Knife abuse

Gafishing

Gafishing

Joined
Aug 7, 2016
Messages
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I am a plumber.
I use a knife everyday at work be it to open a package with parts or to debur cut pipe.
I use a cheap camillus Aus8 folder as my beater cause I don't want to ruin my spyderco or zt knives.
Just want to hear from other people in the trades out there or anyone that uses their knives heavily. And what knives do you recommend.

On a side note: who else uses their pants or steering wheel (joe) to test sharpness. Hehe

Thanks
Andy
 

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I'm a cnc programmer / machinist and will use my knife usually the 804cf or 0920 to scrap aluminum off of carbide inserts on cutters when it builds up. Occasional boxes, plastic and lunch as well.
 
when I am doing electrical, general carpentry I always have my dragonfly salt Se on me. The serrations almost never dull and can rip through very tough materials, hard plastics, zip ties, cut open dry wall packs, the rounded back is idea for helping to back our drywall screws if you miss a stud. The tip is percise for stipping wires quickly and trimming back the outer shielding, especially on the thicker gauge stuff.
Cant rust and when its covered in dirt and sand a quick rinse cleans it right out. Love them.
 
My usual work EDC's are a Bark River Gunny Hunter or Essential EDC (I went through a Barkie phase for a while), depending on whether I'm working in a town with a length limit. Mostly they get used for unpacking material (cardboard, plastic, etc), but I also use them on pipe insulation and jacket if I need to, and occasionally to separate gaskets from flange faces. I do keep a strop in the side pocket of my lunchbox to touch it up.

I haven't had the guts to try that with my new Microtech yet...
 
Overall, my knife use would not be considered abusive other than the occasional light prying. I'll only in a pinch will I cut a copper wire with a knife as I almost always have my Leatherman Squirt on me. I have seen folks cut sheet metal with knives (HVAC)... that is pushing it as far as I'm concerned. Day in and day out, my edc SAK gets the call for most regular tasks and if I mess it up badly, I'll replace it. My folding CRKT Razel gets the nod for scraping; I'll try the SAK and then move to the Razel that is stashed in my work bag that is kept in my truck.
 
The two EDC's I have that get the most use and abuse are my SOG Sogzilla and SOG Flash II. The cheap steels sharpen up fast and easy and hold up to most abuse rather well. I was rather pleasantly surprised on a recent camping trip how well the sogzilla kept an edge after using on hard wood for feather sticking and scraping bark. I was surprised because my ESEE Izula doesn't retain it's edge as well after the same amount of work when camping. If I broke either of those knives, I wouldn't even be a tiny bit sad as I can replace them for cheap.

The Flash II holds up great on the range at work, as I've pried out stuck casings, dug through gravel for brass while policing afterwards, and general use every year. It also gets the most work around town in my pocket. The sogzilla is quickly replacing it for those duties, as I've been using the flash II for 7 years now.

The only other knife I abuse as much or more is a 5.11 tarani tanto I got through a uniform order for work. That one is a bit beefy for EDC so I take it camping and hiking in the cascades. It looks like it's been through hell and back, and the 154CM has great edge retention while out in the woods.

I've also abused the heck out of my sog daggert II when out hiking and camping, it holds up pretty well, though the tip is toast on that one.

I guess I just like SOGs because they are cheap and take abuse pretty well. I don't worry about breaking or losing them. /fanboy rant
 
palonej said:
View attachment 735925 I'm an HVAC dude and mostly use my Pac Salt SE at work. I haven't found anything that this beast can't cut.
It is very light, but tough as nails! And for ~ $80 it's a winner!
My poor steering wheel hates me Andy!!!
:D:D
Joe
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I 100% agree those salt knives serrations cant be beat for cutting. Aside from making dainty slices in cheese or a tomato it bests everything else. and for people that actually need a knife for work they cant be beat. I need to sharpen my dragonfly maybe once every few weeks. My leatherman wave goes a day or two at best before its a butter knife, including the serrated blade.
I do use a razor knife on occasion but, you need a sturdier blade and even razor knives cant cut firmer materials and lack any kind of control with their wobbly blade. #salt for the win.
 
palonej said:
View attachment 735925 I'm an HVAC dude and mostly use my Pac Salt SE at work. I haven't found anything that this beast can't cut.
It is very light, but tough as nails! And for ~ $80 it's a winner!
My poor steering wheel hates me Andy!!!
:D:D
Joe
Click to expand...

lemonslush said:
I 100% agree those salt knives serrations cant be beat for cutting. Aside from making dainty slices in cheese or a tomato it bests everything else. and for people that actually need a knife for work they cant be beat. I need to sharpen my dragonfly maybe once every few weeks. My leatherman wave goes a day or two at best before its a butter knife, including the serrated blade.
I do use a razor knife on occasion but, you need a sturdier blade and even razor knives cant cut firmer materials and lack any kind of control with their wobbly blade. #salt for the win.
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It appears pacific salt is a winner.
Gonna have to get one of those.
I'm getting tired of sharpening my beater every 3-4 days.
 
