How did you make the adjustment from modern back to traditional?

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Withdrawn. I am going to take a walk

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One hand opener traditional. Pinch drop.

Mike
 
I hit 65 this June and have had a knife in my pocket since I was 7. All I knew for a long time was slip joints. I went from carrying a Scout knife and later a Schrade small stockman for decades to having many, many knives, traditional and modern.

If I am only carrying one knife it's a traditional slip joint. That's because it gives me that connection to my father and grandfather and my youth. I love the natural handles, the old patterns, taking my time to open and use a fine tool. I've got single blades, two blades, whittlers, Congress, Trappers, Peanuts, lock backs etc. etc.

If more then one knife, which is by far the more likely scenario, I'll have trads and moderns and fixed blades. I've got button locks, liner locks, frame locks, Sawby locks and other one handers.

I love em all!
 
For me it isn't an either or thing. Moderns are not always appropriate in every setting (like some sub-forums ;) ). I love the look of traditionals, and honestly, as much as I prefer the convenience of one handed opening, I really don't often need anything more than a slipjoint.
 
Why are rat rods cool? What makes a Colt 1851 Navy cool? What makes fly fishing cool? What made Miles Davis so cool? What about Louis L'Amour?

Yeah, traditional pocket knives are cool too.
 
I didn't see it mentioned yet in this thread, but have you seen or thought about one of those one arm razor jack knives? 100% traditional and a one-hander to boot. I don't have a great camera, so I am just going use pertinux's photo as an example, but I carry the same knife.
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A GEC #15 Razor Jack in ebony
 
I carry both however sold off most of moderns to buy traditional. What I came to realize and think most modern fans don't is a tactical switch blade is a weapon or a tool of last resort in a bad situation. End of the day they are weapons and as such remain "holstered" if you will in my pocket just as my pistol would be.

Just don't feel it's appropriate breaking out a weapon for every day tasks like cutting a pool band off your kids wrist or opening a package in the office.

Traditional knives are every day tools and a gentlemanly accompaniment like a nice watch or writing instrument that is a timeless daily carry

That is the beauty of the traditionals it's the difference between a fine antique parker shotgun and a toyed out .22cal AR style rife [emoji41]
 
I switched from carrying modern folders to carrying traditionals just a couple of months ago, around the time I joined the forums.

As soon as I read about Barlows for the first time, it was like several things clicked together at once in my head: wanting a knife that wouldn't scare my coworkers, realizing I didn't need one-handed opening functionality, and feeling an immediate connection the Barlow pattern. It snowballed pretty quickly from there. ;)

I like modern folders. Once in a while, I've loved one. But there's something about the combination of romance, tradition, and history of traditionals that hits me on a different level. The only knives I'd describe as having "spoken to me" have been traditionals, and I like that feeling and the connection it engenders between me and the trusty companion in my pocket. I'm not sure how to articulate it.

Great question, by the way! I've enjoyed thinking about the differences, similarities, and appeal of both styles of knife since I made the switch.
 
Ref above I can say my BM mini grip is fairly low key and small enough not to scare people however one of my favorites moderns of all time it rarely sees light of day anymore
 
Peregrin said:
I hit 65 this June and have had a knife in my pocket since I was 7. All I knew for a long time was slip joints. I went from carrying a Scout knife and later a Schrade small stockman for decades to having many, many knives, traditional and modern.

If I am only carrying one knife it's a traditional slip joint. That's because it gives me that connection to my father and grandfather and my youth. I love the natural handles, the old patterns, taking my time to open and use a fine tool. I've got single blades, two blades, whittlers, Congress, Trappers, Peanuts, lock backs etc. etc.

If more then one knife, which is by far the more likely scenario, I'll have trads and moderns and fixed blades. I've got button locks, liner locks, frame locks, Sawby locks and other one handers.

I love em all!
Click to expand...

If you change the "65" to "62", the rest is pretty much identical for my history and knife habits.
Gary and I obviously have great minds, because we think alike.
 
I still carry a modern to compliment my traditional carry. I have been leaning towards some of the larger traditional knives as of late.

I like having a knife I can pull in public without a lot of attention.
 
I made the adjustment from moderns to traditionals after I "rejoined" Bladeforums after a year of not being active much. Used to be big into one handed openers, all the high end moderns and such but in NYC it became hard to carry anything one handed with a pocket clip. The character and personality that traditionals carry definitely brought me into the fold. I like having something that doesn't scare anyone, is just as capable, reminds me of knives my father gifted me and have a multitude of variety with amazing build quality. Don't own any moderns anymore.
 
Not to blather esoteric, but I believe those who dare forget the past forever repeat it. However some repetition is good. And classics forever remain in style.

I'm a history fan. I can't know where I'm going without the context of the past.

Trads are deep. I like large libraries.
 
Carry a modern knife at work, but once I get home I usually switch over to one of my traditional knives. Currently the Beer Scout fills the niche very well as I like to enjoy a nice cold beer sometimes if it was a rough day at work. Part of it is nostalgia as I carried slipjoints as a kid. Another part is that it forces me to slow down and relax. And then I just love the way a traditional slipjoint looks compared to most modern knives.
 
Interesting article you posted. I carry both when I can, and the when I can part got me into traditionals! My job is fussy about knives, but a non locking one is ok. Since I spend more time at work than milling around the house, I gradually built up a traditional slipjoint collection. Similar to the article that was posted, I grew to appreciate the simplicity and looks of the more traditional knives, and now I can't leave home without one!
 
Others have taken the words right out of my mouth. It was a natural transition for me, having carried traditionals as a kid. Never actually felt too comfortable with the moderns, even though I liked them and bought and sold quite a few. But deep down they never felt like "me". Then one day someone at my office said, "you gonna kill someone?" as I pulled out a custom titanium flipper to cut a piece of fruit. That sort of did it for me. I'm in a management position and I can't have people thinking like that, even if it was a joke.

Started carrying a traditional again and fell in love with it. Funny thing is...I started with customs because I had a lot of modern customs. But I sort of went backwards after discovering GEC and I am just ridiculously hooked on that company and their products. I can buy something that I'm totally excited about for $100 instead of $2,000...what's not to love?!
 
At 55 and carrying a knife since I was 8 I carried a slipjoint exclusively tool I was 16 and for my first lockback, a Schrade 51OT.

After that I began to experiment with tactical folders and fixed blades all the while carrying a slipjoint in my right front pocket. Since I never stopped carrying a traditional knife I've never came back to them.

I always have and always will carry a slipjoint and I always will carry a modern locker, they both serve their purpose but the traditional patterns seem to embrace the artistry of the cutlery industry where the more modern tactical lockers seem to be built more towards functionality and durability/indestructibility.

I think the beauty, the cutler's real skill show through more so on a traditional knives than it does on the milled, machined computer generated CAD designed tactical folder.
 
I never went modern. I have a couple cheap moderns (TacForce, M- Tech that I bought at several different truck stops) and a CRKT/Ken Onion Wave I bought on clearance at a knife shop that no longer exists at the Downtown Nashville TA truck stop, but I never really got into the modern/"tactical" styling. I don't mind two hand opening, and prefer a belt pouch over a clip.
 
I'm kind of in the minority I guess. I do like some modern features in a slipjoint, but I don't care for pocket clips or one hand opening.
 
Woodrow F Call said:
Why are rat rods cool? What makes a Colt 1851 Navy cool? What makes fly fishing cool? What made Miles Davis so cool? What about Louis L'Amour?

Yeah, traditional pocket knives are cool too.
Click to expand...

I subscribe, i couldn't have said nothing more to make my point!! :thumbup::thumbup:
 
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