Do you use every knife you own?

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mainecoon

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I am looking at the really nice Randall knives and thinking, even if I could afford one, I’d be afraid to ever dull the blade.
 
I use one all the time, a couple a lot of the time, another couple some of the time and then there are a bunch just sitting in the drawer on "standby" . ;)

And to add, they all could be used they just don't all get used...
 
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I have 3 that get used.
Benchmade 710
Laguiole
Enzo Necker

The others are ones that have been acquired over time and just don't fit the uses I need the most.

Hunting knives, k-bars, etc are just out of place for what i need on the ranch or at work.
 
I have a Gerber Freeman folder I've never used (now discontinued). But all the others are used at least occasionally.
 
All of my blades are used for specific purposes- except for two that are kept as emergency back-ups... The one in my skiff is a full sized Griptilian... the one in my truck is an AlMar Eagle...

Both are brand new and ready for use.
 
I have a handful of knives I inherited from my grandfather, and have carried a couple for special occasions, but for the most part plan to keep them as i got them.
Aside from that everything gets used. I'm not sure I have bought a knife other than a leatherman in the last 15 years, but I make them and use them all the time. I completely understand pride of ownership but I get more out of using a nice knife than just knowing I have it. Some folks have commented to me that they can't imagine using a handmade knife for some of the things I do around the farm, but the enjoyment for me is seeing how well a tool I made does a job. If it gets messed up I'll just have to try and make the next one better.
 
90% of my actual cutting is done with a few filet knives. I won't average skinning and processing more than 7-8 deer per year, a few turkeys, geese, squirrels and rabbits and some fish, enough that I generally don't have to kill a beef. I don't move without some kind of small pocket knife in the offseason or for that matter ever--unless I'm in a place like a courtroom or a commercial flight.

I could get by with far fewer knives. I just like them.
 
I have over 50 knives, so no not all of them get used. Not that i wouldnt use them but i have my favorites and they are in constant use. Dont be afraid to buy an expensive knife and use it. Just dont abuse it, dont use a $300 knife to pry stuff open and dont leave a carbon steel knife dirty or wet. The cost of any knife will make you a bit more cautious but even the cheapest knife should be respected and used correctly. I have knives i abuse (my work knife is treated very rough), my high end knives i take a little more care. Just pick the right knife for the task. If im headed out to the woods for a few days im not going to take a beatifully polished carbon steel blade with a wood handle, i would pick a knife with a durable finish or possibly stainless with a synthetic handle that i dont need to think about at all. My point is , buy the randall! Keep her clean and sharp and use it, a fine tool like that is best appreciated when in use.you will love the quality of a good blade when you see how well it performs. Learn to sharpen if you dont know already and just enjoy it. Theyre made for use.
 
No, I have a number that have never been used, a lot that haven’t been used in a long time.

Some are valuable, some are useless, some are ones that I have that were well used by people that have passed on, some are cheap give aways that I pass out from time to time and some are just waiting their turn.
 
Just a few see day to day service. Some are collectibles, some are sentimental favorites, some are for some future use, some are just fun to have. The rest are stored away in a plastic tote for safekeeping.
 
Get a nice Blackjack and you can afford to use it.

When I sold BJK, I had Randall owners put their RMKs up "for the grandkid" and use the BJK. They sent cards to me thanking me.
 
"Do you use every knife you own?"

Not even close; like many here, I simply have too many.
I stopped trying to keep count around 30-something.
Some just kind of live in a console or storage location somewhere and never see daylight.


As far as pocket knives, I will rotate 2 or 3 regularly and then use another 3 or 4 occasionally when then mood strikes.

[EDIT: Knives I definitely DON'T use are my father's and grandfather's knives, as well as my THR knife.]
 
I have working knives (most of which are in the kitchen or workshop) and then I have collectible knives/bayonets. I wouldn't dream of actually using the collectible knives. No need to.
 
No those bought as “collectibles” are just for fondling and ogling.
Mine get fondled and oiled!

