My criteria for knife choices

K.O.D. said:
I have come to a point where I have identified exactly what I dislike, but there are always exceptions. I own (or at least keep in my rotation) 11 knives (not including retired and or damaged ones). The following features are general exclusions when it comes to what I will buy/own. As said, there are exceptions.

1. Assisted--really don't like, the only exception being the ZT 0770CF, as everything about it is perfect, and the flipper assist feels natural, as in unassisted.
2. Thumb studs--Don't like the way they feel, and in the frozen tundra of Chicago they are more difficult to work with than a flipper or spydiehole.
3. Benchmade--Just done with them. Their QC/f&f is inexcusable for what they are currently charging. Of the four I owned, three had to be sent back. One for a bad HT, two for centering issues.
4. To go along with #3, any company charging a premium price for knives with average or subpar materials and/or QC/f&f issues. To quote a member here, MQQN "If you make it right, you won't have to 'make it right.'"
5. Smooth metal handles.
6. Tip-down only clips. Don't get me started.

I will not own a knife I will not use. I am an eccentric one when it comes to this as well. March is the Saint Patty's day month, so I'm only carrying green knives (I have 3).

A few weeks ago I dislocated and strained my right thumb, and sprained my right wrist. Despite being a lefty, I'm used to righty knives. It was hard enough manipulating my Manix 2 left-handed, let alone if I had to deal with a tip-down draw.
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Gonna at a few things:

No combo edge
No tantos
 
Charlie Mike said:
Function, style, ... beauty comes last.

That's how I choose knives.
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CM, your needs are much different than mine...I go for style and beauty first; particularly in a fixed blade...Enjoy these, my friend..
Of course, I have only very casual use for a knife...at a younger age, I would be on your side. The dark side is that beautiful fixed blades may be difficult to resell, and so beauty has a price to pay...



...this folder has it all, but yes, style and beauty caught my eye. The hi-grind M390 adds function for quite a while.
 
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That Gareth Bull folder is amazing. Like a Sebenza but cleaner.
 
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Charlie Mike said:
Function, style, ... beauty comes last.

That's how I choose knives.
Click to expand...

I agree with this. I have had a lot of beautiful knives that were garbage.
For me, it's: Function, Ergonomics, Quality of Materials, Quality of Build, Price, and then I worry about if it's pretty.

I used to buy knives, because they looked cool and were made of the latest and greatest super steel. Turns out, half of them were crap.
 
My earlier post was a bit of humor while I wasn't able to spend time typing. As with most here, I do have specifics that must be present for me to buy:

- drop point, leaf, or sheepsfoot blade.
- stonewash or satin finish (no polished flats or bead blast)
- liners on both sides. No FRN without them, no G-10 without them.
- single hand open & close, locking blade
- 3.5" or less blade length.
- lanyard accommodations-- I put cord fobs on everything.
- stainless midrange steels (roughly VG-10 to Elmax). Nothing I'd hate during sharpening, nice mix of corrosion resistance, edge retention, and ease of maintenance.
 
This is a systematic version of the approach I take. I do all of it in my head rather than writing it all out with numbers etc. but those act as a helping hand for folks that have a hard time visualizing the problem in the same way I do. :)
 
Powernoodle knows what's going on. It is an addiction to most of us. The endorphin rush is our reason d'etre.

That being said, my opiate of choice is knives, and I'm perfectly fine with that. (plus a bit of pr0n to fill in the time lapses between purchases, both of the steel and feminine varieties)

As far as my limiting factors, I am one to go for style first, quality second, functionality third, price last. To cover my functionality, when I want to focus on style, I usually carry multiple knives, one for function, one for style. Sometimes those both come together, actually more often than not, but it's not always a prerequisite. I'll always have one slicer, and one for impressing.

I have very few absolute no-no's, and even then, I'll bend my rules for style. As of now, I only own 2 tanto blades. Both are relegated to hard-core heavy-duty work knives (Cold Steel Twistmaster, Benchmade 760LFTi)

I guess I don't have any additional restrictions, right off the top of my head... I buy what I like, and that can change at a moments notice.
 
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