I bought my first Puma Medici Stiletto in Germany while in the Army and carried it for years. It was a great knife.
I'm sure it served you well. However, designs, materials, and manufacturing methods have advanced greatly since the days when Puma was truly at the high end of production knives.
If money is a consideration $5 will buy you a Chinese sort-of copy of a Fairburn - Sykes fighting knife in stainless nicely suited for killing someone,
I've no desire to kill anyone. Any good modern folder which has a sharp blade that can be quickly deployed would serve the purpose of simply peeling an attacker off so I could gain space to escape, help, or get to a better weapon. Better yet, the little fixed blade Spyderco ARK that JShirley and Sam Owens co-designed was purpose made for such a task.
but of no aesthetic value whatsoever.
Aesthetics is so subjective that it's a branch of philosophy. It can be interesting to discuss, but there are no wrong answers, only poorly or well supported positions of aesthetic value.
Bet you have never held a Puma in your hand. It feels alive. Warm.
Beyond attending several Blade Shows, as hso noted above, I've also worked for a hunting and fishing store that was a Puma dealer. As a knife enthusiast I was frequently assigned to work that area of the store. I've logged knives in, put them on display, wiped them down, and even polished up the bolsters on old stock. I had the chance to extensively handle Pumas side by side with numerous other makes both when assisting customers and moving displays around. Pumas are beautiful knives, and I do appreciate them for that.
I was also born and raised in GA. I've handled a few of the Bowen belt knives that friends and customers bought from the original maker in Blackshear, GA, so I'm familiar with that knife as well.
Please understand that my disagreement with your recommendation was in no way a personal disagreement. My intent was simply to inform our members who might be reading this thread that there are folders in the same price range that objectively have better features, materials, and build quality for the purpose of carry and use.
