Seeking advice from experienced collectors to help start my own!

L

LiamsKnives

Joined
Aug 9, 2013
Messages
8
Hello people,

I have recently finished travelling for 5 months all around Asia, and i don't know why but i have come home with a sudden urge to collect knives, one readon being that a tribesman handcrafted a machete for me, which may not be the best quality but it was an incentive for me to want to start.

Anyway, here are the questions i would like to ask you guys, please take time to help me out!

1) Which type of knife is good to start with? (Popular types with many knife collectors e.g. survival etc
2) Good makers of these knives?
3) Best places to go to discuss with other collectors and even buy some knives (i'm from the UK and 18 years old if that means anything)
4) Where can i buy good storage? (I would like to keep the knife and everything that comes with it in a storage where it's either always on show through glass, or easily viewed.
5) Best maintenance methods and products?

I would really appreciate it if some of you guys who know what you are talking about would take time to help me out, i'm beginning to feel really enthusiastic about this as i'm sure some of you are too!

Many thanks, Liam :thumbup:
 
Welcome to the forums Liam and great first post. First knife to start with is whatever is legal for you to own. Do you prefere fixed blade or folders?
Some production makers people collect that are quality, spyderco, benchmade, kershaw, sog, cold steel, tops bark river knife and tool, falkniven, esee, Becker, Busse and kin, chris reeve and lots more
Here is a great place to discuss knives and get one made for you.
Not sure about the storage, you could make one.
Keep your knives lightly oiled and left out of the sheath
 
1. Start with what you like and would carry and, most importantly, can afford.

2. I like Benchmade, Spyderco, Kershaw/ZT, Ontario and EKA. There should be a good number of choices at various price points in each brand. If you want to start very inexpensively, Chinese brands like Sanrenmu, Bee/Enlan, Ganzo and Navy have decent folders.

3. I like BritishBlades. A number of good forums there.

4. I don't display. I now keep most knives in original boxes for storage and resale value. But I have sets of small plastic drawers lined with thin padding for others.

5. Oil lightly and keep dry. Some folks like to disassemble and clean, but I would only do that if I had a serious problem that I thought I could fix or I got my knife really messy (which I tend not to do, since I'm a very light user).
 
Test the waters a bit. Buy a few different knives from different companies.

Or, you could collect all of the "flagships".

Kershaw Blur
Benchmade Mini Grip
Spyderco Endura
Buck 110
Victorinox Classic

And so on.
 
A lot will depend on what is legal in the UK. Head over to britishblades.com for plenty of knowledgeable folks.

Check out Moras for a great budget intro to quality knives. Fallkniven, ESEE and Becker are also excellent. (Sig_Op has already given you a very thorough list)

In folders, depending on what is legal, check out Spyderco (their UK Pen Knife was specifically designed for the British market), and the Victorinox range of Swiss Army Knives (SAKs).
 
You're definitely in the right place, lots of homework for you to do - luckily its all here. There are countless threads (with pics :D) and reviews. Good luck
 
Heinnie haynes have probably the biggest range of knives in the UK at very competitive prices. The browser has a UK legal carry selection as well. These are knives that you do not need a "lawful reason" to be in possession of in a public place. Other knives are not illegal to own but you need a good reason (work, demonstration, TV, ceremonial etc.) to carry in a public place and there are knives which are listed as offensive weapons in their own right and include flick knives, gravity knives, balisongs, knuckle duster knives (trench knives) and push daggers as well as most ninja equipment.
 
Thanks guys, i can already tell this forum has a lot of people willing to help! with regards to which knives i like, so far i think i want to begin my collection with folders. Thanks again for all of your suggestions, and yes i shall carry on with my "homework" :cool:
 
Welcome!

Starting a collection is a very simple, three step process.

1) Look at knives. BF is a great place to do that, as are the manufacturer's sites, as are the sites for BF's supporting knife retailers.

(Here is a great place way start:

For-Sale-Production-Knives-(Dealer) Subforum

It will show you those retailers and link you to their sites.)

2) Buy what you like.
3) Repeat.

Easy peasy, Bob's your uncle....you are on your way!
 
My recommendation would be start by collecting information and pictures with you browser. It's free and a good way to expand your horizons and to consider what you want to collect or use. Not all knives appeal to all people and the only thing that matters here is what makes *YOU* happy. Pointless to ask others what they like in terms of style really. Like asking people for their taste in shoes or drinks. Just too personal really.

If you're 18 and thinking about glass display cases already, you have more space and money to work with than I did at that age (and still do or don't or whatever).

I have 3 places for knives. A few are put away in drawers and rarely get taken out. A few more sit on my dresser. They don't get used but I get to look at them most days. A very few are in a bowl next to my keys. They get carried on a rotating basis. That's how I handle it.
 
Thanks guys, could anyone give me an idea of what kind of knives are popular to collect? to me it seems like a lot of people go for folding knives
 
Even folding knives is way, way too broad.

Some people collect by style.
Some by brand (regardless of style).
Some by country of origin.
Some by use (ranching knives, hunting knives)

It might be useful to go to a book store or library and find a book or two on knife collecting. That would give you a view of the range of options.

Or, hit some of the sub-forums on this site and look for the long picture threads.
 
LiamsKnives said:
Thanks guys, could anyone give me an idea of what kind of knives are popular to collect? to me it seems like a lot of people go for folding knives
Click to expand...

A collection is whatever you make of it. Start off with a theme that you like and slowly buy knives that fit into that story line. For example, you might decide to collect boyscout knives, or edged weapons of a particular part of Afghanistan. It only matters to you, but as you develop your knowlege you will be better able to make informed purchases in your area of specialization. Also, don't worry about the choice that you make, as time goes on you will have the opportunity to chase numerous collecting areas and there is nothing wrong with working on several collections at once, or in selling/trading off collections that no longer interest you as they once did.

n2s
 
LiamsKnives said:
Thanks guys, could anyone give me an idea of what kind of knives are popular to collect? to me it seems like a lot of people go for folding knives
Click to expand...

Don't collect what's popular! Collect what you like!

Or collect what you use.

What do use knives for now? Cooking? Camping? Fishing? Fixing stuff?
 
Many people go with the categories, or even sub-categories

Folders, Bushcrafters, Bowies, Scandi's, Sghian Dubh's etc.

Some collect by manufacturer

Production or handmade/custom.

I keep telling people I don't collect folders but I do occasionally buy folders that I like. I now have 28 folding knives. No rhyme or reason to the eclectic mix, just that I like them (for varied reasons).

Edit: 2/3rds of the folders are non locking sub 3" blade length (so EDC for UK)
 
LiamsKnives said:
... to me it seems like a lot of people go for folding knives
Click to expand...

Folding knives take up much less space. 100 pocket knives can fit in a knife roll in your sock drawer, while 100 swords will take up a good size room.

n2s
 
I planned to start a collection but I ended up only buying a few since I realized I didnt want hundreds of knives laying around.

But maybe later when I have more disposable income ill start a collection.
 
CJZ said:
Test the waters a bit. Buy a few different knives from different companies.

Or, you could collect all of the "flagships".

Kershaw Blur
Benchmade Mini Grip
Spyderco Endura
Buck 110
Victorinox Classic

And so on.
Click to expand...

I like this idea a lot. I'm not a collector and most likely never will be, but that's a pretty rad way of going about it.
 
If you want to collect knives to display I would recommend slipjoint knives. With all the different handle materials and styles that would be my recommendation.
 
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