I think I may be done

Hickory n steel

Hickory n steel

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Feb 11, 2016
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Buying folders over 3.5".

The last folder I bought was a little Buck 305 lancer that I've really taken to, and before that was a mercator small brass which Is nice but larger than I've really been gravitating towards more and more recently.

I'll keep those larger ones I'm still attached to, but 3.5" seems to be my max for a pocket knife anymore and it's been even smaller knives more and more lately.
I don't know why I have had this extra draw towards the extra small peanut range knives given how perfectly satisfied I am with those between 3"-3.5", but the smaller ones have been bringing me a bit of extra joy. I have to get an older CV peanut with the preferred nail nick placement to appreciate this pattern, but the size range I have already grown to like this size range for sure.
Maybe some of you have noticed a pattern in my posts and saw this coming, I know I have been noticing it but wasn't quite ready to admit it yet.
I think one real eye opener was losing my brown delrin slimline trapper, it's a great knife and I loved it but because of it's size I have just not missed it. I was more upset by the fact that I lost a knife regardless.
It got me thinking that maybe it's time to let go a bit, afterall I considered that knife a definite keeper but do not miss it now that it's gone.

Being a knife nut I can't say I'll get rid of the larger ones that I so still appreciate, and I can't say I won't be enticed by something outside my comfort zone but I do know I will think a lot harder before buying from now on.


Right now I am thinking about setting aside some of the slightly larger ones that I still love but don't carry much and making an exception to collect just those, and limit the rest to just users.
I currently feel like I'm neglecting them, but if I set them aside to officially collect maybe it won't bother me that I hardly use them anymore.
 
I understand what you are saying... I think I've moved slightly the opposite direction. I used to think that around 3 5/8 was as long as I wanted to go, but lately I've been getting, and carrying/using some slightly larger knives, like the large Case Texas Jack and the Schrade 8OT.
It's odd how tastes change...
 
I can't really use things smaller than the 34OT stockman. They're too small to hold for any amount of time and feel to dainty for anything but mail, some packaging, fishing bait and line chores, fingernails and loose threads. There are a few exceptions, a chubby little Weidmannsheil lockback I have comes to mind, but in general once they go under about 3 1/8" they lose enough girth to be difficult to hold.
The main reason I like my GEC #66 Calf Roper is because its such a chubby knife for the size. Easy to hold and it makes for a really solid feeling knife with those nearly 'full size' bolsters and tang area.

Now that some genius on here clued me into the 'safety pin' trick, pocket feel vs knife size is no longer an issue. Shoot, now I can carry a full size 5+" folding hunter as comfortably as a Case mid trapper.
 
Nice to see a fellow knife nut dialling in their preferences.
For my part I must agree with my compatriots above that there is an optimum size thing going on. For me that optimim range is 3.5 to 5" closed. Still I think in a move of bipartisan knife-mongering we can all agree that cutlery is a personal thing and each size category has its pros and cons.
 
I am more a user than collector. 16 jacks and I rotate them all every day. I find it comfortable to handle a knife that matches the width of my palm, which is 3 3/4”. 4” is good, but I prefer 3 3/4. I have a 3 1/2 and a 3 3/8 only because the jigged bone is so beautiful.
I may have to wait for a few more years to buy some 35’s or 77’s.
In my experience the 3 3/4’s always command the best price on auctions or buy now.
 
I, too, am a medium-large knife guy. I have folders from 3-1/8 to 4-5/8 inches, but the ones that get carried more than just occasionally are from 3.4 to 4.2 inches closed. And really, the only time I carry knives smaller than 3-3/4" is around the house when wearing light shorts or scrubs.
 
Put me in the 3.5-4" camp. I like the 15 pattern, but wouldn't go any smaller than that. I also like the 86 pattern, but don't need any bigger than that.
Traditionals are my food knives and I carry a modern folder 4"-4.6" closed length for other things, so I don't need two big knives every day.
My current favorites are 44 Gunstock, 92 Eureka, and several 4" stockmen including the 8OT. I dig a square end stockman despite being highly put off by the extra "unnecessary" blades just a couple years ago.
 
mrknife said:
oooo! i thought it was familiar in shape!i take it, it has the same profiles with the large nail nick as the CSC boys knives
Click to expand...
Yes, exactly the CSC Boys knife.
This one has a few F&F issues, I think the cutler was in a bit of a hurry.
 
