Progression...End of the Road?

[jideta]

So here I am.
What's next?
This is what's left of the old collection:



All the mid-tech folders are gone as is the Benchmade, Spyderco, SOG, etc.
The Swisstool I use everyday at work.
Emissary has broken spring so I just kept it.
Parallax is Ti so it's light in the pocket.
I do have a Swiss Army Super Tinker on the way, but for folders I'm done.

Just as I was about to step into it large; I had my eyeballs on some CR, Hinderer, etc.
Then for some reason, I reasoned: you barely use the knives you already got!
You're right! I said to myself.
I like knives, how to change that?
Fixed blades.
All my folders were longer than 3.5" and larger folders are sort of bulky. Heavy in the pocket.
So it started with this kind of stuff:



Lemme try and put some handles on some blanks.
I'm sort of handy...
Then it became a question: what exactly do I need in a blade?
Something I never thought about when I was accumulating folders.
Folders are just well, folders. Fixed blades have a purpose!
Yeah, yeah, folders have purpose too, I just never thought of them that way.

The short? Wharncliffes.
Hand made customs.
Now I can reach into my front pocket without having to navigate past a knife.
All I need in a blade:



Oh I got other fix blades; skinner, drop point, faux fighter, etc. but I also got six Wharncliffe blades.
I still admire Bowies and fighters, hunters and bushcrafts.
Wharncliffes because all the cutting power is in the tip and the blade. I also realized that when I walk out of the house, I would most likely reach for a Wharncliffe than any other blade.
Or maybe a talon:



This talon introduced me into blades that didn't need to be pointy. It has a tip but not an obvious pointy tip which makes it look a bit more like a tool and little less intimidating.
I actually knew this as I used carry a Spyderco Mariner.
With customs, I like being able to dictate specifications and not having to compromise design features. Another benefit is that fixed customs are a hell of a lot cheaper than those mid tech folders!
Finally, I got this:



The maker calls it a modified seax (reminds me of that Hinderer I lusted after).
I still like wharnies but I think this suits me and fills my needs.
Now that I have it, I carry this and my Wharncliffes exclusively, so much so that I'm thinking of giving away all my other knives.
End of the road?
I still like looking at nice blades; that's what BF is for!
Do I feel the urge to splurge? Sure.
Then I remember where I came from.
First question is: would I strap it on?

That's my progression (so far).
What's yours?

 

[Rykjeklut]

I'm well and truly of the deep end, with about 60 knifes accumulated by now... Started cheap and it's getting more and more expensive.

Just out of curiousity, what Hinderer resembled that modified seax?

 

[Hickory n steel]

Ignoring the time before age 15 or so when I began learning about quality, I started with larger knives like this being the limit of what I considered acceptable as a capable EDC folding knife.

Anything smaller could only be a secondary I would rarely use.
Lately however I've grown to greatly appreciate smaller knives like this , and have really just leaned towards smaller and smaller knives since joining this forum.

For the week this is the only pocket knife I'm carrying.


The kind of knife I never took seriously as a real cutting tool is currently the only one I'm using this week and is taking care of every pocket knife task I will be faced with.

I was up to almost 50 a few weeks ago, but I passed on about a dozen I was no longer using, and those keepers I don't see myself using much at this point i have set aside to mostly just collect.
I do not like having a bunch I'm not going to use, so I may even downsize those knives that I've set aside.

 

[K.O.D.]

In 2015 I had ~35 folders and maybe 6 fixed blades. 1 years of marriage reduced that to 8 folders and 1 fixed blade. Divorced now.

Started buying again in 2019. I have maybe 16 folders. Fixed don't do anything for me.

I've found I like lightweight knives, flippers and autos, especially OTF.

 

[AntDog]

Reserved for later. If you reeeeeally wanna hear it I’ll write you a TL;DR, but don’t have time right this minute.

 

[Eli Chaps]

Very timely. I'm working up a similar thread that I'll post some time soon but the theme is similar. It's about really zeroing in on what you like and then realizing so many other things start to fall away.

For me, done? No. But highly subjective and pass on so many things.

This weekend the wife not just gave me permission but encouraged me to buy a knife that I think is super sexy but is at a price point I rarely entertain. Man, I gave it a lot of thought. Hell, I even gave it several beers thought so defenses were down.

But I didn't buy it.

Yeah, with the current conditions I'm being much more budget conscious as I've been put into a position that I have to be. But it's really just that, I know what works for me and this was a luxury type thing. Nothing wrong with that and maybe at another time I will come back to it.

