Why Knives?

HotSwat

HotSwat

Joined
Sep 13, 2002
Messages
490
Why are we into knives?

Is it practical? Maybe you're a butcher, a craftsman, a farmer or a solider.

Some people are into the purposeful-design and anesthetics of knives.

I carry/collect knives for a lot of reasons, here are the top three:

1. My dad did.
2. Knives are extremely useful.
3. Having a knife gives me a little confidence boost. It's nice to know that you have the tool that'll get the job done folded neatly in your pocket.

My knife has really gotten me through some tough situations. I don't want to sound sentimental, but there have been times when my knife was my only companion.
 
Great thread :thumbup:

I think the fact that it's a usefull tool helps, but the art and design make it into a hobby. Then we have the steels, G-10 Micarta Ti Bone Wood and a ton of other cool stuff to hook use even harder.

Then there is the grinds, blade finishes, folding or fixed, all the pictures and taking pictures. It is a hard use knife or a slicer?

Also the fact that we are in the forums making friends, also meeting them in real life... All of it adds up to a really fun hobby.

If you said I would have "knives" as a hobby five years ago I would of said your crazy! Anyways I'm glad I'm here now :D
 
Because all of the reasons you guys mentioned, plus the community. Knives bring a very diverse group of people together. A better question is "Why not knives".
 
Great stuff here :thumbup:

I'd have to say the same things, I've always been stuck on knives, ever since I knew what one was at a ripe ole age of 5/6. Always carried one in scouts and I've never been able to stop buying them :p It's one of the only things that I still love to buy/read about/hobby all of these years. Me talking about knives is like listening to a nascar junky talk about the first stock car races :foot:

There's a never ending supply of desings, durability, locks, handle materials, etc.....Of course at certain price points, we are talking more looks and appeal than other knives, but that's part of collecting knives.

I buy/sell/trade knives purely for fun and practical use. If I think I'll use it and it appeals to me, then sooner or later it becomes mine :D

I would also have to agree with the statement, "why not carry a knife." :)
 
Useful, practical, and collectible. I also have some materials science background...so we'll just leave it at I like steel.
 
Don't know why the habit started, but it started when I was young , some 40 years ago. Always liked the "one tool, a thousand uses" motto. And God didn't make me with no attached blade, so I sure as heck better carry one !
 
I think it boils down to the fact that knives are tools that are both practical and artistic/cool.
 
Having knives give me a sense of security on many levels. Security as a monetary investment, because I know that even though a particular knife might not appreciate, it will at least not devalue like vehicles or electronics would.

Security because if Western civilization ever does collapse and infrastructure fails, the knives will help me survive and their value will go up immeasurably. And finally and least of all, there's the obvious self-defense in day to day life. Due to my states knife laws I can't carry any real self-defense designed knives, so that's why I rank that as the least reason.

As someone else said, knives are one of humanities earliest tools. Our species has evolved with knives and blades for tens of thousands of years, and there's just something about knives that resonate with us.
 
Threefold:
1) daily cutting and slicing tasks
2) occasional survival/outdoor activities
3) avarice (or rapacity)
 
It is not very long ago that knives became a hobby of mine. I've been using knives for many years, but they were (and actually still are) tools and if I had a tool that worked fine for me, I didn't search for an other tool. A few years ago I learned a bit about different knives and got more interested in knives. And then trying out knives and reading about it became a hobby of mine. Why I got interested in knives? Mostly because they are such useful tools and each type has its specific characteristics that makes it suitable for work on the farm or camping or bushcraft or cooking etc.
 
The reasons are many, we are Homo sapiens for nearly 200,000 years we have been the premiere tool makers and users. It’s a long tradition. The thing that separates us as individuals is associated on one hand with how well we reason and on the other by how skilled we are with tools. In the effort to discover and implement solutions to occurring challenges being able to utilize both of these attributes, intellect and application, gives us our station and identity in life. For me to be balanced, self-sufficient and entertained in this life I exercise my mind and craft skills, no single or packaged tool has ever been devised that exceeds the pure instrumental ingenuity of the pocket knife and this makes the reasons for carrying a knife virtually fathomless.

In my humble opinion :)
 
I got my first knife when i was 5 years old and i've been carrying one since i've been 10 or so. I guess for me its partly out of habit, leave the house throw a knife im your pocket. If i forget the knife i don't feel right. I guess it doesnt hurt that this particular habit is very useful and i find myself reaching for it more than anything else im my pocket. Plut they're just down right cool.
 
They are damn useful.
I used mine as a focus, when quitting smoking. I used the money I would have used for smoking as a reward, bought myself awesome knives. Whenever I wanted a smoke I would take it out, open and close. open and close. Very therapeutic.

I love all that i've learned about knives. Heck I'm even sort of making one. I've put handles on a few. Learning and the social interaction with all of you. Without the forums there is no way I would be a knife nut.
 
As mentioned a key part of knives to me is the people involved. At 54, I have never associated with a group that exhibits the overall high level of character that exists in our community. Makers helping other makers and sharing their techniques, collectors being involved with helping makers and other collectors. Deals still being conducted with handshakes on a persons word and on and on still mean something to our community.
 
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