What would you do?

Daniel Dorn said:
I'm an accumulator of knives, not a collector. If I end up with a knife I'm afraid to use, I sell/trade it, or give it away. I seriously understand the hesitancy to put it into carry rotation. But, if I like the way a knife looks and imagine it might be fun to use and/or carry, I'll throw it in my pocket.

I've never regretted putting a knife into carry rotation, no matter what I've spent on it, or how "special" it is deemed to be.

Just this past weekend, I put a Silver Dollar into my pocket for daily carry (for keeping my hands busy, when playing with a knife would be taboo). It immediately lost value, just by leaving the plastic holder. But, I already spent the money to buy it, and while it looks pretty sitting in a box in my safe, it is much more interesting to show off, or admire on a daily basis.

Yes, someone took pains to keep that knife pristine for all these years, but maybe they did that so that you could now enjoy it! :D
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Ha, I just started carrying silver too. I used a one ounce bar, but ground off all the sharp edges from minting and polished down part of one side. So it is now less than the troy ounce, but makes for a great worry stone.

But back to the knife thing, I have no problem carrying nicer traditionals. But then I usually use a leather sleeve for the pretty. I'm an "accumulator", but have no safe queens. And I almost always have a "non-traditional" (don't want to be hung for saying the word Modern...crap, just did [emoji12]), on hand for the rougher or dirty work.



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Sent from my mind....using Tap-a-Thought. (tm)
 
Use it. I carry case knifes all the time. I was that way where I was hesitant in using it because I always thought of case as a luxury knife and not one that was to be used every day but after I put it in my pocket I never looked back.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
My two cents, If you could put a $ value on the enjoyment and satisfaction of carrying and using it, would it be more than the $ value of being sold? If not you could consider selling and use the $ for something that had more personal $ value in using, than of actual $ value. (if that makes any sense). Best of luck deciding, if you haven't already done so.
Robert
 
It looks nice. Old, elegant and new. It also looks strong and well built for edc. You have preserved it all these years and I'm sure you have also taken it out of the storage from time to time and held it in your hands and enjoyed it even though you have not used it. I do the same with many of my knives in my (small, humble) collection. If it were mine I would continue preserving it.
 
gunstockjack said:
Trade it to me for a user in the same pattern or something else, but don't mess up that old beauty by carrying/using it... please! :eek::mad::(:eek::confused::grumpy::o
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Barrys got it, if you like the knife - by a good user and sell it to a good guy - like Barry. Barry looks after LOTS of people here so I am sure that everyone would be happy after the deal.
 
Old knives and history don't get love like they used to here.

There is some value to history. There is some value to your children and your children's children etc being able to see and maybe even own well preserved examples of old knives.

It is one knife and not the only one of its kind. But how many are there? Enough for your children to find and collect? Or their children? Lots of well preserved old knives get used up or buffed till they barely resemble their original form like a half melted ice cube. And more and more fakes pour onto eBay. How many good examples are left?

Maybe folks don't care about history anymore. Maybe knives are just pocket jewelry now. Maybe our children won't care either. But I hope they do. And I hope vintage knives and history is preserved for many more generations.

I have used some old knives and I've preserved some. I know you will make a good choice.
 
Discussions like these arise from time to time, but often in relating to "old[er] knives" more generally, or even new but limited ones. I'm enjoying the specificity of this one decision, and the variety of opinions.

waynorth said:
Using the Rodgers would be like eating the last mating pair of Dodos, IMO!!:eek:
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My prime takeaway from this thread, boiled down to its essence:


DO NOT EAT THE LAST PAIR OF MATING DODOS.


I appreciate how the injunction leaves room for nuance in one's decision-making, with implications for further considerations. Is this the last pair of dodos? Are they mating? Do you need to cook and eat them to fully enjoy their presence? Etc.


:D

~ P.
 
I want to thank everyone who has commented here and helped me come to a decision. This thread generated more responses than I expected and the various philosophies have given me plenty to ponder. Each and every post here has been helpful and I truly appreciate the participation and the kind words.

