A day in the life of a Farmer

[Sneider]

Hey Enginears,  Thanks for the great pics, it's a pleasure to look at them! 
For me, 93mm Alox is simply one of the best the world of pocket knives has to offer.
(just my neutral opinion as an Aloxoholic  )
And your mod, red with bail...nice and classy! 

Old pic of my work horse Farmer

[Enginears]

Hey Enginears,  Thanks for the great pics, it's a pleasure to look at them! 
For me, 93mm Alox is simply one of the best the world of pocket knives has to offer.
(just my neutral opinion as an Aloxoholic  )
And your mod, red with bail...nice and classy! 

Old pic of my work horse Farmer
(Image removed from quote.)

I am glad everyone is liking the pics so far.  I loooove the look of your old workhorse, seems to tell a story just by looking at the wear.

[Enginears]

The Farmer was not quite done for the day today. I have been overhauling my kids room, cleaning, and trying to regain some order after the Christmas glut. Needless to say I cracked a few beers. 

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And then I discovered some of the brackets on the curtains had sort of collapsed. The can opener acted as a hooked in lever of sorts and provided an easy way to bend them back. 

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Followed by a very convenient way to screw them back in. I love the can opener.
 

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Nice hunk of fat wood.  I can't get enough of it.  Any time I see a downed pine I go straight to it. 

Yes my eyes are trained on it now too. Such an easy way to make fires, and smells so darn good.

Very nice. Use the ferro rod again to light it?  Interested to see what’s next.

I think I could have done the ferro without too much extra effort, but I used a trusty Bic lighter this time. Easy one light and away it went.

[Enginears]

Y’all are killing me with this red alox!

Half the reason I don’t buy alox SAKs is because the red seems to be so hard to come by.

marlowe it is inevitable that you find a red alox and fall in love! I am actually surprised at how amazing the red looks in photos, it really gets accentuated by the light. These scales were originally from a knife center special FX. Worth looking into if you feel tempted.

[gustophersmob]

marlowe it is inevitable that you find a red alox and fall in love! I am actually surprised at how amazing the red looks in photos, it really gets accentuated by the light. These scales were originally from a knife center special FX. Worth looking into if you feel tempted.

It boggles the mind that red isn’t the standard alox color anymore. I'm fortunate enough to have acquired two red alox farmers from the run Vic did back around 2008 or so. I think that’s the last time they were made as a standard offering from victorinox and not a store branded “exclusive.”

[Enginears]

It boggles the mind that red isn’t the standard alox color anymore. I'm fortunate enough to have acquired two red alox farmers from the run Vic did back around 2008 or so. I think that’s the last time they were made as a standard offering from victorinox and not a store branded “exclusive.”

Definitely seems odd considering red is kind if their thing. I will add it to the list of stuff Vic does that have me 

[nate j]

Just want to say I’ve been enjoying following along with this thread.

And I agree with the assertion that a full size (91 mm closed or larger) pocket knife/KBMT is a good minimum for hiking/camping. 

Could you get by with less?  Probably, if everything goes according to plan.  But you sure don’t leave yourself much margin for dealing with unexpected issues.

[Sneider]

Thanks, Enginears.  Long story short; I've had a pretty difficult few years at work. Everything was sandy, salty and a big construction site with lots of foreign workers - tools were often stolen. I often only had this Farmer with me and did a lot of small jobs with it that under normal circumstances I would have reached into the nearby toolbox.

[Enginears]

Today was another big day for the farmer. It began with some packages, and a can of black beans with breakfast.
 

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I spent some of the day going to buy some wooden planks and making shelves, so I decided to take the offcuts and split them for tonight’s dinner. I also decided to clean my fatwood find in order to be stored without being sticky, I took off the outer layers. 

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[Enginears]

One of my sons helped me dig a small pit and collect wood. So after some work it was dinner time, which meant fire time. The bark and hardened sap did not take a spark straight away so I used the lighter again, followed by the thin splits of pine.

 

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I threw the burgers and hot dogs on, and it worked well. This grill grate comes in handy.
 

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[Aloha]

 

Those grates are terrific.  Impromptu grilling at the ready.

[Enginears]

More good times with the Farmer. After today the action will probably be slowing since work will be commencing again. Today I continued my flurry of activity inside and out. The Farmer was indispensable for removing an old ceiling fan  this morning. Both openers were used.
 

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After moving furniture, cleaning etc etc. I took some time outside. I scraped and shaved the fatwood log using the awl and blade and ignited it by scraping the fire steel with the back of the saw. Too easy. 

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I found a Y branch and broke it off, and made another using the saw.
 

