Where Do I Go From Here?

B

BK14

Joined
Sep 13, 2016
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449
Alright everyone, a bit of a deeper topic here. I’ve loved knives for a long time, and am always looking for the next best thing. Well now I think I’ve found it. My Sebenza has made me want to stop carrying every other modern folder. I carry Emerson for hard work, and GEC when I’m feeling a slipjoint, but for regular EDC, it’s just the small Insingo. I have found that I am not a rotation kind of guy. I pick a knife and carry it almost exclusively for months or years. I’m looking forward to carrying this Sebenza for the foreseeable future. It was a really meaningful gift, and I’m looking forward to making it my companion for at least the next few years. So there is the conundrum! Do I just stop buying knives now? I was thinking of going to Blade Show, but don’t really see the point if I don’t want to buy a new EDC. Has anyone else ran into this, and how did you refocus the hobby, after you were done searching for the next best thing? Sorry for the long post, but if you made it through, I look forward to hearing your thoughts.
 
GermanyChris said:
Since it was a gift just carry it until you feel the need to replace it, knives are just things but gifts are precious.
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This is a great way to look at it! I’ve wanted a CRK for years and my parents got this for me for my 18th birthday, as a welcome to adulthood. They’re totally fine with me buying or carrying anything I choose, but I don’t know if I’ll be able to pick better pocket company for my college years, and the fact that it was a special gift from them makes it even better.
 
Come on now, you can't live life just carrying one knife. You have to experience others for what they have to offer. I own CRKs myself, but find myself carrying many other different knives. Try looking around at another knife that you like and give it a whirl. Variety is the spice of life my friend!
 
BK14 said:
This is a great way to look at it! I’ve wanted a CRK for years and my parents got this for me for my 18th birthday, as a welcome to adulthood. They’re totally fine with me buying or carrying anything I choose, but I don’t know if I’ll be able to pick better pocket company for my college years, and the fact that it was a special gift from them makes it even better.
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If it's your thing roll with it it's not going to go bad and you have more important things to worry about right now. There will always be new knives but screw up college, military, or your job will have much longer term effect.
 
I have found knives that definately become the focus and push others out of my pocket or that I enjoy using so much others get less use for awhile ...

I think of it as a good thing you're finding out enough about knives and what you like and what works best for you ...

So I would say carry the knife use it ...it doesn't mean you can't or that you won't use your other knives ... but it should be kind of a nice feeling to find a knife that you feel checks all the boxes so to say ...

I recently took the plunge on an Umnumzaan ... and have been kicking myself for waiting so long to get it ...and carry it so much that there are now 2 Umnumzaans and there are almost the perfect carry folder for me ... at least at this point in my life ...

by summer there will be others that find their way back in more usage but it feels great to have found the Umnumzaan and be so pleased with it.
 
91bravo said:
Come on now, you can't live life just carrying one knife. You have to experience others for what they have to offer. I own CRKs myself, but find myself carrying many other different knives. Try looking around at another knife that you like and give it a whirl. Variety is the spice of life my friend!
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You are so right! Well I do have a GEC Micarta Oregon Trapper that should be here today or tomorrow, and the new Tactical Kwaiken from Emerson looks awesome...
 
JJ_Colt45 said:
I have found knives that definately become the focus and push others out of my pocket or that I enjoy using so much others get less use for awhile ...

I think of it as a good thing you're finding out enough about knives and what you like and what works best for you ...

So I would say carry the knife use it ...it doesn't mean you can't or that you won't use your other knives ... but it should be kind of a nice feeling to find a knife that you feel checks all the boxes so to say ...

I recently took the plunge on an Umnumzaan ... and have been kicking myself for waiting so long to get it ...and carry it so much that there are now 2 Umnumzaans and there are almost the perfect carry folder for me ... at least at this point in my life ...

by summer there will be others that find their way back in more usage but it feels great to have found the Umnumzaan and be so pleased with it.
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This is exactly what I have been feeling!
 
This thread needs a pic
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Yeah, it's pretty normal to get infatuated with a new knife. I end up carrying a knife for months, then switch, for months. If I'm not feeling something anymore I sell it or put it away until it gets exclusive pocket time again. Anyway, even if you think the CRK is your forever life companion knife, you can always get another one (different blade, handle, etc.).

And I think at some point you'll be searching for the next best thing. Generally, tastes change, lifestyle changes, job changes, etc. I carried a much bigger and heavier folder when I was working. Now that I am back in school I carry one folder at school (small) and a bigger one outside of school.

Don't overthink it too much - I do the same thing a lot of the time.
 
Agreed ...

2018-03-09 12.39.20.jpg

And rest easy ... it's not incurable ... there comes the day when another knife will peak your interest or an old friend you already have seems to be exactly what you need that day.
 
Reate is all the rage right now. Completely different open/close, but indeed different.

When I start thinking about why I love/hate the axis and compression locks, I realize I could never just carry Benchmade or Spyderco, let alone one knife to rule them all.
 
These are things that only you can decide. If you're happy with carrying the same knife all the time and don't want to have a "collection", then that's what's right for you.

On the other hand, I like to carry something different - variety is the spice of life for me. I have several knives in my current EDC rotation (see below), and I frequently carry other knives just to check them out. None of my carry knives have great sentimental value, or that might cause me to think differently.
 
i carried the same edc for about 12 years, until it had pretty much given up.

I picked up a Kershaw Injection for a song and carried it for a few months - then came across a Kizer for a good price and thats my carry now.....for the foreseeable future.

but I aint done. knives just arent EDC, there's kitchen, butchering, fillet, field dressing, skinning, kitchen again, yard work, house work, etc, and so on - so now, you don't stop buying....but I don't go around buying knives I don't plan to use, either.
 
My bet is that you will eventually feel a need to change things up a bit. This is not the end of your knife buying days. By no means am I saying you will want to replace your Sebenza. I am saying you may eventually feel like trying something else for a bit.
 
Oh... I was approaching the question from a philosophical standpoint.

Buy whatever puts lead in your pencil.
 
Depending on the size of your collection can start off by selling the ones that you never carry. What I did recently will sell off five knives from each category that I have and use that money to purchase new knives to keep the hobby going. Do not invest any money out of pocket just use the money that you recycled from knives that you sold. I started doing that And bought a few expensive knives with that money. This system works for me.
 
I'm not a rotation guy either, and there isn't anything wrong with that. I bought my edc in Dec of 2010, and have carried it every day since then, with no thoughts of replacement.

turns out, I'm not a collector. I like knives, but really only for what they do/let me do. So when I find a need for a type of knife, I research, and eventually buy something. If that fits my needs well, I really see no need to get another. If it doesnt, I'll do more research, and find something that does work.

That's not to say that collecting is bad at all. Just saying its important to learn what you value and why, and not to feel bad if that isn't buying/acquiring/collecting lots of knives.

Congrats on the CRK :).
 
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