What is the ONE CPK...

IuAIqjP.jpg
 
I'm from the user/utilitarian camp, so my quintessential CPK would have to be the HDFK. It would be the one mid-sized knife I keep, if I could only have one. I have plenty of great big choppers that aren't CPKs, but the HDFK takes the cake for me!

bQVTMbv.jpg
 
^^^HDFK has the CPK signature blade shape that you can identify across the room.

For me, the EDC size is folder territory, 10 times out of 10 for my habits. The FK, especially the second version is also very recognizable. But the HDFK is the ONE that you say, "ahhh, so THIS is a CPK."
 
I don't know, for me it's very hard to choose between Jo and Nathan in the sense that there will be no CPK without either of them but I think that Jo is sharper and can pull it together better than Nathan. So Jo is my penpal of choice :)

Oh CPK knife? HDFK by a nose but honestly anything less than 20 CPKs at any given time will make me feel under-knifed!
 
I answered this thread with what I think of as quintessentially CPK, my personal preferences for what I like to use aside

my efforts as a designer have been fruitful, and I'm very proud of the patterns that Nate and team and I developed together

But...Nathan was making knives long before my entry into his world, and in my mind the Shiv put Nate on the map and that's why I chose it when I designed CPK's logo. The dagger represents to uppermost effort Nate's brought to bear on his craft, exemplifying precision, harmony and beauty in a way that only a tiny number of his peers could hope to achieve

although the intended use of these two models overlap, to my way of thinking, they each represent opposing ends of a spectrum, and sum up the soul of CPK in the most wholistic way
 
91bravo said:
I'm from the user/utilitarian camp, so my quintessential CPK would have to be the HDFK. It would be the one mid-sized knife I keep, if I could only have one. I have plenty of great big choppers that aren't CPKs, but the HDFK takes the cake for me!

bQVTMbv.jpg
Click to expand...

I’m right there with you on this.
I only own 3 CPK’s, an FK2, an MC, and a HDFK.
The MC is an outstanding knife but not the ONE knife for me. The FK2 is really close and would probably be my choice if I didn’t have the HDFK, but, I do own an HDFK and not only is it my ONE KNIFE out of my CPK’s but it’s my ONE KNIFE ( fixed blade ) out of all the knives that I’ve owned.
All that said, my opinion may change if I the choice included not only what I think is useful to me but what I think is beautiful. If that was my criteria I’d take that dagger and a shiv, have them fight to destruction and pick the winner.
 
^^same here...I only have 2 CPKs...an HDFK and an FK2, ...love them both but love the HDFK more...have a lot of knives but the HDFK is my favorite, and the one blade that will always be with me no matter what. Cannot put a price on peace of mind, imho.
 
I carry and use an EDC2 most often … and I enjoy my CPK choppers (when I get to use them) and I really like my FK2s for a lot of things and they have seen more use this winter … but I have to give another nod to the HDFK. It's that knife that when someone has to ask the "if you had to choose just one" question … the HDFK would be my answer hands down. It's big enough to do most anything … and yet not too big or heavy that it can't be used for dressing game … cooking or smaller chores if needed. And it just feels great in my hand … it might possibly be the best feeling in hand of any knife I've handled up to date.
 
There was a D2 HDFK with antique micarta handles that Nathan posted in the for sale forum a couple years ago. It was the first CPK I ever saw and I kept admiring it and thinking about buying it, so of course I missed out on it, but I found this subforum. Anyway, like a baby goose I imprinted on the HDFK and I do consider it the most iconic knife and the one that sort of best represents CPK. The Shiv is the one that rules them all. I think the Behemother is now the one I’d write “Kindness” on for goin killin though.

Edit to add - I have draped the Shiv with fancy ties to denote its Odin-like status.
8C2A356A-6F4D-4F50-B306-FF596A004E36.jpeg
 
Last edited:
Nathan the Machinist said:
View attachment 1272527

Much of my product and process is based around practical and pragmatic performance and value. But in less practical moments I tend to gravitate towards stabby.
Click to expand...

I can't really tell which dagger you posted above?...

But one of my "top favorite(s)" from the CPK shop was your one-off "Big Daddy Dagger" that you brought to the Blade '19 Show. I was glad to have been able to check that one out in person. :cool:

Found this picture/link thanks to Casinostocks: https://bladeforums.com/threads/blade-show-2019.1664262/page-4#post-19054758

Edit: Upon second look... Your photo doesn't have the fuller... So it is an original design Integral Dagger.
 
Phill50 said:
View attachment 1272129

I really like the look of the CPK Shiv.
Click to expand...
Since this is part of CPK's logo. I'm going to go with the Shiv as the 'Quintessential CPK', if we're talking about associating a particular model with the brand.

As far as my personal ONE 'cold dead hands' CPK... I've mentioned it before, but the MC is my Goldilocks. If I had to give up all the rest and could keep only 1 CPK, it's the MC for me.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top