[Ohio Rifleman]

For the record, I collect knives. I love knives. I especially love BIG knives. However, if they are simply tools like hammers or screwdrivers or axes...why do we love them so? Why don't we collect hammers and screwdrivers and axes? What is it about a straight, sharp blade fastened to a handle that fascinates us so?

[chipp]

don't know but I do collect hammers axes tomohawks, knives

[10-Ring]

I'm starting to like knives. I've picked up a few over the last couple of years...I'm not ready to put firearm $$ into a knife - at least not yet. I have a Ti-benchmade, a porcelin Boker and a few others.

[VWTim]

I think it's because they're more acceptable to keep with us all the time. I always have a couple knives on me and use them daily. If I could easily carry a hatchet and used it all the time I'd prob collect them as well :) Also most guys like things that are loud, sharp, and shiny.

[chipp]

here is one of my favorite

[Ohio Rifleman]

Nice knife. :) I assume that was a custom job of some sort?

[chipp]

It was hand made. Don't know if he made any others. It is sharp as heck too.
Its wierd cause it doesnt have a visable edge. Don't know if he was a good sharpener or a bad one. Of chourse I don't use it so i'll never find out.

[MadMercS55]

I've been into knives long before my interest in firearms. I started way back collecting Pacific Cutlery Balisongs and into Benchmades, etc. I also enjoy handmade\custom pieces as well, mainly Polkowski, Emerson, Lightfoot and Elishewitz, in swords I like Clark, Barrett, and Engnath. There is just something very alluring about a finely made knife for some reason. In the coming year I believe a large handmade bowie of some form is on the agenda.

[Fosbery]

Knives are generally a lot more useful than most other tools. I use a knife a hell of a lot more than I use a hammer or a saw or a wrench.

Knives also have a lot of variation. A screwdriver is a screwdriver. You get flat and phillips and that's it. They also don't need to be of high quality and their appearance is not very inspiring.

Knives on the other hand have inumerable variations in blade shape, material, grind, finish etc, and quality is very important. You also have sheathes and folding knives to consider (thus lock mechanisms, leatherworking etc all come into it).

Knives are far more versatile than screwdrivers or hammers. 99% of a hammer's work is hitting nails. 99% of a screwdriver's work is screwing things. Knives can cut rope, cord, string, fabric, food, wood, packaging, boxes, dead animals, opponents in combat etc etc etc. They can carve, slice, skin, chop, saw...they can do a huge variety of things.

THey're also very attractive - sleek and elegant or brutish and masculin. Some knives also have connotations with combat and fighting which are interesting in themselves.

Knives are relied on more than almost any other tool. If a screwdriver breaks, you go get another one - big deal. If a knife breaks, you could burn to death, freeze to death, starve to death, be killed by an attacker, even die of thirst.

Knives take a lot more skill to make than most other tools, I think. Anybody could bash out a flat headed screwdriver or a workable hammer, but it's very hard to make a good knife.

[Ohio Rifleman]

Well said, Fosbery. I'm a sucker for just about anything hand-made, especially knives and swords. But the problem is, they're really expensive. For my 19th birthday, I got a handmade Bowie with my initials hand-carved right into the wooden handle. My dad picked out every last detail of the knife. It's easily my favorite. :) The problem was, it is absolutely huge. I went to a gun and knife show looking for a sheath for the monster, but nobody was selling one large enough. So, I found a custom leather worker who specialized in sheaths for knives and axes, and had him make one for me by hand. Cost me $25 and it fits perfectly. Can't beat it, especially since all the other sheaths I saw that didn't fit were sometimes selling for twice that.

Anyway, my second favorite knife is probably my Smith and Wesson Search & Rescue knife. Very big, sharp and durable. The blade I actually use most is likely the Winchester folding knife I bought a while back. Also very nice, even though I accidentally cut myself with it on the same day I purchased it...

