Saw a True Vintage Knife 'In the Wild'

J

jamesbeat

Joined
Jul 26, 2009
Messages
314
When I say a 'true' vintage knife, I mean that it was an old knife being carried and used by its original owner.

I work in a store, and a regular customer came in to look at hand held vacuum cleaners.
Since he's a nice old dude and a very regular customer, I didn't mind opening one of the boxes to show him the vacuum properly.

Well, I don't like to whip out my knives in front of customers just in case one freaks out one day (you never know) so I was doing all the non-knife person nonsense like hunting for scissors and digging around for my keys.

Anyway, this guy pulls a small knife out of his pants pocket, cuts the tape, and repockets his knife.
I got all excited and asked him to have a look at it.
As he got it out of his pocket, he said 'this knife's probably older than you!'

I'm sorry to say that I didn't recognise the pattern. It was about the same size as a peanut, and like a peanut it had clip main and pen secondary blades.
The handle was not like a peanut though, the bolsters were blunt and the handle was mostly straight, not serpentine.

Both blades were black with patina, blunt as butterknives, and the main blade had a large chip missing from the edge.

I showed him the RR barlow that I happened to be carrying, and he seemed mildly interested, but although he seemed to like it, he also seemed slightly baffled that I was interested in his knife.

This struck it home to me. He wasn't carrying that little knife because he likes knives, and he wasn't particularly sentimental about the one he's been carrying for several decades.
He never takes his knife out of his pocket to admire it, and probably forgets it's there until he needs to use it.

He isn't a knife nut, yet he has edc'd probably since he was a kid.
He carries it simply because he finds it useful enough to warrant keeping it in his pocket.

I know this must be commonplace, but it's the first time I have personally ever seen an old knife 'in the wild', carried every day in an urban setting.
Made my day :)
 
Last edited:
Cool story. I see traditionals occasionally here, but more often than not it's a single blade clipped to someone's pocket. Whatever someone's carrying, it always makes me glad to see a knife out there.

Thanks for sharing. :)

~Chris
 
I like the fact that it's so common place, I wish more folks just carried a knife without thinking about it. It's okay to think about it, I do for sure, but I'm a member here. I just wish more non-knife-nuts carried as without thinking about it, cause they are just normal little tools.
 
You realize there was a time in America, when you weren't considered a proper male if you didn't have a knife in your pocket.
I'm talking pre tactical B.S. days here. When a boy "came of age" and his father felt he was responsible enough, he would get to carry a small pocket knife.
Even 1st and second generation American kids that I knew and was one of, wanted that part of "americana" even if our dads were against "any type of weapons".
Hell, when I was in the cub scouts/webelos in the late 70's we all had a SAK or at least a clone. The spoiled rich asian kid had a huge champ, we worshiped the knife and hated him ;-)
I think by late junior high I had a Gerber BMF. Got my mom to get it for me as a B-Day gift, man my dad was so pissed.
My point is its not just "being into knives" or "knife culture" it's a lost part of the American way of life.

"THEY" (the establishment) has done a great job of getting rid of that American spirit.
Now from an early age children are rewarded with throwaway technologies that just keep them hooked on consuming. A phone is not enough, dad has to pay for the texting package.

I'm sorry to say it's bigger than just knives. The knives only represented something that's pretty much gone now. Yeah many of us here got into knives in one way or another later on and learned about quality, but as you noticed with the old man, it's not the same. He USED that knife for decades. Even if he lost it and didn't care and just bought another cheap one, he would still have to get one, its an extension of himself. Many old timers dont feel complete without at least some type of peanut in their pocket.
While most people would totaly freak out if they misplaced their cell phone.

Don't compare it to people on this forum, it's society in general, like you said you dont whip out knives in front of customers so they dont freak out. HIS behavior for his generation was normal. But WE are a much smaller niche subculture in current society.
I wonder if I'll even be able to legaly pass along my knife collection to my heirs, let alone any guns. Who knows what things will be like in another 30 years. . . . .
 
Nostimos said:
You realize there was a time in America, when you weren't considered a proper male if you didn't have a knife in your pocket.
I'm talking pre tactical B.S. days here. When a boy "came of age" and his father felt he was responsible enough, he would get to carry a small pocket knife.
Even 1st and second generation American kids that I knew and was one of, wanted that part of "americana" even if our dads were against "any type of weapons".
Hell, when I was in the cub scouts/webelos in the late 70's we all had a SAK or at least a clone. The spoiled rich asian kid had a huge champ, we worshiped the knife and hated him ;-)
I think by late junior high I had a Gerber BMF. Got my mom to get it for me as a B-Day gift, man my dad was so pissed.
My point is its not just "being into knives" or "knife culture" it's a lost part of the American way of life.
Click to expand...

Nostimos, you should appreciate one of my favorite quotes from a great book on wilderness skills, On Your Own In The Wilderness by Colonel Townsend Whelen and Bradford Angier (1958):

"The most indispensable tool for a hunter or fisherman or camper, and in fact for any outdoor man and boy anywhere, is the knife-a businesslike knife, sharp and keen. Mrs. Whelen's aunt, who taught high school Latin for thirty years in Nebraska, had the right idea. She asked every class, "Which boys have a jackknife in their pocket?" The ones who had none did not rate very high with her.

Her philosophy was that if a boy did not have a knife and know how to use it, he was not likely to grow up able to do many things for himself...I have had a knife like this in my back pants pocket ever since I was knee-high to a chopping block."

Common sense from the days when common sense actually seemed to be common. And while most of us here are likely to agree with the stated sentiments, this forum is really not the best place to delve too deeply into the "politics" of the current (and future) situation as the case may be.
 
Blues:
thanks for the quote and I just might pick up that book.
and i'll try to refrain from any further political talk, on reading my statement a second time, it did seem a little negative, long winded and "good old days", and I'm not really that old ;-)
 
I was given knives from Cub Scouts on, as gifts. I didn't see them as special, it was just a tool. I don't have memories of those knives, they were so commonplace to me. I still have a knife I got from my Grandfather, at age 12. I didn't see it as special, till he died, even then it's just a Frost Cutlery slipjoint, not a collectors item, except that it came from him.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top