Post CRK Knife Buying Pace

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Dec 11, 2012
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Curious if people purchased knives more or less frequently after purchasing their first CRK. For me I purchased three knives or so the year before I got my first CRK which was a large Insingo. Sine then I have only purchased one more knife, a 25. Personally, I am completely content with smaller William Henry knives for work and then larger CRKs away from work. That said, given some of the CRK collections I have seen here I am guessing others bought knives faster after their first CRK with many people buying CRK after CRK.

So what is your post CRK knife buying pace? Faster to feed the addiction or content and slower?
 
I've sold most of my collection after a few months of owning a 25. It'll have been a year since I bought my first Sebenza in September. If I bought another... I think I'd see an Insingo in my future.
 
My pace picked up fast and often times resulted in forced flips. So many impulse buys. Then it got to the point where every knife needed to have a backup, so I was buying at least one CRK per qtr for a few years. I have since calmed down, sort of.

I hear you on the WH for work. The only exception or two are my mnandi and insingo. My small plain insingo goes to work and everywhere else I go but at work it's paired up with either a slip joint, dragonfly, mnandi or my sans thumb stud E6 in satin D2 - the only WH I can use until the cows stroll home and I don't feel the need to ever sell.
 
I bought 6 over the course of two years. Not at any consistent pace. Bought one, bought the next about 8 months later, bought two at once about three months after that, then bought two more in the remaining time. Think I'm good for a while now. Going to save up for a Damascus maybe.
 
I bought a small, which was probably too small for my tastes. I didn't buy another CRK for 2 years when I got a large Micarta Insingo, then 6 months later a 25, 2 months later (last week) a Startac. I think had I bought a large to begin with the pace would have been different and I would likely have ended up with fewer less expensive knives and more CRK's. That said I still use a combination of the CRK's and my other knives. I find it handy to have Emerson's and Spyderco's as they are great knives and I use them and don't worry about them. To me a CRK is still a very expensive knife and I try to choose the days wisely that I carry one.
 
Depends on the the available funds and what becomes available at that time. I have went a year without buying a single CRK, and other times I have bought 4 or 5 in one week. Just depends. Right now, I am poor and wanna spend the $$ to pay bills down rather than buying CRK. I have bought several Atwoods recently, but 6 Atwoods can equal the price of a single CRK. And even them I have slowed to a halt almost so I can concentrate on bills..............So for most of you guys out there looking constantly, its probably a sigh of relief to know I am not prowling 24/7 like I used too.....lol.
 
After buying my first (a 25) I bought seven more CRKs, each a different model or left/right-handed variant, in six months.

Since then I've bought only a couple more knives at all, a BW0560 on impulse to pair with my satin 0560 and a nice Lionsteel fixed blade, a 7" M7.

After the CRKs, knives from other makers pretty much don't appeal to me any longer, but since I'd amassed 50 others prior to pulling the trigger on my first CRK I've got such variety I'm set for life. Don't need any more really, but I enjoy them all!
 
I purchased my first CRKs, a Sebenza and Mnandi, back in 2006. During the period spanning from 2011 through 2013 is when I went on a buying, and selling, spree. Over the years I have purchased a total of 36 CRKs. I currently have 18; 17 Mnandis and my original small Sebenza.

I have not purchased any in 2014 since I don't care for the recent changes to the Mnandi. If the right older model shows up on the secondary market, I would purchase without hesitation. The days of perusing the dealer sites for CRK knives have passed for me personally.
 
My pace is highly variable but I don't think CRKs have much impact on it. Basically, my pace slows down quite a bit when I'm satisfied with a knife for my current needs. Sometimes CRK is the satisfied, sometimes another knife does it.
 
Slow.

I bought my first around 2000 and my last this year, and have only bought eleven.
Own seven now. 4 large Regulars(1 annual, 1 CGG, 2 plain), 1 Large Classic Micarta, 1 small plain Regular, and 1 small Classsic Micarta.


edit- I read the post wrong. Sorry. Thought it was about CRK pace in my above reply, but its about the pace of buying other brands after your first CRK.

CRK didn't really slow me down from buying other brands until recently. I did rotate many knives, but lately I've only wanted to carry a Sebenza.
 
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I bought a large micarta tanto, and within a few weeks I bought a small decorated sebenza to have for a Show piece. Since my sebenza I've bought no other folder except for a xm 18. Why? Lol ;)
 
Well,

I got a Sm Sebenza in the Summer of 2011. I liked it a lot and carried it very often. I don't get another CRK until November 2013. Then I sent it to the spa in December because I bent a washer. Unfortunately I didn't get it back until Feb. In the meantime, I got a Large Sebenza 21. Since then, I've bought/traded for and kept a Sm Micarta 21 Insingo, Lg Micarta Insingo Double Lug, Sm Plain Jane Insingo, Lg Plain Jane Insingo, Lg Micarta 21 Double Lug. I have sold/traded at least another dozen CRK - including 3 Umnumzaans that I just couldn't warm up to. I've sold off almost everything besides some multitools and SAKs. All I have for folders is CRK
 
I got a small BG42 regular in 2007, which I still have. Then bought and sold on several Mnandis - I have had five and now have just the one cobo one.

