the years slowly but surely I transitioned, and realized that life is way too short for this type of behavior! With that said I'm not working in fields trashing my blades, however whatever EDC tasks that happen to pop up nowadays I have absolutely no issue with using my higher end knives. Honestly, for the past several years maybe 3-4 give or take, I've exclusively carried "higher" end knives (for me) such as 1 of my many Chris Reeves or Hinderers. Cutting down boxes, opening mail, food prep, all purpose EDC tasks, should not be an issue for these types of blades, so there shouldn't really be any worry about carrying and using them throughout your day! Heck, I'd even say going out in to a hunting/camping situation, you could absolutely use these knives mentioned for general camp tasks/fire making/ ect..ect.. and still see very little "wear" on the blade overall, if any. ---side note with Chris Reeve knives, a small fee gets you their "spa" treatment which basically has them make your knife brand new again, which is an amazing perk of owning their knives because after 5 years you can send it in and have yourself that brand new feel (if you are into that) I generally like my sebenzas with a bit of "character" on them.
To put it in to perspective, say you buy a like new xm18 3.5" on the forums for roughly what, $350-$365?
Then you go and EDC it for a year and put use on it, (general EDC tasks that the majority of people use their blades for here on the forums), then you go to sell it after a decent sharpening and some minor scuffs or scratches on the handle/blade. You can still sell that knife for what, $300-$320? quite easily I might add...From what I have found is that the value of the higher end knives do not drop drastically. Basically the biggest drop you will see is when you buy the knife brand new from a dealer, and then try to sell it on the 2ndary market (even if its like new and never used), you are still going to come out losing a decent amount. Beyond that, the value really doesn't shift more than $50 at most, unless you beat the knife to heck and its really been through the ringer. Lastly, there are those who intend to use the knives they buy and use them hard, so I know many guys who only buy knives listed as "users" and can snag them at the "best" price as most if not all the depreciation is all done already from previous owners, so they could literally buy a user, and use it for a year and turn around and sell it as a user for basically the same thing they paid!
In closing, I will say this is all relative, as I will not allow myself to buy a knife if I am not willing to carry/use it. My collection now is for blades that are all in my rotation daily, therefore they are absolutely justified in being in my collection. If I saw myself leaving 1 at home 24/7 I don't have much interest in keeping it around, as I want to be able to fully enjoy what I have. At the moment I'd say $400 and under is my price range. Though I could see myself splurging in the future up to $1k+ if there was a super nice custom I want, and best be sure that sucker would see pocket time!.... No time for safe queens anymore.
Your mileage may vary, and also "collectors" are a different breed, and generally condition matters greatly to em, which I cant fault!
Also, curious what your range of an expensive knife is, as my range might be a JOKE to you, as some people are able to afford $1k knives to EDC and have many in their collection. --- I felt compelled to make a very detailed post because in your OP I can see myself many years ago, having done the same thing. Maybe a few of the observations I've shared will give you the confidence to carry that expensive knife that's been sitting in your draw instead of being posted up for sale!
Good luck and remember to enjoy the journey that all of us knife enthusiasts end up on!
10 years ago I would find myself more hesitant to carry my nicer / higher end knives that I had at the time, and would find they'd be laying dormant in my collection while I opted to carry something like a BM 710 or kershaw skyline and put the use on those only to fondle the higher end knives I had at home.
Over the years slowly but surely I transitioned, and realized that life is way too short for this type of behavior! With that said I'm not working in fields trashing my blades, however whatever EDC tasks that happen to pop up nowadays I have absolutely no issue with using my higher end knives. Honestly, for the past several years maybe 3-4 give or take, I've exclusively carried "higher" end knives (for me) such as 1 of my many Chris Reeves or Hinderers. Cutting down boxes, opening mail, food prep, all purpose EDC tasks, should not be an issue for these types of blades, so there shouldn't really be any worry about carrying and using them throughout your day! Heck, I'd even say going out in to a hunting/camping situation, you could absolutely use these knives mentioned for general camp tasks/fire making/ ect..ect.. and still see very little "wear" on the blade overall, if any. ---side note with Chris Reeve knives, a small fee gets you their "spa" treatment which basically has them make your knife brand new again, which is an amazing perk of owning their knives because after 5 years you can send it in and have yourself that brand new feel (if you are into that) I generally like my sebenzas with a bit of "character" on them.
To put it in to perspective, say you buy a like new xm18 3.5" on the forums for roughly what, $350-$365?
