The problem with justifying knife collecting

[Dr. Tad Hussein Winslow]

Yeah, I like to collect stuff, like everyone else, but I also like to have at least a theoretical justification for everything. With guns, it's easy - there's always this specialized hunt and that specialized hunt, covering every game species on every continent under every terrain condition. And every self-defense scenario imaginable might require a slightly different weapon.

But with knives, it's different. Regardless of what you hunt, where you go, what you do for a living, you really only need one or two or three good knives that fit your hand and serve your various needs. No matter what I hunt, the same knife will skin it. No matter where I go, or what my occupation is, one good pocketknife will handle all the chores necessary (one knife, and one SAK or multi tool). Sigh - it's a problem - I'm having a real hard time justifying more than the 25 or 30 I have so far, espec. justifying fixed blades, which I love. Talk amongst yourselves.

 

[Todd A]

It is easy to justify.

I am an addict. It is a disease that I cannot control...really. Thus I am a victim who deserves society's pity,not scorn .

Now if I could convince my insurance company and a shrink I would be all set.:banghead: Possibly receive some financial help to feed...ummmm...ease my condition.

 

[Carl Levitian]

In the end, there is no justification. You collect knives becasue you're drawn to them, and want them. Period. It's like collecting buttons, or coins, or superbowl trinkets.

The one exeption is that at least the knives are usefull. You can take out that nice custom knife on your next camping, fishing, huntiing trip and use it. If it's a folder, you can carrying it through your day, using it here and there.

Can't do that with a stamp!

 

[bikerdoc]

(In my best sgt's voice from 40 years ago)

Listen up people I'm only going to say this once;

We dont have to justify anything to anyone. Period End of story.
We take comfort and enjoyment from collecting guns, knives, flashights, and any thing else that tickles our fancy.
I tell family and friends -
When YOU pay the bills then you can have a say. Until then, sit down, shut up or get out.
It is a variation of the golden rule, gentlemen;
The man with the gold makes the rules
If Your bills are paid and your family is taken care of what you do with that little bit of left over $, or more commonly what you have sacraficed to save for yourself, is nobodies business I only have so many heart beats left I an not wasting them on things that are not fun.

End of rant

For those of you that are curious wife agrees, as I am a bugeting genius- just dont tell her about excell spreadsheets and online payments.
And she keeps all her money from her part time job to spend on the grandkids!

 

[sixgunner455]

I can apply the same sorts of criteria to guns that you just did to knives.

Four. Yep, folks, that's the magic number of guns. You only NEED four guns.

One rifle, in .308/.30'06/.270 class. One shotgun, in 12 or 20 guage. One pistol, .38/9mm/.40/.45/.357. And one .22 -- rifle or pistol, your choice.

Done, unless you want to hunt really big game like bears and elephants. Then replace your medium caliber rifle with a .375 H&H.

Your service pistol and shotgun cover self defense, with the rifle for longer range stuff. Your .22 and shotgun cover small game, with the shotgun being useful for big game when properly loaded. The rifle is for precision work and big game in areas where that is allowed. Even coyotes and other varmints are done with the medium caliber rifle.

General purpose tools that do an adequate job at doing anything you need to do are just fine. But there are specialized tools in most genres. And then there are the things that you just want to have, and there's nothing wrong with that, so long as you've got your bills paid.

I play guitar. I currently own three, and they cover most of my needs. However, if someone were to hand me a $20,000 gift certificate to Guitar Center and 4 hours to spend it, I could get it spent. I would have quite a lot of guitars, gear, and sound equipment. But, since I'm not a professional musician, I don't need that stuff.

Doesn't keep me from wanting most of it, though,

 

[MikeJackmin]

As others have pointed out, any collection is throughly justified simply by pleasing you. However, I think there may be a finer point here that is worth some consideration.

Almost anything you do in life - even collecting - is done better, the better you understand your real goals. There are a hundred reasons why I might want that next knife, but not every reason will lead me to select only those knives which I will most enjoy and most appreciate over time.

I've bought a lot of knives that I could sell tomorrow without batting an eye, but I have a pile of others that I don't think I'd ever be willing to part with. They actually make me feel good every time I look at them. Some are rare, some are historic, some just look exactly right to my eye. Whatever the appeal, for some of them, my appreciation of them endures, even grows. That's a gift.

