Who, What, When, Where, Why. Include issue items.
The other thread lost track, let's do this one right.
Please reply only if you are military or veteran.
Feel free to cut and paste pertinent info from the flame-thread.
No hearsay or "I know a guy who...": please limit yourself to your experience.
No flaming other posts: if a guy carries a tomohawk and cheese grater that's his deal. If a guy is blatently wrong he'll figure it out by the end of the thread.
Include knives you've previously owned and why you discontinued using them, and/or what you wish you had done.
The purpose of this is to help educate other service members by exposing them to what is out there, and why people carry one knife rather than another.
Ex Ranger, Army Medic
Own and/or Use:
Issued Gerber Gator: not used because I have knives I have more confidence in.
Issued Benchmade 9050 Automatic: not used. Good knife, I'm just not a fan of automatics.
Busse Steel Heart Desert Tan: combat/camping/reconnaissance/woods knife, its a great chopper/beater/.25"prybar. Excellent heat treat, edge retention, toughness...etc. Recent purchase based on lessons learned in Afghanistan.
MADDOG Taiho: urban combat in the unlikely event I should have to stick a knife into someone. Recent purchase as above.
Emerson Mach1: Combat EDC replaces a CQC-7 I lost. Sturdy knife I can afford to lose.
Chris Reeve Sebenza: civilian and basecamp EDC I can't afford to lose.
Emerson SARK: aidbag knife.
Busse Pauls Hatchet: in the truck, my jaws of life tool cause I can't think of anything else to do with it, and I don't want to sell it.
Lightfoot C-4: jumpmaster hung-jumper-problem-fixer boot-knife. A lot more expensive than a Gerber bootknife, and shorter too! Hmmm?
Leatherman Supertool: jumpmaster duty, never leave home without it tool.
Lost/Sold/trashed
2 spyderco clipits: lost on patrol. Great bang for the buck.
Emerson CQC-7: Lost my EDC in Afghanistan. Little bigger bang for a little more bucks. Starting to think about belt pouches...
Strider MT: Baddest knife I never should have sold, but had to make $$$ for the Taiho since properly treated O-1 gives me more confidence than properly treated ATS-34 where toughness is concerned. And I like the MADDOG handle better than paracord.
Spec-Plus: Questionable heat treat on this 1095 knife needed so much resharpening... Not bad for mumbledypeg though. Wish I'd known what differential heat treating was back then.
SOG Seal Pup: Great knife that's not great everywhere. AUS6 steel is great for waterborne ops where it will make several cuts and go back into the sheath without rusting, but doesn't hold an edge well enough and isn't tough enough for a camp utility knife. My daily duty knife in Afghanistan, a bad choice. I'm to blame, not the knife.
I did all this on lower to middle career level enlisted pay.
I look for Style (purpose/function) to isolate a category, then Heat Treat, Material, Maker, in that order.
Cheers!
The other thread lost track, let's do this one right.
Please reply only if you are military or veteran.
Feel free to cut and paste pertinent info from the flame-thread.
No hearsay or "I know a guy who...": please limit yourself to your experience.
No flaming other posts: if a guy carries a tomohawk and cheese grater that's his deal. If a guy is blatently wrong he'll figure it out by the end of the thread.
Include knives you've previously owned and why you discontinued using them, and/or what you wish you had done.
The purpose of this is to help educate other service members by exposing them to what is out there, and why people carry one knife rather than another.
Ex Ranger, Army Medic
Own and/or Use:
Issued Gerber Gator: not used because I have knives I have more confidence in.
Issued Benchmade 9050 Automatic: not used. Good knife, I'm just not a fan of automatics.
Busse Steel Heart Desert Tan: combat/camping/reconnaissance/woods knife, its a great chopper/beater/.25"prybar. Excellent heat treat, edge retention, toughness...etc. Recent purchase based on lessons learned in Afghanistan.
MADDOG Taiho: urban combat in the unlikely event I should have to stick a knife into someone. Recent purchase as above.
Emerson Mach1: Combat EDC replaces a CQC-7 I lost. Sturdy knife I can afford to lose.
Chris Reeve Sebenza: civilian and basecamp EDC I can't afford to lose.
Emerson SARK: aidbag knife.
Busse Pauls Hatchet: in the truck, my jaws of life tool cause I can't think of anything else to do with it, and I don't want to sell it.
Lightfoot C-4: jumpmaster hung-jumper-problem-fixer boot-knife. A lot more expensive than a Gerber bootknife, and shorter too! Hmmm?
Leatherman Supertool: jumpmaster duty, never leave home without it tool.
Lost/Sold/trashed
2 spyderco clipits: lost on patrol. Great bang for the buck.
Emerson CQC-7: Lost my EDC in Afghanistan. Little bigger bang for a little more bucks. Starting to think about belt pouches...
Strider MT: Baddest knife I never should have sold, but had to make $$$ for the Taiho since properly treated O-1 gives me more confidence than properly treated ATS-34 where toughness is concerned. And I like the MADDOG handle better than paracord.
Spec-Plus: Questionable heat treat on this 1095 knife needed so much resharpening... Not bad for mumbledypeg though. Wish I'd known what differential heat treating was back then.
SOG Seal Pup: Great knife that's not great everywhere. AUS6 steel is great for waterborne ops where it will make several cuts and go back into the sheath without rusting, but doesn't hold an edge well enough and isn't tough enough for a camp utility knife. My daily duty knife in Afghanistan, a bad choice. I'm to blame, not the knife.
I did all this on lower to middle career level enlisted pay.
I look for Style (purpose/function) to isolate a category, then Heat Treat, Material, Maker, in that order.
Cheers!
I currently carry a benchmade axis lock in my waist band EVERYDAY. I will have a Strider/Buck mini tanto in a pocket. I usually carry one of two shoulder bags I own(Osprey or Maxpedition). I keep either a Strider WP or SLCC in the bag with me. 
His PSO's were pretty sh###y. Our CG and his PSOs were laughing.
