Same Knife Model, Two Different Ends of the Style Spectrum.

just-a-hunter

just-a-hunter

Joined
Nov 5, 2015
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I'm pretty open minded when it comes to life.

I have worn out cowboy boots and Nike's both.... I have spent as many hours (probably more) riding a horse as I have 4 wheeler, shot just as many rounds through a lever gun as an AR-15, hunt with high end long range precision rifles and recurves with wooden arrows both and listen to everything from George Strait to Snoop Dogg.

There are many styles of knives as we all know, but in my oppinion, what sets a knife style apart more than anything, is what it is dressed in. whether it be handle/scale material or sheath style. I personally think the cloths and hardware make the biggest differnce. Sure there are tactical knives, hunting knives, camping knives etc., and the blade shape has a huge impact on this. There is no getting around that but you can take a nice stag classic chopper, slap some Micarta in place of the stag and sheath it in kydex instead of leather and now you'll have a tactical knife...

The "Sheaths in Action" thread in the "Sheaths and Such" Forum thread along with recent order completions got me to thinking about this and I was wondering what the World Wide Web thought of it as well.

These two completed knives are the exact same model and knife pretty much but I know they will live totally separate lives...

This one is in Kydex (Holstex actually) with Micarta scales.

kydex2_zpsmdb1sgk8.jpg


kydex1_zpsgpdnqtm1.jpg


This one has synthetic Ivory in leather.

howdyknife2_zpsi7jfmskp.jpg


howdyknife3_zpshcd2ygod.jpg


They are the same knife but soooo much different.

Your thoughts?

Thanks for reading,

Todd
 
It's all about the money baby!:cool:

But seriously, it's marketing. Look at Randall knives. They are all classic, beautiful "traditional" designs that just so happen to be some of the most sought after knives by guys in the military, who are the ones who need "tactical" gear. I would argue that it even comes down to the way the handle material is finished. For example, put some rough, natural micarta on a blade and it becomes a rugged survival knife. Slap some ultra polished micarta and cerakote the blade and you have a tactical knife. To me the most obvious distinction is usually the sheath. MOST OF THE TIME, but not always, leather is for outdoors and kydex is for tactical. However, that line is quickly disappearing because you see kydex sheaths for everything and you see Busse knives wearing leather. (Coincidently, it's not that I don't realize Busse knives work great for 'survival', just that they are marketed as combat knives)
 
I agree. I guess what I'm getting at is the knife is what the owner wants it to be, and they usually purchase/order one for thier needs and dress it up as such.

Thanks for chiming in.

Todd
 
I don't have anything intelligent to add but just wanted to say I appreciate your open mindedness and enjoyed seeing both knives and their "cloths and hardware". Pretty astonishing leather work on that second sheath by the way.
 
Interesting thoughts, but I doubt they will live lives much different. Most likely with very minimal use, and EDC'ed a few times a year. I am not a knife collector, I just like to use a quality tool. I often wonder if there is a full circle evolution with those addicted to knives, like I had with flashlights. I started with a 6p with a malkoff, and soon had thousands of dollars in Titanium flashlights in my collection. The bling and coolness wore off over the years, and they were sold. Today I typically carry a Surefire G2 with a malkoff M60L.

At the end of the day, I think the same knife in different cloth would just be for people in a different place in the hobby. None of us would die if we only owned a $20 knife, but we find a way to justify having the next shiny thing we have never had before. Luckly for me, knives are not my vice. I'm not sure if I actually added to the topic, but that is what your post made me think about.
 
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With some of the "higher end" knives I make, I'm trying to blur the line... Calling it Tactical/Traditional.
 
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