price of edc

[F3X]

Check out the Sodbusters, great working knives. I have a Queen Country Cousin in D2 steel. That's a nice blade and a strong knife for 25.00. Case and Boker also make a similar knife in different steels. They are a single blade great for box cutting etc. The QCC is strong like a box cutter when breaking down lots of cardboard. The D2 edge should last you a long time between sharpening. If you require a knife for whittling and poking holes maybe a multi blade Whittler or a Stockman. Of course a SAK will work as well.

I have lots of knives to chose from but I prefer carrying, using and working harder with the under 50.00 knives, Over 50.00 for Slippies and I get a bit more protective.

I have been collecting for about a year or more, so I am a newbie. I started off with G10/TI frame locks and high end steels but currently I like my slip joints. They just have a nicer feel and for me a pride of ownership. So I decided to sell off some of the earlier collection and carry a Queen Dog Leg Jack for EDC. Its a little bit classy and was just under 50.00 shipped. A new knife is just a new knife, I want to put a few years on this baby so when I pass it on to a friend or family member it has a little more meaning.

Hi all,

I am used to carrying cheaper knive as edc. The most expensive knife I carry is a $40 buck 112 my sister got me for my birthday. Mostly I carry either my buck stockman or trapper (china models) and a buck 110.

I have a hard time carrying an expensive knife as an edc. I end up not wanting to use it. I am thinking of ordering a case or boker stockman or peanut type knives but I hate to pay $50 DOLLARS for a work knife. But I also don't want a knife to just sit there and look pretty.

Am I being silly? What is the price (and model) of your edc and when is the cut off price of a knife that you use for work. If you have any knife suggestions, go for it.

I'm not talking about abuseing them. But they will be worked. cut cardoard, plastic bands, scraping stickers off of glass, puching holes in belts, whittleing, stripping wire, deburring pvc pipe, etc.

I don't abuse my knives but I treat them as adults (I don't baby them).

Sam

 

[Vivi]

My main traditional EDC was 40$. It's a Queen D2 stockman with carved bone handles. It's one of, if not the most attractive knife in my collection to me. But by carrying and using it every day I get to not only look at it and admire it, I get to appreciate the ergonomics, the quality blade steel, how well the thin blades reground with a more acute edge cut and the smooth feel of the back springs. To me, this is a much more complete experience than merely looking at or occasionally handling a knife. My favorite knives will always be my users for this reason. Also, the stories the wear on a knife tell add another dimension to the knifes value to its owner.

 

[JHB]

For the most part the knives I buy are in the $25-$60 range. Sure an occasional plunge over this price point but there are a lot to be found that are both functional and good looking.

 

[Bastid]

I hung in that 20 to 50 or so range for decades.
Even still have and use some closeouts and seconds that ran under 10.

Then I started getting into handmade multiblades and made friends with some of the makers.
Then started to understand what it took to make one.
Then brought some and put them up.
Then a few makers made some especially for me.
Then started thinking why not use some of them. What good is a knife in a safe that I do not intend to sell anyway.

(Don't let this happen to you - stay away from the handmades.) .

Seriously, I agree with Vivi. My favorite knives are my users. One of my very favorites I picked up at an antique store for less than a song and dance. Nice worn 100+ y.o. bone handled knife that has some stories to tell if only I could coax them out.

Another favorite of mine is the first knife my dad gave me. Somehow it made it all these years. Lots of stories, friends, a little childhood foolishness and memories in that one.

 

[JTR357]

FWIW, the "$15 Camillus on eBay" is probably Chinese.

Another way to look at the economy of using a decent knife is that some people are willing to spend $150/mo on a cable package, another $120/mo on cell phones, $300/mo car payments, etc, etc, and balk at spending $100 on a knife that will last them for years. Even if you abuse it and have to buy a new one every year, that's not a huge expense in the grand scheme of things.

But like I said originally, it's a very personal thing. No sense owning or carrying a knife you won't use.

-- Sam

Best answer yet!!:thumbup:

 

[stabman]

$200 is my most expensive EDC(till I get more money).

 

[wvstockman]

Thanks for all the oppinions. I guess I'll just continue the search and just wait till I have the money and one catches my eye.

It will probably be a stockman. Tho I do like the looks of the peanut, It just seems a little small to me. Just how big is a peanut?

I have been looking for a sodbuster locally but haven't found one. It will be nice when I'm working on farms in the summer. I guess I'll have to order one. If I can figure out who to order from.


Thanks again,

Sam

 

[navihawk]

I just bought a small Mooremaker stockman for EDC.Very stout, Fifty bucks, and I just used it the other day to deburr a chunk of PVC pipe. Part of the charm of using a knife daily is watching it age if used and sharpened properly.You can watch a China made knife fall apart after a while or a more expensive US made knife get beautiful with age.
I always say you can't go wrong with a Case.

 

[65hoss]

I have very very few knives that I would consider NOT USERS. I have knives from $20 to several hundred dollars. Any knives I buy these days are not for "new in the box" collecting. I only buy knives I plan to use.

I have been buying my stockman's, sodbusters, trappers, etc in 2's or 3's lately. That is only because I have 2 daughters coming up and they will one day also give me grandchildren. I want to be able to give them knives that were users and can be users. Then again, I am a yellowhandle type of guy. Hard working, sun up to sun down type of knife that says...use me.

I do have lockback working knives that are $50-$100 and I fully believe they are worth every penny over the $20-$30 working lockbacks when you get into heavy use cutting harder materials.

