Almost locatedthis new thread in "Classic American Dress," because I don't feel properly dressed without one. With the good number of Southerners (I was born in VA), and, of course, gentlemen on this forum, I'm betting others feel the same way. I'll start, with my regulars. The top one, a very light, unbolstered, Al Mar Japanese job is the one I wear to work; the bottom one was inherited from my dad, used of course, for bird hunting and fishing. The others see weekend use.

Good thread.

What I took with me on my trip this week...


newest edition of the Victorinox Spartan:

Good thread. I only have three, but I'll post pictures sometime.

My everyday (work) one is a Gerber, then I have a Case knife that I carry with nicer clothes (ie that don't come in contact with flour), and then a keychain one with my initials.

Conor

I really like those old yellow Case pocket knives - blades look like carbon steel.

I've done pretty well keeping up with good pens, sunglasses and the like in recent years, but not so much with pocket knives. I pretty much look at them as semi-consumable items, avoiding anything remotely valuable or desirable. I rotate a few knives, keeping a couple in a drawer until I misplace one. They usually turn up weeks later in a pocket of little-worn jeans or something.

I used to have three knives like the ones shown, but made the mistake of keeping one (even smaller) in my pocket when I tried to enter the State Department in Washington recently. You'd think I was a suicide bomber, given the guard's reaction.

Scott

Here's my picture. I also have a Bean branded Buck knife that's somewhere in my tobacco drawer for cutting ropes. Couldn't find it for this.



^NG: my dad always carried a Buck knife around, but stopped a few years ago after he forgot it in his pocket three or four times in a row at the airport. Same reaction from the metal detector guys.

Conor

I always carry a pocketknife (other than airtravel!), typically a slipjoint but I have some locking knives also. This is a pic of my dresser top. I've got at least as many more in the drawer - I went through a compulsion phase for a while :lol: I have a preference for carbon steel as it is much easier to sharpen (for me) but probably less than half are carbon.

wonderful collection, Speas. I used to constantly carry that little Buck, 2d from right, front row, until I lost it. Do you use a Japanese waterstone to sharpen them? They're terrific for hard stainless.

I havent tried one of those. At this point I have a diamond stone for heavy profiling work and a spyderco V-style stick sharpener. My freehand sharpening ability is rather poor unfortunately. I can get a nice edge with the Spyderco so long as the profile is decent to begin with. I hate the way that most knives come with a wide angle edge.

You ought to try one, with that collection. You can get the on Amazon. Start with 1000 grit stone. You soak them for a long time and keep them wet. As you sharpen a slurry of stone, metal and water forms, which is very effective. There are youtube videos of masters doing it. It's fun

^sounds interesting. I'll look into them, thanks

The Rambler wrote:

I really like those old yellow Case pocket knives - blades look like carbon steel.

Definitely my favorite. A gift from my father-in-law several Christmases ago. I have some bigger blades that are certainly not pocket-knife material that I should dig out and post.

Rambler, with a screen name like Ensiferous, you could only expect that I would get in on this thread.

Clearly a sheath knife, not a pocket knife, but hopefully handsome enough to warrant a slight bending of the topic.

My Custom Hunter made by award-winning Montana knifemaker Barry Gallagher, ABS Bladesmith.

Polished 3-1/2” blade. Top-grade, highly figured burl handle. Elaborate file work all around the tang.
Not shown is the handmade leather belt sheath in mohogany red-brown.

For pocket carry and serious work:




Executive summary: Liner locks are fair to good, and tend to be relatively secure and safe if properly fitted to fully engage. The old Spyderco lock is unacceptable due to the unsafe, unlocked open condition which can often occur when caused by a mere piece of pocket lint. The Spyderco ATR lock made up for this weakness. The Axis lock (Benchmade) is secure and excellent.