I agree, small knives are great. I have a Schrade SP1 lockback that I've had for so long I no longer remember when or where I got it. A couple of years ago I found a Schrade 807UH "Jr. Stockman" and just had to have it. I thought it was "cute" -- a sort of miniature 885UH "King Ranch" (but with rounded bolsters). I think that's the one that really got me into small knives. Since then I've picked up a Case 6327 small stockman and a Buck 305 Lancer (both used). One day I saw a new Case 52154W stag Wharncliffe tiny trapper in a hardware store and couldn't resist buying it. I have a couple of 6220 peanuts and a 5220 stag peanut. Going up in size a bit I have a Case 059L SSP lockback (used) and a few TB61117 and TB62117 swaybacks. One of my favorites is a Case V52109W stag mini copperhead (V = "vintage" stag). I've had a Buck 703 for about 30 years. It's a fairly compact three-spring stockman and is a bit shorter than my Case 6344 "medium" (really fairly small) stockman. I gave my Vic Rambler to my wife and replaced it with a Mini Champ, which is wide but still small. I'll often pair a small knife with something larger (stockman, muskrat, or even a tribal lock), but usually the small is adequate to handle most jobs unless I'm trimming a branch or cutting down a stray sapling or something like that.
 
Hickory n steel said:
Buying folders over 3.5".

The last folder I bought was a little Buck 305 lancer that I've really taken to, and before that was a mercator small brass which Is nice but larger than I've really been gravitating towards more and more recently.

I'll keep those larger ones I'm still attached to, but 3.5" seems to be my max for a pocket knife anymore and it's been even smaller knives more and more lately.
I don't know why I have had this extra draw towards the extra small peanut range knives given how perfectly satisfied I am with those between 3"-3.5", but the smaller ones have been bringing me a bit of extra joy. I have to get an older CV peanut with the preferred nail nick placement to appreciate this pattern, but the size range I have already grown to like this size range for sure.
Maybe some of you have noticed a pattern in my posts and saw this coming, I know I have been noticing it but wasn't quite ready to admit it yet.
I think one real eye opener was losing my brown delrin slimline trapper, it's a great knife and I loved it but because of it's size I have just not missed it. I was more upset by the fact that I lost a knife regardless.
It got me thinking that maybe it's time to let go a bit, afterall I considered that knife a definite keeper but do not miss it now that it's gone.

Being a knife nut I can't say I'll get rid of the larger ones that I so still appreciate, and I can't say I won't be enticed by something outside my comfort zone but I do know I will think a lot harder before buying from now on.


Right now I am thinking about setting aside some of the slightly larger ones that I still love but don't carry much and making an exception to collect just those, and limit the rest to just users.
I currently feel like I'm neglecting them, but if I set them aside to officially collect maybe it won't bother me that I hardly use them anymore.
Click to expand...

I know what you're saying, I've made the same journey in my knife obsession. For a few decades my go-to knives were the 3 1/2 to 3 7/8 size. then it went down to the 3 1/4 to 3 1/2. Then the final break through was carrying dads peanut and getting used to that. Now it seems like if its any over 3 inches its just not gonna go along.

I've used the peanut class of pocket knives for many years now, and for me and my lifestyle and what I do, they get it done. Fishing line, chicken livers for catfish bait, opening the Amazon Boxes from Karen's shopping adventures on line, infernal plastic blister packages that defy tooth and nail and small amounts of explosive, opening my mail, cutting twine/rope, and most of all, cutting a snack in half to share with my better half. A habit started when we first met and shared the last chocolate frosted doughnut the food truck at the shooting range had.

Being retired now in Texas, I find myself spending more time outdoors than ever before. Fishing, woods walks, traveling both day trips and road trips to neighboring states, we're away from home more than before. Theres prepackaged food to deal with, and the peanut class of knives seems to do that. How much blade do I need to slice up some good havarti or Swiss cheese and put it on a sliced biscuit or sourdough roll? Ot to open the plastic wrap of a power bar or granola bar?

I've had good luck with the peanut, Boker 240 pen, Buck 309 companion, Buck 303 cadet, Victorinox classic, Victorinox executive, Case mini copperhead, Opinel number 5, blade of my Leatherman squirt, and done just fine with then all. For and what I do it seems like a 2 inch blade is enough for most things. My most carried knife, my SAK executive, has the second small badge a bit smaller than the blade of a classic. Yet it is my most used box opening blade. Even when I carried my old Buck 301 stockman, the most used blade was the sheep foot, that was all of like 1 3/4 inches of so of length.

One clear advantage of small objects I've found is, they save enough weight to carry more important stuff. In the arid desert southwest, I've found saving weight on gear means more water carried. a very important thing in the Big Bend country and in general. Smaller knives, smaller handguns, smaller binoculars, means extra water. Sometimes VERY important. And snake bite kit.

Like Baskin-Robbins having 31 flavors of ice cream, not everyone likes the same thing. I'll take chocolate chip myself.
 
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