What knife started the addiction and do you still have it?

I had a couple of Old Timers, but it wasn't until my mid teens in the 80's when the knife bug hit. I no longer have it, but it was the good'ol hollow handle survival knife with compass that, surprisingly survived my adventures!

2004_survival_knife.jpg


My first real folding knife was in the early 90's and I had just graduated college, commissioned a 2LT and after a tour to Korea, I was heading to the land of the Air Borne at Fort Bragg. One of the popular Benchmade-Emerson collaborations, the CQC-7. I have both my first handgun and that Benchmade:



I did have a Gerber Mk II that I gifted a good friend, but my first real fixed blade was a Busse Steel Heart II that I purchased from a Shomer Tec magazine :D




ROCK6
 
My 1st quality knife was a SAK my dad gave me as a kid
My first "expensive" knife was a Benchmade Griptillian, that I lost to the sea.
And while I did always own a knife, usually a $15-30 variety type, neither of those 2 inspired the "addiction". The SAK being a childhood gift, and the grip being more of a "spend money because I can" thing in my 20's, I remained ignorant until I bought that Blur... Something about that one, the "speedsafe" assist, the "nitrogen steel", the ergonomics, it sent me down a spiraling path of curiosity, wanting to know and experience more, from which there as has been no signs of any return any time soon.
 
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Riz! said:
The blur is actually a fantastic knife. If someone told me that I could only ever have a blur, I’de be good with it.
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There for a while I was collecting them like pokemon. Every new model, old discontinued models, had quite a few... I have since given up that quest and sold all of them off save for 4...
The OG-OD green one that started it all
A BDZ tanto with tiger stripes
An ELMAX version, and a 2nd ELMAX version to one day give to my son, Max...
 
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I had various slip joints - Buck, Old Timer etc until I purchased a Spyderco Caly 3 in 2006. I am up to around 70 now along with a bunch of customs I have purchased off the sales forum here on Blade forums. Screwed up and bought some machetes from one of the custom makers and I’ve got - geez - I don’t even know how many, maybe 45-50? My father in law gave me his old Boy Scout axe - nice boys axe that was pretty beat up that I refurbished and rehafted - I’m up to 4 - 5 gallon buckets of heads (probably around 100) and 20-25 that I have refurbished/rehafted. I have that Caly 3 from 2006 and Bladeforums to thank for that.
 
Fully serrated Spyerdo Delica clip-it from 1996. It was stolen out of my vehicle about 8 years ago. :(
 
Mercator. I actually bought one from Field And Stream when I was a teenager over 50 years ago. It was advertised as a "German survival kit knife".
Even back then as a kid, I noticed that the carbon steel took and held an edge better than my other knives.
Bought one again years later and that primed the pump for a years long addiction.
I have things under control now. I can stop anytime. ;)
 
I recall having one or two SAK knockoffs when I was young. One of them had the tip butchered by my father in an attempt to make it safer. Then I got my hands in legit Victorinox SAKs (the Rucksak was one of the first I recall). In my 14th birthday my uncle gifted me a Mora Cazorla (bowie style, stag handle, leather sheath). I keep the knife, the sheath I have no idea where it is.

BUT the first decent one hand opening folder I bought was the SPYDERCO CENTOFANTE III (before that was a United Cutlery Colt AR15, which is not THAT bad but the lock is not reliable any more). I really wanted an Endura but I couldn't find it locally. Soon after that I found out about Ebay and the overseas buying... and it was downhill from there.

I have sold or traded one or two knives, but that's about it. I am a hoarder. Once I acquire a knife... I don't part with them. Ever.

Mikel
 
In my family, when the kid is ”in the oven” there are conversations about their first long gun, pistol & knife. So I can’t remember.
 
Back in the 1970's I used my dad's penknives, he was an engineer and ex Forces (REME) so taught me to use tools/sharp things from 7-8. But the 2 knives I loved from then and still have them are my grandads WW2 issued British Army penknife and my dad's army issued Golok. Loved tools and knives ever since.
 
It all started with matchbox cars. I would walk to the toy store and look at the turntable display just about every day. Fast-forward a couple of years, and I started doing the same thing with the K-bar display at the hardware store. Saved up my paper route money and bought a K-bar 1100 Stockman. Then I had to have the trapper, then the scout-style knife.... That original 1100 is gone, but I have a replacement, and I still have the scout style knife. Basically the paper route bought knives for a few years..
 
I had two older brothers and when I was younger, I do recall having a few hand-me down production slip joint style knives from the likes of Imperial, Schrade or Case. However, I didn't hold on to any of them.

When I was in 8th grade (1975), I joined my local Boy Scout Troop and for Christmas I received my first knife. A Case 5" fixed blade knife (316-5 SSP) with a stacked leather handle and aluminum guard and butt cap. The blade looks very similar to the one above posted by Daniel W Daniel W .

A few years later in high school during the late 70's the Buck 110 Folding Hunter was a very popular knife and I had quite a few friends and classmates that had them. My older brother also had one of those 70's era Gerber Sportsman Folding knives, https://www.allaboutpocketknives.com/catalog/gerber-knives/36533-gerber-folding-sportsman-ii but I decided I wanted something a little different and picked out a drop point Kershaw Folding Field Knife (1050).

DSC01028-vi.jpgDSC01027-vi.jpg
 
sgt1372 said:
I started collecting knives about 5 years ago when buying/selling guns & ammo was starting to become a real PITA.

The initial impetus was to replace a Kershaw Shallot 1840CKT that I lost some years earlier.

iu


My collection has since gone way beyond that.

T1zg9k7.jpg
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That's Alot of Shallots 👍👍
...get it ? 😆
Enjoying the thread, btw
I'll come back when I recall which 'One' started it all for muah'
Cheers!!🍻
B.T.B 😎
 
I have a few knives bought 25 or so years ago (including a big, black Spyerco "Police"), but they were by no means a collection.

The real madness began a year ago with this Kizer "Guru" . . .
11.10 kwfr.jpg
Since then, I've been buying about two a month. Keeps me off the streets and out of the saloons.
 
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