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[Enginears]

The y branches were done, and I decided to utilize what I had done the other night except make it a hanger. Its just a stick made the correct length with a notch to keep the string from sliding. 

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And the whole setup working well.
 

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[Enginears]

To hang it, I notched a small nub on the cross piece and made a loop in the end of the string
 

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This was really easy, and could be done just the same for a bush pot or a hanging grill. Once again, the Farmer performed great. This knife is a good backup for a folding saw/fixed blade combo, or a good minimal setup to go in the woods. As seen in some of these pictures as well it has working capabilities indoors too.
Why not just get an FX?
The FX is obviously amazing, but the Farmer offers a slightly more pocketable and lightweight package that  can do everything you need outdoors. Teamed with a rambler, ambassador, etc you would gain scissors, files, toothpick, tweezer and all that. Get them all!
Anyway, this was fun. Cheers.
 

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[Grand_Banana]

  pot hanger setup looks great. Really putting the farmer through its paces. I do like the 3 layer Alox for width and comfort using the saw and blade.

[pfrsantos]

pot hanger setup looks great. Really putting the farmer through its paces. I do like the 3 layer Alox for width and comfort using the saw and blade.

+1

Thanks for sharing.

 

[Enginears]

pot hanger setup looks great. Really putting the farmer through its paces. I do like the 3 layer Alox for width and comfort using the saw and blade.

Thanks GB, doing these sessions with the Farmer was fun. Basically once it was resharpened it was back to being good as new, ready for many many more excursions.

+1

Thanks for sharing.

 

Absolutely    I have a construction project coming up that should need a fair amount of SAK use, and am looking forward to the 100/108 challenge come February.

[marlowe221]

marlowe it is inevitable that you find a red alox and fall in love! I am actually surprised at how amazing the red looks in photos, it really gets accentuated by the light. These scales were originally from a knife center special FX. Worth looking into if you feel tempted.

Yeah, I think Knife Center still does a couple of models in red alox. I'm not super excited about their logo printed on the reverse scale, though I certainly understand it from their point of view.

I also like the look of black alox, which is a bit easier to find, especially when it's worn down a bit. I think Victorinox favors the silver (or unpainted) alox because it doesn't show wear - I like the colors because it DOES show wear!

Edit - Looks like Knife Center still do the Famer X and Pioneer in red alox.

[Enginears]

Yeah, I think Knife Center still does a couple of models in red alox. I'm not super excited about their logo printed on the reverse scale, though I certainly understand it from their point of view.

I also like the look of black alox, which is a bit easier to find, especially when it's worn down a bit. I think Victorinox favors the silver (or unpainted) alox because it doesn't show wear - I like the colors because it DOES show wear!

Edit - Looks like Knife Center still do the Famer X and Pioneer in red alox.

My first alox was a Black pioneer that has an empty name plate, it’s a beauty. I have a blue that is branded with DLT which is okay, worth it for the color. I actually despise the knife center logo, it makes me think of Walmart and cheapens the aesthetic of the knife. I have considered sanding/grinding/polishing the nameplate.
When I got my first silver alox I was expecting a “meh” but was pleasantly surprised, it looks great in person.

[marlowe221]

Yep, I've got a red Cadet - the alox itself is stunning but I am not a big fan of the knife itself. The whole package is just too thin!

But I don't think I've ever seen one of the silver/plain alox SAKs in person before. Otherwise, it's all red cellidor at my house.

[IMR4198]

A photo is required, Marlowe.  I'm just saying.  Best wishes.  Gary 

[GA1dad]

Great looking Farmer!!

[AzteCypher]

Great... now I'm on the lookout for red alox.  I think I have a problem....

 

[marlowe221]

A photo is required, Marlowe.  I'm just saying.  Best wishes.  Gary 

Well, I hate to ruin this beautiful alox thread with my lowly cellidor but….

 

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That’s all the modern SAKs, except for the Explorer in my pocket. Vintage ones are in their own little case elsewhere.

[Enginears]

Great looking Farmer!!

Thanks man, it has grown on me!

Well, I hate to ruin this beautiful alox thread with my lowly cellidor but….

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That’s all the modern SAKs, except for the Explorer in my pocket. Vintage ones are in their own little case elsewhere.

I felt like I was playing where’s waldo for a second while looking for the Cadet. A very nice set of classic red knives you have there, not lowly  at all just metallicly challenged   

[Aloha]

Good show.  That inline awl is such a great tool.  It can drill holes and scrape as well as cut.  I love the capacity of that little saw to chew thru wood.  I've cut plastics, pvc, and rubber hose as well.  The Farmer is a great SAK and you've shown some great uses.  Bravo