What do you guys use your knife for?

Bobadilla004 said:
I'm writing a speech for my class and it's about how knives are not generally used for violence, like most people think, and I wanted to know what you guys use them for.
Click to expand...

Well now that's a mighty tall task. Lots of luck with doing that, and maybe inspiring a few to buy knives as well.

Let's see now. I use and carry a wide variety of knives in my daily routines. I use my SAKs for basic cutting, trimming with the scissors, using the screwdrivers for loose screws, opening cans with the can opener when the proper one is broken. I've used folding utility knives for shaving and cutting drywall. I've used my bowie knives for cutting down rogue trees and bushes that have no business being there, and for garden management. I carry a boot knife in the event of getting involved in a car accident and I'm left hanging upside down. On winter days when car doors are frozen shut I've used the BK3 to help break the freeze so they could be opened and the cars started.
 
hudak said:
The majority of non-kitchen knives probably don't do much besides collect dust.
Click to expand...

I'm sorry, I think I read that post of yours wrong. Would you like to run that by us again, just so there's no misunderstandings going on?
 
Cutting stuff
Opening the mail
Trimming my nails
Cooking
Deterring hostiles
Shaving kindling
Eating


Nothing fancy really.
 
Amongst hundreds of other things, I find myself stabbing a larger hole in my Starbucks lid, so the caffeine can get to my system faster,, beer bong effect
 
COOLEST USE!

I cut my third child's umbilical cord with my Les George VECP. The midwife handed me scissors, I didnt accept them and then whipped out the old pocket knife and cut the cord.



WORK RELATED

I cut down the body of a dude that committed suicide by hanging himself, cut deployed airbags out of cars so they can be driven, cut seatbelt, opened ammo boxes, as a carbon scraper, cut duct tape, open printer paper boxes, cut open chem light packages (good luck doing that with just your fingers while wearing gloves, the list goes on...


AT HOME

my pocket knives are used literally every day for all the other general EDC uses.



AS A WEAPON

I have been carrying a folder since was in elementary school (it was a SAK then) and NEVER have I used a knife as a weapon.
 
Last edited:
Coolest use for me was probably using the glass breaker and belt cutter on my BM Triage to get somebody out of a flipped car in the mountains. Another was using my Leatherman and the wire from a spiral notebook to fix a broken tire chain on a trip to Tahoe.

I get a lot of daily use out of my EDC knives. A major factor is that my house turned 85 this year and there's plenty of work to do to keep the place in one piece. They've gotten a particularly hard workout in the last few weeks as the unusually heavy rain here in LA has exposed a lot of cracks in the armor. My guestroom is a particularly sore spot, as it has a tiled patio above it instead of a real roof, and I spent a few hours rigging tarps over it to keep the rain out, which meant lots of paracord cutting.
 
Good luck on your speech. The way I see it is what a knife is, depends on who is holding it. Many people classify a knife as a weapon, a knife in the hands of master chef is not a weapon, it is a tool used for the creation of culinary art, and something delicious. In the hands of an EMT/Police officer who is cutting a seatbelt to free someone from a collision it is a tool used to save lives. A custom knife maker(not all but some) makes a piece of art, not a weapon. A knife in the hands of a thug or criminal is, yes, probably a weapon. In my hands, it is a tool used for everyday tasks, which does not include shanking people.

Without the primitive knife where would we be today? Hint, you probably wouldn't have an i-thing or idiot box around.

I really can't list another use not covered.
 
I do think you should talk about how the knife is a simple tool, an acute wedge which is used to cut things. As Cow mentioned, the blade has made a huge contribution to human evolution and it should be an aspect of your project.
 
I work as an eye care professional and use a folder at the office all the time. Cutting open boxes from the lab is common. Oh, the other day, one of our doctors told me he used a Gerber MP-600 Scout multi-tool to cut a patient's frame so he could remove the lens. Happened on my day off. He was very pleased with himself.


I also could go on and list the same info as others have above but I guess the most important thing I should say is that I consider my pocket knife a tool, not a weapon.
I don't even like the thought of using one for self defense. I don't want to get that close to my opponent.
 
I tape my knife to a stick, then spear wild game. Then I use the same knife to clean the wild game. This is followed by cutting the meat into proper sized steaks. Then I cook the meat, using the knife as my flipping utensil. When I eat, the knife cuts it into bite sized pieces. I use the knife to remove meat from between my teeth. Lastly I cut open the toilet paper wrapper. Its a whole cycle with the knife.
 
I primarily use my knives to open the boxes that contain new knives, thus perpetuating the endless cycle of knife and debt. :)
 
So many tasks where to start? We have a mixed good recycling bin (aluminum, paper/cardboard, plastic) so I take care to break down all garbage other than pretty much foodstuffs and Styrofoam. Gives me a lot of cutting and sharpening not to mention the actual trash bin only has to go out every other week, at most. Plus the usual stuff such as food prep, opening packages & blister packs, plenty of yard work (when and if spring comes), and even the occasional shave. And the gross things such as cutting off callouses, hang nail, etc..
 
Odd uses-
A Case folding knife I found out 4wheeling scaled old paint off of house trim on many house paintings.
My fixed blade camping knife served as a cathole digger.

Normal uses- opening mail, cutting threads off clothing, opening blister pack packaging, cutting insulation off wires, cutting string, etc
 
The usual stuff now; opening mail and boxes, opening pet food bags, cutting plants and flowers, cutting off an item that is "locked" onto a display peg at the hardware store to buy it without asking for someone to open the lock, opening all sorts of packaging, scraping stuff like paint, emergency finger nail trimming, cutting sticks, splitting small diameter wood for a fire, cutting fishing line, skinning or field dressing animals, occasionally cutting carpet or trimming a piece of linoleum, cutting tape, punching holes in aluminum flashing and occasionally cutting it, scoring a guide line to saw something when I don't have a pencil handy, gripping little adhesive tabs to remove, opening HVAC return panels, scoring drywall to cut, cutting rope and cordage, widening a hole.... this list goes on and on. I use a knife daily and would miss it considerably if I didn't have one available for my cutting tasks.
 
Let's see today alone. Used my small Buck 342 to open a can of Copenhagen. Used my Spyderco Manix to cut up some cardboard boxes. Used my Benchmade mini-Barrage to cut pieces of hose to make bushings (long story).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top