How many of you really NEED a knife

Dorito Monk said:
Sir, I take offence at the very notion that one might take offence at the offence of others! :mad:

I demand that you retract this comment or I shall have to seek satisfaction forthwith!

Good day sah!
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See, it looks like today you need a knife for a gentleman's duel. :D
 
I dont really need a knife too often, as as you said most of the time it gets used its because I choose to use it as I want to(instead of using skissors or such). Recently I've had my edc in my glovebox for awhile and totally forgot about it, and didnt need it for about 2 weeks. Then I received a package in the mail one day and I couldnt rip it open for the life of me! I had to search for a pair of skissors, and shortly after I went to my car to get my edc back.

I choose to carry an edc because it is very hand every once in awhile, and you never know if it may aid you in a survival situation someday(127 hours). As Adam from Equipped to Endure would always say, "If you're not always prepared, you're never prepared."
 
I gotta say yes, I do absolutely need a knife daily.

How else would I open the boxes from the mail man containing more knives???
 
James Y said:
Although my profession is massage therapist, I use my knife daily to cut strapping that holds fresh massage sheets. Besides myself, the only other person at my place of work who does that also carries a clip knife. No one else does it, and when they don't it's a major inconvenience. Everyone knows I use my knife and like it when I do.

I've had many jobs in my life but never an office job. I have to say I use a couple of my knives every single day for various things, and not because I'm trying to find anexcuse to use them, either.

Jim
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I'm an MT as well, and because I wash/fold and keep my sheets in my room I've never considered a Massage Therapists need for the knife work related. I don't have sealed sheets but it's a good excuse for needing one! Mine are used for food prep and manicure purposes (my skin hardens a lot during the day), but I'll add that to my list!

I've actually gotten the owner of the clinic to become interested in knives once he managed to understand the intricacies involved in making knives, and wants to see each one I make.
 
It's hard to gut and skin a hog with just your finger nails and teeth.:D
 
I think I am in the same boat as you. I carry my knife because I want to it puts me at ease. I don't necessarily NEED it but I am more than content to have it on me.
 
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I've carried a pocket knife since 1952 and feel kinda naked without one. There have been periods when it got heavy usage, and days when its only chore was to open the mail. I pack a small one in my checked bag when I travel and one of the first things I do after getting to the hotel is get it back into my pocket.
 
Honestly, I've been finding just having my Leatherman Squirt ES4 on my keychain that it can perform 95% of my tasks.

The blade is somewhat laughable, its chisel grind but it does the job. Also, I go for the strippers because I am an electrician and if friends ever need something simple fixed I can at least attempt to quickly help them out.

That being said, if they could make one without chisel grind & better blade steel, I'd easily pay double the price of it. (It's about $30 FYI)
Love this..
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I work in a store so I dont really NEED it, because we have POS boxcutters and scissors, but I rather use my knife because its faster than walking all the way to the front of the store to grab a razor (which will just fall apart anyway) and try to cut whatever I need cut. I could do my job without my knife, but it would be a hassle. And in where I work I need to cut stuff about every 15 - 30 minutes and usually more than one or two things at a time, so my knife is an amazing tool at work.

And that "Id rather have it and not need it, then need it and not have it" is a line I quote often as well... I heard it on Alien Vs. Predator. The original line is said when one woman sees another woman loading her pistol and holstering it and she tells her that shes never seen a gun save somebodies life on the ice, and wonders why she would take it. The woman with the gun tells her that she doesnt plan on using it and then says the legendary line..."Same principle as a condom. I'd rather have one and not need it, then need it and not have one.":D
 
Gibb's Rule # 9....;)

but seriously, I do FIND things to trim/cut/part ways, you name it, I'll cut it. My wife thinks I'm crazy, she may be close to right, but for now, I'll continue to carry, usually more than one. Now that, may be something for another thread, how MANY do we need to carry?

When I was in the UK a few years ago, had a David Boye cobalt folder, pretty tame looking, not that large a blade either, pretty blue handles. Well they just received a package that had the heavy plastic banding around it, as well as heavy tape. They were scrounging around for some scissors and I opened the knife and sliced the bands apart and cut the tape. They gasped, almost in unison! and asked 'Who are you going to kill with that!!!' I thought WOW, this is crazy, they asked WHAT do I do with such a knife, I just pointed to the now open box and said, that for starters...amazing for a country that is reknown for it's blade history...amazing.

