expensive gun / cheap knife - don't get it!!!!

[Yo Mama]

I've noticed a few people in my life lately that will adamantly display a nice gun, something like 5-7
00 dollars, but then flip out with a knife above 100 dollars. I don't get it. What gets me is not that they don't want to get an expensive knife, but instead then they try to turn it around to "do you know what you can do with that money?!?!" No admission that the gun they will hopefully never need to use for defense is ten times more expensive then their pocket knife that will be used countless times over it's life. But to poo poo those that buy both a quality gun and knife I just don't understand.

 

[Zerodefect]

Pocket knife is a screwdriver. You can buy Snap On screwdrivers if you wish.

Cheap knifes sharpen up just as well as boutique ones. But cheap ones can be lost, broken, or plain worn out without stress on my bank account.

 

[Yo Mama]

Pocket knife is a screwdriver. You can buy Snap On screwdrivers if you wish.

Cheap knifes sharpen up just as well as boutique ones. But cheap ones can be lost, broken, or plain worn out without stress on my bank account.

Cheap knives have their place, don't get me wrong. I don't want to snap a benchmade or anything. But it's the attitude I'm more focused on that people are shocked you would own a nice and more expensive knife.

Even funnier is when they see a knife that's MORE expensive than their gun. Then they really flip out! "Do you know you could have had a gun at that price!?!?"

 

[entropy]

My carry guns aren't expensive either- they may end up forfeit to an evidence locker for a long time, if I'd get 'em back at all. They are solid reliable guns-just no frills. I have a frend who has what I consider to be the perfect carry gun- a 70's Lightweight Commander in 9mm-but he wouldn't carry it because it was his Dad's and he doesn't want to lose it to the evidence locker.

 

[Zerodefect]

$300+, and that knife better be something special, at something.

My dive knife is a broken $5 steak knife.

 

[JeffG]

My folders are mid priced, and are disposable, meant to be used and consumed. My fixed blades are expensive, often custom, and stay in the sheath, until their purpose is presented; I don't cut cardboard with my fixed blades. I wear both at the same time.

 

[WrongHanded]

Spending more than $150 on a folder is too much for me (an auto opener would be an exception). But I'll sink $200-300 into a good fixed blade.

Not all steel is made equal, therefore not all knives are made equal. We all want our carry guns to be as close to 100% reliable as possible. I want the same from my knives.

If some thinks a knife is a pry bar or a screwdriver, or whatever else, I have no problem with that. I can do those things with my Fallknivens and then sharpen them back up, rather than throw them away because I bent or broke them.

I'd go so far as to say that on a daily basis, I'd rather carry a good fixed blade knife and no gun than the other way around. I'm far more likely to need the knife than the gun. The knife can do so much more. Same is true in a survival situation.

 

[Danoobie]

I think the attitude springs from usage. Many of these same folks carry, but
rarely use the gun, yet want something really nice in their holster. The knife
(as in my case) they use a dozen times a day, and regularly lose and wear them
out. IME, the expensive knives last a little longer, and are a little better, but not significantly.
IOW, you can still get 10 very serviceable cheapies for the price of one good
one. The sure cure for EDC an expensive knife, is to lose one unexpectedly,
some time.

 

[hso]

Cheap knifes sharpen up just as well as boutique ones.

They just don't hold that edge as well nor do they have the best edge geometry, heat treat or materials (depending upon what you define as "cheap").

 

[Zerodefect]

I've got a Work Sharp tool. Better than new in 3 minutes.

My Leatherman is insanely sharp all the time, but alas, it's dieing. But used as a tool so many times, and resharpened so many times, the blades are a bit smaller. And the serrated blade, isn't serrated so much anymore.

 

[Kookla]

I've read people flipping out as to why anyone would spend $1k, $2k, $3k + on any gun when xyz for $500 will do all that and more. The same can be said about anything- watches, pens, tools, cars, liquor, golf clubs, ect... To those it matters to, it matters. To those it doesn't, it doesn't- that's all.

 

[Chevelle SS]

I work in construction and ANY folder will eventually break so I usually just hit garage sales and get $1-$2 knives. I have a drawer of them and you throw them out when they break. I used to use nice folders but they would break or get stolen.

 

[Sistema1927]

There will always be someone who is critical of how you spend your money.

Guns.

Knives.

Cars.

Houses.

Clothes.

And the list goes on. If you care what other people think then you won't enjoy life.

 

[John Joseph]

I don't think it is about money, especially when it comes to knives
Buying an Olympic pistol or rifle doesn't make one a marksman any more than buying a piano makes one a pianist, or a camera makes one a photographer or an easel & pain set, an artist.

