Inflammatory title, I know; hear me out.
I use a SAK as a basic EDC item; it's easy to carry, and has okay capability. It won't shake the earth, but it'll be useful for basic day to day stuff.
In the context of URBAN EDC, what is the point of an awl? I can already hear "drilling pilot holes, scraping, marking metal, cutting plastic sheeting, drilling a hole in a leather belt, striking a ferro rod". Those are not every day urban tasks (for the average person).
So, assuming I'm not a metal worker, or really doing any sort of tooling/construction/you get the idea, what's the point? Venting a can so it doesn't "glug" is doable with the can opener. Scraping and prying is doable with the flathead driver. Probing can be done with the nail file, as well as having the bonus of being a nail file (again, we're talking basic, common, urban-EDC). I'm sure there will be a day when I really wish I had that awl, but until then, I'm not convinced.
Please, convince me on the usefulness of the awl without it being too specialized or redundant, because I really don't get it. I read time and time again about guys using their awl daily, but I just don't see it. Is everybody drilling holes in the walls for the fun of it? Is everyone secretly in a shop 25/8?
I use a SAK as a basic EDC item; it's easy to carry, and has okay capability. It won't shake the earth, but it'll be useful for basic day to day stuff.
In the context of URBAN EDC, what is the point of an awl? I can already hear "drilling pilot holes, scraping, marking metal, cutting plastic sheeting, drilling a hole in a leather belt, striking a ferro rod". Those are not every day urban tasks (for the average person).
So, assuming I'm not a metal worker, or really doing any sort of tooling/construction/you get the idea, what's the point? Venting a can so it doesn't "glug" is doable with the can opener. Scraping and prying is doable with the flathead driver. Probing can be done with the nail file, as well as having the bonus of being a nail file (again, we're talking basic, common, urban-EDC). I'm sure there will be a day when I really wish I had that awl, but until then, I'm not convinced.
Please, convince me on the usefulness of the awl without it being too specialized or redundant, because I really don't get it. I read time and time again about guys using their awl daily, but I just don't see it. Is everybody drilling holes in the walls for the fun of it? Is everyone secretly in a shop 25/8?