How many of you have just one or two knives?

I'm down to a Kershaw leek and a Sebenza,for moderns. I own about 9 traditionals that I paid for, (non-gift) and appreciate the artistry that went into making them. When I'm window shopping all the cool knives out there and I rationalize the perceived pluses of owning said knife, I realize it won't supplant my Seb so it's all a mute point. Then there is the "want vs. need" thing that I have struggled with and have concluded owning any more is a point of diminishing returns, just being honest of where I am now.
 
Hair said:
I own three knives right now, and want to buy a fourth very soon.

I've only been a "knife nut" for about 10 years, which makes me a newbie compared to many of the people on this site, but I have owned several hundred knives in that time. I had a period of about 5 years where nearly 100% of my disposable income went into collecting knives. I've owned 4 Striders, 2 Busses, 1 Sebenza, 1 William Henry, an Al Mar SERE, over a dozen Bob Dozier fixed blades, a few custom folders such as a John W. Smith and Emerson, dozens of Spydercos, Benchmades, Kershaws, and 1-2 examples of several other major brands. I never owned more than a couple dozen knives at once; I would sell off my least favorite knives to buy new ones and that cycle would continue. As my tastes changed, so did my collection. For example, at one point I sold off most of my tactical folder (G10, titanium framelocks etc...) and spent a couple years collecting Bob Dozier fixed blades.

Over time my OCD for collecting waned, and I started selling off all of the knives I didn't use or carry. I knew there were people out there that would get more use out of most of my knives, which just sat in a drawer, than I was. I sold many of them through Blade Forums, so I know they went to good homes :)

After trying nearly every type of folder I could afford, I really fell in love with the Axis lock. I love fixed blades in theory, but I rarely carry or use them and never really need them. I honestly don't "miss" any of the knives I sold. If I didn't carry it on a daily or semi-daily basis, then there is nothing to "miss" by selling it.

I currently own a Griptilian, a 710, and a Contego. The knife I want to buy very soon is an Adamas. With those 4 knives, I think I will be satisfied for many years. I prefer to have a small stable of knives that I really use, carry, pay attention to, and keep in perfect working condition (sharp, lubed, dialed in etc...) rather than having a lot of awesome knives in a drawer. I rotate those 3 knives depending on my mood; they all get used at work and they all get carried as EDC. If I lost any of the three I have now, I would miss them.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with owning dozens or hundreds of knives at once; I'm just happy with 3-4 right now.

I know the thread said "one or two", but as knife nuts go, 3-4 is practically the same (league) as 1-2. I'd be happy with nothing but a 710, honestly. The "OCD collector" in me just focuses on other things now. Maybe I'll get really heavy into knife collecting again one day.
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Gotta ask how much money did you net gain/lose after selling them all.
 
cchu518 said:
Gotta ask how much money did you net gain/lose after selling them all.
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I don't know exactly, but I am sure I lost money. All of the production folders I sold were at a loss. I broke about even on the Bob Doziers, maybe even made a little money. I had a couple Doziers in Mike Norris Damascus that I made a fair bit of money on. I wasn't buying/selling as an investment. It was more about getting to try out a wide variety of knives to find what I liked and using the sale of knives I didn't carry to fund the purchase of knives I wanted to try. I really have no idea what the "net loss" was, but I wouldn't consider it a loss. I got to use the knives and enjoy them and sometimes selling the old knives allowed me to buy more expensive ones that I wouldn't have been able to justify otherwise. However, that experience is certainly why I am a little more selective about what I buy now; I don't want to buy a knife and then decide to sell it at a loss later. I only want keepers.
 
Hair said:
I don't know exactly, but I am sure I lost money. All of the production folders I sold were at a loss. I broke about even on the Bob Doziers, maybe even made a little money. I had a couple Doziers in Mike Norris Damascus that I made a fair bit of money on. I wasn't buying/selling as an investment. It was more about getting to try out a wide variety of knives to find what I liked and using the sale of knives I didn't carry to fund the purchase of knives I wanted to try. I really have no idea what the "net loss" was, but I wouldn't consider it a loss. I got to use the knives and enjoy them and sometimes selling the old knives allowed me to buy more expensive ones that I wouldn't have been able to justify otherwise. However, that experience is certainly why I am a little more selective about what I buy now; I don't want to buy a knife and then decide to sell it at a loss later. I only want keepers.
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Makes total sense. I've had about the same experience. I might be at around 65 production knives in two years. I did a lot trading though and I think all in all not counting my jeepers and adding in USPS and ebay costs I might have spent under$500 which is not to bad for a great hobby.
 
I used to always carry an EDC but I stopped that a few years ago after losing so many. With that being said, to this day, I have carried the same folder at work since 2003. I recently picked up a CS Recon 1 and more recently a Blur when the CS is to big to carry. I am quite content at this point. They do what I need them to do.
 
The way I see it, I can get down to three knives if I really wanted to considering I only use three particular knives anyways (leatherman/SAKs excluded)
Pocket knife (Microtech Delta)
Woods/hunting knife (Woodlore variants)
Large chopper (ESEE Junglas)

My problem is that I just hate selling knives :mad: and it does bug me at times how much money I have invested in stuff in literal wallflowers.
Chances are, they'll be ones that I'll give away as gifts to people really close to me.
 
I m surprised at the guys with a thousand posts on Blade Forums who own one ,two, or three knives. Must be heavy traders if they speak from experience.
 
mromeo23 said:
A year ago I had almost a dozen knives and was very proud of my growing collection. I acquired some rare knives and was constantly trading and buying new ones. Now a year later and I'm down to just a one or two, after selling yet another one this morning that I absolutely adored. I loved that knife. But I had no choice. Times are very tough and I needed the money more than my collection.

