High quality knives in the wild?

Comeuppance

Comeuppance

Fixed Blade EDC Emisssary
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Jan 12, 2013
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You don't see them often. I almost stopped a guy in downtown Denver to verify that he did indeed have a Benchmade rescue knife (one the N690 ones. Can't remember the model) as I had seen the black split-arrow pocket clip and the orange handle from a distance, peeking out the top of his watch pocket. Before that, I had a brief conversation with a cop about his Yojimbo II as we waited for the light rail, an incredibly unsettling guy that had an old ATS-34 Benchmade linerlock that I ran into while working at PetCo, and I briefly recall one guy showing off a Sebenza or something when I was in Tulsa back when I was brand new to knives.

How many higher-quality knives have you seen in the wild? Kershaw and up, obviously ignoring Frost, Smith and Wesson, Gerber, and the other considerably-lower-quality brands.
 
One guy I work with carries an old serrated griptilian, but he's not really a knife guy. Other than that, literally none. I just don't hang with the right crowds I guess.
 
amg137 said:
One guy I work with carries an old serrated griptilian, but he's not really a knife guy. Other than that, literally none. I just don't hang with the right crowds I guess.
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Right? It's weird. Quality companies keep releasing these budget knives, but I only see them in pictures here, being owned by people who already own considerably more expensive knives.
 
One of the assistant cooks at the cafeteria on campus carries a Spyderco Rescue when she's working. She also mentioned that she picked up one of the orange Manix2 sprint runs.
 
Comeuppance said:
You don't see them often. I almost stopped a guy in downtown Denver to verify that he did indeed have a Benchmade rescue knife (one the N690 ones. Can't remember the model) as I had seen the black split-arrow pocket clip and the orange handle from a distance, peeking out the top of his watch pocket. Before that, I had a brief conversation with a cop about his Yojimbo II as we waited for the light rail, an incredibly unsettling guy that had an old ATS-34 Benchmade linerlock that I ran into while working at PetCo, and I briefly recall one guy showing off a Sebenza or something when I was in Tulsa back when I was brand new to knives.

How many higher-quality knives have you seen in the wild? Kershaw and up, obviously ignoring Frost, Smith and Wesson, Gerber, and the other considerably-lower-quality brands.
Click to expand...

Incredibly unsettling? What made this guy so "unsettling"? Was he waving around his benchmade in petco or something:D
 
I've seen several Leeks, a few SOGs, a Cold Steel Recon 1, Benchmade Bone Collector and Meyerco Maxx Q that I recognized along with quite a few Jarbenza cheapies.
 
Of their own purchase, I have never come across anyone else who carries a high quality knife. Though in my work/social environment, I have gifted a good few knives, Kershaws and Spydercos, and they are now carried, much to my enjoyment.
 
Met a guy at Basspro at the knife counter. He had a military mentioned he had an Insingo. Guy at my shooting range used a Sebenza to cut carboard of his targets. Went duck hunting and the guy doing the calling had a Kershaw assisted opener.
 
I live in Tualatin, Oregon. Al Mar, Kershaw, CRKT, Gerber, Benchmade, Leatherman, and others are in my immediate area.

I mostly see sub-$40 Kershaws and BM Griptillians, with occasional SOG knives sprinkled in. Interestingly, I see a bit of Spyderco closer to downtown Portland, not much in the burbs. The most common nice stuff I see are pricier BMs and ZTs.
 
Do SAK's, Case, USA made Schrade, etc count as your high quality knives? If so I've met people who had them, otherwise the answer is no.
 
I see a few Benchmades and Spydercos, not much else. I work at a court and see dozens of cops everyday (and they ALL carry knives; just mostly junk) but for the most part nothing "quality".
 
At my old job one guy carried a ffg endura. At my new one one guy carries a sog trident. I see guys wit clipped knives all the time but they rarely seem to be quality that I recognize.
 
I see a fair bit of benchmade in the wild. Some spyderco, mostly endura/delica's, but run into a couple people rocking carbon fiber natives or paramilitaries and a nice sprint manix. Never seen a CRK in the wild, have seen a couple ZT's, mostly older ones. I personally carry mostly spyderco, and there's a titanium native in the rotation, as well as the CTS 204P paramilitary and a nilakka.
 
I met a guy at Dick's sporting goods who had a ZT 0300ts, and a guy at walmart with an emerson horseman. Met a guy at a car related get-together with a little kershaw, but all else I've seen was poopy.
 
My boss carries a Benchmade mini-reflex auto. My best friends carry a ZT0350cb, Para 2, and Benchmade 710. My Dad carries a Kershaw RAM (sometimes), and my Uncle carries a Spyderco Delica. I've sold or gifted all of them other than my Bosses Benchmade haha.

As far as wild goes, I've seen a guy carrying a ZT0400 and one of my customers carries a Strider SnG DGG.
 
Met a guy in Puerto Rico that had a Native 5, and I once talked to a buddy of my father who carries an Emerson Roadhouse.
 
One of my friends who is an emt carries a hinderer. A teacher i had carries a lambert incinerator, and i have a few friends who have ZTs
 
I have converted my coworker into a knife maniac like myself. He carries a ZT0350TS, SOG Kilowatt, BK17, CRKT Ripple and a couple others I think. I have loaned out and/or gave away a few blades around the workplace, so I see those fairly often. Also, I talked another coworker into a RAT2 folder.....which he LOVES. My immediate goal in life is to convert my entire work place into a knife expo! :)

Other than that, I had a customer whip out a Benchmade Contego folder (badass) and another had a Benchmade 940 w/ green handles.
 
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