life expectancy of a user knife

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blademaster01

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Jul 19, 2011
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i have cycled through a lot of knives. i`use them pretty heavy when i evaluate whether or not i will keep it. primarily the decision is based on peace of mind as i look at my bug out bag.so should the need ever arise as it stands i`m comfortable with the 3 knives and sharpening arrangement i have at the moment.i use them hunting ,fishing,camping,carving,but not too much.question i have is ,if one had to, really had to have and use a sharp knife daily what do you think it would last seeing as you`d have to sharpen it often thanx
 
You can wear out a soft cheap knife in a matter of weeks or months with heavy daily use and rough maintenance (e.g, pull-through sharpener and serrated steel). Rotating three good quality knives with moderate use, they should last many years, although I obviously can't say exactly what level of use and amount of sharpening you are going to put them too.
 
when i do use my knives and if they get dull, i always strop with compound to see if that will bring em back, so far 100 percent ,but then again not what i would call heavy use. when i was evaluating i would use until they got dull , like i said i kept the ones i felt confident in. but for example,you have the only knive in a1000 mile radius and have to clean out a lot of game so people can eat,and for a knife lets say a knives of alaska camp knife.
 
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It depends on how you sharpen them, and what the type of steel is. If you sharpen with a belt sander they won't last as long as if you stop weekly or daily. In the past I have moved away from "super" steels because of problems that I have had with chipping. If the edge chips out all of the time with hard use then the knife won't last long at all.

These things being said, I think that with daily use, such as making kindling, cutting food, butchering animals etc and sharpening by hand with a strop or stone a good quality knife will last more than one life time.

It's when I start cutting man made materials like rubber, gasket material, synthetic line, and other plastics that I start to see more edge damage in my knives.
 
I ususally run my user knifes on my slotted paper wheel which removes very little but brings back that razor edge.
 
My life time and my Sons life time or so.! If you take care of your Spydies they will take care of you and be around forever.!
 
I Edc'd a SAK (Huntsman) from then age of 12 to about 30 and used it hard. It shows its wear, but is still completely functional. A quality knife ought to last more than a lifetime.
 
I see no reason a well-built knife wouldn't last the better part of a lifetime, assuming it's maintained well.
 
Hard to say for sure. Most knives will not last forever if they are used, they need resharpening and that wears down the steel. More moderate use will make them last longer. There is very little main blade left on my first SAK. Knives like the Ka-Bar will stand up to some serious abuse, but the grind will make the edge's utility much less effective as the years pass, where as a full flat grind would provide additional years of service in comparison.

Knives that really work hard don't last forever, that's why we get to buy more than one :D
 
I usually use my knives as makeshift manual winch handles so I usually rotate through one a day when I'm out a lot.
 
There are plenty of old bone & carbon steel slip joints that have seen decades of use and could go on for decades more. Once upon a time, when folks worked on farms and in factories, a man might have a couple of knives in his working life. With super steels and locking mechanisms there's no reason a knife couldn't last decades. Our fathers and grandfathers worked harder and longer than many of us ever will. How is it their inferior tools lasted so long? They used the right tool for the right job and didn't test their tools to death.

Frank
 
Have an axe for the hard use.
Strop, with whatever you have, leather, loaded with compound, photo paper, cardboard, etc..
Hone your sharpening skills, taking off too much metal will shorten a knife's life for sure.
Don't chip the blade. Sounds simple, but steel, HT, grind, and it's use are all at play here.

I've been having a great experience with my Bark River Custom Highland Special in CPM S35VN. I've been cutting up raw chickens, going right through the bones. No chipping nor any rolling of the edge. I've whittled, batoned, carved, and sliced wood with her, and it does loose that shaving sharpness. Then, it plateaus with a good useable edge. Then I've been able to strop or touch the ceramic crocks and I'm shaving again.
 
I've never worn a knife out. Generally, the only time I replace knives, barring knives I find aren't to my taste, is when I lose them.

My father still uses my great-grandfather's Grant Axe. Good quality tools, even cutting tools, should last several lifetimes.
 
I have inherited my father's knives and they are still good to go.

If you ever "wear out" a real knife, you have probably been oversharpening it on a grinder.
 
A good knife can be handed down to your children...

Not all will make it there, but with care and maintenance, you can get a well made knife to last your whole life.

JGON
 
I carried a Buck 110 daily for 25 years until the blade was wore down to about half an inch after all those years on the stone.I wish I had sent it back to Buck and paid for a blade replacement but I was stupid and tossed it.The sheath believe it or not was still in decent shape.I was at a Gun Show last year and found another no dot 110 the same year as my old one to go in my old sheath.I'm gonna send it to Buck for a Spa job because it's pretty beat up but still has a decent blade.
 
My grandfather was a maintenance guy and he had an electric knife sharpener, the kind that are about the size and shape of a shoe with the little spinning stones. I remember him going through at least one of those 3 bladed Oldtimer folders.
 
This is the one I got for old sheath,when I send it to Buck they'll bring it back to life again.
 
I have a cold steel rajah 3 with AUS8 steel and beat the crud out of it everyday since they came out with them. I like the triad lock and the handle fits my hand perfectly. AUS8 steel is "OK" and will sharpen it weekly or twice weekly. It looks pretty much the same as the day I bought it and will last decades (assuming that I don't get sick of it first). I have much better knives than this but this is the one I womp on.
 
I've posted this picture quite a bit lately, so I apologize if anyone's sick of seeing it. But my Dad carried and used this knife for 40 years. I have countless memories of him using it. It's still in pretty darned good shape. I traded him for a newer version of the same thing. I'm sure that one will last him the rest of his life.
dads301.jpg

If you take good care of your knives (and other tools), they will definitely outlast you. :thumbup:
 
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