I am still confused by knives and uses

It all depends on the demands on the tool. While most people buy high end knives as a pride of ownership thing, there are tons of people who legitimately need the enhanced performance of premium knives, where even a small gain in performance is worth--potentially--a large gain in price. It's much like how a professional guide may find it worth it to buy a pair of Swarovski binoculars vs. Bushnells, but the budget binocs will serve most fellows just fine. That doesn't stop the average Joe from splurging on the more expensive makes and models just 'cause he wants them and they're nice, though. :)
 
Sometimes, the Beaty of a fine knife or a fine gun exceeds the rather dubious beauty of the dollar.
Many of us have been fortunate enough to have that experience.
 
Let's try this a little differently. The ESEE 3 is a nice knife. Simple design. You can remove the handles and clean out the blood and guts that might get stuck under there. I'm not sure how Mora handles are cleaned out. Maybe they just thow them away and buy another ;)

ESEE is made in America instead of Sweden by a great bunch of guys. Those guys have a philosophy of knife design and use and It's a little beyond my pay grade to get into that but you can go over to the ESEE forum and learn all about it.
 
Interesting responses. Its kind of what I figured.. I do really appreciate knives,if I didn`t,I guess I wouldn`t be here. I am in the market for a new EDC though..my Kershaw Scallion mysteriously disappeared.... but here in NYC,I am a bit nervous to carry anyway..they arrest you for spittin on the sidewalk here.
 
I don't necessarily agree you should be arrested for that, but I'd rather not see it, personally. :p

Not sure what NYC laws are but, if you let me know I'll have some suggestions.
 
Scattergun2570 said:
When an individual buys a knife like lets say a ESEE 3,,bout $100 bucks or so.. what do you guys use this knife for? I seem to have trouble seeing something like this for an EDC.. opening boxes etc with a hundred dollar knife seems kind of silly to me..so I ask you guys..when you buy a knife in this price range,what are these and other knives this price and higher being used for?
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I dont see enough of a difference between an esee 3 and a becker 14 to spend the $ on the esee, especially when I could get one of the bigger beckers and a good pair of gloves cheaper. To each his own tho.
The thing is, I understand why people think an Audi is so much better than the Volkswagen is, even if they come off of the same assembly line with the same powertrain. I just dont care about wood trim or whatever.
 
RevDevil said:
Some people use $2,000 fixed blades to chop logs apart and fell trees. Not unheard of, just sounds like you are new to the world of knives. There is life beyond the gas station pieces. Same as with cars, some people get by with a $15K Kia, and other like to drive a $120K Audi R8. What about the world of firearms? That gets stupid expensive in a hurry, custom pistols that cost $10k or more? Ever seen what some comic books go for? What about stamps, coins, or even old motorcycles?In the overall scheme of things a $100 knife is very, very mild. Look what some of the high end collection pieces go for and that will make you want to rip your hair out.

Silly or not, you need to keep in mind that many people here own thousands and thousands of dollars worth of cutlery, I know a couple guys that owns a couple hundred thousand dollars worth of knives. What are they used for? Whatever the owner wants really. Nothing magical going on I assure you.
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^^^ this! Well said. I'm not so much of a knife "collector", but I do buy a lot of knives, and I buy them to use them. My EDC is a $250 knife, it does everything from open boxes and mail to dress deer.. Why? Why not?

You think knives are bad... I do collect coins.... Religiously.... You think it's hard to justify spending $100 for a knife? Try spending $1000 for a cent, or a silver dollar... I've literally handed over $1000 for a single $.01.... Why? Well obviously it's a rare coin and not worth a cent, but try explaining that to people... Hard to justify to people who just don't get it. At least I can use my knives to open boxes.... My coins just look pretty... Lol.
 
I like having a knife thats sharp and stays sharp when I need it, a flashlight that works when I need it, guns that go bang when I pull the trigger...you get the idea. I never bought really cheap knives but I have a whole box of cheap flashlights that don't work, lesson learned. For me the sweet spot for knifes is in the $100-175 range, lots of knives with good steel, and build quality in that range. I've bought some that cost more and was really not so impressed. I'm sure there are some full on hand fitted customs are better I just haven't had one in my hands. I use my knives and I'm not rich so I'll be sticking with knives in the range I mentioned, but I do get the guys that buy the ultra high end stuff. I also get the people that think they're crazy. I think anyone that spends money on golf clubs is crazy...just depends on what you like.
 
I use my knives as tools.
I started carrying a knife after having an accident with a poorly maintained cutter in the warehouse of my company
I was very close to be severely sliced and I decided to keep a knife I can trust on me
The first purpose was to open card box and similar things
Time after time it just grow on me and I found easy to have a knife on me
I don't have to look for any cutting or slicing tool any more and I am very happy with that ;)

I now use my knife for almost everything, I just clean it after using it to make sure it can be also used for food preparation, etc...

The fact is that I like was it related to technics and industry, and as a consequence I started to get interested in steels and ergonomics ... For this reason I can pay some money to test a new tool with a different material or a different shape

I don't think I will go for custom knives but medium-high end production knives are interesting me

At the end I think we all may have some reasons for our interest in knives, they can be all different, none may be rational... I am fine with that as long as we respect also the guys who may not share our interest... And I expect the same from them ;)
 
BuckSlayer said:
^^^ this! Well said. I'm not so much of a knife "collector", but I do buy a lot of knives, and I buy them to use them. My EDC is a $250 knife, it does everything from open boxes and mail to dress deer.. Why? Why not?