I use a Gerber boxcutter that I was issued for free at my job, the blades are replaceable and razor sharp (at least at first) and I don't have to worry about damaging any of my good folders doing any rough tasks.
 
Gafishing said:
It appears pacific salt is a winner.
Gonna have to get one of those.
I'm getting tired of sharpening my beater every 3-4 days.
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of al the steels, of all the knives, the Pacific's H1 SE blade is king of users. Won't chip, won't crack, won't rust, won't just dull on you until it's been to hell and back.

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a true workhorse at an incredible price. get one ASAP!
 
Dr Heelhook said:
That's pretty much what a leg pocket, plastic handle Mora is for.
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Absolutely. If your garb and situation allows you to rock a small fixed blade, the Mora Robust or other HD models are for you - rigged, comfortable, light weight and affordable. Great choice.

KingMC said:
I use a Gerber boxcutter that I was issued for free at my job, the blades are replaceable and razor sharp (at least at first) and I don't have to worry about damaging any of my good folders doing any rough tasks.
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Folding Box Cutters are great - their noted drawback notwithstanding. Total beat-ability in a compact and affordable package.

All that said, given my frequency to be in and around salt water, give me a Spyderco Salt H-1 knife any day. The serrated edges do seem to to cut much better than the plain edges but, are obviously a bit more of a hassle to sharpen when the time comes. They do however cut like nobody's business and, BTW, they never rust!
 
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It's always amazing to hear how much use and abuse these less expensive knives can hold up to in everyday life. If you think about how many tasks the little Swiss Army Knife has accomplishes since inception; what an underrated knife in our current market of hard use/overbuilt knives. <-- Of which I'm guilty! :D
 
It's funny to think that the more expensive knives are often designed to be more well built and tolerate more abuse yet most people are less willing to put those knives through hard use. I try to buy only lightly used knives now because I feel no remorse when those knives get put through hard use, plus it's easier on my wallet.
 
Being a plumber and all. De burring PVC pipe, cutting protecto sleeve and fixture boxes will dull an edge rather quickly depending on how often it is done. The binders in that cardboard are different than in other light weight boxes. I don't even use a knife on unboxing a water heater anymore, I use a Lennox utility knife.
I really haven't found much use for a fully serrated blade doing plumbing work. A partial serrated blade for me meets the needs I expect from my work knife.
I've also found that a tanto blade is useful for plumbing. Scraping paint, dried sheetrock mud off PVC on a fixture set makes for a good scraper. Also does a neat job removing the putty from around a basket strainer.
I carry a CRK and ZT for my work knives. Currently I've got a ZT452 I'm using. I don't like the ZT's on a rough-in, I've had sand get in the bearings and make it gritty. The CRK's have been on rough-ins, water repairs, sewer repairs, I've cut duct tape in the mud, today I repaired a water leak by a tree and had to cut some small roots to make the repair. Out of all the knives I have, my CRK's see the nasty, dirty jobs and it's the one knife I don't worry about if I don't get a chance to take it down and do a proper cleaning. Most of the time, it's washed off and forgot about.
 
Cool that you posted this Auston!!
I just ordered my first 2 SAKs....both are Cutlery Shoppe exclusives.
They are extremely handy!! Carried the Cadet today and am really liking them.
I see a couple more in my future!!
Joe

austonh said:
It's always amazing to hear how much use and abuse these less expensive knives can hold up to in everyday life. If you think about how many tasks the little Swiss Army Knife has accomplishes since inception; what an underrated knife in our current market of hard use/overbuilt knives. <-- Of which I'm guilty! :D
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palonej said:
Cool that you posted this Auston!!
I just ordered my first 2 SAKs....both are Cutlery Shoppe exclusives.
They are extremely handy!! Carried the Cadet today and am really liking them.
I see a couple more in my future!!
Joe
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Another SAK convert in the making.... the Cadet is a good one if you want something small, but useful. I have accepted the fact that I just love Vic SAKs. Most of my other knives are secondary to the SAK in my pocket regardless of whether I am at home, working, woods bumming, or on the trail. Alox or regular, I like them all!
 
22-rimfire said:
Another SAK convert in the making.... the Cadet is a good one if you want something small, but useful. I have accepted the fact that I just love Vic SAKs. Most of my other knives are secondary to the SAK in my pocket regardless of whether I am at home, working, woods bumming, or on the trail. Alox or regular, I like them all!
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Very true.
I have 4 alox farmers in different colors. But I have the black one in my edc bag at all times.
Can't beat a SAK for value and utility.
 
That's the other one I got Andy!
An orange Cadet and an orange Farmer. What great and handy tools!
Cadet is in my tool bag and the Farmer is in the center console in my work truck! I won't be without one in the future!!
:thumbsup:

Gafishing said:
Very true.
I have 4 alox farmers in different colors. But I have the black one in my edc bag at all times.
Can't beat a SAK for value and utility.
Click to expand...
 
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