Main reason you carry a knife [POLL]

Here's why I like to carry a knife when I leave home [choose main reason]:

  • Honestly, its jewelry, an accessory to me. A statement about who I am, and is useful on occasion.

    Votes: 26 11.9%

  • A knife is a tool. I keep one handy because it helps me get my work/job done.

    Votes: 161 73.9%

  • I keep a knife on my person for safety reasons, for personal protection.

    Votes: 3 1.4%

  • Because I love to drop a pic of my EDC in one of the bladeforums threads!

    Votes: 5 2.3%

  • Other

    Votes: 23 10.6%
  • Total voters
    218
It's what I do. I've carried a knife for a better part of seventy-four years and don't know what I'd do if I couldn't carry one now a days although I no longer hunt, fish, camp, sail the seven seas, or work for a pay check. I suppose you could say I use them more as a worry stone or to coon eye and finger them but if I run across something that needs cutting, I'll be ready.
 
A knife is a cutting tool which I carry for cutting stuff, but cutting stuff is all I use them for.
I don't pry with them, I don't scrape things with them, and I also don't like to leave them gummed up with tape residue.
I do absolutely use them though, but I just don't abuse them and very little I encounter is particularly harsh or abrasive.
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So far all I've used my knife for today was open a snack and unbox something I picked up at the store.
yesterday I just opened a snack, a bag of dog food, and sharpened a carpenter's pencil.
 
I guess the honest answer for me is that carrying a traditional knife fills me with a wonderful sense of nostalgia. I have hiked, camped, fished and used knives all my life, but only came to start "collecting" knives in the last few years. It’s a way to connect with times gone by, and summons some wonderful memories — of places, people, and adventures over the years. Any knife I own is a candidate for the pocket — and, if it’s in the pocket, then it will be used if the occasion arises, period. Under this system some get used, and some get a pass. The other day, a friend was having trouble opening a box, and out of my pocket came a dogleg jack to the rescue. Afterwards, it struck me that the days of folks generally carrying a knife in the pocket have long since faded from view. But, it‘s nice to be part of a community that embraces the tradition.
 
To cut, I use 1 regular I don't have a lot of dexterity in 1 hand & can't open bags like chips wihout 1 or i have to ask someone to do it for me, hate that.
So needs became a hobby & passion.
Besides every BF member knows they need 1. Otherwise what would happen when all the family & friends go "can you cut this?"😮
 
Mine are primarily signaling instruments, so I can use the shiny blades to signal to the mother ship that I am ready for extraction. I have noticed one edge of the mirror seems extremely thin and sharp. I bet someone could figure out a use for that.
 
I chose other also. Like others I cut stuff. I have carried a pocket knife for 65+ years.
I don't like going places where I can't have a knife in my pocket.
What else can I say? I like knives!
 
I use one many times a day. At work it's usually a good medium/small belt knife, a beater front pocket folder and a larger side pocket folder.

I don't need three 🤪🤣🤣 but they have various uses.

There's been one in my pocket for most of my life. Like a watch or a wallet, its just part of my stuff. Would be lost if I forgot it!
 
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Growing up, pretty much every male I knew carried a knife, so there is an element of tradition/habit to it I suppose. In school I used to sharpen my pencils with my knife in class.

I haven’t needed a knife at work, except to prepare snacks, for many years, but I still find one handy to have in my pocket.

These days I have a particular knife I carry pretty much every day. Some days it doesn’t get used at all, but most days it gets used multiple times, usually just for opening packages and cutting whatever needs to be cut in the course of my day. It also goes camping and fishing with me. In the winter I get bad dry skin on my hands, so opening anything at all requires a pointy object.

I have a different knife I use for small repairs around the house, and others I use for whittling.
afishhunter said:
may be in the minority, but I have never seen a knife as a viable "weapon" for self defense. At least not for m. I lack the training, and have less than zero interest in getting it. My can of 15% bear spray is much better for that use.
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I think a pocket knife is the very last thing I would attempt to defend myself with. Situational awareness and avoiding dodgy places is generally enough to keep yourself safe, anyway. I know some here carry guns even, but I have never felt the need. I did have some hand-to-hand combat training back in the day (though I never took it too seriously), and toted a weapon around professionally for a while, so maybe I have a more realistic idea of the actual need for such things, as just an average Joe going about my daily life, and certainly far less of a desire to bother with it.
 
I have an over-active mind sometimes and I get the shivers to think what will happen if I ever have the need for a sharp knife when I don't have one. Same reason I always carry a ball pen, my reading glasses, driver's license. Oh, and my mobile phone.
 
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