I spent a little time this morning drinking coffee, lubing the joints, and going over my options to make sure that carrying the knife is what I really want to do. It's in my pocket now and ready for its first task. The blades both have a decent edge on them after all those years so I'll leave those alone for now but I'm sure they will get a touch up soon.

I have another knife very similar to this one and its condition is about the same. It's an XX era 22055 with slick black covers like the one Charlie posted a picture of. Pretty close to mint condition. That one will, without a doubt, be kept preserved.

Thanks again, folks. This has been a good experience for me and the knife feels good in my pocket and in my hand. Can't wait for that first cutting task to present itself.
 
supratentorial said:
Old knives and history don't get love like they used to here.

There is some value to history. There is some value to your children and your children's children etc being able to see and maybe even own well preserved examples of old knives.

It is one knife and not the only one of its kind. But how many are there? Enough for your children to find and collect? Or their children? Lots of well preserved old knives get used up or buffed till they barely resemble their original form like a half melted ice cube. And more and more fakes pour onto eBay. How many good examples are left?

Maybe folks don't care about history anymore. Maybe knives are just pocket jewelry now. Maybe our children won't care either. But I hope they do. And I hope vintage knives and history is preserved for many more generations.

I have used some old knives and I've preserved some. I know you will make a good choice.
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I care very much about history. I just have the opposite take on it from you.

My parents filled their house with pristine examples of various antiques. In their minds these things were going to become family heirlooms that would be passed down through the generations because of their age and their quality. Only recently, within the last 5 years or so, have we all come to realize that none of their children want any of that stuff. We have our own stuff. The things that we're interested in are the things that my parents have used, not the things that they've preserved. I don't want my father's finest pocket watch. I'm sure it's a fine piece and an awesome example of some era in history, but it doesn't have any history of it's own. I want the watch that he's carried and used and that I remember him using. The one that he carried at my wedding and at my grandfather's funeral. That's the piece that has history. That's the piece that means something. It's worn and not nearly as fancy and it's infinitely more beautiful.

I see an unused knife as a unwrapped present. It's the toy that's kept in it's packaging because it's collectible. It's untapped potential. It's not beautiful, it's sad. Keeping a knife pristine is the equivalent of waking up Christmas morning and not opening your presents because you want to preserve the potential for anything being inside.

If we all took the knives out of our safes and rolls and used them and shared them with people that could use them they'd have a history of their own that our children and their children would be much more likely to care about. I have knives squirreled away that I don't plan on ever using. I can't speak for anybody else, but for myself it's pure materialism. There is no point in me having them other than my own desire to own objects. I recognize this and have been working on passing them along to people that will use them. I try very hard to fight my inner desire to be materialistic. I fail at times, but I haven't yet given up the fight.

I do recognize and appreciate your point of view, however. Like I said, I grew up in a house where antiques in unused condition held a lot of value. I can look at a collection of rare and unused knives and appreciate that they I'd never have the chance to see those knives if nobody had squirreled them away. I just appreciate the ones with history more than the ones that are history. It doesn't mean that I care less about history, in fact in my mind it means I care more about history. The knives I use are impregnated with meaning and purpose and eventually they build up a history. The ones I don't use are the ones that are just jewelry.

Like I said, I appreciate your point of view and I appreciate that people like you exist. I think that we're all better for you lot being with us. I just hate to see every other point of view dismissed as being something less valuable. If it weren't for the users the collectors would have nothing to collect. We'd do well to remember that.
 
Well said Cory. Plus, I would've been out of a job as an archaeologist in my younger days. It's the users not the safe queens that gives us an insight into culture.

Alan
 
Cory Hess said:
I care very much about history. I just have the opposite take on it from you.

My parents filled their house with pristine examples of various antiques. In their minds these things were going to become family heirlooms that would be passed down through the generations because of their age and their quality. Only recently, within the last 5 years or so, have we all come to realize that none of their children want any of that stuff. We have our own stuff. The things that we're interested in are the things that my parents have used, not the things that they've preserved. I don't want my father's finest pocket watch. I'm sure it's a fine piece and an awesome example of some era in history, but it doesn't have any history of it's own. I want the watch that he's carried and used and that I remember him using. The one that he carried at my wedding and at my grandfather's funeral. That's the piece that has history. That's the piece that means something. It's worn and not nearly as fancy and it's infinitely more beautiful.

