why do you collect?

matt1987

matt1987

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Nov 2, 2009
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i was reading the thread "how much do you spend on knives" and i was wondering what makes you collect knives? to me a knife is like a pair of good boots, i wear them until they fall apart. a good quality knife would most likely last someone decades if they take care of it. in my eyes all anyone really needs is one everyday carry pocket knife, a few fixed blades of various sizes, an axe, and some kind of multi-tool. preferably all with lifetime warranties. (i apologize if i sound like your wives hehe)

maybe it's just a "newbie" to the knife world outlook i have right now. i understand collections(...addictions) i personally collect gold and silver coins. i love the art work, the history, having a relic from the past and of course the rising value of gold and silver in this economic slump.

so, what makes you have a fascination with knives?
 
I have multiple knives because I like having options. Depending what I wear and where I am going, I can choose what to carry. If I know I will be doing heavy cutting tasks that day, I will carry a fully serrated Tenacious. Otherwise, I like to carry my Small Sebenza. Both of these knives will probably serve me a long time, but I am always up for trying new things. That's why I buy and sell knives.

Maybe the knife you have now is good, but you won't know if the next knife you try will be even better if you don't try it. Some times more than one knife feels good in your hands. This is how I started collecting knives.

I can probably get away with just carrying my Leatherman Squirt or Victorinox Classic for all of my daily cutting tasks, but that's not going to stop me from carrying larger blades.
 
Right now I keep seeing a new "need" for a different size or shape blade. Most of us tell ourselves that it's just until we find the right one, but that never seems to happen. For instance, right now I "need" a small fixed blade and a large slicer. And a hawkbill. And a carbon steel traditional folder.

And of course a lot of that same things you mentioned with coins: an appreciation of aesthetics and craftsmanship/technology, history, having a knife that represents something, etc.

Some things that makes knives particularly attractive is that I can take them with me nearly anywhere, they're useful and functional (not just something to leave in a safe and look at), and relatively affordable compared to many collectibles. A regular knife is skipping a few dinners eating out and almost anyone can afford some of the best knives in the world.
 
I have a great collection of Headaches. Everytime I bring a new knife home my wife bitches until I have a headache.

At least that gives me a reason to start in on the beers...

Seriously, I collect mostly medium to high end production automatics. I like ProTech, Microtech, Emerson, Piranha, and Quality made Itallian autos like Beltrame. I also like the AKC Leverlettos by Bill DeShivs. They all appeal to me in different ways and I feel I just have to have certain knives...
 
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To me knives are art, cold, hard, sharp art. Like your coins I like knives with a history and a ability to perform. I like to use my tools though so I guess you could call it functional art :)
 
Not a clue. Alls I know is i have way more knives than a normal person needs, but it's not nearly enough. Pfft, being normal is overrated.
 
This forum talks mainly of buying knives as a hobby or a luxury rather than a necessity. You're right to say that a good knife can last years or decades so there wouldn't be any reason to buy more, IF you're only buying for necessity. But most of the stuff that everyone buys, not just knives, are based on wants and not needs. You coin collection is not a "need" just as it isn't a "need" to own a bunch of knives. It's the wanting of stuff that makes most people buy most everything that they own. I'd own more than 1 car if I had the ability to do so. I can only drive one car at a time and one car can last for years, so why would I own 3 or 5+? Because (if I had the means) I would want to.
 
Why? I don't know. Because I can? Why do you need a reason anyway?

Kind regards,

Jos
 
Well, I collect Fallkniven knives, preferably early models. I have most of the different F1 types made and some other early ones.
Unfortunately my economy does not allow for the most expensive ones.

The collection is closing to 45 knives now, however there are more people who also started collecting them som the competition has made the price go up.
 
The obvious and simplest answer is "because I like them". Diferent people collect different things, sometimes they may assign greater importance to the collection for its potential as an investment, but I have yet to meet any collector that collected things they hated.
 
I collect them because I love them. I love looking at em, opening and closing and the utility they bring. It's amazing how many times I come to the rescue by carrying a knife. It makes me feel good to have a hobby and collection that is useful to me, my family, and people I am around.

Why just the other day I was at a furniture store and one salesman was asking the other salesman if he had a knife. The other didn't and I said "I do" :D So I loaned them the Victorinox Cadet in my pocket. I kept my large Sebenza to myself.
 
When I started it was for the knives I enjoy.
As the years passed, I stay in the "hobby" for the people and life-long friends that have been made.

Let's face it, few of us needs more than 2 or three knives to use.
 
For me, it just kinda started by accident. I would just get knives here and there and pick up any cool ones I saw along the way, before I knew it Ihad 20-30 knives. Now most are cheap and nothing special from walmart, surplus shops, or the fair. But after I realized how many I had, I thought since I already had a collection, I would continue, but be a little more specific in what I collect. :D
 
I don't collect, I accumulate. :o

To me collecting implies, for instance, getting all the colors available for a certain model, all the models from the same manufacturer, discontinued models or maybe historically significant ones. Whatever the reason, there seems to be a direction or theme for the collection.

What I do, as I'm sure others do too, is buy knives to fill particular roles that I may have for knives. EDC, necker, small fixed blade survival, hunting, large tactical folder, etc.
 
Because I want to and I have the means to do so. "Need"
means different things to different people.

By the way, what is with the current obsession in our society with "need"?

No one "needs" an SUV, no one "needs" more than one gun, no one "needs" more than one watch, and on and on and on. We have become a nation of busy-bodies. Why is it anyone's business whether you "need" something or not?
It is just a part of the growing collectivist mind-set.
 
I could not explain why, I just like knives, and guns, and motorcycles, cars, carvings, and many finely made things. Perhaps it is a SICKNESS....but there are many worse sicknesses to be afflicted with:D

Peter
 
the aesthetics, the functionality, the history in some cases... i love researching the particular pattern, sharing picts with guys on BF, talking shop:) I really dont buy knives anymore havent for a year and half now:eek: But i still enjoy what i have and have learned to appreciate mine and have even reconsidered a few that i wrote off...
My most cherished knives are the ones that were my grandads, the cheap winchester slipjoint my son gave me last year and a couple of my Case knives that my dad gave me last year...
i really dont collect i accumulate:)
all of them get sharpened, all get carried and all of them look it
cheers
ivan
 
I don't collect, I accumulate. I am always looking for the perfect knife, multitool, etc. No matter what I have, something else will catch my eye. I have kept myself down to only a small number of knives and I try to satisfy my urge to try something new by trading these days rather than buying.

I think the allure of edged tools is a primal attraction, since they were the first tools made and used by our species. There is an almost innate fascination with them for some people (i.e., us).
 
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