I can't tell you what the magic ingredient is, but I can say that I have become better at recognizing it. I'm smarter about my purchases now. A good find will make me happy for a long time, and that provides a hell of a good value for the dollar.

When you look at it that it way, you can argue that some purchases are better justified that others. Think of it as the consumerist path to spiritual self-actualization; it's a journey of self-discovery, guided by forces you partially perceive but never fully understand. Plus, you get a lot of cool knives.

 

[bikerdoc]

Think of it as the consumerist path to spiritual self-actualization; it's a journey of self-discovery, guided by forces you partially perceive but never fully understand. Plus, you get a lot of cool knives.

OK you win, who can argue with that????

 

[Rupestris]

Luckily all 40 or 50 of my knives are tools that get used and not collectables.

 

[hso]

Sigh - it's a problem - I'm having a real hard time justifying more than the 25 or 30 I have so far, espec. justifying fixed blades, which I love.

Why do you have to justify having a collection of anything?
How do you justify having more cars than you use on a regular basis or a collection of records or original recordings?
How do you justify having art? A knife collection after some point becomes about the art and artistry involved. It's about a tangible expression of the skill and talent of the artist that you can appreciate over and over again every time you look at or handle it.

 

[alaskanativeson]

It's all in how hard you try: When I was younger, I could justify eating a whole bag of Oreo cookies because the milk I was drinking was only 2%, not whole milk, so it was fewer calories.

 

[Byron Quick]

There is only one justification I need-I want it.

 

[TimboKhan]

You know, as the economy continues it's downward spiral, I think the question of what you need v. what you want is legitimate as pertains to the individual. I mean, I can afford to buy a knife or two every month now, but I hold back because I don't need any more knifes and the money would be better spent in other areas.

But, that's just me.

To a certain degree, I don't understand why people buy certain things, but then I stop and think about how I am only looking at it from my perspective. A perfect example is Hso and his Sebenza. I look at those knives and think "no way am I spending that much" and then think "why in the world would someone else spend that much", but then I step back and consider that for Hso, that knife is perfectly justified for him given the kind of hard use it gets. In fact, you could probably argue that over the long run, it represents a savings. Looked at from that perspective, I realize that while I may not ever be able to justify owning a Sebenza, there sure enough are guys out there that legitimately can justify it. Collectors are the same way, really. It's a justification that I cannot relate to, but one that is perfectly valid for them. Of course, the main issue is that I couldn't care less what other's spend their money on. If asked my opinion as sometimes happens on this and other forums, I will give it, but ultimately if someone wants to drop $x.xx on something, it's not my concern.

There are exceptions to this rule. Namely, when the guys over at EDCforum are talking about $30.00 pill fobs and stuff like that. It's their money, and I wouldn't tell them how to spend it, but really? A $30.00 pill fob? Really? I just can't see the sense, even if philosophically I am all for them doing whatever it is that they want to do.

 

[Gordon]

I collect MadDog knives.Look how much and fast they go for on ebay to see non"poof" value!

 

[Zeke/PA]

When the Schrade factory closed it's doors, I bought every Schrade that I could find locally and wound up with quite a few.
About two years ago, a local Mom&Pop hardware was closing out all the Case knives in the store at half price.
I added those to my "collection".
Why the fasination with knives?
I wish that I had an answer.
I still prowl the out of the way stores looking for a stray Schrade or two.
Zeke

 

[Stainz]

I recently was elated to find a Victorinox SAK, a 'Farmer', in blue Alox - to go with the ones in red and silver - which I already had. Explain that!

Of course, there is no explanation needed... I'm not rational!

Example: Why did I have a .454 Casull SRH for years? To protect my abode from wayward pachyderms! Why the 10-shot 617 .22 rimfire revolver? Protection from marauding tree-rat zombie herds!

Example: Why do I have fixed blade hunting knives? In case I start hunting again? Not likely. The pocket knives have a function - opening the packages of other knives and flashlights. That blue Farmer was a double goodie - it came with a flashlight!

Example: Why do I have so many flashlights? Duh...

Man is basically a packrat. There must be a bunch of folks who don't 'collect' - just to make up for me.

Stainz

 

[chrisb507]

The "Value" of a Knife

Lately, my only knife purchases have been cheap (less than $40). The justification I use, for myself only is: Do I get $40 worth out of them?

A movie costs $10 bucks and--if it's good--I get 2 hours of enjoyment out of it. A good paperback is $15 and I might get hours out of it. A good beer is $6 and I enjoy it as long as I drink it.