I see an unused knife as a unwrapped present. It's the toy that's kept in it's packaging because it's collectible. It's untapped potential. It's not beautiful, it's sad. Keeping a knife pristine is the equivalent of waking up Christmas morning and not opening your presents because you want to preserve the potential for anything being inside.

If we all took the knives out of our safes and rolls and used them and shared them with people that could use them they'd have a history of their own that our children and their children would be much more likely to care about. I have knives squirreled away that I don't plan on ever using. I can't speak for anybody else, but for myself it's pure materialism. There is no point in me having them other than my own desire to own objects. I recognize this and have been working on passing them along to people that will use them. I try very hard to fight my inner desire to be materialistic. I fail at times, but I haven't yet given up the fight.

I do recognize and appreciate your point of view, however. Like I said, I grew up in a house where antiques in unused condition held a lot of value. I can look at a collection of rare and unused knives and appreciate that they I'd never have the chance to see those knives if nobody had squirreled them away. I just appreciate the ones with history more than the ones that are history. It doesn't mean that I care less about history, in fact in my mind it means I care more about history. The knives I use are impregnated with meaning and purpose and eventually they build up a history. The ones I don't use are the ones that are just jewelry.

Like I said, I appreciate your point of view and I appreciate that people like you exist. I think that we're all better for you lot being with us. I just hate to see every other point of view dismissed as being something less valuable. If it weren't for the users the collectors would have nothing to collect. We'd do well to remember that.
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Based on what you've said, I'm not sure that you do appreciate my point of view. You express interest in personal history. That's also very important to me. We can both agree about that.

I know that my opinion about old knives and history is a minority opinion here. To be honest, I find this entire subject depressing.
 
Wow Cory incredible post. I must agree with you although I have never thought about things in that way. As I think about it the things I have inherited in my life that I still have and are valuable to me are the things that those who passed them down used and were a part of their everyday life. Thanks for sharing my friend.
 
I'm in the don't eat the dodos camp. I understand the personal history value argument. When my grandfather died, everyone one wanted the old staw hat he wore . Nobody cared about all the new Stetsons he never wore. My question is , how many generations have to pass before the sentimental / personal value depreciates to " who cares" . I'm sure the kids will have a connection/ value with some of my knives . Perhaps their children too. Once I'm no longer here to make the relationships , the value drops to " I wish this old knife was mint"
 
Use it! It is meant to be used and enjoyed, otherwise it is ignored like a pebble in the garden.
 
Txjohn said:
I'm in the don't eat the dodos camp. I understand the personal history value argument. When my grandfather died, everyone one wanted the old staw hat he wore . Nobody cared about all the new Stetsons he never wore. My question is , how many generations have to pass before the sentimental / personal value depreciates to " who cares" . I'm sure the kids will have a connection/ value with some of my knives . Perhaps their children too. Once I'm no longer here to make the relationships , the value drops to " I wish this old knife was mint"
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Personally, the history I was talking about wasn't so much my personal history as the object's personal history. In this case it's the knife's personal history. While it would be great if all old knives had a history that was known to me with a person I had a relationship with, having it's secrets doesn't make that history worthless much less a negative.

I am enthralled by old used knives, whether I know how/by whom they were used or not. I like looking at Lyle's old farmer jacks and thinking about how that knife provided for a family. There was somebody out there that used that knife to put dinner on the table every night. It would be really neat to find out who it was and what exactly they did, but it's still really interesting that the knife itself has this history. I like looking at Charlie's old barlows and thinking about the kids playing mumbly-peg in the schoolyard with those old knives. I like looking at old jackknives and thinking about how many times somebody pulled that old thing out and saved the day in 100 different ways over the last 70 or 80 years. whwhittier recently posted some pictures of an old hunting knife that looks like it brought home enough food to feed a small city over the years. I don't look at any of those knives and think "I wish this old knife was mint".

