Knife hobby and our perceptions of materials

RustyRick said:
Glad you were able to get one. I need to try posting on BF when I want a limited edition knife and see if it magically comes back in stock days later! You got lucky fo' sho'. I got tired of chasing lock types and steels and the imo plasticy modern stuff which all felt kind of the same to me a while back and switched back to traditional. It's more about finding knives that speak to me now. Mostly design/pattern and materials. Natural materials especially wood, each one has a unique quality to them. As a wood worker I gravitate mostly towards wood handles. I don't even really look for stabilized nor at steel. But I tend to be a light carry user not in a trade. I suppose, in a way the chase still chasing the high of finding the "right one" or whatever is going on and changing one set of goals for another, but it's more about the beauty (perceived) then min/maxing if that makes any sense. Feels more personal? What do I know... Don't take myself too seriously if I can. It's a whole lot more fun for me this way. I less often pulled out a Spyderco and went look at this beauty where I show off my traditionals way more. I also buy a lot less now. I think trying trads is a wise choice to try out given your original pondering imo. We all have different tastes and those tastes change over time. It's all good, follow the path. The variety of life makes it interesting. Being willing to grow and change is a good and powerful thing in ones life. Seek truth. Let us know how you experiment evolves. And whatever you do, don't look at GEC or the custom trad makers on BF next ;)
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Appreciate your words man. I didn't even try to get an exclusive knife. I just saw that one as I was browsing and decided to wait for it to be back in stock. Certainly did get lucky that it didn't take long lol.
 
Not a picture in sight!

I like this one a lot. It has a plastic handle and "crappy" 8Cr14MoV steel, but I seem to pick it up and carry it at every opportunity. Yes, it loses its razor edge after after use on moderately tough to tough material, but the edge is quickly and easily restored, and I don't mind. I dig the design and the excessive toughness of the thing.


I like this one, too, and it has an aluminum handle and "super" M390 steel, but I don't carry it much despite its superior edge holding. It's a neat design, it cuts very well, but it doesn't function reliably unless seriously oiled, and I don't believe it would stand up to, nor even be good at, the kinds of thrashing I occasionally put the other one to.


I have many other knives, but my very modest collector/user goal seems to revolve around things that interest me enough to acquire them, and that mostly has to with trying designs I find interesting more than it has to do with blade steel. Or, putting that more accurately, its the combination of those factors, certainly, but not exclusively because of steel.
 
Eliteone2383 said:
Message me some pictures of your work sir. I'd love to see it.
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I don't see an option to send you a message! I may not have made enough posts to have that permission. If you send me one, though, I'll be happy to direct you to where you can see my work!

Again, I'd like to emphasize that I'm not selling anything here, at least not until I purchase the proper membership!
 
DeadPineKnives said:
I don't see an option to send you a message! I may not have made enough posts to have that permission. If you send me one, though, I'll be happy to direct you to where you can see my work!

Again, I'd like to emphasize that I'm not selling anything here, at least not until I purchase the proper membership!
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I think only paid memberships can send private messages. You can check the membership levels for confirmation.
 
Eliteone2383 said:
I think I've become too concerned about steel and handle materials to a point the hobby has become less fun for me. I think up until recently I took a vacation from the forum for around 2 years. Let me give an example of what I'm talking about. I want a beater paramilitary 2 but look at blade steels like s30v and g10 and just turn my nose up at it. Then I look at 20cv and again immediately think not good enough. If a knife is not exactly how I want it I view it as subpar ( This is a me problem I know) That's only one example of 1 knife from 1 company. This is a ongoing problem for me across the board. And I need to admit to myself that when I show someone a knife I don't want their immediate thought to be "oh its only s30v with g10, nothing special there" So others perceptions I have started to care about in this hobby. Thanks to this forum and content creators like Nick Shabazz and Metal Complex my outlook on the hobby isn't as relaxed and modest as it once was. I did some ribbing in the shirogorov thread but it wasn't serious as I fully understand the desire to have the best possible and I think maybe in my case it's become a unhealthy obsession and egotistical. Am I alone in this?
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simple solution, learn about the concept of 'perfect is the enemy of good'... Voltare came up with this back around 1770 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perfect_is_the_enemy_of_good

thus I can have joy using something like my carbon mora with a simple wooden handle, ... users are users

the more I use them and actually do things... the less I will obsess about perfection

having said all that... I still like my magnacut ; ) thanks again Larrin Larrin
 
After more than half-a-century playing with all types of knives, I find the continuous debate over knife steels both dull and irritating. Yes, some steels are better at certain tasks than others; but, with any reasonably made item of cutlery the difference is so minor as to make it completely irrelevant.

Knives are a fascinating subject. the tool has been with us for so long that anthropologist use their presence to help distinguish man from ape. They have been used in just about every conflict ever fought and have sat on the side and work table of everyone who has ever made or invented or explored anything. The variety and diversity of these tools and weapons across cultures and ages has been noting less than vast, and nowhere have knives been more prevalent and colorful than today. I understand why we keep discussing knife steels, the minor chemical tweaking gives the industry a means to distinguish products in a heavily flooded marketplace. But, we have clearly been driven into a rut and continue to endlessly ask the wrong question. We shouldn't care whether the latest steel tests better than the stuff from last year; what we should be asking is which knife is best for my particular use?