[SniperStraz]

:) They make less noise than guns.:)

[Ohio Rifleman]

They make less noise than guns

And are (generally) much cheaper. :neener: But, to be honest, I've been into swords, knives and archery for longer than I've been interested in guns. Perhaps these are "gateway hobbies" that lead into harder stuff like guns. :p

[SoCalShooter]

Umm...well they are sharp, pointy and cut things thats just got fun written all over it right?

[st_albert]

Hmm, never thought about the "gateway hobby" angle, Ohio, but you are probably right.

As for me, I'm Celtic on one side of the family, and Scandanavian on the other side. It's in my blood. Can't help it.

And FWIW I also collect hacksaws. Involuntarily. Mainly because I keep losing them, buying replacements, and finding them again. :D

Albert

[JTW Jr.]

I carry a knife ( or 3 ) cause people would look at me strange if I just shot all my packages open. :D

I like knives for the craftsmanship that goes into them , I have a few productions but the handmades ( custom if you will ) are the ones that appeal to me. I prefer to carry and use knives made by people whom I consider friends. Strider , Burke , Rinaldi , Blackwood , and soon a Carson and a Hossom.

My enjoyment from handling knives pushed me over the edge into making knives ( fixed blades only so far ) as a hobby and also into making leather sheaths.

A guy at work asked me why I carried 3 knives , I asked him why he carried 2 cell phones and a blackberry :neener:

[mrtgbnkr]

That's an impressive list of makers there JTW.

I'm most jealous of the Burke...I was on the list for one of his knives when he was first starting out, but an emergency forced me to cancel my order. Still haven't saved up enough for one of his blades again.

[JTW Jr.]

dunno if you have seen Jim's latest work but he has stepped it up another notch. :D

[mrtgbnkr]

I've seen...thus my case of blade envy!

[Zeke/PA]

I also love knives from kitchen cutlery to custom stuff.
I have a knife for poultry, another for carving, another for bread, another for veggies.
I fancy the Ellendale Schrades and my daily carrys are Case Sod Busters large or small.
The large Case trappers make a great daily carry.
I cannot pass a cutlery store without going in to browse.
What an addiction!!!!!
Zeke

[mrmeval]

I really don't collect knives. A friend needed some cash and offered to make me a sword. http://www.sharppointythings.com
24" pre-Christian gladius Fulham pattern.

It's as intimidating as any gun if not more so to those that don't have a gun. :)

I only have pictures of the blade just now. The photo shows it pretty far away from being finished as it's not yet had final pre-heat treat finishing nor heat treatment.

http://mrmeval.is-a-geek.net/~jcaldwel/images/sword/sword-cropped.jpg

[Valkman]

Knives are so....personal. I'm talking custom knives where the maker puts everything he knows into that knife and it's yours and no one else's. Or that old factory slipjoint or folder that you've been carrying so long it's like an old friend. :) A whole lot of character in there!

[Zero_DgZ]

Well, if knives are "just tools" it seems I'm as fanatic a tool collector as I am a knife collector. I have more wrenches, sockets, hammers, files, screwdrivers, dremel bits, taps, funky little driver tips, soldering equipment, air tools, drills, and so forth than any 'reasonable person' would never need.

And I still need a good drill press, lathe, and milling machine.

And a forge. To make knives. :neener:

[Pax Jordana]

Cos you can DO stuff with 'em!!

Open packages, expedient field manicure, cut stuff (this is a major point), maybe some minor prying, wire stripping, maybe some flathead screw driver action if you carry an electrician's or SA knife.

They also serve as an instant social contact polarizer. Whip that baby out next time somebody brings you something packaged in that impenetrable ghetto plastic (the only packaging guaranteed to survive a nuclear detonation) and they'll either back up quick, treat it as completely normal or go "dag, that is a nice knife." You may soon find you prefer the company of the second and/or third type more :cool:

I have a nat'l match 1911 with these big clunky target sights that I could probably shred shrinkwrap with, but it doesn't really fit in my front pocket as handily.

[JShirley]

Why do we love knives?

Because they're soft, and keep us warm at night. Wait, those aren't knives!

No reason.

