Just what do you expect your knife to be able to do/handle?

BOSS1

BOSS1

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Greetings all,

Simple enough question--what exactly do you expect of your knife/knives?

Cut stuff--that's pretty much a given.

But beyond that? Split wood? Open cans of food? Pry open doors? Be used as a foot step to scale a wall? Cut through a vehicle roof? Perform open heart surgery?

And...how likely are you to actually need that knife to live up to those expectations? Do you really find yourself in a position where you're saying "better bring along the XYZ blade in case I need to cut through the side of that shipping container." Put another way, is your blade well suited to your intended/planned tasks?

Just something to kick around a bit for fun.

BOSS
 
That's a real head scratcher...

Generally, I buy a knife with the sole intention of using it to cut things. Extremely simplified, from a performance perspective, its ability to help me cut things is pretty much the only consideration I have when looking at a new knife (aside from cost, aesthetics, and non-performance related considerations).

However, once I have a knife, I'll end up using it for all kinds of wacky junk I probably shouldn't. I didn't expect to have to use my Cyclone as a hammer, but I've used it as such. I hadn't planned on prying boxes open with it, but it gets used for exactly that. Opening canned food? Yep, it's been there. Most of my knives end up getting used for all kinds of wacky, non-cutting related tasks.

I didn't consider those uses for them before I bought them, and definitely didn't anticipate using them for those tasks, but I guess in hindsight, I would have been a bit disappointed if they weren't able to perform those tasks.

So, basically, I've never bought a knife with the intention of doing anything with it other than cutting things. However, I end up doing all manner of different things with my knives anyway.
 
I work at the Department of Botany and Plant sciences as a Laboratory assistant.

It is during my job my knives see the toughest uses, from making delicate fine cuts to flowers to chopping up small branches.

For me, I expect my knives to cut everything i throw at it and yes I need certain knives for certain task.

Like I find my self saying I better bring my 5160 chopper, BRKT Wet enviro recon, and my spydie salt 1 because I am going to be in the field today.

or maybe my kershaw od-1 or my spydie lava because I gonna stay in the lab to cut boxes and other packages.

Cutting isnt the only thing I do at the lab (i wish) but when it needs to be done (and it needs to be done often) I rely on specific knives because my coworkers going to staring if i use my huge choppers to attack boxes or prepare specimens for sterilization using the autoclave.

Unfortunately, from my knives point of view, outside of work isnt as exciting and I generally use my benchmade mini spike (less likely tip will break during use) or my spydie lava (love it to death) for my daily chores such as prepare food, open mail (spike perfect for this), and kill boredom.

Does that answer your question?

Edit:
"I didn't consider those uses for them before I bought them, and definitely didn't anticipate using them for those tasks, but I guess in hindsight, I would have been a bit disappointed if they weren't able to perform those tasks.

So, basically, I've never bought a knife with the intention of doing anything with it other than cutting things. However, I end up doing all manner of different things with my knives anyway." - Dorito Monk

I agree with that.
 
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I expect my knife to cut with minimal effort and to cut clean. Besides that, I couldn't ask for anything more from a knife, besides offering visually aesthetic pleasure.
 
I really don't expect much other than cutting out of ordinary folder knives. However I do expect a lot out of my fixed blades. They need to be able to baton through firewood, make drill holes with the tip, use the tang below the grip as a "hammer", and pretty much whatever else I may come across in the wilderness.
 
the most stress i ever put on my blades would be cross grain batoning wood,
i dont do this often onlt when i forgot a saw/axe/chopper.
 
I use my knives for cutting only. My EDC knives mainly cut food and packages. I expect them to handle all light cutting tasks well. For outdoor knives my expectations are a bit higher, they should be able to handle heavy cutting tasks as well.
 
Cut thibng obviously. For folders that's pretty much it. For Fixed blade I expect it to handle some batoning
 
I have different expectations for different knives.
I expect bread knife to cut bread well.
I expect steak knife to cut steak (not always happens :) )
etc.

As far as my EDC folding knife is concerned, the key is to understand the limits. I usually choose a knife that I expect to do a bit more than cutting. I also have knives that I wouldn't expect to do more than that. Have I done anything with a knife beyond cutting? Yeap. Right tool for the job is not always an option.

I expect a lot more from a woods/survival fixed blade for example. Split wood? Sure. Open canned food? Probably. Etc....
Would I be doing all that? Some of it yes, some of it not, some things more often than others.

I expect my EDC knife to give me joy, satisfaction and pride of ownership.
 
Aside from make me happy I expect to be able to cut pretty much anything that is non metal that a non industrial/mechanical person would encounter. I don't need a heavy duty user for work so my day to day cuttting is limited to stuff like wood, plastic, paper, rubber etc.
 
I like sharp pointed objects. Not counting kitchen use - cutting more than an envelope I can't think of much.

I use an axe for wood splitting, a chainsaw for tree limbs, machete and pruning sheers ... pretty much have "task specific" tools for different chores, NOT my knife.
 
Realistically to cut things - a wide variety of things - rope, cardboard, food packages, paper/envelopes, bags of sand, concrete, mulch, etc.

Unless a life depended on it, I would not want to use any of my folders to cut thru a car trunk or door, or pry open a packing crate.
 
I expect my knives to cut things without suffering excessive damage, such as chipping. I expect their blades to stay closed in my pocket, or in the sheath depending on the nature of the knife. I expect m pocket clips to function properly. I expect the locks to function as advertised under normal uses and their blades to not snap under normal use. I pretty much expect the knife to function as a cutting tool no more no less.
 
I guess that depends on the knife, eh?

My EDC knife should be able to cut string, open envelopes and packages easily.

My car knife should be able to cut well, and break car windows if need be.

My work knife should be able to cut most anything I need it to.

My brush knife should be able to cut light vegetation easily.

My choppers should be able to cut though any size branch or trunk I feel like tackling.

My SD knives should be able to cut through heavy clothing and deeply into flesh.

So, there you have it.

Andy
 
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I usually carry two knives; a little single-blade pocket knife, and a OHO folder on my belt.

The little pocket knife is supposed to slice things, and to be discrete. The bigger knife is supposed to do whatever needs doing, and if it needs to be done bad enough, then the knife might get damaged as a result. It's a tool that gets taken care of most of the time, but that is used hard when need be.

I started with a buck crosslock and it took about ten years to beat it to death. A benchmade grip replaced it, and will probably last at least as long.

Worst I've done to the grip so far was to cut several wires with it. The D2 blade held up quite well, just tiny knicks that sharpened out. I've cut sheet metal a few times with that old buck, it dulled the edge instantly but didn't break anything.
 
I carry a knife to cut. Nothing else. I carry an EDC kit in my pocket with other tools (mini pry bar, small folding saw, lighter, tweezers, and a bunch of other guy things). I have no plans to cut my way out of a crashed helicopter or overcome hordes of ninja warriors. However, as a Boy Scout I learned that with a good knife and a little imagination you can improvise and jury-rig most of the things that you might need in a pinch.

Oh yeah, and the zombies. Especially the zombies!

Be Prepared.
 
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