Then you go and EDC it for a year and put use on it, (general EDC tasks that the majority of people use their blades for here on the forums), then you go to sell it after a decent sharpening and some minor scuffs or scratches on the handle/blade. You can still sell that knife for what, $300-$320? quite easily I might add...From what I have found is that the value of the higher end knives do not drop drastically. Basically the biggest drop you will see is when you buy the knife brand new from a dealer, and then try to sell it on the 2ndary market (even if its like new and never used), you are still going to come out losing a decent amount. Beyond that, the value really doesn't shift more than $50 at most, unless you beat the knife to heck and its really been through the ringer. Lastly, there are those who intend to use the knives they buy and use them hard, so I know many guys who only buy knives listed as "users" and can snag them at the "best" price as most if not all the depreciation is all done already from previous owners, so they could literally buy a user, and use it for a year and turn around and sell it as a user for basically the same thing they paid!
In closing, I will say this is all relative, as I will not allow myself to buy a knife if I am not willing to carry/use it. My collection now is for blades that are all in my rotation daily, therefore they are absolutely justified in being in my collection. If I saw myself leaving 1 at home 24/7 I don't have much interest in keeping it around, as I want to be able to fully enjoy what I have. At the moment I'd say $400 and under is my price range. Though I could see myself splurging in the future up to $1k+ if there was a super nice custom I want, and best be sure that sucker would see pocket time!.... No time for safe queens anymore.
Your mileage may vary, and also "collectors" are a different breed, and generally condition matters greatly to em, which I cant fault!
Also, curious what your range of an expensive knife is, as my range might be a JOKE to you, as some people are able to afford $1k knives to EDC and have many in their collection. --- I felt compelled to make a very detailed post because in your OP I can see myself many years ago, having done the same thing. Maybe a few of the observations I've shared will give you the confidence to carry that expensive knife that's been sitting in your draw instead of being posted up for sale!
Good luck and remember to enjoy the journey that all of us knife enthusiasts end up on!
I think the most expensive/precious one I use is my Laguiole G. David Arbalete Extra with horn handle, corkscrew and punch. Carbon steel, brass bolsters and inner scales. Replacing it today with a similar one would cost at least around 150 euros, which for me is a lot of money. It was gifted to me 30 years ago by my (then future) mother-in-law. I have been carrying it 7 days a week since.
I have very few knives that cost more than 100 euros/dollars/whatever, most are way less. 100 is really my limit when I spend my own money, and it must be on a knife that I intend to use. The one or two I have that are above that limit were gifts. Whether I use them depends on how useful they are, not the price. But I'm not really a collector, just a user who wants to have a knife (or two) ready to grab in every backpack, vehicle, shed, workshop etc... ;-)
I have very few knives that cost more than 100 euros/dollars/whatever, most are way less. 100 is really my limit when I spend my own money, and it must be on a knife that I intend to use. The one or two I have that are above that limit were gifts. Whether I use them depends on how useful they are, not the price. But I'm not really a collector, just a user who wants to have a knife (or two) ready to grab in every backpack, vehicle, shed, workshop etc... ;-)
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- Mar 31, 2018
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- 2,691
First thing is my idea of expensive may be different than a lot of other knife enthusiasts. I have never went over $200 for a knife and it had to be top grade materials. Secondly if a knife is so nice or expensive that I’m afraid to use it, then it is of no more value to me anymore than a picture on the wall. I do have some nice knives that have sentimental value that I try to keep them nice as possible to pass on to my family or friends but occasionally still use them.
Thirdly I don’t have the time, place, resources or the desire to collect for a proper historical, heritage or any other type of collection. Not that I don’t appreciate those types of collections cause I do but I’ll leave that for the persons who have the knowledge and means to do it.
So the expensive knives I have are being used because that’s why I bought them. Otherwise to me it would be like buying a high priced pair of sneakers and letting them sit in the box in the closet and that just seems a waste.
Thirdly I don’t have the time, place, resources or the desire to collect for a proper historical, heritage or any other type of collection. Not that I don’t appreciate those types of collections cause I do but I’ll leave that for the persons who have the knowledge and means to do it.
So the expensive knives I have are being used because that’s why I bought them. Otherwise to me it would be like buying a high priced pair of sneakers and letting them sit in the box in the closet and that just seems a waste.
- Joined
- Dec 28, 2013
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- 402
A small sebenza carried for almost 9 years .
- Joined
- Mar 19, 2001
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- 3,157
I only buy knives intended to be carried. But I am a residential carpenter so I almost always carry two knives (likely a CRK or Hinderer paired with a Spyderco) and I keep a Spyderco Endura along with a utility knife in my tool belt. Super fancy knives, like my Shirogorovs, get weekend carry & do see regular outdoors use. I just try to think before I do stuff. Like if I’m crawling around a crawl space under a house I leave the fancier knives behind. If I’m cutting concrete or a bunch of metal with a grinder, my fancier knife of the day spends this time in the truck or work trailer. These tasks do not deny me quality time with a knife I really appreciate. Otherwise, I ditto many responses above. Life is too short to not carry the knife you love.
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- May 23, 2018
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So far, this is very true.