Were does it end?

in all honesty hopefully the love of knives and the love of trying new models or types and the sharing of your love and knowledge of this we all seem to have a passion for ... hopefully never ends ... it just evolves into us learning more not only what we like and use but how to share it with everyone that joins in our little block party ... and whether you're still buying 10 plus knives a year or only 1 ... we can all still enjoy all that goes with it
 
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I go through life trying new hobbies. I tend to be obsessive. Some don't stick around, others might take some time off. Seems like not the knives.

I'm 45 and always played with knives as a kid but for some reason my recollection is not so good before I was 18 when I bought what I call my first "real knife". It was a Spyderco Police with VG10 and a very thick grind which I quickly sold for a black G-10 and ATS-34/flat grind. I kept and used that knife exclusively many years until I saw an Emerson CQC-7 during a trip and I bought it right there on the spot. I still remember the rush. I used that knife for many years as my exclusive EDC with no problems until I joined the forums.

I researched and learned how to keep my knives sharp as well.

Then I learned what a "mid tech" is and I went through many of the usual suspects, trying to get the "perfect" combination of colors, finishes, blade types, lengths and shapes...

Then 1, 3 or 5 were not enough and I had a "collection", although never too large (around 6-8). My tastes became more refined with time. I knew what I liked and disliked. I narrowed my hunt.

I'm at a point where I'm keeping only 2 folders. A custom Pena (my first customer ever) and what I consider is the best production knife I've had which is a Shirogorov Hati.

This has been a 30 year ordeal as you see but the last 8 years have been my most active.

Now I have to keep it at 2 folder max. A smaller one and a longish one. That fits my idea of "collection" as I have a knife for all my applications (I have a 5.5'' Bradford fixed blade for camping/backpacking) and I'm a user.

The journey is not over even though I cannot have any "better" knives. I know down the road I'll see something that sparks my attention, although this time will be a custom. Once you drive a Ferrari you don't want to drive anything else?

We all find a way to justify it. We also need to find reasons/ways to corner the addiction or obsession and set boundaries. I think that I don't have that much space to play with anymore, which is good!!

Enjoy responsibly ;-)
 
It will never end. Mine has evolved, slowed, grew, morphed but it will never end. Im satisfied with folders at the moment. Ive moved on to small fixed blades. Next will probably be larger fixed blades. Then im sure back to folders.
The key is to pace yourself. For me its been a life long addiction. I try to limit the purchases to certain times a year. Basically quarterly and birthday and after Christmas. I try. Keep in your mind that its not a race to the finishnline but a journey.
 
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scottyj said:
It doesn't. It all comes full circle. Even if you sell off every knife you own the collecting/wanting sucks you back in. It may take a little while, but it happens. Slowly at first, and then gradually picks up speed. One day you will wake up, and realize that you have amassed another collection. Usually similar to the first one. Its a vicious cycle, and it haunts all of us. If you don't sell, and rebuy, but just grow your existing collection I feel its like being a drug addict.......looking for the next high. You get a hard on for a blade, and jones for it. Once you get it you are good/happy for a little while......then the novelty wears off, and you are searching for the next fix. Even with these so called "grails" that we hunt.......once acquired the high eventually wears off, and we are on the hunt again. Its an addiction, and its not an easy one to quit.............Lord knows I've tried.
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PREACH!!!!
 
For me full circle is different. I tend to try to share. O get gifted a lot of knives and in turn I gift them to people who potentially have an interest in knives or I know who doesn't care about knives but happens to have a crappy daily user.

My rule is I only gift knives that I respect and in turn I keep a small collection of forever knives like stuff from my wife, my regular edcs and some special selections that I like bc of size, shape or steel.

Sometimes I get in trouble though and give away my edcs. When that happens I take stock of how I'm using knives and try to start over again. But Im pretty sure I'm finished with hoarding 30 to 50 knoces at a clip.

Like I have a mnandi with an Oct 31 (Halloween) birth date that one is a forever keeper.
 
Eventually my taste in knives gets so specific that most models don’t excite me. There are lots of knives I think would be neat to own if I had unlimited money but I know what I can afford and what I’m really looking for in a knife so that seriously narrows down the options. Would I love to own a Rockstead and a traditional Katana, you bet. But that’s beyond my means.

Problem is that now I end up getting multiples of models I love. Or even worse you could start getting into true customs built to your specification.
 
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It won't stop if you're really into knives. But it can slow way down when you figure out what you like. Then very few new knives will meet your criteria.
 
Hi Mike. I can definitely empathize with you and ask myself the same questions when I purchase yet another knife that I “want” but really don’t need. I’ve now built a 200+ collection of really good knives and try to limit my buying to only one knife every four or five months. That said, when I see something I’m really interested in I kind of ruminate about it so much that I end up ordering it. So I ask myself what is compelling me to buy more and more. I love my collection but it’s a pretty solidary experience because none of my friends “get the knife thing”. But I’ve decided to not feel guilty about indulging in a hobby that brings me joy. I don’t golf, buy expensive watches, wine, or clothes so at least I can sell off the collection if I tire of it. There’s also a lot of good information on the Web discribing why it feels good for people like us to buy knives (or whatever).
https://www.moneycrashers.com/psychological-triggers-cause-spending/
 
Hey atleast you’re not addicted to drugs or alcohol. Good job! Sounds like you deserve another knife as a reward!
 
Sometimes I try to talk myself out of certain knife purchases. Hoping that I'll snap out of it and realize that my collection is more than enough for any human. But it's not enough. It's never enough. So I tell myself to shut up and order the knife. And so I shut up and order the knife.

Like most of us here , my tastes are becoming more pin-pointed. I know exactly what I like at this stage. And although my moods for certain types of knives may fluctuate , I always come back to my main criteria : large Ti frame lock , non-flipper w/ stainless blade.

As a matter of fact , I have a new Large Sebenza 21 w/ CGG arriving tomorrow that I "don't need" but "must have". The cycle continues.
 
adamlau said:
It pauses, or slows to a trickle with major life events (getting married, having children, buying a new home), or can stop completely with the advent of a new hobby (firearms, watches, new girlfriend). Or not. Basically, you stop/slow/start based on your current desires/responsibilities and available discretionary income.
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I agree it never stops but it may tapper off for a bit like in my case. The bug started for me at 10 when I found a Lion lock blade at my brothers football game. I collected knifes in to my late teens then came girls, cars, Snow boarding, other hobby's then marriage. I'm in my 50's now and about a year ago my 12 year old son discovered my old box of knifes and in the moments while explaining to him about the different lock types and blade shapes I saw a spark light up in his eyes. That spark reignited my old passion once again in a big way. Now that most of my kids are grown and I have more cash in my pocket I figure after a 30 year break it's time for daddy to buy himself some toys of his own and pass the old ones down to my son who appreciates them. Tonight i'm going to search threw some boxes in the attic to try to find my fathers boot knife he had in Korea and an old Buck 110 I found in my home room desk in high school. The addition never ends but it may smolder for a while and if your on this board chances are your addicted already.
 
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