You think knives are bad... I do collect coins.... Religiously.... You think it's hard to justify spending $100 for a knife? Try spending $1000 for a cent, or a silver dollar... I've literally handed over $1000 for a single $.01.... Why? Well obviously it's a rare coin and not worth a cent, but try explaining that to people... Hard to justify to people who just don't get it. At least I can use my knives to open boxes.... My coins just look pretty... Lol.
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Wish I had some coins to sell you. I have a 2 dollar bill but I think it's still worth only $2 :p
 
They way I try to explain it to other's with a similar belief is:
I am paying for usable art and I find a knife much more versatile than a watch (especially since the advent of smart phones). There are certain knife makers (artists) that I feel better represent what I'm looking for in a knife (art piece) and often times their pieces command a premium price.

If you look at a knife and only see a cutting tool, then you are missing out on the story behind it IMO. On the bright side, you can still enjoy the hobby of being a sharp tool collector, and likely have a lot more money left over if you treat it that way.
 
People spend more than 2 grand to get a folder that costed $600 to make. When they get it, it'll spend its life in a box. To me, thats lunacy.
When I start getting knives in the $100+ range, I become more critical of what I'm spending on. I consider the aesthetics, warranty, durability, performance and materials used.

Yes, everyone knows the guy who swears by the $10 mora or a $20 swiss army knife and that its the only knife that you ever need. For most people, thats all they need. Others need actual quality blades and others just appreciate the higher end ones. Most of the old farts in my hunting camp carry a buck 110, a SAK, or some generic wal-mart and thats all they care to have. They make fun of me (and a little mortified) that I'm bashing open a deer's pelvis with a ax that costs as much as a glock.

My first "expensive" blade was a ESEE Junglas. My old man is absolutely infatuated with it. In fact, he probably uses it more than I do. But he refuses to spend that much money on a knife (and continuously drops the hint that I should get him one of his own).

It was probably the only nice knife that I bought for a good number of years and the ESEE 3 came next. Generally, what I use it for, it performs just as well as my $10 Mora. It really only shines when I take it to a extreme like digging out boar tusks or someone trying to chop through bone (that one annoyed me). But ultimately, I enjoy using the ESEE 3 more than my $10 Mora. Thats enough to justify the price.
 
RedLynx said:
Wish I had some coins to sell you. I have a 2 dollar bill but I think it's still worth only $2 :p
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Lol, me too! $2 bills.... Depends on the year and the signatures, if it's an older silver certificate it may be worth a bit more, some substantially more... But I don't really collect bills so I really can't say for sure.

Another thing along these lines is how do you feel about people putting sub $200 knives (or $100 even) in +$300 sheaths?? A lot of people ask this. For instance, my ESEE 5 rides in a deluxe Hedgehog Leatherworks sheath... Which costs more than the knife by far... And people always ask why I'd put that knife in a sheath that costs so much more.. Why? Again, why not? It's a beautiful piece of craftsmanship, just exceptional work, I like it and how it rides.....
 
BuckSlayer said:
Lol, me too! $2 bills.... Depends on the year and the signatures, if it's an older silver certificate it may be worth a bit more, some substantially more... But I don't really collect bills so I really can't say for sure.

Another thing along these lines is how do you feel about people putting sub $200 knives (or $100 even) in +$300 sheaths?? A lot of people ask this. For instance, my ESEE 5 rides in a deluxe Hedgehog Leatherworks sheath... Which costs more than the knife by far... And people always ask why I'd put that knife in a sheath that costs so much more.. Why? Again, why not? It's a beautiful piece of craftsmanship, just exceptional work, I like it and how it rides.....
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That reminds me of the $2000 scope on a $600 rifle thing (or how AR accessories cost more than the rifle lol). I used to question it until I realized its hardly a issue if they actually use the blades. I keep on debating on getting a loaded Skystorm sheath for my Junglas...
 
BuckSlayer said:
Lol, me too! $2 bills.... Depends on the year and the signatures, if it's an older silver certificate it may be worth a bit more, some substantially more... But I don't really collect bills so I really can't say for sure.

Another thing along these lines is how do you feel about people putting sub $200 knives (or $100 even) in +$300 sheaths?? A lot of people ask this. For instance, my ESEE 5 rides in a deluxe Hedgehog Leatherworks sheath... Which costs more than the knife by far... And people always ask why I'd put that knife in a sheath that costs so much more.. Why? Again, why not? It's a beautiful piece of craftsmanship, just exceptional work, I like it and how it rides.....
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I guess it's better than half the sheaths that a lot of blades come with, these days...

I actually would like to get some sheaths made, most of my fixed blades are for right hip carry. Of course nothing prevents me from wearing it on the left side, but it not only looks backwards, I have to draw it backwards. I wish one could choose left hand sheath options at checkout. Oh well.
 
I dont put a price limit on what I EDC. Knives mean more to me than just having something to cut with. They my useful pocket jewelry man toy. So I tend to not look at price and what I use it for but rather what will put a smile on my face while I am using it. But its not rare to see me using a $400+ knife as a box cutter, letter opener, caveman splinter removal surgical tool etc.
 
Some people like a $450.00 Rock Island 1911 and others prefer a $3500.00 Wilson Combat, most are quite happy with a $800.00 - $1500.00 Colt, Springfield Armory, Dan Wesson, etc....
All are mechanical, all can function with varying degrees of reliability and can be argued with bang for the buck value.
Some believe, if you're going to rely on or use something regularly...buy the best you can afford, generally you could get most of your money back, should you wish to sell.
There's an ass for every seat.
 
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