Before my forced liquidation of assets I had about 300 collectible Case knives, mostly canoes and hunters. This was in 2011, when prices were near rock bottom. At my last show I had a slab-side hunter than another dealer kept eying. As the show closed I asked how he did, he bought a few things and sold almost nothing. I sold him the knife for $20. He was elated and I had my heart warmed.

I still have about 40 collectibles and a few that were dad's that will be passed down. I have bought about ten new knives in the last two years, five have not been used, yet. I will likely never return to buying Case collectibles. For one thing, my dealer that I worked with moved to Seattle to remain employed.
 
I have had the Randall #1 since the 70's and the #14 shortly afterwards. Bought the #14 at Randall in Orlando. Have a couple more that I have never used because they are too expensive to scratch.

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Randall designs are good, and if you get in your time machine, in the 1960's, you bought your knives at K Mart, the hardware store, or military surplus stores, and the selection was limited. Custom knife makers made designs for purposes that the commercial manufacturers ignored. Particularly when it came to knives whose primary purpose was to kill fellow human beings. Dan Dennehy sold this model, and it should be obvious, it has never been used. But it was an alternative to the Kabar, and there were not many alternatives to Kabar's at the time.

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The problem at the time, was finding custom knife makers, as this was before the internet. If they did not advertise in shooting magazines, you never heard about them.

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I will say, since the late 1980's, the commercial market really stepped up and you no longer need to go to a custom knife maker to find a good knife pattern, made of good steels. There is no need to buy a custom knife as there are so many excellent and affordable alternatives in factory knives. Most custom knives are so expensive, the owners won't use them, and you can count me in that category. And you would be right if you stated "it is pretty stupid to own a knife too expensive to use!".

One shooting bud, he was deployed all over the earth. If pressed, the American Government would deny that these deployments ever occurred, but anyway he carried "throw away knives". Good knives that were cheap enough that if lost, he was not out a lot of money.
 
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It would be really hard to use them all on a regular basis.

NOT counting kitchen knives:
In a typical day, I use 1 or 2.
In a typical week, I use 4 to 6.
There are maybe 12 that have a good chance of being used. I do have a number that are unlikely to ever be used, or that have been used at some time in the past but likely won't ever be used again.

For example, I have a little Kabar fixed blade knife that I used to carry daily but that I haven't used for anything in many years. Probably won't ever use it again but it was the first good quality knife I ever bought with my own money so it's not going anywhere.

I have a Buck stockman that I carried for years but that was retired when I started carrying one-hand openers--I'm keeping it because my folks bought it for me. And at a time when they really probably couldn't afford to.

I have a nice Benchmade that was a matched set with one my wife used to carry, but I ended up retiring it for another knife and it has never made it back into use. I might carry it again, but there are other knives I own that fit its niche better.

I have an old Case pocket knife that my great uncle left to me--he passed away when I was 7. I only met him once and I barely remember him. I haven't carried it in decades and I never plan to carry it again; but I will always keep it.

And then I have an SOG Bowie that I bought back when I was just out of college because it just seemed like a really cool knife and I liked how it looked. At the time it wasn't legal for carry in TX, and now that it is, I'm unlikely to carry something like that around. Probably wouldn't have back then either. But I still like the knife--it's a pretty knife. I've probably used it for something at least once in its lifetime, but it's not ever going to get a lot of use.

Anyway, lots of knives that I won't be getting rid of for one reason or another but that I also probably won't be using. If there were no such thing as sentiment, I'd have a lot fewer knives--maybe so few that I'd use all of them (or nearly all of them).
 
I generally buy a new knife before I get a chance to use the last one I bought :D

Now, I have a $300 ZT in my pocket now. I use it every day at home and work. I am finishing my college degree this fall, a goal I put off for 15+ years. I am going to buy myself a $450 Large Sebenza 21 as a reward. I will carry it. I will use it. I will remember how hard I worked to earn it.
 
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