To the old farts of the knife world, how have you seen the world of knives change?

Times sure have changed with all the different steels especially. Back in the 60s seems the mirror polished bladed jack knife or a fixed blade hunting knife were the choices. Sure appreciate the blade locking instead of the blade closing on the fingers way back then. Sure like the beefier designs and thicker blades of today for tougher applications.
 
Even in the short decade plus I've been watching I've seen modern folder evolve from tacticool beasts to slick, slicey EDC knives with thin grinds and fantastic action. Different locks have surged into popularity, crossbar locks and button locks in particular, and the blend of modern and traditional sensibilities has spread hugely throughout the industry. Also, it's VERY nice to be able to get a knife that's not dog poo brown, black or OD green.
 
DocJD said:
I remember when just sporting a "Beatle" hairstyle was enough to get comments like , " Hey , are you a girl or a boy ? " . :rolleyes:
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Today that will get you canceled, or worse.

Knives have evolved from basic carbon steel cutting tools to today's wonderful variety of light weight, CNC-manufactured blades featuring complex steels. Locking mechanisms have gone from the simple springs to genius designs like the Axis lock and many other variations. And it just keeps on getting better.
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In the 50s and 60s. It seems I only saw WWII-produced Randall and KA-BAR combat knives, carbon steel kitchen knives, SAKs, Case folders and Opinels. Relatives in the hospitality industry used professional kitchen knives from Sabatier and Dexter Russell. Then the big leap seemed to happen in the 80s when the Walker Linerlock appeared. Dozens then hundreds copied it and developed more advanced design and pivot mechanisms along with more advanced steel recipes. Everything is available now from tool steel to MagnaCut, not forgetting how useful tool steel still is.
 
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Everything I remember in the 70’s was either a fixed blade or slip joint.,, I got my first MT (Socom partial serrated folder) in the 90’s and it was ATS-34. The first “super steel “ I owned… that steels not even mentioned in the same sentence as modern steels but it’s still one of my favorites
 
I began buying fixed blades in the 70s when I started cooking. I quickly went from Dexter Russell to Sabatier carbon. Then it was a short leap from stainless steel Wusthof and Misono to Dozier and Al Polkowski a bit later. Now I have a plethora of top shelf production, mid-tech and custom fixed blades and folders from all over.
 
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When I was a kid back in 1970 knives were all traditional designs. Very rarely did you see the odd more modern designs with anything out of the ordinary. Most people rejected them as unnecessary.

Steel choices were very few but the brands that were known for better heat treatment and tempering were what most people I knew were after. And it was split between the stainless and carbon steel depending on preferences. There were probably just as many misinformed people then as there are now, idk maybe more. I made the effort to find out for myself just using them.

What I really liked back then was we had more choices and variety in size, colors and finishes. The knife displays were something to behold in the larger stores. I could spend hours looking at them all. Lol
 
I just turned forty two weeks ago, so as an elderly person, I feel qualified to answer this.

I recall that in the ‘90’s, It was the style that was important. There wasn’t much difference between traditional knives of varying quality. “Tactical” knives were identified more by their outrageous aesthetic than their spec sheet. Most people considered 440 stainless to be a perfectly acceptable blade steel for daily carry folders. Most of us could still carry a small knife in grade school-it wasn’t a problem until it was. Gil Hibben fantasy knives were all the rage.

It’s crazy to look back on how much things have changed in just thirty years. I can’t even imagine what it must be like for those who are older and wiser. I’ve come full circle in that space of time. I started with cheap case knives, then spent the next twenty years carrying linerlocks with pointy blades. Now my back hurts, my tummy seems constantly upset, and I’ve gravitated toward LionSteel/Collectorknives slipjoints.
 
Slice O Life said:
Were most pocket knives back when pocket knives were first becoming a thing made in China, or is that a fairly recent change?
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During the 1970s, the bottom end stuff was sometimes made in Hong Kong (part of the British Empire), most of the entry/mid level stuff would have been imported from Japan or Germany or made in the US. The Custom knife market would have commence to evolve during the early 70s; the handful of makers were beginning to organize and we were seeing a few magazine articles and occasionally a book. The best steel then (and still very good) was 440-C.

n2s
 
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Recall those cheap folders I bought as a kid in the early 60s were stamped Imperial. Cheap price but did not take much of a pounding to look like crap real quick. Only one I held onto was the Puma Skinner thank god from 67. Cost was a whopping $26-27 back then. LOL Still a chunk of change for a 15 year old with no job.
 
pvicenzi said:
We rarely knew what the steel actually was. Super keen, surgical stainless etc.
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This is a big one. Even if you knew the steel, and it changed in between the ad and buying time, you usually just shrugged and bought it anyway.
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Also, the quality of cheap production knives is spectacular now, your average $40-75 knife now is as good or better than a $150-200 knife 30 years ago.