I'm trying to not be so bummed out. I still have a TSF Beast in m390 that is my daily carry and had the most sentimental value to me. I've always admired guys that carried one knife for 20 years. Those beaten and tested knives with the battle wounds and stories to go along with them inspire me.

How many of you only have one knife you have carried for years and do not rotate between dozens of choices everyday? Have any of you been forced to sell off your collections, or never even wanted to own more than one or two knives.
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Hello,

I hope that things get better for you soon! Remember that 'stuff' is only stuff and hopefully you have your good health.

I only owned and used one to two knives in the past. This was when I was a young bride (Nam era and on and married to my late husband.) until I was 51 years old. What worked for me during those years was all that I WANTED and needed in knives too. I had a few more knives that belonged to my late husband when I became a widow at 51 years old. He was NOT a collector. I am NOT a collector. I am not knocking any person who collects any object in life. We NEVER owned anything in life that we considered 'safe queens' either.

I could get by with one to two knives NOW too. I would have NO problem with that either. I would still like to have a camp axe in that mix though. I do not rotate knives or have a large collection. I do carry a knife on me when I am in my yard and when I leave my house. I have two specific knives that I carry when I am in the woods/wilderness with a lever action rifle too.

What worked for me as a young lady and for all of those years does not work for me now when it comes to knives. So I changed what I carry in knives. (I changed ALL of my personal firearms due to some old injuries and arthritis too. I and/or WE sold and gifted firearms due to downsizing and caliber consolidation too!)

I know that many people not just older people like my husband and I who are in our 60's have gifted and sold knives, guns, etc. too. We never had to 'sell' something because we needed to do this for financial reasons.

Many people in all age groups sell and gift 'stuff' because their physical issues prevented them from using their tools so they SUBSTITUTED some newer tools for those FORMER tools.

Some of them changed their tools due to the STYLE of the item because their TASTE in some knives or whatever changed over time.

Some of them got into some other type of collection or OUT of something completely!

Some of them changed their hobbies!

Some of them decided to make their life more simple when it came to their 'stuff'. They downsized big time!

Some of them built another house only it was much smaller, some of them moved and/or retired.

Many, many people make specific choices in their small, medium or large collections for various reasons and not all of them have to do with money.

Heck, my own husband is gifting and selling some MORE of his 'stuff'. He has changed some of his knives around and kept a few of his favorites. (He is a hunter and a fisherman too.) He bought a few newer knives too. He even decided to gift and sell some things that he NEVER thought that he would do. Why? Because he does not use them any longer so he decided to not let them just SIT there in a drawer or cabinet.

He has NEVER regretted any item that he gifted or sold.

My late husband and I NEVER regretted any item that we gifted or sold.

Best wishes to you!

Cate
Typos and added more!
 
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I have 4 in my "collection". Then I have my daughter's knife (X2)....my wife's..... the dog's... This one just in case aunt Betty needs an EDC.... :D I think we are all sick in the head.

If a knife doesn't give me that warm, fuzzy feeling it is traded or sold.
 
I only carry one pocket knife a ZT 0200. Been carrying that knife since 2007. I used to have a nice collection of fixed blades 15+...Chris Reeve, Strider, Micro Tech, Tops, Buck, and so on. I wanted an Excalibur crossbow real bad, and didn't have the cash for it, so I flipped a portion of my collection. I only kept what I truly loved, and I'm down to five now. Knives come and go. Unless it is EXTREMELY rare you can find another one. Whether you have a couple, or a couple thousand it doesn't matter......you can always get more.
 
I have to keep my collection small because I have gotten into progressively more expensive folders. I have 2 BM Ritter Grips, a ZT 0900, a Spyderco Manix 2 lw, and 2 Grayman Duas. I carry them all in rotation and if at any point I think I won't carry it, I let it go for something else. I can't afford to collect for the sake of collecting. I do plan to add in a couple of mid to high end production blades each year.
 
I'm at 3 folders and 1 fixed blade. In a few months I'll probably get a different fixed blade and finally decide which folder to keep and I'll be at 2 or 3 total. I've had roughly 30 knives come through my collection ranging from $15 to $1500. I don't collect, I'm just searching for the right ones. I buy them, try them out, either they beat out an old one and I sell the old one, or they don't and I sell the new one.
 
For me I want the best "tool" for the application. That goes across the board in my life, knives, guns, packs, everything. So I need a knife for a specific application, not a collection of knives thay never cut anything. I've got three custom hunting knives built specifically for me, designed and modified to be exactly what I wanted. One for field dressing, one skinner and one caper. For pocket knives I've got a carbon fiber/ S110V native 5 for when I'm around town and a cts-204p pm2 when I'm out in a rural setting. Because I like carbon fiber and spyderco announced a CF/ M4 pm2 I'll buy one and install the CF scales on my current pm2 then sell the m4 knife with my green scales. I just need a Phil Wilson fillet knife and I'll be done. I own knives to use, I have no problem packing mammoth ivory scaled knives while I'm hunting, I can appreciate their beauty and yet won't think twice about getting them dirty because that's what they're for. I can't appreciate a knife collection just as I don't appreciate a stamp collection.
 
I sold off my collection while my first daughter was on the way. since then. just one knife. I know where your coming from. as long as u have one to really enjoy and use. you will survive. :/
 
I sold off most of my knives. I'm into a lot of other things right now.
 
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