The Perfect Pocket Knife.

The perfect pocket knife:
dGQp8sF.jpg

Stockman with punch that preserves the extra blade for grubbing use.
Kutmaster.

that would be mine too, case #64047p for example, although the #6318PU does the trick nicely.
 
I have in the last year or so have embraced a philosophy of “good enough” with many things. Instead of searching for that perfect something I have discovered that sometimes “good enough” is exactly that, good enough. Here is a photo of my EDC, and old friend of a knife from Queen. Is it the perfect EDC for me? Maybe not but it is very good and certainly “good enough” for pretty much anything I come across in my typical day.
PYmGFB2.jpg

sqXK4Ov.jpg
 
I have in the last year or so have embraced a philosophy of “good enough” with many things. Instead of searching for that perfect something I have discovered that sometimes “good enough” is exactly that, good enough. Here is a photo of my EDC, and old friend of a knife from Queen. Is it the perfect EDC for me? Maybe not but it is very good and certainly “good enough” for pretty much anything I come across in my typical day.
PYmGFB2.jpg

sqXK4Ov.jpg

I think we love knives too much that it is nearly impossible to find the perfect knife, too much variety to enjoy, which is not a bad thing. We get to enjoy why each knife is “good enough” when we carry them in our EDC rotation. Some are more special than others and they come close to the perfect knife, and we wind pup carrying them longer. They meet our needs, and we just enjoy them too. This may sound simple, but when I got my first SA Alox Pioneer, i really enjoyed the handle as opposed the normal red scales, just felt more durable, I carried it for a long time before rotating to another EDC.
 
Last edited:
When I think of the perfect knife for my "needs'... I think of a medium jack, with a single clip blade, and robust action. Seriously, that knife would fill all my needs from slicing apples, to package opening, to cleaning fish, to being a friendly office carry. It also wouldn't hurt if it was pretty to look at too...
 
as a sort of very late comment about the earlier posts on "growing older", I was reminded of a quote from "A River Runs Through It".... when their dad, (Skerrit, excellent actor) was letting the two brothers have the "good" parts of the river, and he was not really going to compete with them, and he said ".... there was a time..." which I always just attributed to his saying that a few years earlier, he would have taken the good parts of the river and out-fished them... as he did earlier in the movie.
I just found out today, that, intended or not, he was quoting Wordsworth, from a GREAT poem he did, called Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood. This is how this portion starts out....
“There was a time when meadow, grove, and stream,
The earth, and every common sight,
To me did seem
Apparelled in celestial light,
The glory and the freshness of a dream.
It is not now as it hath been of yore;—
Turn wheresoe'er I may,
By night or day,
The things which I have seen I now can see no more."


I'm not really a reader of poetry, but I may become one, after finding this gem....
 
as a sort of very late comment about the earlier posts on "growing older", I was reminded of a quote from "A River Runs Through It".... when their dad, (Skerrit, excellent actor) was letting the two brothers have the "good" parts of the river, and he was not really going to compete with them, and he said ".... there was a time..." which I always just attributed to his saying that a few years earlier, he would have taken the good parts of the river and out-fished them... as he did earlier in the movie.
I just found out today, that, intended or not, he was quoting Wordsworth, from a GREAT poem he did, called Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood. This is how this portion starts out....
“There was a time when meadow, grove, and stream,
The earth, and every common sight,
To me did seem
Apparelled in celestial light,
The glory and the freshness of a dream.
It is not now as it hath been of yore;—
Turn wheresoe'er I may,
By night or day,
The things which I have seen I now can see no more."

I'm not really a reader of poetry, but I may become one, after finding this gem....

I think it's in the book A River Runs through it, but could be the movie, the narrator debates whether a subject ends at "perfect" or if things could be "more perfect'. I must be in the camp of the latter as a knife always comes along that seems to be more perfect.
 
