Pocket Knife

[Bourne ID]

I've carried a pocket knife (or two) since my grandfather gave me my first at the age of 10. I made a point of presenting my son with his first pocket knife at the same age. My small collection consists of Case, Schrade and Providence Cutlery. The latter is an
inexpensive brand that you can find in abundance at flea markets and garage sales and only because it's the same brand as that first
knife my grandfather presented me. Choosing a pocket knife for the day is like sorting through my hats or ties, only one will fit the
day!

 

[Edward]

Here is my pocket knife along with my horsehide wallet. I carry it everyday and it's more than a decade old:

It's a German "Hubertus" switchblade with hand forged damascus blade, stag scales and nickel silver bolsters. The blade is not stainless but has a really high HRC rating (62 Rockwell) and is razor sharp.
Lever-type switchblades like this one are a quite typical German design and they have been in production for more than a hundred years. The leaf spring on this knife is incredibly strong...when you activate the knife the blade produces a nice amount of kick-back. This is something my other switchblades don't do.

Nice, I've never seen one like that before. Of course, one doesn't typically see switchblades / flick knives here at all (I don't think I ever have), as they are illegal in the UK (save for, if memory serves, an exemption for those who have only one hand, though even then I suspect the more typical, US-style switchblade we've all see on screen, weaponised as it is, would be frowned upon).

I used to carry a pen-knife (as they are known over here - apparently from their usage for cutting a writing edge into a goose feather to make a quill) regularly, but not so much now. Too easy to forget it's in there, and I would resent losing a decent knife to Airport security. If I'm gonig camping or out somewhere specific I'll carry a knife. Somewhere I have a Swiss Army (Victorianox made) Huntsman model which I bought as a souvenir in Switzerland twenty-one years ago. I regret now not buying the bog standard Swiss Army Issue model. I'm very much over knives with all sorts of fancy blades - in the end, I only ever used the basic pen knife blades anyhow. I have a few knives I bought three or so years ago when a UK seller was clearing out their stock as eBay (at least over here) had suddenly announced they were no longer accepting auctions or other sales of knives. My favourites are three little three-blade Elk Ridge pen knives for which I paid all of two pounds each to that seller. They're about the only thing I think I have which would be legal carry at all times over here. You can have a bigger knife if it is a necessity for a specific activity which you are engaged in or on your way to or from when stopped, but for general carry the blade must be below 3" - if memory serves there is also now a requirement that it must be non-fixed also (i.e. folding - don't recall the status of folding lock-knives). I have a few lying around at home (safe enough - there hasn't been a child under eighteen in the place but once in the eleven years I've lived there) and I keep one in the office, so I don't need to carry one round the house or at work. Very handy for opening parcels, though I tend to err on the safe side when there's some nice leather in there....

I've seen some nice sheath knives recently, but I really have no need of anything like that, so it'd be pointless to own them. I do regret not buying one of the last of the bone-handled Barbour knives when they were still there in the shop I worked in as an undergraduate in the nineties. No longer in production. You certainly don't see pen knives around much on sale these days... I suppose (at least in the UK) that is down to a combination of contemporary concerns about children carrying knives (you can't buy one under sixteen now), and them dwindling to a specialist interest. Most folks nowadays seem to prefer either a blade designed for a specific purpose or a Leatherman style multi-tool. I do have a couple of the latter and they are great, but much less convenient to just carry around should I require a sharp edge.

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

The decline in pocket knives is a bit surprising in light of the fact that today, much to my annoyance, many examples of modern packaging uses a tough plastic that can't be opened without scissors or a knife and even at that with great difficulty. Even plastic wrap is hard to open nowadays!

 

[Weston]

I used to carry one, quit after 9/11, then started up again a few months ago. Still takes me a second to think "Oh yeah, I've got my knife on me!" and it solves problems every day. Truly a must-have for the lazy who don't want to hunt down scissors constantly.

 

[Kmadden]

Mountain Man, you mentioned the Arkansas Red Stone for putting an edge on stainless-steel blades.
Here's another good one: AccuSharp Knife and Tool Sharpener.
It's made in the USA and comes with a lifetime warranty.
Check around the hardware stores in your area. You won't be sorry!

 

[St. Valentine]

Nice, I've never seen one like that before. Of course, one doesn't typically see switchblades / flick knives here at all (I don't think I ever have), as they are illegal in the UK

Same here in Germany. What the heck, you just need to leave it at home when you travel by plane. That said, I once went through an airport security check and only realized after the flight that my trusty pocketknife was still in my pocket. So much for airport security....

 

[samlark]

I carry one of these two knives every day.

-- Sammy

 

[Monsoon]

I always carry a pocket knife. I was at a funeral and my father was speaking to someone out of earshot. He then turns to me and asks, "You have a knife, don't you?"

