Carl Levitian
member
That's it, I finally got rid of my last sak.
I've been fooling around with them for many years, and it finally dawned on me that they really are a jack of all trades, but master of none. I've had 4 layer sak's, three layer sak's, and even one layer sak's like the bantam. But I almost never seem to need the tools on the things, and if I do, they are not up to the job, or something else will do just as well.
But I guess what really got me in the end is the lack of edge holding. I don't know what mystery steel is used by Victorinox, but it is pretty soft compared to some other knives I use.
This all came about from a few things happening recently.
I went to put some extra insulation up in my attic. I bought the big plastic cased rolls of the Dowe-Corning fiberglass, and as my wife handed then up to me, I'd cut open the bag and the roll would fluff up and I'd put it down. This happened two bags before my sak wouldn't cut open the bags anymore. Two bags per sharpening and the edge was shot. I used my Case CV sodbuster and it went through 5 bags before it started to get dull. It touched up fast like carbon steel does. I switched to one of my Opinels, and it went through 7 bags before getting dull enough to hang up on the thin plastic. Even my little Case peanut with the yellow scales and the CV blade did well.
The other thing that got me to re-evaluate was my trips to Florida. My aged Aunt is being moved to an assisted living place here in Maryland to be closer to family in her final years. Me and a cousin have been flying down often to close up her house for sale and move her. I don't like to go without a knife, but I had to leave mine home as I like checking bags even less. But I've gotten used to having a screwdriver and can opner on me. So I went back to carrying my .99 cent Sear's key chain screwdriver on my keyring again, as well as my old army P-38. I sent down one of my Opinels by mail to keep in her kitchen drawer. I found out that everything I was doing with the screwdriver on my sak, I could do just as well with the sears screwdriver. Plus it and the P-38 on my keyring goes right through TSA security. Never gets looked at. If I have to open a beer bottle, I just use my house key or my Bic lighter like my son taught me. I wonder if that's the only benifit I'll see from his expensive college education?
I think 99% of the time I reached for my sak, it was to cut something, open a UPS box, open my mail, open a dirty plastic bag of mulch, cut jute twine for the tomato plants out back. Once in a great while I'd need a screwdriver. I never needed a small saw, it was easier to cut a notch and break off the wood. In fact, looking back, I don't think I ever used most of the tools on the sak at all. Some of them once in a blue moon. It seems like I have more use for a dedicated knife with a good blade than a pocket of half size tools.
So in way, I've went a full circle and come to imitate my dad. Dad lived his whole life with a Case pocket knife, and one of those sears keychain screwdrivers and a P-38 on him. It seemed like he could fix anything with those items.
So I guess I'll just stick with my Case sodbuster, my Henckels sodbuster, and my Opinels. All in good old fashioned carbon steel of course.
I've been fooling around with them for many years, and it finally dawned on me that they really are a jack of all trades, but master of none. I've had 4 layer sak's, three layer sak's, and even one layer sak's like the bantam. But I almost never seem to need the tools on the things, and if I do, they are not up to the job, or something else will do just as well.
But I guess what really got me in the end is the lack of edge holding. I don't know what mystery steel is used by Victorinox, but it is pretty soft compared to some other knives I use.
This all came about from a few things happening recently.
I went to put some extra insulation up in my attic. I bought the big plastic cased rolls of the Dowe-Corning fiberglass, and as my wife handed then up to me, I'd cut open the bag and the roll would fluff up and I'd put it down. This happened two bags before my sak wouldn't cut open the bags anymore. Two bags per sharpening and the edge was shot. I used my Case CV sodbuster and it went through 5 bags before it started to get dull. It touched up fast like carbon steel does. I switched to one of my Opinels, and it went through 7 bags before getting dull enough to hang up on the thin plastic. Even my little Case peanut with the yellow scales and the CV blade did well.
The other thing that got me to re-evaluate was my trips to Florida. My aged Aunt is being moved to an assisted living place here in Maryland to be closer to family in her final years. Me and a cousin have been flying down often to close up her house for sale and move her. I don't like to go without a knife, but I had to leave mine home as I like checking bags even less. But I've gotten used to having a screwdriver and can opner on me. So I went back to carrying my .99 cent Sear's key chain screwdriver on my keyring again, as well as my old army P-38. I sent down one of my Opinels by mail to keep in her kitchen drawer. I found out that everything I was doing with the screwdriver on my sak, I could do just as well with the sears screwdriver. Plus it and the P-38 on my keyring goes right through TSA security. Never gets looked at. If I have to open a beer bottle, I just use my house key or my Bic lighter like my son taught me. I wonder if that's the only benifit I'll see from his expensive college education?
I think 99% of the time I reached for my sak, it was to cut something, open a UPS box, open my mail, open a dirty plastic bag of mulch, cut jute twine for the tomato plants out back. Once in a great while I'd need a screwdriver. I never needed a small saw, it was easier to cut a notch and break off the wood. In fact, looking back, I don't think I ever used most of the tools on the sak at all. Some of them once in a blue moon. It seems like I have more use for a dedicated knife with a good blade than a pocket of half size tools.
So in way, I've went a full circle and come to imitate my dad. Dad lived his whole life with a Case pocket knife, and one of those sears keychain screwdrivers and a P-38 on him. It seemed like he could fix anything with those items.
So I guess I'll just stick with my Case sodbuster, my Henckels sodbuster, and my Opinels. All in good old fashioned carbon steel of course.