Is anybody tired of collecting Knives?

vjb.knife

vjb.knife

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I have been collecting knives since the late 1970's and I think I am just plain tired of it. I was wondering if any of you who are really big into it ever feel the same way?

I have probably owned three thousand knives in that time (seriously this is a very conservative estimate). I was a big fan of Gerbers to start with and then Benchmark, Cold Steel, Blackjack, Pacific Cutlery / Benchmade, Spyderco, etc. etc., and over the past few years have been most interested in custom knives. I have owned virtually every model made by Gerber from inception to mid 1980's and the same for Benchmark, Blackjack, and very close to that for a couple of others. I used to go to Knife Shows and set up tables for selling and trading, but have not done that in years (there just aren't any near me).

I have managed to get the collection down into the 200 range but have been thinking I would like to get rid of all but about 20 or so real users and just forget about buying many more.

I can't explain it but knife collecting just does not hold my interest any more like it used to, and I was wondering if anybody else has felt that way or is starting to?
 
I would probably be OK if I never buy a fixed blade again, since I already own 3-4 that would completely suit my needs.

Unfortunately, I still haven't found my perfect folder, so I keep buying new ones in the hope that I'll finally find the perfect one. Once I do, I'll probably buy a dozen of them and sell all the other ones I've collected over the years.
 
My collecting and related activities such as knife shows, searching out special knives, etc. waxes and wanes from time to time.......

but my INTEREST in knives remains rather steady. I'm glad of this as I've been involved with knives for over fifty years.

Advancing years, retirement, monetary concerns and so on have decreased the number of new knives for me but I still love playing with the ones I have.

Cheers,
dan :)
 
When I first got into knives, I was an accumulator. I bought what I liked and that was that.

This no longer excites me, or drives me in my knife buying. I hardly buy any knives anymore, since I already have more than enough to play with. It also helps that I sell knives for a living, as I get to see all kinds of new stuff out there without having to buy it.

I guess you could say now that I research my knife buying decisions a little bit more. I don't mind putting out a fair bit of money for a knife, if I can see the practical value behind it, but I won't buy a knife for the sole purpose of buying a knife anymore. I've got other things to spend my money on, and if I don't, then more money in the bank.

Travis
 
I was buying folders left and right until I got the Spyderco Caly3 and I liked it so much that it was the last folder I have purchased in 5-6 months. Now I am just focusing on making knives and not collecting them. I sold most of the folders I had to buy knifemaking tools. Sometimes I miss all my knives, but I like making things more now.
-frank
 
When I first started, around 2002, I was very much an accumulator. But that's how I was with everything. Once I got into something, I wanted to know the breadth and width of the subject. So I accumulated a humble collection of 30 some-odd knives.

However, as my knowledge and perspective of edge tools/weapons changed, so has my criteria for knives.

FAR more selective, and FAR more bang-for-buck. To me, the real discipline of understanding the blade arts is to be discerning and precise about what one needs from a functional perspective. In my entire collection of high-end production and rare customs, would you believe that my favorite knife is my $40 Buck Nighthawk?

One thing that helped: no longer accepting the "cool" factor. When we see knives purely as tools that need to function the way we need them to, we won't pay $300 for a knife that will function the same way as a $40 knife.
 
I'm down to a few knives and don't have that much of a drive to buy many more. There are plenty of knives that still interest me, but I'm not as interested as I used to be about spending the money on them. I'll probably get a small fixed blade and aside from that and knife deals that are REALLY good, I won't be getting much more at all.
 
Also:

- I may offend quite a few people on this board, but I think the knife "collecting" mindset is one of the worst things that ever happened to this industry.

- People will buy 4 or 5 "limited edition" knives at $600-$700 a pop, then not even use them. They're purchasing them, really, for the resale value. It's a reality of this industry that, sadly, divorces us from bottom-line that these are TOOLS.

- When I hear the words "investment piece" applied to the most fundamental tool of human existence (an edged tool), I truly shudder.