But the biggest thing is, it doesn't bother me that I passed.

 

[Hickory n steel]

I know what works for me and this was a luxury type thing. Nothing wrong with that and maybe at another time I will come back to it.

But the biggest thing is, it doesn't bother me that I passed.

This is where I'm finding myself lately.
I see many knives that I love the looks of but in the end I know that if it's bigger than I have been gravitating towards lately I probably won't carry it much so I pass.

Still have some folders over my currently preferred 3.5" limit , but haven't found myself itching to carry them much recently.

 

[DangerZone98]

So here I am.
What's next?
This is what's left of the old collection:

View attachment 1364686

All the mid-tech folders are gone as is the Benchmade, Spyderco, SOG, etc.
The Swisstool I use everyday at work.
Emissary has broken spring so I just kept it.
Parallax is Ti so it's light in the pocket.
I do have a Swiss Army Super Tinker on the way, but for folders I'm done.

Just as I was about to step into it large; I had my eyeballs on some CR, Hinderer, etc.
Then for some reason, I reasoned: you barely use the knives you already got!
You're right! I said to myself.
I like knives, how to change that?
Fixed blades.
All my folders were longer than 3.5" and larger folders are sort of bulky. Heavy in the pocket.
So it started with this kind of stuff:

View attachment 1364688

Lemme try and put some handles on some blanks.
I'm sort of handy...
Then it became a question: what exactly do I need in a blade?
Something I never thought about when I was accumulating folders.
Folders are just well, folders. Fixed blades have a purpose!
Yeah, yeah, folders have purpose too, I just never thought of them that way.

The short? Wharncliffes.
Hand made customs.
Now I can reach into my front pocket without having to navigate past a knife.
All I need in a blade:

View attachment 1364690

Oh I got other fix blades; skinner, drop point, faux fighter, etc. but I also got six Wharncliffe blades.
I still admire Bowies and fighters, hunters and bushcrafts.
Wharncliffes because all the cutting power is in the tip and the blade. I also realized that when I walk out of the house, I would most likely reach for a Wharncliffe than any other blade.
Or maybe a talon:

View attachment 1364705

This talon introduced me into blades that didn't need to be pointy. It has a tip but not an obvious pointy tip which makes it look a bit more like a tool and little less intimidating.
I actually knew this as I used carry a Spyderco Mariner.
With customs, I like being able to dictate specifications and not having to compromise design features. Another benefit is that fixed customs are a hell of a lot cheaper than those mid tech folders!
Finally, I got this:

View attachment 1364699

The maker calls it a modified seax (reminds me of that Hinderer I lusted after).
I still like wharnies but I think this suits me and fills my needs.
Now that I have it, I carry this and my Wharncliffes exclusively, so much so that I'm thinking of giving away all my other knives.
End of the road?
I still like looking at nice blades; that's what BF is for!
Do I feel the urge to splurge? Sure.
Then I remember where I came from.
First question is: would I strap it on?

That's my progression (so far).
What's yours?

What about a good Carothers Chopper, Busse, or a Kailash Kukri? I think every knife dude should have at least one good choppa.

 

[Kailash Blades]

I'd agree, if you feel like expanding your knife horizons a big fixed blade or chopper is a great place to start. It opens up your idea of what a knife is capable of, requires different performance out of steel and ergonomics etc and there's so many great shaped and designs out there- often for much less than some of the folders people will obsess over. That Buck 305T is absolutely beautiful by the way.

 

[jideta]

I have a kukri:



I also discovered a void...I need some pattern weld and san mai...
Almost there!

 

[Kailash Blades]

That's a very charming khukuri! How long have you had it?

 

[jideta]

Thirty years.
It has a smaller mate:



Gifts from my mother!
Have no idea of the quality...

 

[Zulus]

Yup.
I got some big kukris same age, maybe even the same.
They still are parked somewhere unpacked ...
Never thought that someday "That's my progression (so far).
What's yours?" question will move me back to XIX Century India !

Must be prequel/sequel to never developed franchise :
"Forward to the Past"

 

[K.O.D.]

I've been thinking about a Damascus knife, just to have one.

 

[jideta]

Yup.
I got some big kukris same age, maybe even the same.
They still are parked somewhere unpacked ...
Never thought that someday "That's my progression (so far).
What's yours?" question will move me back to XIX Century India !