I have in the last year or so have embraced a philosophy of “good enough” with many things. Instead of searching for that perfect something I have discovered that sometimes “good enough” is exactly that, good enough. Here is a photo of my EDC, and old friend of a knife from Queen. Is it the perfect EDC for me? Maybe not but it is very good and certainly “good enough” for pretty much anything I come across in my typical day.
PYmGFB2.jpg

sqXK4Ov.jpg

I think that as I aged, I found that very very often, "good enough" was a perfect knife. I think we spend way to much time in search of the "perfect" whatever, when it really doesn't exist. As long as you liked it at the time you carried it, and it did the job you asked of it, then it was perfect for that time.

Anything more than that, and we may as well go ride over the mountains of the moon.
 
Yes.... just because a knife is "perfect" doesn't mean that another knife can't be "perfect" as well.
If what you need is a vehicle to get you to work and back, and have good a/c and gets decent mileage, there are MANY "perfect" vehicles. I believe the same principle applies to knives. I have several that I carry that just do everything I expect my personal carry knife to do, and are more or less equally aesthetically pleasing... so they are all "perfect" knives for me.
 
Yes.... just because a knife is "perfect" doesn't mean that another knife can't be "perfect" as well.
If what you need is a vehicle to get you to work and back, and have good a/c and gets decent mileage, there are MANY "perfect" vehicles. I believe the same principle applies to knives. I have several that I carry that just do everything I expect my personal carry knife to do, and are more or less equally aesthetically pleasing... so they are all "perfect" knives for me.
yea but do they have a beard comb? o_O
 
I hate the term "perfect." I appreciate the idea, as something to aspire to. But as a descriptor? The word makes me cringe.

It's like people forget that we have other words available in English to describe knives like excellent, fine, superb...

I guess they don't have the cachet of "perfect."
 
The Boker Barlow finally came in.
I did a full review in the "Newest Addition" thread.
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads...nals-of-course.1167349/page-745#post-20111249


John, now that you’ve had this guy for 2-3 months is it still on the top end of your list?


Definitely a contender! Missed out on these unfortunately.

I hate the term "perfect." I appreciate the idea, as something to aspire to. But as a descriptor? The word makes me cringe.

It's like people forget that we have other words available in English to describe knives like excellent, fine, superb...

I guess they don't have the cachet of "perfect."

I agree, but even to aspire to be perfect can be flawed. It would set unachievable and impractical expectations.

I think for an item or a tool, there can be perfection when tied to a particular use or task. A hammer in of itself isn’t “perfect”, but when you need to hit a nail, then the hammer is the perfect tool for the job. A knife may not be “perfect” in every single way but if it works for your task (specific use), it will be perfect for the job at hand.

I just got my hands on a GEC 29; is darn near perfect for 90% of my tasks as the blade arrangement gives such flexibility. Depending on the situation, I’m going to pair it with my 93 and (when I get one) the Urban Jack.
 
I hate the term "perfect." I appreciate the idea, as something to aspire to. But as a descriptor? The word makes me cringe.

It's like people forget that we have other words available in English to describe knives like excellent, fine, superb...

I guess they don't have the cachet of "perfect."

Strongly agree :thumbsup: It's a totally debased word that's infiltrated many aspects of life, consider cooking for example: the imbecilic 'perfect' crops up there constantly :poop: Fact is, were you to attain perfection then you would stop being :D
 
John, now that you’ve had this guy for 2-3 months is it still on the top end of your list?
Yes it is. :)
I have a little pile of my most carried knives.
They are all medium, one-blade Jack knives.
The Boker Barlow sits right in that pile and is carried often.
I just love a medium, one-blade, Jack... especially with a Clip Point or a Straght Edge.
You'll see these knives pop up the most in the Totin' thread, perfect for work. The Case, which is brand new, is the only Spear.
 
Last edited:
Yes it is. :)
I have a little pile of my most carried knives.
They are all medium, one-blade Jack knives.
The Boker Barlow sits right in that pile and is carried often.
I just love a medium, one-blade, Jack... especially with a Clip Point or a Straght Edge.
You'll see these knives pop up the most in the Totin' thread, perfect for work. The Case, which is brand new, is the only Spear.



It’s tough to turn down a nice clip; it takes serious will power for me to not grab my 86. I like the secondary coping blade for its versatility, but it makes it quite bulky and hefty. Perhaps I’ll have to make my next hunt a single blade clip - those look mighty purdy!!
 
Back
Top