Loosing my knife love???

[cbl51]

I've been a knife knut my whole life, from a very early age. As a little kid, I'd stand and stare at the knife display at the sporting goods store and the gun shop near my home. Pocket knives, sheath knives, they all were recipients of my knife lust. By Junior high school I was carrying a Buck folding hunter everywhere. Then I tried the Gerber folding sportsman, and read about Randall knives. I later started to collect and use Randall knives in my 20's, when I was in the army. My buds thought I was stark raving insane to spend that kind go money on a knife, but I loved it. My Randall 15 was my go-to knife for backpacking, canoeing, hiking. My Randall bird and trout was my fishing knife.

Then a funny thing happened in my 40's. I have no explanation of it, and it was weird. It was like slowly coming out of a deep dream, and thinking "what the heck am I doing?" I looked around at my almost 100 piece knife collection, and wondered what it was all for. I still loved knives, but something happened that I now had a harder more pragmatic outlook. I sold off all my customs, including my 5 Randall's, my Don Hastings, Ralph Bone, and others. My gun collection was greatly downsized as well.

I still won't walk out the front door without a knife in my pocket, or two, but it's way way toned down. I actually don't even own any sheath knives except for the old Buck 102 woodsman that is my fishing and camping knife. But 99.9% of the time now, I don't bother with anything but a Swiss Army Knife. Due to an old service injury that had some long range repercussions on my walking, I had to give up my backpacking some years ago, and I doubt I'll ever go again.  But the better half and I still love to woods ramble, so I still keep a few pocket knives on hand. Mostly SAK's, some with a saw blade.

Looking back, it seems like I was in the grip of some kind of temporary insanity. At the time, I thought I was getting the best cutlery to be had, but the truth of the matter is, I never found the heavy Randall to do as good a job cutting stuff as a thin bladed Swedish Mora, or French Opinel. Certainly I was never in a "survival" situation where my knife was a matter of life and death. I seem to have totally lost my taste for the high end knives, and to great deal knives in general.

It's been almost 20 years now that I've greatly scaled back my cutlery and firearms, and I find that I haven't missed any of it. Guns and knives that in my earlier day I'd say that I'd never part with, I sold off and never looked back. It felt liberating to free myself of all those possessions. Now I have a few .22's I target shoot with, a .38 in the bedside table for defense, a sharp pocket knife that I can replace at Dick's or Walmart, and Im happy. All my knife needs now seem to be met with a SAK of some type. The type depending on where I'm going and what I'm doing. It seems like being a senior citizen has changed my point of view a lot. More than I'd ever have thought possible than when I was young.

Any of you guys have that happen to you?

[kirk13]

I've not had that yet with knives or MTs,but I have had it happen with my Diecast cars

[Steinar]

The 40s are just around the corner for me, till now the balance between what I would call common sense (carry a SAK and be done with it) and knife love (carry a SAK... and an expensive factory made... and a custom... and another SAK...) has shifted like a pendulum. I wouldn't be that surprised if common sense wins more and more often as the beard gets more gray hairs.

When I was a kid I disliked heavy, thick blades, simply because they were no good a whittling. As I grow older, perhaps that ability to spot the obvious will return.

[kkokkolis]

I think that it is usual that specific interests wax and wane. It happened to me but I rarely sell anything. I know that I might get interested again and I want to give or leave some items to my kids and wife that I hope will outlive me. Even to my grandchildren if I'm lucky.
Now, guns and knives have to do with violence (at a psychological level) and that has to do with testosterone and that has to do with puberty, adolescence and young age. Unless someone is a professional (military, police, athlete) or a psychopath, violence, physical but also psychological, usually diminishes with age. In nature, violence has to do with survival and mating and most men in their 40s have already accomplished both.
On the other hand and on a practical level, an Opinel and/or a SAK (from Spartan to Champ) is all a man will ever need most of the times. Chefs and butchers excluded of course.
Only we, here in MTO and other knife forums, need all of them.

[dks]

I never sell anything...

[cbl51]

The 40s are just around the corner for me, till now the balance between what I would call common sense (carry a SAK and be done with it) and knife love (carry a SAK... and an expensive factory made... and a custom... and another SAK...) has shifted like a pendulum. I wouldn't be that surprised if common sense wins more and more often as the beard gets more gray hairs.

When I was a kid I disliked heavy, thick blades, simply because they were no good a whittling. As I grow older, perhaps that ability to spot the obvious will return.

Yeah, I went that way for a while, carrying an expensive high end knife and a SAK. But that got old. By the time I was in my 50's, my whole outlook had changed totally. Now in my early 60's, I just don't want to carry that much, so a well equipped SAK seems to do it for me. But I still find that just for practical reasons some other stuff is around. For instance, like I sold off all the Randall's, I keep an Ontario 12 inch machete in the car and truck for the heavy duty stuff my pocket knife of the day won't hand. When hiking in the woods with the better half nature spotting with our binoculars, there's a Fiskars sliding blade saw in each of our daypacks that we carry lunch in.