Personally, as I've mentioned, I went through a similar phase of collecting knives, but for the pure purpose of defining my own criteria of what was good for me.

This is a free country, and people are free to do with their money what they will. Collecting/reselling will always be one of them.
 
4 Ranges said:
Also:

- I may offend quite a few people on this board, but I think the knife "collecting" mindset is one of the worst things that ever happened to this industry.

- People will buy 4 or 5 "limited edition" knives at $600-$700 a pop, then not even use them. They're purchasing them, really, for the resale value. It's a reality of this industry that, sadly, divorces us from bottom-line that these are TOOLS.

- When I hear the words "investment piece" applied to the most fundamental tool of human existence (an edged tool), I truly shudder.

Personally, as I've mentioned, I went through a similar phase of collecting knives, but for the pure purpose of defining my own criteria of what was good for me.

This is a free country, and people are free to do with their money what they will. Collecting/reselling will always be one of them.
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I'm not offended by this post, but I personally wouldn't use a custom Lum if I came across one (that I could afford). Generally speaking though, I buy my knives for use.

I think there are a number of makers out there that do cater to these collectors, so they may very well be designed for collecting. For example, a popular maker might have a nice design that has more common materials (S30V blade/ Ti handle). He might also make a significantly more expensive version (Damascus/ Ti handle with precious stones or rare materials) that the general knife community might not use.

Here's my "user":
1224914593.jpg


Here's more of a "collector's" version:
blp1.jpg
 
Nah! I'm just tired of not having money to collect knives. I wish my wife would hurry up with her next degree!
 
No way.

There are periods of time where I don't look at knives much, focusing on other hobbies (computers, motorcycle, convertible, outdoors, family, house, etc.) instead. That's often determined by the time of year (Knife Accumulating is a winter indoor hobby), finances, and how busy I am at work.

But I still have nearly every knife I've ever owned, I have no intention of ever letting them go, and I'm always looking for new knives to acquire or new aspects of the hobby to explore.

- I may offend quite a few people on this board, but I think the knife "collecting" mindset is one of the worst things that ever happened to this industry.
Click to expand...
Ridiculous. Knife Collectors and Knife Accumulators, ie people who buy more knives than they really need, are the people who float the industry. If each person only bought a knife every 10-20 years when their old one wore out, how many knife makers and manufacturers could stay in business?!?

- People will buy 4 or 5 "limited edition" knives at $600-$700 a pop, then not even use them. They're purchasing them, really, for the resale value. It's a reality of this industry that, sadly, divorces us from bottom-line that these are TOOLS.
Click to expand...
You are making several erroneous generalizations in this one statement. First, most collectors and accumulators don't buy knives that cost $600-$700; they buy the exact same knives that you do - Buck, Spyderco, Case, Schrade, etc. Second, while having a knife that has appreciated in value is something to be glad of, you're mistaken about that being a primary buying factor. Third, if you think that pocketknives are 'only' tools, I doubt we'll agree on anything else either...
 
I never "collected" knives. If I can't use it, I won't buy it. That being said, I do have a good variety of knives and will continue buying new ones. But I never buy one to add it to a collection just to be looked at. Not my thing.

I do see why some people do that though. The high end customs with their luxurious materials made all by hand are NOT just tools. They are real pieces of art.

Saying they are just tools is pretty much like saying that a Picasso is the same as wall paint... Silly.
 
I've always accumulated knives. Over the years I've sold hundreds of them. I've been on kind of a kick about eliminating clutter, lately, so I've gotten rid of quite a few, yet I still have very many.
 
I'm not tired of knives at all, but I've grown be a lot more selective about what I buy these days.
 
myright said:
I'm not tired of knives at all, but I've grown be a lot more selective about what I buy these days.
Click to expand...

I guess that is probably where I am at. I really don't like having so many around and as Phil said earlier I am trying to get rid of the clutter.
 
Yes and no-extremely selective, but I'd like to start making knives, then the possibilities are infinite
 
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