New guy intro and your opinions welcomed...

Joined
Dec 29, 2019
Messages
27
Hello! I'm Matt from the PNW and I'm a new member. I've had knives for much of my life. Up until a few months ago, I took them for granted.

When I turned 50, my broski (who is a knife guy) gave me a BM 555bk with AWT hive scales. I carried it off and on, really appreciating my first nice knife. Last September, I took it on my annual motorcycle trip, carrying it in the pocket of my riding pants and using it for all knife-related tasks.

Unfortunately, that Mini-Grip never made it home with me. I went down for the first time in 34 years. Hard. It was in CA (I'm from WA). My wife and son flew down to be with me while I was in the hospital for a month while I recovered from a significant spinal injury and surgery. My son worked with the salvage yard to gather up my gear and ship it back home.

When I got home, I was just learning how to walk with a walker after being in a wheelchair. It took me some weeks before I was ready to start going through my gear that was shipped back and start putting it away. I never came across that Mini-Grip. It never made it home.

Recovering from something like this has been kind of intense for me. I was surprised at how much I was affected by losing the Mini-Grip that my Broski had given me in the accident. I thought it was a really nice knife. It had wonderful sentiment in that it was a gift from my closest friend on my 50th. But it was just a knife, right?

Wrong. I found myself online searching, searching and searching until I learned about BM and their different models of knives. I found my 555bk and learned about AWT scales. Although the accident was expensive, I scraped together enough to order a 555 and the AWT scales in sniper grey. Glad there were some how-to videos online, because getting that D-shaped pivot bushing back in place was a lesson in observation and patience. Once I had it all assembled, I felt like I had regained something that I had lost, both literally and figuratively. Carrying it felt right. Very right.

With all the medical attention I received after the accident, I discovered that it was a good idea to give up my beloved cigars. So right at the same time that I had put together this very-important-to-me Mini-Grip, I found myself sitting on a large cigar collection that I needed to re-home. As I started to sell off my cigars, I found myself knife hunting with the extra cash I was making.

Since then, I've returned to work and have started a small knife collection. I gravitate to potential users rather than shelf queens and am looking forward to learning how to sharpen them. So far, I have mostly BM and Spyderco, although thanks to BladeForums, I've started to branch out.

eBay taught me to be careful. Along with a few genuine purchases, I ended up winning two fakes. One of them, eBay caught and remedied. The other, I caught and eBay remedied. Interestingly, I received a knife from China the other day that I hadn't ordered. It clearly looks to be a fake Spyderco. I took some photos of the box compared to my PM3 box, as well as photos of the knife. Its a beast of a knife that doesn't even look new. https://imgur.com/a/8mJbVkX

I'd love your opinions on what to do with it. For some reason, I'm having a difficult time throwing it away. I'm tempted to just stick it in my shop and use it.

Thanks for being part of a neat place to lurk and learn!

~Nematode
 
The accident was very unfortunate. Hope you continue to recover. This is why I don't ride a motor cycle. I know if I road regardless of how safe I thought I was I will have a serious spill or accident. So, no bikes for me except the kind you peddle.

Enjoy the knife hobby. But don't let it dominate your wallet.
 
Thanks, 22-R. I hope to get back to peddling, but not motorcycling. I came out ahead in that game of life-lotto. I don't want to stand in line for another ticket. I am very much enjoying this hobby so far!
 
Sorry to hear about the accident...I’ve been down a couple times, but just walked away with scrapes and bruises. (Supersport too!)
You know what they say, “You’ve either been down, or are going down.”

Glad to see you here. Enjoy the forum, but most importantly, enjoy the journey.

Welcome,
Sharp & Fiery
 
Welcome man, this forums a pretty cool place I’m also a fan of the mini grip, that spydies something else though lol I’d probably use or give it away..
 
I totally get the "been or going" aspect of riding, S&F. The journey is an interesting, cool one, especially if I pay attention. I'm paying attention more, these days. Having some fun, too!
 
Sorry to hear about the wreck, but I’m glad you recovered and found a new hobby. If somebody sent me that fake Spydie I’d probably use it as a beater and eventually try to break it - done it before with cheapos. Best of luck to you in your adventures.
 
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Thanks, GotSteel. The mini grip and the 940 both fit my hand and my pocket so well. Awesome knives. There's a part of me (the part still pissed by the fakes) that wants to take my angle grinder and my bench vise and turn it into small pieces. I'll probably just use it in my shop for... cutting... what? rope? zombies? (I don't know what I'd actually use it for.)
 
Nematode Nematode see how I did that? :)
It lets people know you responded to them specifically. :)
 
I can totally relate but not about losing a knife though I have lost plenty :)

I had a bad get-off @ 48, broke pelvis, hip, femur, talus and radius all on the left side plus a few cuts that required some sewing. Riding off road was my thing for a lot of years. I spent 14 days in the hospital, had 2 surgeries, a rod through my femur, long pins through my hip a screw through my knee and a plate in my wrist. Lots of PT which I'm sure your pretty familiar with. Since then I've crushed the metacarpal in my left thumb crashing on the property, 2 more plates and 13 screws. Overall 23 broken bones, 3 plates, 21 screws and one long Ti rod (I'm 6' 3", said it was the longest 'off the shelf' rod they had) all from riding off-road on bikes and quads except for 2 broken wrists from football. I'm 57 now and have 11 yo twins that I need to teach to ride so will probably keep at it but I'm working at slowing down some. That's always been the hard part for me, the adrenaline rush is when you're pushing it but I'm slowly figuring it out.

Good luck with you're recovery, even when it's over it's not over. It's been almost 10 years since my big one and I feel it every day. My bikes were set-up for a 210 pound rider with gear, that's what I weighed when I crashed. I weighed 176 yesterday, almost all lost muscle mass, getting older is NOT a blessing....... :)
 
Sharp & Fiery Sharp & Fiery Thanks for the guidance. You are extremely nice to noobs here compared to the cigar sites/forums I've been part of.

You are a quick study. :D
There are some interesting people here, but overall, such a great forum. We love knives and sharpening and steel types and handle materials and tools and...and conversations and arguments about them too!
The best thing for me about the journey (25+ years now) is the friends Ive met along the way, and the knives Ive been given as gifts from friends.
Looking forward to reading more posts and threads from you...
Not all of us make it back up...we are the lucky ones...make the best of whats left...and keep on smiling. :)
Keep ‘em sharp!
 
Mistman68 Mistman68 Holy guacamole! That's a lot! Thanks to my gear, I only had a head injury and spinal stuff. PT rocks. I look forward to feeling better than I do now, but recognize that much of this will be staying with me for the rest of the journey. Slowing down isn't easy. I lost 51lbs post-injury. I now weigh what I did when I was wrestling in high school. Unfortunately, without the same muscle mass.

Sharp & Fiery Sharp & Fiery As I experiment and learn about sharpening (my KME system came in the mail, yesterday), I also hope to learn more about the different kinds of steels. So far, it's just words and comparisons to me. I need to get my hands on things and see them in action to really learn and understand. I totally get what you say about the friends we make along the way. These connections are what makes life rich.
 
The problem with injuries like this is that you may indeed recover nicely, but add 20 years and you might be a cripple. You only go around once. I think I totally understand the rush involved with high speeds and quick acceleration. I feel sure I would love it.... My wife knows this and she has poopooed any idea of getting a bike because she knows what I will do with it. I agree with her but there are thousands of people that love them.

In the woods hiking or wandering around, I won't even jump more than a couple feet (vertical). I pay very close attention to injuries and behavior that might result in such.
 
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