Way more choices in production now too. You want a bowie or fighter? You've got dozens of choices now. 80's-90's? maybe you had 3-5 companies making that type of things on a consistant basis. You want a karambit, push dagger or similar? You had even less, and something like a karambit, might not even would've made it to market.

Way more custom and production knife maker team ups. Even into the very early 2000's that was a rare thing.

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No one cared about blade centering years ago, as long as it wasn't severely off or rubbing, you were good.
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Years ago, you did have more choice in natural materials. I think we'll keep heading down the road of man made materials, I see less and less young buyers interested in stag, horns, pearl, etc..... whether because of environmental concerns or just being priced out.
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Less people care about hand forging vs stock removal now, that was a huge argument for decades. Less knives sold on secrets and mysticism now in general. If a maker trying to sell knives based on a secret steel, tempering process, etc.... He'd have piles of guys just waiting to debunk it. That's a good thing.


Sorry if some things have already been covered, just jumping into the thread while everything is fresh in my mind :).
 
The sheer number of offerings... Manufacturers, models, steels, variations...

When I was a kid I remember the hardware store had the old display cases. There was one for Buck, one for Schrade, one for Camillus I think, and some SAKs.

MY GOODNESS... ALL THE CHOICES!! It boggled the mind. Then Schrade added the Uncle Henry line... threre must have been 50 knives to choose from!

Now I could fill 3 of those old display cases with just the variations of the Spyderco Delica.

Nothing came from China, and junk came from Japan. That's a huge difference from today's knife world as well.

And of course with the internet comes availability. I can have a new knife delivered to my house every day and if I don't like it, I can sell it the same day.
 
No BF or internet, they have really changed the game, from buying what your local sporting goods store had . Now the world of knives is a click away.
As well as giving you a good selling platform- not sure if that is a plus or minus, but it allowed me to try new knives.
 
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Slice O Life said:
I would love to hear from those who have been knife hobbyists for a long time, how you have seen the knife community and knife designs change over time.
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Interesting topic and enjoyable reading these posts.

The biggest change is when I was growing up in the 60’s and 70’s, most boys and nearly all men carried a pocket knife of some sort, along with guns in gun racks in trucks. We would go hunting or target shooting after school. Amazingly, there was not a single incident. Disputes were rare and even then just a minor dust up with a punch or two followed by a hand shake and sincere words of regret for things having gone that far.

Design - by far the biggest jump forward is the one hand openers.

Steels - I ordered my first custom in the mid-70’s in 154CM, which was a very noticeable improvement over the mostly soft O1 and 440C of the times. 154CM still is a solid choice, but now I can have a skinner for hunting in 10v, S110v, M390, or 20cv, and not have to stop for resharpening.

3. EDC - I started off 50+ years ago with a small simple steel traditional slip joint. Now a Hinderer in M390 and Case Bose in 154CM seem to do everything and do it well. Despite owning piles of nice knives, I was just on an oryx cull hunt and ended up cleaning, skinning, and quartering two of these 350# animals with what I had on me at the moment, the Hinderer and Case. Both did an animal each and helped with others and were still plenty sharp enough to keep running.

Not asked in the original post, but important is the improvement in sharpening stones. DMT diamond plates becoming available at a reasonable price in the 70’s were a wonderful improvement that made sharpening so much easier. Now I still use Arks for some knives or even to put the final touch on a “super” steel, but the first step is a diamond plate for most sharpening.

These are the good old days.
 
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I recall a time it was difficult finding a knife in non stainless. Knife companies were making up names for steels as a marketing tool. I recall going through the ATS 34 "super steel" phase. It was used for everything even knives it shouldn't have been used in. Then Spyderco and Benchmade ( remember their M2 knives?) really began the steel junkie thing. The steel charts with the knife paperwork really hooked me because I could see the difference in performance and I liked it. It's only gotten better.

Some things that I never have understood were folders designed as pry tools and others designed as pocket jewlery or as fidget toys. I just don't get it. I know there is a market for it though.
 
I started collecting knives in the 70s. For most people then, one slipjoint for EDC and a fixed blade to wear on the belt when needed was all that they had. I certainly paid attention to edgeholding. Some brands held an edge longer than others. 440C was considered high end, and as hard as Buck heat treated their blades, it took a little work to sharpen one on an Arkansas stone.

Today's knives generally have much better steels, but at the same time they have become much larger. I used to carry a stockman or a Buck 501 and that was all I needed. Most folders today are much larger. And the edge bevels on most modern knives are way too thick. As much as I like a good steel like S90V, if the edge bevel is too thick I won't give it a second glance.
 
Grumpy Old Man said:
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An exaggeration

We only got beer as kids when eating crabs
 
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