how to handle knives when leave the world?

I've answered a couple of threads like this one a couple of times before.

Below is a copy of the response I posted last which you can find along w/many others here: Collections vs Getting Old

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"I'm 73 and I answered a question similar to this in a different thread.

My response is that I don't care about what happens after I'm dead and, as long as my collections of things (knives is just one of several valuable collections of things that I own) gives me "pleasure," I'm keeping all of them until I die.

So, I never plan to sell anything just to reduce a collection to make it easier for my heirs to collect/spend my $ after I'm dead and, if I sell anything, it will only be because I need the $ and/or don't care to own those things any more while I'm still alive.

What my executor and heirs do with the rest is irrelevant to me as a dead man.

However, I have already briefed the executor about the general value of these things and will leave documents establishing the specific value of these collections for sale/appraisal purposes before I die.

Only a fool would give any thing among them away for free.

BTW, the "value" of my knife collection alone is in the neighborhood of $100k."
 
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How will I handle them after I leave the world?

After I die I think I'll stab myself with them so I can do that ghost water fountain thing when I drink, like at the beginning of Scrooged. That bit always gets me
 
I have some personal feelings on this having inherited a 150 knife collection after my FIL and BIL passed in 2020 and 2021. From the original collector's perspective, I'm sure it's very hard to sell something you've accumulated over a lifetime. However, one man's collections doesn't really translate to another person unless they have similar interest. So for me, I'm going mostly for option 2. However, I'm trying to honor him by dedicating an Instagram page to his collection.
 
Guy told his wife that when he died, he wanted her to put all his knife cases up in the attic so he could grab them on his way by. He died and she did it. A few weeks later she went up to the attic and the knife cases were still sitting there. She said, "Dang it, I knew I should have put those things in the basement!"
 
Between watches, doodads, knives, bottles, random old things, coins and shiney objects and my mom's boyds bears that I inherited... If I kick it today the Mrs and the kids are going to have a hell of a time listing it all on eBay lol.

I actually have a really nice antique pocket watch, knife and other stuff picked out for each kid, niece and nephew. I started designing smallish tabletop boxes and will build them from local hardwood with rosewood accents and such that will hold the items.
 
Best bet and probably saddest answer would be to sell them nearer to "the end" to pay medical bills 🫣😬
So you can at least get use out of them one more time
 
ShaiHulud said:
Best bet and probably saddest answer would be to sell them nearer to "the end" to pay medical bills 🫣😬
So you can at least get use out of them one more time
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Why would you worry about paying medical bills at the end? I mean it's the end either way, right?
 
2, 3 from the list.

Having watched this scenario unfold 100's of times. Sell or give away the stuff you don't want or need early. I like Joe Rychetnik's way of doing it, where he gathered up all his knives every few years, and divided them into piles after handling. Pile 1 were knives that he still really liked and weren't going anywhere, Pile 2 were knives he couldn't decided on, so they stayed around another few years, and Pile 3 were knives he didn't care for anymore. Those were sold or given away. Every few years he'd do this till the pile was small and manageable.

Selling early saves your estate the 20-40% dealer cut, and allows you to correctly identify them. Big auction houses are horrible at really identifying knives, and even knife specialty dealers can be bad at certain segments of the collecting field. Also if you have ivory, shell, or other now somewhat unpopular handles, figure out what to do with them now. I've seen inheritors contemplate throwing away very expensive knives because "OMG, Ivory? That's illegal now right?". Some dealers don't want the hassle either.

As for what's left? Just keep a log of of what goes where. For the knives that will be sold include - photos of the knife, sheath (this is actually pretty important), and anything that makes it special or unique. Also be honest with prices and update them every few years on the important stuff. It's embarrassing and sometimes kinda hurtful trying explain to someone that their loved one's prized knife isn't worth what it was 30 years ago or tactfully that they had bad taste.
 
I won’t care as I’ll be worm food, but I suppose if I had my say while living I would give them to my kids, hopefully they enjoy them and appreciate what they are and get some connection to my memory, but if they don’t then I won’t know about it anyway.

If I had friends, especially friends into knives I would certainly leave some to them, but I don’t. I also like the option of passing them onto a deserving young person that doesn’t have the means to buy what they want, but I don’t know any of them either.
 
I expect my kids and grandkids will pick through then and take what they want of my knives and guns, anything they don't want they can sell or giveaway. As I get advanced in age, I expect I will go ahead and start thinning the heard by giving some away
If I read Psalms 149 correctly I will have a two edged sword, and I expect that will be better than anything I have now :D
 
Can't take any of it with you, not the cosas, the house, hell, not even the clothes you died in. All these material things are tied to the land of the living
 
SharpBits said:
No offspring, so this question has been vexing me for a while now.
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None here either.

I plan to give most of them away if I'm afforded the luxury of doing so. I may sell a few along the way as well, but it's not a priority.

Fortunately, my wife's future well-being is not contingent upon the value of my collection.
 
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