I think I've finally stumbled on the secret of the curmudgeon. The grouchy old man effect. The impatience and often short temper with things that just don't go as it should. Its really all about time. And time is something the old fart doesn't have a lot left of. That light at the end of the tunnel ain't what we think!
Like knives for example. A knife, any knife, should do what it was designed for well, and thats cutting. A knife that you pull out of your pocket for some odd cutting job should cut like the dickens. As a bonafide old fart, I don't want to waste precious time sawing through something. Heck, I don't even want to cut twice if I can avoid it. The knives I find myself carrying these days are all some thin bladed full flat grind type knives. My trusty little Resolza from Sardinia, my Victorinox florist knife, a number 5 non locking Opinel, a old school Boker 240 penknife. All take an edge that is like having a small strait razor in the pocket.
It's easy to get spoiled by a thin bladed knife with a nice full flat grind. Its easy to get spoiled by just lightly dragging the blade over what you want to cut and having the material part like you're Mosses parting the Red Sea. Knives like Opinels can do that to you. Like the old Imperial Barlow's with the shell handles that had those thin carbon steel blades that would get so sharp that they would grab the ridges of your thumb print like they were eager to cut the flesh. Or those old Camillus, Imperial, and PAL scout knives we had that Mr. Van coached us on sharpening. They would get that scary thumb print grabbing sharpness with very little effort by 12 year olds with the old fashioned 'carborundum' stones and a boot top for stropping. They really cut like the dickens.
Part of being a bonafide old fart is, you actually need a shape knife more than when you were a young guy. Old arthritis fingers and hands can't tear like they used to, and you reach for a knife to cut open packages that you used to be able to just grab and tear open. So, the little pocket knife in the watch pocket gets used more, and you just want to be able to make one neat cut and be done with it. Kind of ease it out and make one quiet cut down the top or across the side and be done. And depending on where you are, the stealth cut may be used. The stealth cut involves palming the little knife out and open without folks ever aware you pulled a knife out. This involves a blade so sharp that it just glides through what your cutting. The knife needs to really cut like the dickens. The small non locking Opinels are good for this. So light they go unnoticed in dress pants or shirt pocket of a nice shirt. With no springs, they push closed with just that index finger, smoothly with no snap. Higonokami's do well for this also, even though they don't have a flat ground blade. But they still cut like the dickens.
I forget who it was that made the statement, one of the old time gun writers, "Only accurate rifles are interesting." I guess that goes for knives as well. Only really sharp knives are interesting to me these days. The knives that get so sharp, you can't shave arm hair with it. If you try, soon as the blade gets near the arm hair, the hairs all jump off and commit mass suicide rather than face that blade. Thats a knife that cuts like the dickens. My resolza, Opinel, Victorinox florist knife fill that bill.
Whats in your pocket?
Like knives for example. A knife, any knife, should do what it was designed for well, and thats cutting. A knife that you pull out of your pocket for some odd cutting job should cut like the dickens. As a bonafide old fart, I don't want to waste precious time sawing through something. Heck, I don't even want to cut twice if I can avoid it. The knives I find myself carrying these days are all some thin bladed full flat grind type knives. My trusty little Resolza from Sardinia, my Victorinox florist knife, a number 5 non locking Opinel, a old school Boker 240 penknife. All take an edge that is like having a small strait razor in the pocket.
It's easy to get spoiled by a thin bladed knife with a nice full flat grind. Its easy to get spoiled by just lightly dragging the blade over what you want to cut and having the material part like you're Mosses parting the Red Sea. Knives like Opinels can do that to you. Like the old Imperial Barlow's with the shell handles that had those thin carbon steel blades that would get so sharp that they would grab the ridges of your thumb print like they were eager to cut the flesh. Or those old Camillus, Imperial, and PAL scout knives we had that Mr. Van coached us on sharpening. They would get that scary thumb print grabbing sharpness with very little effort by 12 year olds with the old fashioned 'carborundum' stones and a boot top for stropping. They really cut like the dickens.
Part of being a bonafide old fart is, you actually need a shape knife more than when you were a young guy. Old arthritis fingers and hands can't tear like they used to, and you reach for a knife to cut open packages that you used to be able to just grab and tear open. So, the little pocket knife in the watch pocket gets used more, and you just want to be able to make one neat cut and be done with it. Kind of ease it out and make one quiet cut down the top or across the side and be done. And depending on where you are, the stealth cut may be used. The stealth cut involves palming the little knife out and open without folks ever aware you pulled a knife out. This involves a blade so sharp that it just glides through what your cutting. The knife needs to really cut like the dickens. The small non locking Opinels are good for this. So light they go unnoticed in dress pants or shirt pocket of a nice shirt. With no springs, they push closed with just that index finger, smoothly with no snap. Higonokami's do well for this also, even though they don't have a flat ground blade. But they still cut like the dickens.
I forget who it was that made the statement, one of the old time gun writers, "Only accurate rifles are interesting." I guess that goes for knives as well. Only really sharp knives are interesting to me these days. The knives that get so sharp, you can't shave arm hair with it. If you try, soon as the blade gets near the arm hair, the hairs all jump off and commit mass suicide rather than face that blade. Thats a knife that cuts like the dickens. My resolza, Opinel, Victorinox florist knife fill that bill.
Whats in your pocket?
