Tools for professionals or just toys???

J

Judge_Blackhawk

Joined
Jun 9, 2000
Messages
109
How many forumites use their knives in their profession?

I mean one of my friends is an State criminal investigator and was a former police detective, he used his knives every day to extricate victims of car crashes, to cut ropes entangling wild and domestic amimals and other such police/rescue duties.

I don't use my knives in my profession, I just love owning them and carrying them for self-defense.

Do most of the people on the forum use their knives in their profession?

Thanks for the information.

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Government's ability to control is directly related to it's ability to disarm it's citizens. - Judge Blackawk
 
Government's ability to control is directly related to it's ability to disarm it's citizens. - Judge Blackawk
Outstanding!!!!
Judge_BlackHawk, if state doesn't have a law on a certain knife, ie. switchblades, does that make them legal as long as they meet all the other legal knife requirments according to the laws of that state?? Thanks! Michael

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Always think of your fellow knife makers as partners in the search for the perfect blade, not as people trying to compete with you and your work!http://www.nebsnow.com/L6steel
Buzzards gotta eat, same as worms!!!
 
Judge_Blackhawk,

No, unfortunately I'm just a dull mechanical engineer (by training); Account Manager by title. But, I sure do love having a knife on me at work to rescue people who need boxes opened, strings cut, etc.

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Jay
 
I use knives at work, but they won't let us use our own knives, for liability reasons, and the knives they give us seem to be what the acronym POS was invented for.

--JB

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e_utopia@hotmail.com
 
Up until i had a back injury a year ago I used knives every day in my work.
It was actually one of the things I enjoyed most about the job. For now my knife work is recreational throwing of knives and hawks and a little use of a sword to clear the ever encroacking wild berries and roses i the back lot. I'm not sure if I can go back to that kind of work so i'm sure going to miss being able to test my knives in the real world work environment.

[This message has been edited by TomW (edited 06-25-2000).]
 
The answer depends on your definition of "use". I suspect that very few of us have occupations that routinely bring us into contact with entangled wild animals. But, "use" of a knife doesn't have to be so dramatic.

Just opening an envelope is a use of a knife. You can use your finger, but you might easily end up with a paper cut. Furthermore, envelopes that have been torn open with one's finger don't look very neat or professional. In an office where there's an effort being made to keep the environment neat and tidy to impress visitors, where the employees are dressing up etc., "use" of a knife may easily be neatly opening an envelope.

If you've ever received one of those Tyvek envelopes, you know that you'll ever get that thing open with your finger.

Even a stock broker, accountant, or CEO may occationally need to open a package or unwrap something. A handy pocket knife saves valuable time rummaging through drawers looking for some other tool.

If you're in a profession where neat appearance is important, then using your knife to cut a loose thread or to trim a nail easily qualifies as "professional" use of the knife.



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Chuck
Balisongs -- because it don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing!
http://www.balisongcollector.com
 
I use my knife at work everyday. I train horses and work on a farm baling hay and straw. With the horses a good folder, preferibly locking is a necessity. Always needing to cut open bales of hay,packages, and stuff like that. Then once in awhile the **** will hit the fan and you'll get the exciting task of cutting a horse loose from something. Last time that happened was when my friends horse put its head through the fiberglass roof on his horse trailer and ended up lying sideways tangled up in its halter and lead rope.had to cut the halter off to get it out. Halters are made of double layered and stitched heavy nylon webbing. It takes a good knife to cut that stuff effectively,
On the farm where I work, we use a baler that ties with wire. So a multi tool is what I use most. I really like the gerber 600 series. The original gerber was a workhorse too, absolutely bullet proof . The leatherman wave looks pretty cool, but I don't think its heavy duty enough, and I would really miss having a tool where each tool locks open. I can't wait to get a look at the new gator jaws that are coming out from gerber though. The carbide wire cutters would be the best thing since sliced bread since I cut LOTS of wire .

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It'll feel better when it stops hurting.
 
I've worked around boats for many years and have always considered a knife a safety item. The last 5-6 years I've been spending more time in the office doing admin work but I still go into the field occasionally and feel underdressed without a knife.
 
I guess that I am fortunate in that using a knife is a daily routine in my work as a Stagehand, both in general business and as a safety tool.

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James Segura
San Francisco, CA
 
At work- Hah! i work at a Veterans Administration- you can't even have a kubotan, small pocket knife, plastic knife, you name it. Of course nobody knows what our hoptel residents "passing through" may have in their bags. and it could have been interesting when our sleep lab tech found one of the vets red-handed stealing his wallet and id and stuff out of a locker he had broken into. He actually walked into the elevator and got the guy. of course he's Airborne (my friend, not the thief); does knife, stick, shootfighting, all the good stuff. So it may have gone either way in the elevator. Still, I work nights and there are times (Veterans Day, Fourth of July, Memorial Day, Christmas and Valentines Day) when i can definitely see having something a bit blunt to carry around in the darker areas (that's why i have the double-A mag lite on my waistband!). And, DAMMIT, they still keep stealing our lunches out of the refrigerator, but nobody has broken into a locker for a while now.
 