A good knife--say a $30 Buck 110--provides me much more than $30 in appreciation, in durability and in craftsmanship. It provides me more than $30 of satisfaction. I'll forget the movie I saw last weekend, but I'll have that Buck 110 for years to come. I'll get way more than $30 of value from it.

 

[sixgunner455]

A good knife--say a $30 Buck 110--provides me much more than $30 in appreciation, in durability and in craftsmanship. It provides me more than $30 of satisfaction. I'll forget the movie I saw last weekend, but I'll have that Buck 110 for years to come. I'll get way more than $30 of value from it.

Now, that's some justification!! And it works for so many of my acquisitory hobbies, too -- guitar gear, guns, knives, dogs, etc.

 

[arcticap]

I like collecting inexpensive knives so that I can have a lot of them.
I'll say that I've bought many "cheap" fixed blade knives that I really appreciate just as much if not more than some expensive ones all for less than the price of just one good "collectible" knife.
Do I care if they're cheap?
No of course not, because I pick out the ones that are the most comfortable for me and with the blades that I like.
It's just like buying a pair of shoes.
When you really need shoes, you can't always find the ones that fit perfectly no matter how much you're willing to spend or how hard you search to find them.
So when you can find them buy them, and then when you need them you'll have them.
Buy them while they're available because they won't be there tomorrow and will soon be discontinued if they aren't already.
And then you won't kick yourself for not buying them when you had the chance.
And a good fit isn't always about how much something costs, it's about how something fits your personal taste and feels in your hand.
A man can only have one wife at a time, but he can have as many knives as he pleases!

 

[JohnnyOrygun]

Articap,

You are right, only one wife, but all the knives my pocket book can afford!!

I have the same problem sometimes as the OP, justifying another knife purchase. Just yesterday I was in my favorite, if expensive, knife store and just couldn't find anything that made me part with my money... nothing really jumped out to me. So when I got home I made a list of all my knives... that I could find and remember, and I have over 30 knives... seems like a lot, but I know others who have a lot more. IF my wife knew how many I had, she would probably flip out! But I am good at scattering the evidence and hiding some of the newer knives
In reality, she knows and has added to my collection, she just bought me a Buck 110, that I love. But as was pointed out, we don't have to justify our purchases, as long as we are taking care of our bills and providing for our families, what does it matter if I buy another knife. At lease I know with a knife I will have some enjoyment with it and if I need to I can always sell a few and get some of my money back... I know never works out that way. Also, I plan on when my son is old enough, I will pass on some of my knives to him and help him start his collection. So I am not only building my own collection, I am starting one for my son as well

Another thought, if we spend we are helping the economy and that is always a good thing.

IMHO and my .02
JohnnyOrygun

 

[Big Bill]

Why do you need justification? I take issue with the idea that one needs to justify collecting anything. If you love it and like to collect it then just go ahead. No justification necessary.

 

[Duke of Doubt]

I'd like to get rid of a bunch of cheap knives I accumulated in late childhood/early adulthood. Really crappy, most of them. But I don't think I can drop them off at Salvation Army, and I don't like the idea of giving them away to street people. Just tossing them in the trash seems ... strange. Somehow wrong or unwise. They aren't trash, just cheap knives. Ideas?

 

[JTW Jr.]

Why do you have to justify having a collection of anything?

well said bud.

I don't feel I have to justify either the $20 Sodbuster Jr , the Strider PT CC , the Erickson Custom slippie or any others ... I like them so I bought them , and I use them.

Justify ? bleah.... nope , feel no need to do it.

Buy , use , buy , use....

 

[22-rimfire]

I don't try to justify anything after the basics of utiliarian need are met. But then, I'm always looking for something better.

 

[Big Bill]

Duke - take them to a pawnshop. They're always looking for stuff like that. Or, give them away as birthday and Christmas gifts.

 

[whited]

.

Knives are things of absolute beauty. This beauty cannot be denied by
anyone who thinks seriously about the subject, and/or who appreciates
form, function, and aesthetics of any object.

Knives are among mankind's oldest and most valuable discoveries and the
appreciation of knives in various forms will continue unabated until mankind
is no more.

Go on, buy that Mad Dog or Jay Fisher. Whatever gets you going. Fine
knives are worthy of (almost) every single discretionary dollar.

/knife fetish