"Of course, Dad." He laughed and said, "Yeah, I was just saying that you would probably have one even here."

At work, I have a Gerber E-Z-Out. When I'm just out and about, I carry the one I always carried in my flight suit, a Kershaw.

 

[randooch]

. . . but for general carry the blade must be below 3"

Very good to know. I guess my Laguiole stays stateside, then. I had thought it would be fine in checked luggage, but this bit of information suggests otherwise. Thanks, Edward! I'd hate to have that one confiscated.

Beautiful switchblade, HanSolo! Here's an interesting *ahem* youtube entry about this knife:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6g9qvlvmY98

 

[Atticus Finch]

Here's the three that I most often carry. The bottom knife is a little Buck that works well with dress clothing in court. The middle knife is a 7.5 inch Kershaw that I use for weekend work around the property. The top knife is a 9 inch Frank B that I carry on special occasions.

AF

 

[DeaconKC]

Always have a knife in my pocket and have since I was 12. Just picked up a stag handled Schrade a couple weekends ago and it is rapidly becoming my favorite daily knife. When working I have one of two Cold Steel knives on my vest.

 

[Duper]

I have carried a pocket knife for over 40 years. My father always carried a pocket knife. I can still remember being about 10 years old and being with my father when we bought my very first pocket knife. I have a small collection of about 8 or 9. My favourites that are in the rotation are my Victorinox "Soldier" alox handle, an ebony wood handled Laguiole, a Cold Steel Voyager and of recent a Thiers "Liner lock" blade. I have a few Case knives and a red handled Boker and a large Gerber in a sheath for camping.

They are used frequently and I could not imagine leaving home without one. I have given a number of Victorinox "Soldiers" to close male friends and family over the years. My father has his Victorinox with him all the time.

 

[John in Covina]

I used to have a swiss ary knife but it has disappeared. I keep a leatherman super tool in my briefcase for all sorts of tasks, opening, fixing things , etc. Hardly elegant but grand in its utility.

 

[mikespens]

Unfortunately I collect pocket knives and have hundreds. Here's several I had handy for a quick pix:

All pre 1950's, to to bottom:

Western with birds eye rivets in cracked ice celluloid, unusual with muskrat style main blade.

"Foreign", probably German, ring opener in Christmas tree celluloid. Blades open by twisting the rings. Very rare with fancy handle scales, most were bare metal.

Camillus pipe knife in ebony, note flat pipe tamper on end of handle.

Remington lobster in tortoise shell celluloid with nail file and match striker blade on bottom.

 

[Mountain Man]

When I was a company commander, I used to keep a desk drawer full of the little Victorinox and Wenger "classic" knives - when my Soldiers did something noteworthy, instead of putting them in for their 10th award of the Army Achievement Medal, I would give them a pocket knife and a 4 day pass - and I think the guys really liked that. Ran into one of my old NCO's the other day and he still had his on a keychain!

 

[Derek Cavin]

I used to carry a pocket knife all the time. Lost it in Milwaukee. Never carried one since, but I think I'll add it to my Christmas list for this year.

 

[Blewbyou]

I have a couple of Swiss army knives and a great case that I carry all of the time at work. I don't normally carry a knife when I'm not at work.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Love a pocket knife, have owned at least 200. Always carry one. But the best have a blade and some tools and are not too big. I carry a metal handled Swiss Army cadet. The screwdriver is as significant as the blade. Never find carrying just a blade useful enough.

 

[countryclubjoe]

I want a stellito. Even If I cant spell it. I want one.
Where can I get the best of its kind? Are the best made in Germany, Spain,Italy, USA?
Please advise.
Best regards
CCJ

 

[Edward]

Very good to know. I guess my Laguiole stays stateside, then. I had thought it would be fine in checked luggage, but this bit of information suggests otherwise. Thanks, Edward! I'd hate to have that one confiscated.

Is that a flick-knife? Simply a longer blade, you could have it, but you'd have to be able to show necessity - camping, or whatever. For legal carry without specific purpose, it has to be less than 3" per blade (no limits to the number of blades in one, though I should have thought if you were carrying a whle bunch of different knives that might be frowned upon ), and the blades have to be non-locking. Even at under the 3", a blade which can be locked in place has to come under the specific-reason-to-carry provision. Bit of a pain as a locking blade is obviously much safer to use, but that's the way it is (al down to knife crime being a concern, I suppose).

Here's the three that I most often carry. The bottom knife is a little Buck that works well with dress clothing in court. The middle knife is a 7.5 inch Kershaw that I use for weekend work around the property. The top knife is a 9 inch Frank B that I carry on special occasions.

AF

That top one is a lovely design. It'd have you in the dock over here, though!