Worn Out Knives

Have you ever completely wore out a knife?

  • Yes

  • No

Results are only viewable after voting.
I've voted "no" because I've never worn out a quality knife. I went through some cheapies when I was a kid, but those weren't really worn out, they just broke because of shoddy craftmanship, materials or both.

Even though I've spent many years in environments that required frequent and heavy knife use (raising horses at my ranch, working as a wilderness and hunting guide, etc.) I can't honestly say I've worn out any knives. Hell, I've even used some of my grandad's knives.

The blades might be a bit damaged, stained and narrow from years of sharpening, but they still hold up.
 
Clarify "wore out". Does that mean wearing down a camp knife to pen knife size? Then no, never.
Is it wearing down a knife to the point that it needs a regrind? Then yes, a few. At that point, I just replace the knife, with the exception of one that was worth the regrind.
 
JJ_Colt45 said:
I have had a couple slip joints that I got well used and over more years of use and sharpening they had lost so much blade they were no longer useful ...

I had one buck 110 folder that got enough play I no longer trusted the lock ... probably could have been repaired but for no more than I gave for it I just replaced it ... not sure if it was worn out or possibly broken some what.
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If you still have that 110 send it in to Buck.
It is still under warranty ... even if you are not the original owner.
When they say their warranty is "FOREVER" they mean it. :)
 
I actually gave it to a friend that tinkers with all sorts of things several years ago ... I have no idea what he ever did with it ...

next time I run into him I'll have to ask him.

afishhunter said:
If you still have that 110 send it in to Buck.
It is still under warranty ... even if you are not the original owner.
When they say their warranty is "FOREVER" they mean it. :)
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I don't think I've never completely worn out a knife. This Endura has a busted tip, and has loosened up quite a bit. I still use it though.

DSCN6647-01.jpg
 
Technically yes: worn blade down past sharpening choil, liner lock walked all the way to the other liner, overall beat to hell and back.

But It was still good in my opinion. Still sharpened it, peened the lockbar and lightened tension and that brought it back a bit, etc... Ended up giving it away to a friend that needed a beater blade for his tackle box.
 
A completely worn out knife would no longer have a blade. Itd be completely worn out.

Am I right?
 
I normally give them away or they get lost before I wear them out. I did have a CRKT Tanto I used until the lock gave me minor problems. Still serviceable though.

Nice thread, Gator Medic. :)
 
Had a couple of cheap, no name knives that started to fall apart, or have the lock give out after some hard use. But that's not the same as wearing out a good knife.
 
My barely 2 year old Emerson Sheepdog has worn the lock from about 40% to now about 85% without really any hard use.

It's getting to the point where I'm sending it in...I didn't bother to tell the sponsored forum because I know it will inevitably end up being my fault...If I tell the green forum I will probably wake up to a brick through my window lol...I think it was a little out of spec in the lockup geometry and they will probably just replace the lock side.
 
I have rotated through so many different knives over the last 45 years or so I'll never come close to wearing one out. I love varying what I carry.
 
I have a Puma where the lock back tab barely holds the knife locked due to wear. It's been accidently unlocked during use a few times. A Boye-detent was ground in to make it less likely to close during use, but the lock is kind of wore out. I don't trust it to use it very much. A guy at a trade show warned me it would happen since it happened to him as well. He was right. It's a design defect, possibly the lock bar is too soft.
 
Blades no, knife yes. I've had pivots wear and some poorly fitted slip joints that had pins wear to the point that things wouldn't stay tight without pressing it all back together.

In fairness, some of those I bought used. I am working my way through a few choppers though, blasting into hard deadwood because it is fun even if it's not efficient. I have had 2 machete handles break or pins loosen which is kind of like wear. One had wood rot between the blade and handle and needs a handle still and the other vibrates a little but I haven't figured out how I want to attempt to correct it as the wood still looks fine.
 
I wore a Schrade Uncle Henry 51OT out. It was the first knife I ever bought with my own money and I paid about $30 give or take back in the early 80s. That was a lot of money back then for a pocket knife. It had a drop point flat ground blade that was all work with a lotta belly. It was a work horse knife and I used it for everythnig. From breakin' down boxes to openin' small crates. I cut steel banding material with it, sliced up carpeting and linoleum with it and ran a couple of hundred miles of PVC/CPVC pipe with it bein' used to clean up the plastic pipe and deburr the plastic and anything else with an opening or hole.

It's upstairs in the retired box, a place where my old knives go to serve out the rest of their lives without fear of breakage or unnecessary abuse. I'll either dig up an old pic or have to take a new one. Either way I'll put one up by tomorrow.
 
snooka said:
I've worn out a frame and linerlock to the point the touched the opposite scale and developed up and down play.
No battoning and stuff, just regular use.
CRKT Drifter and Syderco Tenacious :eek:
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May I ask what kind of time-frame we are talking here? I have both of those knives and would love to know how long it took you to do that. :)
 
I've never worn out a knife.

Most knives deemed "worn out" arrived at that condition due to improper sharpening or abuse.
 
I've worn out a few knives. They were not sharpened improperly or abused. They were just used to cut what needed cut, and sharpened when they needed it.

Eventually, I was left with a toothpick of a blade and I still carried them well past when I should have stopped. This process took decades in most cases.

I've got a few now that I've slowed way down on using because I love the knives, but the blades are getting pretty thin (Spine to edge thin). Al Mar Sere 2K, OG SOG Stingray, Benchmade 710, and an old Kissing Cranes stiletto.
 
It’s difficult to wear out a knife, honestly. My parents have some kitchen knives that are nearly as old as I am, and my dad sharpens them with an angle grinder and/or pull-through carbide sharpeners.

Decently-made folding knives will last an exceptional amount of time with minor maintenance, and it’s typically the process of sharpening the knife that ends up being the slow (or fast) death of it as the blade loses more material and its original form.
 
Put me in the "never worn one out" group. I still have the first knife I ever owned which was given to me by my father in 1961. It's a Montgomery Ward's knock off of the Boy Scout knife. It was the only knife I had for years and it camped, hunted, adventured in the nearby woods, and made it all the way through Boy Scouts. It's in pretty rough shape now as the springs are shot and the blades are pretty wobbly but it is still in one piece and still cuts.

Fast forward to now and I simply have too many knives to wear any one of them out. Even though I'm in construction and use my knife off and on daily and even sometimes all day the better quality knives just hang in there. I'm not necessarily talking about expensive knives, either. I have Kershaw, Cold Steel, Ontario, Etc. that have all proved to be great knives for work. And my ZT appears to be just about impervious to any kind of wear.

Even my oldest remaining work knife that has seen a ton of service is a favorite carry when the weather turns down here south Texas and I don't sweat as much. It's a large Case Copperlock. The Case shield is worn very smooth, most of the rivets have their heads popped off, into beautiful deep ruby color of the scales is now a dirty brown from sweat and grime. The scales are pretty smooth, too! Still, since it's been such a faithful worker over a few decades I love to carry it.

Robert
 
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