J

[Fosbery]

Blankets and knives are so similar, sometimes I get confused too :(

[Ohio Rifleman]

Must be rough, getting knives and blankets confused. Hope you guys have lots of bandages. :neener:

[clt46910]

I buy and sell knives at gun shows...I also sharpen knives...so bandages are a must around my tables...LOL

[The Cultural Woodsman]

One of the best memories I have of my dad was when he gave me my first knife. He was killed at a young age and somehow that little Swiss knife made me feel very safe at night since I was the "man of the house" at age nine.

Something changes a boy when he gets his first knife....I got to see it in my oldest son a couple years ago and I got to see it this morning when my youngest unwrapped his very first slip joint. He was more proud of that little knife than any other gift and I cant help thinking how much money I threw away this year when that was all it took to get a big grin out of him that he was still wearing when he went to bed.

For me I guess I love knives for the memories....first deer I couldnt tell you what gun I was using but I still have the knife I gutted it with. Fishing, camping, hunting...knives can build a lot of things but the memories are the best imo.

[Boats]

Speaking for myself, I don't view knives as some "gateway" hobby into the gun world, as knives are their own seperate universe. I like knives way better than firearms as a hobby.

I add to the voices that view knives with more satisfaction than guns because knives can and are used daily and in my best years financially, guns are used way less, when I have the time to go to the range, when the weather is cooperating, or during defined hunting seasons.

Additionally, only a comparative handful of industrialized nations produce firearms whereas knives are a truly global pursuit. Off of the top of my head I have knives from the US, Canada, Brazil, Costa Rica, Honduras, Sweden, Finland, Germany, France, Italy, Switzerland, Russia, Japan, Taiwan, and New Zealand. That representation can mostly be done with firearms, but it'd probably only be doable via a C&R. And the knives don't need funky ammo either.:)

Knives have a better reselling market than do firearms in that you have a far broader pool of legal buyers, again going all the way overseas if one is into high risk internet selling. This makes a knife collection far easier to acquire and/or turn over if one wants to raise cash for different pieces.

I get far more satisfaction using a puukko and axe in the woods to make a fire in a downpour than I do pulling the trigger on a buck--the only thing that has made the latter from getting old is the thought that I'll get to try a different knife to dress the game.

One last thought, knives can easily be as expensive as most firearms commonly bought and sold since the custom market in knives has a lower entry point that still isn't cheap. I am spending about $375 on my next folder after optioning it up a little.

http://www.rickhindererknives.com/knives/xm-18/xm18orange.jpg

[Don Gwinn]

Knives are truly ancient tools. They predate steel . . . iron . . . bronze . . . . and copper. Put my Cuda Maxx in a cave-dweller's hand 20,000 years ago, and he would have no idea what it was made of, or how it was possible to make such a thing. But cut a plant stem or two with it and he'll be able to take it from your hand and use it.
It's perhaps not as profound a link as my brain makes it feel like, but my brain is the only one I have and I am hostage to its whims.

[Fosbery]

As Sal from Spyderco said: before man was making fire, he was using knives.

[DogBonz]

I think that there is something primal about knives. They are probably one of, if not the first, tools that Man ever made. They can be used for just about anything, although they shouldn’t. I know that my favorite, a Benchmade CQC7, is always on my person, and over the last 10 years, has been used for almost every task under the sun. I think that when you use a “tool” every day, it becomes an extension of your body.

[James T Thomas]

My young brain was ingramed {Ingramed} when I read Jungle BoyKipling., in our gradeschool library. I too, wanted a "large fang" to defend myself against "Keershahn" the tiger.

Then came the first TV sets and caveman and dinosaur misadventures. I loved that stuff too, and thought just how lucky I was to have an old steel bladed hunting knife from my dad; compared to those stone artifacts that the cavemen had to survive with.

After that was Davy Crockett by Disney; loved Fess Parker in that role, Daniel Boone, Yancy Derringer, on and on.

Why do I love knives? Well it's like this.. .

[JJE]

Because they're pretty:

http://i142.photobucket.com/albums/r92/migueltheknife/Ingram7.jpg
(photo downloaded from G Ingram's website)

My Gene Ingram #7!