Expert V Newbee

F

Flagg

Joined
Jul 31, 2017
Messages
72
Expert V Newbee.

I seem to have a fixation with the beautiful knives on here and elsewhere, I am in awe of such expert skills, some knives are the 'Rolls Royce' but I still have a place in my heart for the newbee type knives which are generally produced on far less sophisticated machinery, the self satisfaction is the same IMHO but boy o boy do those top dogs sparkle.

I love to see all of them. and maybe one day will be up there with you helping others.
 
Im no 'expert' but I dont consider affordable knives to be 'noob' knives. How you handle and/or maintain a knive can sometimes detetmine that however. No matter the price.
You have idjits with more money than sense buying silly expensive fugly knife shaped objects, which will sit in the gloom of a safe or in a display case only to be taken out for insta pics in order to bask in the admiration of the like minded.
Hardly the measure of an 'expert.'

An affordable knife in the right hands can often accomplish some of the same tasks as a more expensive knife. I have both.
I cherish some of my cheap knives as the one below because its an ugly cheap brute which gets the job done but the feel, and to some, the pride of ownership of a more expensive and/or a custom is not something to sneeze at.
I like a lot of different knives - cheap and not so cheap, production and custom.
I dont consider any of them comparable to a chubby German car like the Rolls Royce however. The Puukko is more like a t38 'Hetzer.':)

Terava Mini-Puukko. Dirt cheap and ugly. Gets the job done.

Bwao1iD.jpg


CPK. Not cheap. IMO beautiful in its own way. Almost impossible to destroy with normal use. Gets the (even tougher) jobs done for longer time without being sharpened... and then some.
aMnqdKS.jpg


Lon Humphrey custom. Made for a specific job, which it excels at and has a proven track record of doing. Custom knives are great because you can tailor them to your needs. As they in a sense can be more 'yours' due to your design 'finger print' on them, they can have great sentimental value. This can of course also be the case with a custom knife, on which you had no design influence.
bG27PAM.jpg
 
Last edited:
Sure, I just bought a Kershaw Chill and it came this morning just before I left for work; how cool is that ? !
I pulled it out of the box, flipped it once . . . good action . . . and in the pocket it went.
Under $25 . . . I'm thrilled. FOR ME it could be a satisfying knife to carry and use.
Do I wish it were made in the USA ? You dambed right I do. In fact I tried to find the same knife in an upgraded USA version such as the Skyline. I want the Chill though and not the Skyline and it is made in China (and made quite nicely I must say) so that's were I had to go, metaphorically speaking, to get that particular knife.
I think it goes without saying but I will say it anyway. I have nothing against China it is just that I want to support USA jobs first and have been so I feel I can buy from other countries now and then.

It was designed by a person by the name of R. J. Martin. He makes the good stuff you were talking about. You did good with the Chill R. J.
 
OP, do not listen to this person ^^^ under any circumstances.

Once you see his awesome knife-modding skillz, you'll want to buy the same models and mess them up just as bad. ;)

So, what are your favorite knives?
 
Last edited:
Flagg, maybe it would be good to further elaborate on your definition of newbie-type knives.

If it's purely based on beautiful vs. not beautiful, then I'd argue that there's a third classification called "user's knives".

For example, the Cold Steel American Lawman. It's not beautiful by any stretch of the imagination. However, it isn't cheap, it is very practical and it is built for a long career of serious hard-work. I'd say it could even be a heirloom. I wouldn't call it a newbie type knife at all. It's still an investment. It's just that it's clearly a rugged user knife and not a showroom piece.

For me, a newbie type knife would be one that's very affordable, where people who aren't sure if they're going to want to carry or collect knives might want something cheap in case they decide not to carry or collect knives after all, and that one knife they buy is going to end up collecting dust in a nook or cranny somewhere.
 
Knives are very appealing to me; fixed and folding knives (modern and traditional). I love fixed blades, but seldom have much actual use for them outside the kitchen. But I will carry one hiking or woods wandering, or around the property for chores.

I don't know what a newbie knife is other than (guessing) one that simply catches your eye that does not function well. But most knives will handle basic cutting. I try to stay within my budget on new purchases regardless of what appeals to me that is much higher cost.
 
One of the first folding knives I ever bought was a Buck 110. That was about 40 years ago. It worked, but I never really cared for it. The last knife I bought was a semi-custom Buck 110, and that was just over a month ago, THIS one I like. I have custom knives, hand-made knives(there's a difference), and production knives. Only a couple of them cost me more than $250, even new, and with 2 exceptions, all get used for something occasionally. They are just quality tools for cutting stuff. My only real advice is to learn to recognize quality, and spend your money wisely. Buy what YOU like because YOU like it, not because I do...
 
I need a new blade for my many years old all steel worn out lock knife.

The knife is nothing to look at but it has served me well for many years, I loathe to discard it but scared of taking it to pieces and making a new blade.

Any advice gratefully received
 
No such thing as an noob or expert knife. Their tools they are made to get a job done, how well it gets done is dictated by the person using the tool more often than not then the tool itself.

I have some cheap $1 Pillsbury knives, their cheap no name steel and which everything you hear about junk knives this pretty much ringed true. Though if I put the work into it I could make these knives sharp enough to slice phone book paper with ease. Food doesn't know the difference between a dollar store knife and a Shun it only knows sharp.
 
The knife price doesn't matter so long as the knife is functional and adequate for its tasks. The user is the "expert/noob".

The nicest knife in the hands of a noob will be mistreated, dulled and not sharpened correctly. An expert knows what cheap knives do all the same work as the fancy expensive knives and can keep them razor sharp.
 
Last edited:
around the time when carrying a knife was new to me I used to
have this knife,the Sheffield 12860 Ozark knife.
K9FRiYL.jpg

It was a nicely polished knife with a fine point and had a good
cutting edge (to my standards at the time) even though it
was a flimsy linerlock with plenty of bladeplay I can't recall
a time when the blade's lock failed on me then again
I babied the tip and only used it in the manner a knife
was meant to be used,to cut stuff.


Years later I came across this knife,the Ozark Trail Lockback.
W2WUkin.jpg

I haven't used it enough to make review on it but so far the
knife seems good to me, it came with a hair shaving edge
and a decent tip.Up/down blade play is non-existent,
the amount of side to side play is minimal,it has a
comfortable handle like the Sheffield knife BUT it has a
few flaws,the action was gritty (used mineral oil to
make it smoother),the lock has sharp edges and used to be
very stiff (took me over a month to kind of break it in)
even with all of that being said I still think it is a better value
than the Sheffield knife...If you treat your blades with care
I think even a newbie will do the job adequately..
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top