This year we will probably see 10 thousand unique models of bowie knives made, to join the many millions of previously made bowie knives in just about every size and configuration imaginable. Wouldn't it be more interesting to ask to what purpose and end each of these knives were made. The vast majority were made simply to make money. It was something that the maker felt they could put together and sell, with little or no thought given to practical use. The shape was popular, the blade was of the latest and greatest, and the grind and working edge was almost randomly determined. As such these knives, blade steel and materials are seldom more than a fad. How different it would be if we instead ask the producer to explain why they made what they made. Did they have a specific use in mind and if so, how was the finished item optimized for that purpose? We seem willing to purchase just about anything provided it is marked with a popular steel; even multiples of the same exact knife so long as different steels are indicated.

Granted, most of us are not working in a meat processing plant, harvesting agricultural products, or blazing trails through the wilderness as occupations and most of our knives see little use. Ironically, those who use their knives the most, those in the trades, likely care the least about blade steels and simply want a knife to get them through the day. I doubt any construction union has gone on strike because their utility knives were not made from Magnicut. But, the interesting part of the hobby for me goes back to the purpose. Why did a particular population, in a given city, during a unique period evolve a certain type of knife. What were the economic, legal and practical factors involved and is any of that still relevant to anyone today?

BTW, for those steel snobs who feel the urge to have only the latest and greatest; please feel free to donate any of those obsolescent knives to me. ;)

n2s




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The only times I was really choosing knives for their blade steel was twenty years ago when buying knives for our son,a young Marine aboutg to be deployed to an active e war zone. Price was a secondary consideration as zI was trying to get him a quality tool . . .and I had no real idea what what was. So I bought based on tradition ( Ka-Bar and Ek), reputation (Randall) and specification (Chris Reeve). At that time, only the CRK had a blade made from a "modern" or high alloy steel, S30V. Today, that formulation is often considered to have been superweed by other steels in performance.

Today, I only use a knife to open mail, cut string or open gift packages, so needing a high specification steel is less an issue.

Perhaps some day Letherman will offer a multitool with Magnicut or an as yet undiscovered eliment mined from an asteroid.
 
dirc said:
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'perfect is the enemy of good'
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Every time I'm reminded of this it kicks my a**.

Many moons ago as a first responder, steel type mattered to me. These days it's all aesthetics and how fast it will take a edge. I've found that they all open Amazon packages the same.. LOL. I'm either in a cubicle or working from home. Anything beyond "it's a super steel" is mental gymnastics personally.
 
I apparently lost my Medford a few weeks ago so I've been caring a BM AFCK in ATS-34, and while it's far from the greatest steel the overall effect in using it on a daily basis has taught me a great deal about what's really important. It's a large knife but it disappears in the pocket and it's always right there ready to cut anything, and it does. I don't baby it, unlike the Marfione ANAX that I really like, as I have extra blades and if something happens it's no big deal. This has made the overall experience of carrying a folder better. I seem to have forgotten what was really important. I also realize that there's a relatively large industry built on the feeling of needing another knife, but there's a great deal of satisfaction in carrying a knife that's over 30 years old, regardless of what anyone else thinks.
 
Just a couple weeks ago, I was in a shop in okc, and wanted to buy a Buck 110 auto... when given the option of the standard 420hc or the "elite" in s30v, I chose the classic standard bos treated 420hc... so definitely not "driven" solely by perception of materials and what's newer, supposedly greater, etc...

I also bought a Heretic Wraith in Magnacut though, my first Magnacut blade, so maybe a little bit I am? Lol
 
I usually try to base the steel I'm using off what task I'm performing..

A few examples of things I run into. I need a few pieces of firewood. Grab an axe or big baton friendly boy made of something like 5160.
The thick, wet overgrowth in the back? I might grab my AEB-L machete. I need to peel an apple.. I feel like using a friction knife all of a sudden.

It helps me find reasons to use stuff and avoid letting any of the stuff I like rot in a safe. Plus it keeps all damage to knives spread out instead of beating a knife you like (albeit less than the others) to death.
 
Eliteone2383 said:
My ZT 0450 cf always puts a smile on my face. That action is just unreal and very snappy. No knife regardless of price point feels better when opening and closing.
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The standard version of 0450 is my most carried knife ever since i got it, maybe 7-8 years ago. The action on the bearings had become really snappy, to the point that it was fast if i'm allowed to say that in a knife forum!
Switched to ceramic bearings and it gives me a better experience, overall. Still snappy but smooth at the same time. I would really like to try the oversize washers that Skiff workshop produces, it seems interesting.

I've bought the magnacut version lately, as well, but i don't like that blue CF and the stonewash that much, up close. The CF version i do like though, and it's been in my shopping list for a while now, so it's a matter of time.


Eliteone2383 said:
It's taken me a year to figure out what lower end knife I want to settle on. I've bought quite a few higher end knives in my pursuit of sub $100 knife. I've decided on the Smokey mountain knife works exclusive Case peanut butter jelly bone Trapper. Just have to wait for it to be back in stock.
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I found a Kershaw Fraxion in my knife drawer while i was going through my collection to see what must be sold to make space and recoup some funds. I took it out the box and i was impressed at the action and the overall quality considering that it's a 25 dollar knife. And yes, it is going to get some pocket time, as well! This was the trigger to buy a model from Kizer, the Z-82 which i've been eyeing for a while, but always thinking: nuuuh...it's cheap, maybe i won't like the action, and similar thoughts.
That design really attracts me though, so i pulled the trigger today ;)
 
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