The lowly P38

Bladeforums...the only place where you can see a 5 page thread just on the P38 can opener. Gotta love it!

On a sadder note...the story about the TSA worker confiscating a P38 from a Vietnam veteran that had been on his keychain ever since the war really makes me sad. Actually, to be quite honest...it pisses me off.

I want the old America back.
 
fishshooter said:
Interesting you should bring this up to the top. Just the other week I picked up a dozen P-38s and a dozen BSA Hotsparks and small split rings. Been squaring one side of the P-38 to use as a striker and combining them with the hotsparks on the split ring. I've given five away so far. Cool little keychain setup for less than $4.
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Fishshooter, That is a nice little setup for little $$$. Handy small kit or great for giveaway. I never could get the edge of the P38 as "square" as i would like - how did you do it?

P38s are great!
 
I just bought 6 more at a flea market this weekend, matter of fact. It's about the handiest little thing ever invented, IMO.
 
as Christof said its a momento of where you were at a different time of your life, much more than its utilitarian worth..but has been very useful in many situations since...my Shelby has been on my key ring since Okinawa 72, long before I acquired a SAK, and is of much better construction than current produced ones, though now it has some flat wear spots...
 
I've had one on my keyring for years. It's amazing how many different uses you can get out of that little thing.
 
Just re-read the last few pages and the statement the P-51 was used by cooks in the mess hall, I don't think so. In 1961 in Basic traing I did my share of KP duty and opened a lot of cans for the cooks and even then they had large industrial sized can openers, with about eight to 10 inch vetical cranks, that were mounted on the edges of the table. Stick a can into the opener and crank the handle. it would take forever to open the amount of cans used in a company sized mess hall with a P-51. The only P-51/B-52's I ever saw came with our rations. John
 
jonnyt16 said:
On a sadder note...the story about the TSA worker confiscating a P38 from a Vietnam veteran that had been on his keychain ever since the war really makes me sad. Actually, to be quite honest...it pisses me off.

I want the old America back.
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It's never coming back.
 
The feminization (I like Carlin's term better, the one that you have cited, but, hey, I'm trying to be a good boy around here...) of the country is only part of it. The People (<~Capitalization, means the same People like in The Constitution and Bill of Rights...) have become feminized and passive and they worship law and order and law enforcement even when they should not. They have become, as attorney Gerry Spence once wrote, "Easy in the reins," like an old horse. Or, perhaps, easy in the reigns it could go either way now. :D

The authoritarian control freaks have won, partly because they buy into the fiction that they can actually change laws they don't like, etc. You see it in here all of the time, "if you don't like _________, then change it." The people writing that are just blowing smoke, it is incredibly hard to change the types of laws that people in here want changed.

I have to say, the surprise of a lifetime has been the work that Doug Ritter has done for knives and tools. I'm amazed and impressed, to say the least.
 
Don Rearic said:
I have to say, the surprise of a lifetime has been the work that Doug Ritter has done for knives and tools. I'm amazed and impressed, to say the least.
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Don, I'd be interested to hear what specifically you're referring to. Probably OT, so if you want to start another thread or PM me that would be great.
 
That's the kinda story that makes ya want to cry. Man, I feel like an ass for buying TSA confiscation lots on ebay now...
 
Pritch said:
Don, I'd be interested to hear what specifically you're referring to. Probably OT, so if you want to start another thread or PM me that would be great.
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I have E-mails going back to August 29, 2009, alerts from Doug Ritter. He helped get Pro Knife Legislation passed in New Hampshire. I believe he had a good hand in getting Arkansas's rather crappy knife legislation changed. It used to be if you had over a 4.0 inch blade on a folding knife, you were guilty of having a weapon, period. I think he and some other folks had that overturned. I would have to ask my brother about the exact law and how it was changed.

Doug Ritter is also active in this current, but not surprising, debacle with NY/NYC.
 
Thanks Don. Similarly, many states have passed "shall issue" CPL/CCW laws in recent years and the Court has actually handed down some favorable decisions recently as well. It is a shame that these instances are even necessary and stand out for the rarity of them.
 
Maybe Doug Ritter is THE GUY that can do this in most jurisdictions. I would hate to see him waste funds on NYC, however. It would be quite a feather in his cap if he could make some headway there but I just don't see it with Mr. Anti-Gun in the Mayor's Office up there. Hell he was down around here a couple/few weeks ago singing the praises of D.C.'s Balloonknot-Mayor. :rolleyes:

Why? Because Fenti (however his name is spelled) fought the Heller Case tooth and nail and they just have this totally Anti-Gun thang going for each other.
 
newadventure said:
Fishshooter, That is a nice little setup for little $$$. Handy small kit or great for giveaway. I never could get the edge of the P38 as "square" as i would like - how did you do it?

P38s are great!
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Is it one of the newer Shelby ones? If so, try squaring the end or outside edge of the "blade." The handle on those seems very soft, even when you get them square, the sharp edge will roll, rather than scrape the firesteel. I use a bench grinder very gingerly. I can post a pic of what I'm talking about, if you need me too. :thumbup:
 
i love the p38. i also have them stashed everywhere. and use them at home more than my electric can opener. my wife is always like we have one thats way faster than that. but they are a solid tool for .50 cents. nobody should be with out one
 
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