G2...off to cut something :)
 
Tape, cardboard, wax string, zip ties 5 days a week. Would you guess my job? probably not. I am a Headend technician for Comcast. Between my trusty EDC & Klein scissors I cut "stuff" 3-4 times a day.
 
I don't need a pocket knife all day any more than I need a steak knife to eat a steak. I could use my fingers, teeth, or car keys to do the job.

Makes things easier though.
 
“O, reason not the need!”
(There we go, that's the daily Shakespeare quotation quotient out of the way…)

Like some others here, I work in a retail store, and I'm the only one who carries a knife at work. I don't really 'need' one, since the store is set up for everyone else to be able to function: box cutters in the back, scissors by the cash, and so on. I could use them if I wanted to…

But when a courier drops a wrapped skid in the front of the store I'm the one who's first able to get the plastic wrap off of it, and breaking them down quickly is very important. Box cutters can slowly saw through nylon strapping, but I can slice through a half-dozen layers at once to transform it into manageable pieces. And when it comes time to strip cardboard boxes of old waybills and identifying stickers, having a better knife – especially a small 'tanto' blade – makes my job easier, safer, and more fun overall.

Another use for my knife that scissors or a box cutter can't do is elegantly opening product boxes with those fold-down flaps. I don't mean tape-breaking, but rather those pesky boxes with the thumb-press cutouts that crimp the cardboard, or the flaps that catch and tear. Slipping my knife in along the top of the lid, using the back of the blade to disengage the flaps and the flat of the blade to lift and open it, leaves the box unmarked. That's something that matters to me when I need to take a warranty card out before shipping a $500~$5000 item across the country.

But do I need a Spyderco CF Caly3 when I'm surfing the internet from my living-room couch? Um… sure.
 
I can't think of any other single tool that I use more frequently. Yes, I need a knife and frankly feel naked if I don't have one with me. I compare it to folks who smoke cigs.... they feel something is missing if they don't have a pack of cigs with them. It's an addiction, but a knife addiction is a wonderful addiction.
 
yablanowitz said:
I was trying to remember the last time I went through an entire day without using my knife for something. I think it was back in 1976, when they wouldn't let me carry it during boot camp.
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Hello! I'm writing my very first post to you because of the cute little dog picture. Okay, it's a long story....I'm a dental hygienist. I had not worked in a very long time prior to this job. I like the job a lot, however, it's unusual that a hygienist purchase their own instruments but that's what they do in this office. So i bought some very $$$$ instruments and I don't want to ruin them! I'm ready to sharpen them and I want to do it perfectly. I've been doing some reading but now I'm pretty confused on the subject. I dont want to use the stones the office has becasue they seem too coarse. So i bought my own, online, and of course, I wanted to save money. So I finally bought a silicone carbide stone. It's supposed to be fine grit. that's what I wanted. I just want to sharpen, I don't want to re-shape. So finally to my question! What do I use with it--oil, water, or nothing. I read that I could use nothing on ceramic but this isn't ceramic right? Or it would be called ceramic...right? so fill me in....
Donna
 
The advice that I got is either water or windex. Both have been working very well for me.
 
when the S.H.T.F. it's the one who's prepared who has the upper hand... everybody needs a knife, sometime. Some just don't know it yet.
 
woody d said:
thats what i was thinking as well.
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No one has a need for an expensive knife collection, nor an expensive anything else. You can live under a bridge on bread and water if you are going to define life in terms of needs. Your question and implication are offensive, especially on a collector site. It implies gluttony and waste, when neither is the case. Knives for the most part fall a little higher on the Herzog pyramid. It is not about basic needs, but rather safety, self-actualization and so forth...in short it is about fun, and there is nothing wrong with that in a free society.

maslow-hierarchy-needs.jpg


n2s
 
I grew up in a rural area where having a knife for everyday utilitarian tasks was just part of the man code. In fact, if you forgot a knife and needed it, or some sweet southern female asked to borrow your knife and you didn't have one, it was a major embarrassment worthy of ridicule. I grew up, moved to the big city and sat behind a desk for a number of years, but still quickly became the go to guy when someone needed a knife, duct tape, screw driver, pliers or a bandaid. It's good to be needed.
 
I only need it to open the package containing my next knife :D
 
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