For what most people use their edc's on, I would not be scared to carry any price range knife. That is me, I believe they are meant to be used, cherished and enjoyed. But if what I was doing was putting heavy stress on those expensive knives I would carry my lockbacks to handle the harder stuff.

 

[KnifeHead]

FWIW, the "$15 Camillus on eBay" is probably Chinese.

Another way to look at the economy of using a decent knife is that some people are willing to spend $150/mo on a cable package, another $120/mo on cell phones, $300/mo car payments, etc, etc, and balk at spending $100 on a knife that will last them for years. Even if you abuse it and have to buy a new one every year, that's not a huge expense in the grand scheme of things.

But like I said originally, it's a very personal thing. No sense owning or carrying a knife you won't use.

-- Sam

JTR357...I agree..."Best answer yet":thumbup:

Let's face the fact too that most pocket knives can be sharpened and will cut so there is more to it than it being a tool. A big part of carrying a traditional folder is the simple joy of it and sharing that with others. Ofcourse that can spin off into different levels of sharing (or educating!) rather you have an old beater or an expensive custom, but they can all be used and shared.

When the opportunity arises, I'll ask someone I'm talking with, "Hey, do you like knives?" That gives me the opportunity to talk about the ones I carry. I feel like this helps to dispell the fear factor associated with knives, one person at a time.

Ofcourse, it helps to have a nice one(see avatar) on you when you do that

 

[garth348]

Thanks for all the oppinions. I guess I'll just continue the search and just wait till I have the money and one catches my eye.

It will probably be a stockman. Tho I do like the looks of the peanut, It just seems a little small to me. Just how big is a peanut?

Thanks again,

Sam

The peanut is 2 7/8" according to Case's website. As for my edcs it depends on what I can find in what I like and the MSRP vs. what I can find it for on various sites.

 

[John T Wylie Jr]

I sat there thinking one day.... while carrying 4 knives...sitting in rush hour traffic...
Main using folder :$300
gents folder : $120
loaner folder ( case ) : $60
small fixed blade : $400

and I started to think... each of these is well used....and I pondered $$$ spent....and thought.... crap ! I need a medium sized folder to fill the gap.

 

[Yosemite Sam]

Thanks for all the oppinions. I guess I'll just continue the search and just wait till I have the money and one catches my eye.

It will probably be a stockman. Tho I do like the looks of the peanut, It just seems a little small to me. Just how big is a peanut?

I have been looking for a sodbuster locally but haven't found one. It will be nice when I'm working on farms in the summer. I guess I'll have to order one. If I can figure out who to order from.


Thanks again,

Sam

You really have to handle different knives. The numbers (length, etc) don't lie exactly, but they don't tell the whole story, either. I have some 3.25" knives that "feel" bigger than some 4" knives. The Peanut is a fine knife and many like them. It's not something you're going to use to pry a nail or skin a buck, though. But then, how often do you do that, and need to do that when you don't have the proper tool?

I often carry a small senator/pen knife, simply because I work in an office and don't want to whip out a 4" curvy bladed secretary scarer. (Though I was very pleased to see an female admin type using a "gentlemans lockback" type knife the other day.)

-- (the other) Sam

 

[John Schedel]

Hi all,

I am used to carrying cheaper knive as edc. The most expensive knife I carry is a $40 buck 112 my sister got me for my birthday. Mostly I carry either my buck stockman or trapper (china models) and a buck 110.

I have a hard time carrying an expensive knife as an edc. I end up not wanting to use it. I am thinking of ordering a case or boker stockman or peanut type knives but I hate to pay $50 DOLLARS for a work knife. But I also don't want a knife to just sit there and look pretty.

Am I being silly? What is the price (and model) of your edc and when is the cut off price of a knife that you use for work. If you have any knife suggestions, go for it.

I'm not talking about abuseing them. But they will be worked. cut cardoard, plastic bands, scraping stickers off of glass, puching holes in belts, whittleing, stripping wire, deburring pvc pipe, etc.

I don't abuse my knives but I treat them as adults (I don't baby them).

Sam

Yeah! IMHO you ARE being silly! (But, then, so am I, on occasion, with my nice knives. I am working on this tendency, however.)

"FIFTY DOLLARS" (!?) Do come on! This is about the minimum price for a good knive unless one is into "heathen Chinee imports" or "Delrin wonders". If one wants natural handle materials, good steel, and proper fit and finish $50 is about the baseline. And, for the most part, such knives, like their ancestors, are working knives that will serve their users very well, indeed.

Unless one uses an "expensive knife" it is often hard to imagine just how spoiled one becomes by such use. If the pattern is at all compatible with one's preferences (and "ek"s tend to be available in a much wider range of patterns than their cheaper counterparts) the materials and workmanship that an"ek" often offers can make going back to a "cheaper knife" a pretty uninspiring enterprise.

So, c'mon. Live a little! You won't be sorry. (Besides, you are doing "safe queen collectors a favor. You are making their forlorn, unused knives more valuable while you are getting enjoyment out of your knives that many of them can only imagine.)

 

[oldrifleman]

My EDCs range from 400 to about 85. Lately I have carrying a case trapper, but weekends I carry a hinderer XM-18. I have several of Todd Davidsons wonderful slippies that seem to beg for time as well. There have been times when I kept my customs in the safe, but now I am with the guys that say use them. I don't plan to sell em and I really don't as of yet own any "Art " pieces. Steven

 

[thawk]

Best answer yet!!:thumbup:

I don't even need justification to buy a knife. Sometimes, "I want it even though I cant afford it." is good enough to me. No problem with cheap beer and grilled cheese for a few weeks!