Since, I have also picked up a large Regular, small Classic, large 21 and small and large Insingos. All plain. And that's it. No more.

Nearly sold the large Insingo when I was trying to rise bike funds recently, but luckily avoided that. :)

So, in answer .. once I saw coloured wood on the Mnandis, I went mad and bought a load only to sell them. But the purer intellectual heights of the plain models saw me slow to a more sedate and sustainable speed. :D:D
 
Drooled over CRKs for more than a year. After I bought my first one, I went on a buying binge until my money ran out. Seven CRKs now. There is one more I would like to buy to complete my current strategy. I may be selling one or two in the future.
 
After picking up my first CRK my collection went a bit haywire. I had somewhere between 75 and 125 knives that I traded/sold just to condense my collection into what it is now. I have more value in my drawer with a quarter of the knives I had. At one point my drawer had more CRK than anything in it. They weren't getting used so they got traded/sold into what I now carry. Still some CRK but just as many Hinderer or custom knives. My fixed blade CRK blades will never get traded/sold though. I do need to pick up an older Umnumzaan though...S30V...the Idaho Made doesn't bother me though...
 
I pick up one or two "collectables" a year now, but there have been years when I've churned through a dozen or so. So to answer your question - CRKer's seem to go wild for a year or two after their first one, then usually settle down to more focused buying strategy or move into higher-end customs.
 
I started out with Spyderco and BenchMade, moved up to Strider and CRK. I've got enough CRK's to last 10 lifetimes. Currently I'm content with the CRK's and haven't bought much else in folders. I've gotten a few custom fixed blades for hunting and kitchen work. I work more now than not, really don't do all the hobbies I use to do, don't get to hunt/fish nearly as much, or camp or hike I'm really getting depressed thinking about it :). My knives are the one thing I can take anywhere and enjoy them. I'm sure one day I'll thin the herd, but not today.
 
Same for me as Ajack above. The usual progression from Spyderco and Benchmade to CRK and others at that level. Generally after getting the Sebenza, you feel the need to try out all the other CRK offerings which is what I did, all except for the Mnandi. The Umnum, 25, and small regular didn't do it for me so I'm just left with the plain jane small and large 21 which is all I need. The only other I could see myself getting is a small micarta one day, and if the pivot bushing Sebs are phased out one day, then I guess I'll clutch tightly to my 21's from here on.

I was given a WH-E6 as a gift since then, and not really interested at this time in trying out their other offerings. Mine will get carried seldom since it's a wedding gift and mostly sentimental...very nice though. Then you want to see what the other makers are offering in the same price range as CRK so naturally Strider and Hinderer next. I'm on an XM kick right now as I've almost carried exclusively a 3" XM since I got it a couple months back and am really liking that knife. The small seb made it's way back in my pocket over the weekend going out to dinner and is in my pocket today. As far as less expensive production knives go since making the step up, I pondered an Adamas for a little while, held one and it's a friggin brick. I'm currently waiting for the Spyderco Slysz Bowie to come out as it looks intriguing. Doubt I'll buy one new as I'm betting it'll be over $200, but might wait for the right deal to pop up. That's really the only other knife on my radar currently, and besides that, I think I'm good for awhile...maybe. :)
 
Maybe is right.

My progression was very similar. I too am on a xm kick. Hunting more titanium scales etc.
But my sebenza has never left my pocket.
Now I'm buying custom fixed blades, and still my sebenza stays in the pocket. My belt carry changes, but front right pocket is reserved for a large 21.
 
I sold off a lot of the lesser knives, and being a carrier/user (minus the WH) and not a collector, I've tried to dwindle my folders (excluding SAKs, multi-tools) to as bare minimum as I can go. Four Benchmades (all gifts so no intentions of selling), three Spydercos (fun to use, dwindled to my top 3 must haves), two CRK's, two XM-18's (3 and 3.5), one SNG, and a partridge in a pear tree.

What I've found myself doing is customizing the knives I have to make them more enjoyable to own/use/carry/look at rather than buying other knives that won't get carried. I'll be getting in a set of silver twill G10 scales for my BM 707 this week from Keyman that'll really give me some incentive to carry that one more, and have pondered customizations for other knives. Of course the ability to configure XM's to your heart's content also helps keep the excitement up a little.
 
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