I also really enjoy looking at pristine knives. I love looking at the way they were constructed years ago. I like looking at the cover material and getting as close as possible to seeing what it looked like when it was new from the factory. This puts context to the used knives I admire, as I wouldn't know how they had aged without knowing how they looked when they were new. Whenever I see a new knife my first thought goes to what that knife would look after being carried for a couple of decades. I like to invest in knives that will improve as they age. Seeing old knives with similar covers in pristine condition and then worn condition gives me a good idea of what these new knives will become. In this sense used and pristine are a yin and yang, one without the other is incomplete. The knives I've enjoyed looking at the most are ones that chronicle a history. I recently got to see a collection of mint Robesons that chronicled all of the innovations of that manufacturer. It was awesome to see those old knives in such great shape. I've had a similar experience with collections that chronicle the history of a pattern. It can be awe inspiring.

Overall though, a knife that has sat in a box for decades is broken. It's missing it's life. Instead of seeing a knife as something that comes out of the factory new and deteriorates as it gets used, I see it as something that is born in the factory and lives through it's usage. An old knife in pristine condition is a knife that's never gotten to live. It's saving the dodo from the dinner table just to sacrifice it to the taxidermist's knife. Sure it's preserved, but it's species is still extinct.

I don't seek these knives out, and for that reason I've only obtained one knife that had any age to it and was still in pristine condition. I sent it on to a collector that I know appreciates such things and would keep it unused. It's not my preference for my collection, but I still respect and admire those who do prefer it. He was able to send back one that was not in such good condition and I was able to drop that one in my pocket. Win-win. He got a near perfect example and I got a knife with some history to it.

I hope that this post hasn't offended anybody, as that's really not my intent. I also don't intend to belittle anybody's preference for collecting. I'm merely trying to express my viewpoint. I apologize in advance for anything that looks as if it's to the contrary and ask you to trust that it appears that way due to my lack of skill in conveying myself properly, and not due to my lack of respect for anybody else.
 
Cory, I guess I didn't understand your meaning . Hope I didn't offend as well . That being said , in the case of a 52 yr old unused knife . Isn't its history being an unused knife? Why change it after all these years?
 
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John, no worries at all. I've thoroughly enjoyed this conversation. That's some food for thought. History is a record of what didn't happen as much as what did. Two knives roll out of a factory, one destined to be worn down to a nub and the other destined for the museum case. Is one use more valid than the other? I've never considered that viewpoint, and therefore I don't have an answer for you. Something to think about.
 
I'll throw a wrench in...

My dad is a huge genealogy nut. He spends hours researching, planning, speaking to other genealogy nuts, driving for hours to walk through a random cemetery to take pictures of headstones, and even sending in blood samples to get DNA results.

I personally am bored out of my mind on the subject. The countless conversations I sit through to learn what he has learned is only accomplished because I love the guy. However, I hope to inherit his work, not because I may one day pick it up or even find interest in, but because it is what he values and finds joy in.

I often wish my ancestors accumulated knives, guns, books, and other things I am interested in. How amazing would it be to have a knife that reached back 100-120 years that had been in the family the hole time. Or, even a relatively young Smith & Wesson 66 3'. My point is the value of an inanimate object is relative and a persons defining terms of value is subjective.

There is a value, beyond monetary, to the knife that has been preserved. There is value in those that seek to do this and carry not only the desire to do so but the effort and responsibility to carry it out.

There is value in those that see a knife as a tool, meant to be used as a tool, and use it just for it's original creation.

There is value to the ones who see an attachment to a developed story with an aged user. Especially if that use was done by a family member or friend.

There is value in the individual who rescues those users and cleans them up or modifies them for a new and fresh start.

There is value in the knife enabler, salesman, historian, preserver, user, and those who create and contribute to discussions such as this.

In short the dilemma here is only one variable to the grand big picture of the hobby and we each have our own perspective of it.

However, think it of this way: what if we all had the same perspective and take on the subject? Let's say we were all users. Then there would be no minty diamonds in grandpa's closet to find. Let's say we were all preservers. Then there would be no historical timeline to associate to grandpa's use, no reason to even have modern production as the tool aspect is removed.

The hobby needs all the individual types of perspective to continue.

Now back to the question...:D. Would I use it?

No, I would have traded it to Charlie for a user...:eek::D
 
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