Must be prequel/sequel to never developed franchise :
"Forward to the Past"

I think for me, it's a matter of appreciating the things I never got a chance to when I was younger.
I ride bicycles and although I can now afford the latest greatest, I prefer the alloy Campagnolo stuff I admired in the glass case at the bike shop. Well, okay I do have a ton of carbon fibre!

I've been thinking about a Damascus knife, just to have one.

I'm right there too. Sort of.
I've decided that pattern weld is just for looks so instead I'm going after some san mai. About to pull the trigger with a maker right here on the forum.

Still got my eyeballs peeled for the right pattern weld blade. To be honest though I'm not as hot for one as I used to be.

 

[ktataragasi]

I have not really gotten too far into the deep end of knives but I do have more than enough. I am trying to take a step back and just use what I have and appreciate them for what they are. I was headed down the path of more and more expensive knives but at the end of the day I know that I get bored with everything no matter the cost so I needed to slow down. Right now I am trying to just carry a single knife for a month and then do that with another after that. So for now I am using what I have and really trying to appreciate them before chasing the next great thing.

I think if you found what you enjoy that is fantastic and now you should just use and enjoy them for as many tasks as possible. Form those connectionsaand bonds and maybe one day you do fine a knife that checks all of the boxes and you can feel good about getting it knowing it will serve you for a long time.

 

[Quiet]

jideta those are some pretty nice knives you've posted. I especially like that little fixed blade in the second picture, second from the top. That handle is simply gorgeous, and that small blade seems like it'd be great for a lot of little tasks.

For me, while the amount I'll spend on a knife has risen enormously over the past four or five years, every time I do buy an expensive knife, I always think about how ANY of the knives I own could be "the" knife. The only knife, that if it was all someone (or even I) had, it would be entirely enough for the rest of my life. Then I just shrug and buy the new knife anyway. LOL

When I was younger, I'd see knives I wanted, and try to make up stories in my head to justify the purchase. "Oh man, I NEED this new fixed blade, I'll take it on all my camping adventures!" or "Oh man, that folder would be just what I needed for (insert some implausible scenerio here)!". But fact is, I sit at a desk all day, and on weekends, I end up needing a bottle-opener far more than I ever find myself needing a fixed blade. It's nice to dream of adventures, but I've got countless knives for any adventure I could find myself in. This all boils down to me having stopped kidding myself years ago now. I just love knives. I own more than I'll ever be able to use. Is there an end of the road for me? Probably not. Do I need all these knives? Heh, definitely not. BUT. There's no shame in enjoying those knives you have, and if they're good enough? Then they're good enough!

 

[jackknife]

Ignoring the time before age 15 or so when I began learning about quality, I started with larger knives like this being the limit of what I considered acceptable as a capable EDC folding knife.

Anything smaller could only be a secondary I would rarely use.
Lately however I've grown to greatly appreciate smaller knives like this , and have really just leaned towards smaller and smaller knives since joining this forum.

For the week this is the only pocket knife I'm carrying.


The kind of knife I never took seriously as a real cutting tool is currently the only one I'm using this week and is taking care of every pocket knife task I will be faced with.

I was up to almost 50 a few weeks ago, but I passed on about a dozen I was no longer using, and those keepers I don't see myself using much at this point i have set aside to mostly just collect.
I do not like having a bunch I'm not going to use, so I may even downsize those knives that I've set aside.

Hickory, you're following the same pattern that I did as I got "older", forelock of a better word. I'm not sure why, but over the years I reached point that the love of knives as an obsession left me, repacked by the knowledge that a knife is needed, but how much of one in modern life. Like things got a lot more practical as I got older. Now I carry small size pocket knives that I never would have carried in my younger days.

Its become like an alcoholic that stiff visits the bar because his friends are there, and he enjoys the conversation, but he's got a club soda with a twist of line in hand. Where once I carried a Buck stockman like the 301 and a 4 or 5 layer SAK, I now carry a SAK executive and a Leatherman squirt and feel totally up to whatever I need to handle in life in American suburbia.

All my big bush choppers are gone as is the larger folders. Its only now, that I've become an old fart myself, that I understand the old guys I saw in my youth with the tiny pen knives. I couldn't understand them then, but I do now. As it was only after my dad's death and I started two carry his little Case peanut our of sentiment, and I experienced how well it opened packages, cut twine and whatever, that a light bulb went on in my head.

I guess I reached my limit like 20 years go and have been downsizing ever since. I find that now, with a knife collection that I can hold in one hand, I'm actually happier, and really use what I have everyday.