There are cheap knives that have excellent steel---those Moras with wooden handles, and Condors, as an example. There is also the larger possibility of loss and/or breakage that tend to keep expensive knives in the drawer and cheap knives in the field although this probably wouldn't be the case with specialized knives (I flew a bush plane in Alaska with a Randall as my co-pilot, and served 18 years on a SAR team with a Spyderco Rescue clipped to my pants pocket) My current EDCs are old New York built Schrades (purchased new) and basic SAKs, neither were or are very expensive----but they hold up very well for everyday use, and I still shed a tear when one gets lost!

 

[bikerdoc]

When "those people" pay my bills they can have a say in what I carry. ( Spyderco native)

 

[JShirley]

Cheap knifes sharpen up just as well as boutique ones.

That's not necessarily true. I've had quite a few knives when I was younger and dumber that didn't sharpen as well as a more expensive knife, and at least one or two that I just gave up on trying to sharpen.

NOW, it's not true that something has to be expensive to be quality, but there is frequently a world of difference between, say, a $18 pocket folder and a $40 one. I've done things with a $70 Spyderco that I think would have broken several cheaper knives, so not only did I have a knife with smoother action and better ergonomics than most cheaper knives, but I had a knife that in the long run, cost less.

Diminishing returns do occur, but very cheap folders are frequently not only bad tools, but dangerous.

 

[JShirley]

My carry guns aren't expensive either- they may end up forfeit to an evidence locker for a long time, if I'd get 'em back at all. They are solid reliable guns-just no frills. I have a frend who has what I consider to be the perfect carry gun- a 70's Lightweight Commander in 9mm-but he wouldn't carry it because it was his Dad's and he doesn't want to lose it to the evidence locker.

I have a few small handmade knives that I don't carry usually...just as I usually don't carry my sweet little Commander, choosing instead a CZ 75 or S&W Shield. But I do frequently carry a $70-150 folder. Now, I know some people reading this will think, "Wow, that's expensive", while others will consider that range "value priced".

John

 

[If1HitU]

I confess I own some nice handguns and a few cheap knives. If I see something I like and want it ,i'll buy it if I have the money to pay for it without messing with the home money what my wife calls it. I spend money that's in my toy budget!

 

[RA40]

I've thought he disconnect amusing at times. That said, different priorities in tools and some don't find there to be differences between edged items. So long as the knife cuts as needed, the task is done. I've carried the same folder for about 17 years and use it pretty much daily. Has cut many boxes, pried out stuff and is pretty beat. I've lost one knife and since then have been aware about how I could potentially lose another. That said they are replaceable but I'd hate to lose that one of 17 years, has history.

 

[Kingcreek]

My primary hunting knife is a custom fixed blade that probably cost me $150 almost 20 years ago- made by Mel Sorg Jr (Mad Poet Knives) featuring Paul Bos heat treated D2. I have also carried my grandfather's circa 1900 Marble's Ideal worth a few hundred. My "spare" knife in my daypack is an $8 Mora Erikson 710. They all work.

 

[ColtPythonElite]

I have carried the same 30 buck lock back knife every day to work for 18 years. I pry this, dig at that, cut paper, and do just about everything else a knife expert says not do. I have lost it in the parking lot at least half a dozen times and am sure a car ran over it at least once.....I don't get buying expensive knives.

 

[Gun Master]

Uhhh.....good gun !
Cheap knife, expensive knife......either can do. You make the choice.
Mmmmmm...!
I'll concentrate on the good (reliable) gun.

 

[JEB]

I am much more of a "gun guy" than a "knife guy." that being said, i dont buy knives that i would consider cheap, nor are they expensive. my folders are always in the $50 range, sometimes more, but seldom less. i put a lot of wear and tear on my daily carry knives and want one that will hold up but wont be a burden to replace when the time comes. i do get a little envious when someone pulls out an excellent quality folder though...

 

[Mr. Hill]

Many people aren't aware that knives can be very expensive, or how particular knife steel and manufacturing can be very expensive. Likewise, many don't understand why, for example, an ed brown is so much more expensive than a standard production Colt or Springfield.

And a lot of people have lost knives, or have to be rough on them at work, or just don't have a need for premium steel and craftsmanship found in the more expensive knives.

 

[CZ9shooter]

Just like my carry gun, my pocket knife may eventually be called upon to save somebody's life. Even my flashlight might someday become an imperative tool in a dire situation. Same could be said of a cell phone.

Thus, I don't buy junk. My EDC tools are always of high quality. Most of the time that means they will cost for than a couple hours pay.