I'm with James, a rigger without a knife is like a fish without a bicycle (or something)
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I'm a computer engineer type. I use an SAK to cut wire, cable ties, tape, boxes, plastics, and paper. I use the other blades to take computers apart an reassemble them. I could be using fingers, scissors, wire cutters, pliers, wrenches, screwdrivers, and a whole set of special purpose tools. As a rule I get the job done in a few seconds with my SAK, much less time than I would spend looking for some other tool.
 
Well, I used some of my folders when I worked as a butcher at my local supermarket. During the summer, I would often work without supervision. It was an eye-opening experience to say the least. I went back to the regular nutcher knives in two days, but it was fun to try out some different knives.
 
I'm a firefighter/emt and use my knife on the job. My use of a knife is rather boring and routine cutting rags,cutting cardboard for the recycling bin things you do around your house we do at the firehouse.At a fire I my cut plastic to cover windows cut out burned sections of carpet and maybe cut open a mattress to get at hidden fire.While I'm at it this cutting seatbelts to free accident victims is wrong! Unless that car is on fire or some other immediate threat to their life do not move them!!Plus the latches are no longer between the door and the seat where a side impact used to cause the belt to trap people.You just don't find people trapped by belts,and if you do an EMT shears is the tool to use in a cramped car full of excited and hurt people .

[This message has been edited by Lone Hunter (edited 06-26-2000).]
 
I use a knife every day for mundane things, open the mail, slice a bagel not like the uses I used to put a knife through when I was in the Navy. I still think of them as tools but to be honest they're TOYS. I've always said, "Boys need Toys!" no matter what their age is.
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"Will work 4 Knives!"
Homepage: http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumList?u=254126
 
I am a commercial fisherman and I use a knife daily at work.I go out for three weeks at a time and I might lose my knife so that is my reason for owning two.My excuse for the other twenty or thirty (and counting) is that I just like the darn things.
 
every dad gum day. and if it doesn't sell, it's mine. ha !

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Visit john@cumberlandknives.com

<A HREF="http://www.cumberland-knives.com" TARGET=_blank>www.cumberland-knives.com
</A>
for all your knife needs.
 
I am a Deputy Sheriff (not a superhero crime fighter TV cop, my job is not like you would see on TV, the ratings would be terrible.) I carry a knife (usually several) every day. I have used my multitools(a gerber multi-lock and now a LM wave) more times than I can remember.
While assigned to the Marine Safety Div- Watercraft patrol, I was assigned a boat that required daily maintanence to run, the Gerber was put to use very often.
I have used a knife, and seen knives used on many occasions,to save lives. Most of these involved suicide attempts via self strangulation (hanging).
I carry a knife (Spyderco Endura) on my weakside, its sole purpose is to insure that I can retain my duty weapon. I am a certified
defensive tactics instructor (but certainly not a tough guy), one thing that became apparent during my training is that the surest method of making a bad guy let go of your weapon is to start slicing his wrist, hands and forearms.
I carry a large folder in my right thigh pocket (the old-timers like my dad call it a sap or blackjack pocket, the new kids call it a pager pocket) usually a BM CQ7 (970 I think), waiting for my SIFU to arrive from discountknives.com.
I carry knives for use in the extreme, but have used them on a daily basis for the mundane, cutting fruit and other food prep, opening boxes.
Off duty I am never without a knife (or three) even though I don't always carry a gun. I don't think a day has gone by that I have not used a knife (or multi-tool) for something, even if it's just fixing a toy for my wonderful daughter.
May you be blessed with peace.
Be Safe,
Chad

 
I'm a cook. Have been for 17 years now (at the same restraunt).
I use knives 8 hours a day. I still carry my EDI genisis. My work knives are used only on food...anything else it's the edi.

There are only a few rules in the kithchen... Don't pi$$-off the cook and don't even touch my knives.

When I first started there I used the kitchen knives (mostly Forchner), now I have a few Japanese sushi knives (great for trimming filet mignon), Japanese veggie knives, a set of tridents...ect.ect.

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~~TOM~~
 
Some people might be surprised how many uses there are for a knife as a tool even in an office type setting. I used to work at the local YMCA at the front desk doing mundane office things like computer data entry, selling memberships, etc. Your basic boring stuff. However, I often found uses for my knives or multi-tool though it was usually opening boxes and the like. One day one of my knives was used to cut a 1/2" rope that was impossible to untie from a piece of equipment in the swimming pool. Couldn't have done that with car keys or scissors. My serrated Delica made short work of it with one easy slice.

Another time, an employee was opening the facility for the day and her key broke off in the lock when she tried to unlock the door. Since the door was still locked we couldn't get in. I had another key, but hers was still stuck in the keyhole. There was only the tiniest piece of metal from the key sticking out so we couldn't get it with our fingers. I said, "no problem" and whipped out my Leatherman Wave. Pulled the broken key out with the pliers in about 3 seconds and we were in. I am convinced that a person may carry a knife every day and may use it for cutting boxes, opening letters, cutting/slicing food, etc. These chores are good uses for a knife, but there's nothing more pleasing than encountering those situations where a knife and only a knife (or multi-tool) can get the job done. It also makes normal people realize how useful knives are. Everyone could benefit from carrying a knife and everyone should carry one!
 
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