 

[22-rimfire]

jideta those are some pretty nice knives you've posted. I especially like that little fixed blade in the second picture, second from the top. That handle is simply gorgeous, and that small blade seems like it'd be great for a lot of little tasks.

For me, while the amount I'll spend on a knife has risen enormously over the past four or five years, every time I do buy an expensive knife, I always think about how ANY of the knives I own could be "the" knife. The only knife, that if it was all someone (or even I) had, it would be entirely enough for the rest of my life. Then I just shrug and buy the new knife anyway. LOL

When I was younger, I'd see knives I wanted, and try to make up stories in my head to justify the purchase. "Oh man, I NEED this new fixed blade, I'll take it on all my camping adventures!" or "Oh man, that folder would be just what I needed for (insert some implausible scenerio here)!". But fact is, I sit at a desk all day, and on weekends, I end up needing a bottle-opener far more than I ever find myself needing a fixed blade. It's nice to dream of adventures, but I've got countless knives for any adventure I could find myself in. This all boils down to me having stopped kidding myself years ago now. I just love knives. I own more than I'll ever be able to use. Is there an end of the road for me? Probably not. Do I need all these knives? Heh, definitely not. BUT. There's no shame in enjoying those knives you have, and if they're good enough? Then they're good enough!

I'm still really drawn to large fixed blades (>7" blades), but I know that I don't really go on many adventures anymore and the knives are totally just money spent (knife black hole) and seldom if ever used. I resist buying now and like jideta said, it doesn't bother me. Maybe it's age and maybe it's maturity or simply accepting your lot in life.

Back in the 70's and 80's, I loved my Schrade 250T (Buck 110-ish kind of knife) and after discovering them I was sold. I still often carried a medium sized slip joint back then too but I used the Schrade the most. Then cell phones came onto the scene in the mid-90's for me and they were belt carry sized then (or worse ). The pouch-sheath knife became more irritating on my belt with cell phones. Phones got smaller, and for me pocket sized. But my knives began getting smaller too. Now I am pretty much strictly utilitarian with my Small Tinker edc. It does well enough for my needs and other than truly mundane tasks, the number of tasks requiring a larger knife have gotten smaller since I don't have as many adventures. My adventures now center around outdoor photography where as in the past, I would hike just to get out in the woods but did normally carry a camera. I did a lot of endurance hiking.... fast pace just for the exercise. It was much like riding the old "10-speed".... I wanted to push myself hard. Now the hikes are more centered on photography potential.

I want to go back to bike riding, not cross country or off road stuff, just normal riding in country places for the fun of it at a slower pace. I just had my late 80's vintage mountain bike refurbished for more street/gravel road use. Still a wonderful bike (heavier than many current models, a few less gear choices, and no front shocks, good deraillers) and I intend to do that with my racing bike soon as well. I want to sweat a little but not too much if you understand my meaning. The 80's are when I got into bikes. Knives will be part of this, but smaller belt or pocket knives.

So my overall progression of knives has been small slip joints (peanut or smaller) when I was in grade school > larger slip joints > belt type folders like the Schrade 250T > modern folders of all types > fixed blades small to large > a medium sized SAK+ a modern > smaller fixed blades and small SAKs.... I have come 360 degrees around in my use evolution. But I won't go any smaller than a peanut or 84mm SAKs. I buy more handmade knives now than in years past because I like them and "might" use them. They fit in the evolving framework.

The money or higher cost aspect hit me with Randall purchases. Prior to that I would NEVER have considered spending that much money on a "mere knife"; guns yes, but not a knife.

 

[22-rimfire]

.... I guess I reached my limit like 20 years go and have been downsizing ever since. I find that now, with a knife collection that I can hold in one hand, I'm actually happier, and really use what I have everyday.

Interesting as this is prior to your joining BF's.

I'm not any happier with my smaller knives, but I'm satisfied that I have the tools I need to cut the kinds of things I come across. I still will carry a larger folder in the woods (Vic One Handed Trekker or similar) but that is for safety reasons and the potential for cutting walking sticks and so forth. Use them for "gardening" in the woods taking wild flower pictures too.

Haven't been camping much either.... evolution of hobbies. In my younger days I scoffed at people with their RV campers.... now I would love to own a small one... the idea of simply selling the house and living and traveling the country in a small RV has a lot of appeal to me.... maybe pulling a small trailer... time will tell.