But it seems like my SAK's and occasional Case jackknife I carry are all I need most of the time. So my interest has waned to just what I actually can use in my day to day life in suburbia and state parks. But it's weird that these days I'd rather have a small Ontario machete than a Randall knife. That I'd rather have a SAK than a GEC anything.

[nate j]

I think that it is usual that specific interests wax and wane.

+1

I still loved knives, but something happened that I now had a harder more pragmatic outlook.

I also think this is quite common.  In general, the longer someone lives and the more experience they get, the better perspective they often get on what is useful in the practical sense, and also what is important in life.  Sometimes, too, the thrill of the hunt is the real draw, a.k.a. it's not the having, it's the getting.  I'm a few decades younger than you, and not quite ready to sell off my collection yet.  However, I have been carrying and using knives for about 20 years, and I have to admit that I very, very rarely run into a knife chore that can't be handled by a 91mm SAK.

[Luna Knife]

It looks like Randall Knives go for at least 300 bucks a pop.  Thats a lot of SAK money there. 

[sawman]

I'm not quite 40 yet but I had something similar happen to me. I used to only buy high end expensive knives. Some were customs and some were just expensive brand names. At some point I realized that the price tags I was paying did not necessarily equal a better knife. It wasn't long until I sold off all of those over-priced models and my taste changed toward SAKs and economy folders by companies such as Buck. I've learned the hard way that it's entirely possible to have quality without paying through the nose.

[greenbear]

Good post cbl51 - I went from being a bit of a hoarder to a minimalist with only 111 possessions (including today's purchase), a lot of my bits and pieces were Victorinox, but as time has gone on I have gradually sold them to pay for a lesser number of more expensive tools/knives. This kind of works for me in that I am not injecting much extra money at any point.  Obviously I've got a couple of faves that are going nowhere as well 

[Aloha]

I think that it is usual that specific interests wax and wane.

+1

I still loved knives, but something happened that I now had a harder more pragmatic outlook.

I also think this is quite common.  In general, the longer someone lives and the more experience they get, the better perspective they often get on what is useful in the practical sense, and also what is important in life.  Sometimes, too, the thrill of the hunt is the real draw, a.k.a. it's not the having, it's the getting.  I'm a few decades younger than you, and not quite ready to sell off my collection yet.  However, I have been carrying and using knives for about 20 years, and I have to admit that I very, very rarely run into a knife chore that can't be handled by a 91mm SAK.

Very good response as I feel much like this.  The most expensive single item I own was a gift, most of what I have has been bought on the cheap.  I have seen as folks get older they get streamlined or simplified and I like it.

     

[nmpops]

Wow, just recently turned 60 and for the last year or so I've been thinning out the collection and only bought one knife. Nowadays I rarely carry more than a SAK and maybe a stockman. I may bedown to less than a dozen by next year.  Thought I might be the only one.

Sent from my BNTV600 using Tapatalk

[cbl51]

Wow, just recently turned 60 and for the last year or so I've been thinning out the collection and only bought one knife. Nowadays I rarely carry more than a SAK and maybe a stockman. I may bedown to less than a dozen by next year.  Thought I might be the only one.

Sent from my BNTV600 using Tapatalk

No man, you ain't alone.

When the better half and I did our huge downsize several years ago, it was like someone had sawn the ball and chain off my leg. It felt so darn liberating. We had been owned by our possessions, and not the other way around. We both unloaded everything we were not absolutely using. Clothes, guns, excess duplicate tools, sporting gear, What we didn't sell, and the family didn't want, we gave to the Salvation army.

Now I can actually find anything I am looking for in the house very quickly because it's so uncluttered. And we ended up with so much money, we took that driving trip around the country to all the National parks. Spent a month camping at Yellowstone, Badlands, Bryce, Canyonlands, Grand Canyon, Mesa Verde, and others.

Most people have too much darn stuff. How many winter coats do yo really need? Fishing rods? Tools? Guns and knives?

I've found out the less I own, the more I enjoy what I have and use it more.

We just took a 5 week road trip again this last fall, and all across country and back, the Vic classic on my keyring, and the old tinker in my pocket did all I needed from opening cans to cutting up ingredients for shish kabobs while camped in New Mexico.

[Toolslinger]

Most people have too much darn stuff. How many winter coats do yo really need? Fishing rods? Tools? Guns and knives?

I've found out the less I own, the more I enjoy what I have and use it more.

I hear ya loud and clear.

For the longest time all I had was a single MT, SAK and folder and in general very few possessions overall. As time went on I bought stuff, was gifted stuff, inherited stuff, etc. Now I find my house is too full of things we almost never use. Collections fof fixed and folding knives, MT's, SAK's, tools, kitchenware, etc.

I find it fascinating how easy it is to become engrossed in the culture of 'stuff' to the detriment of more meaningful things.

After noticing this phenomenon in my household, I started paying more attention to family and friends and what they have. I quickly realized, we all have too much darn stuff and rarely use most of it!

Now I just need to get around to doing something about it...

[Styerman]

I own very few pieces nowadays . I know what works for me , and what doesn't .

Chris