Rule #9, What are your EDC?

[Moshe]

[fastbolt]

Personally, I always thought that never going anywhere without a knife ought to have been placed much higher on Leroy Gibbs' list than at 9 ... with the agreement that there's a legitimate reason some places are off limits to bringing a knife into them, of course.

I've generally tried to operate using a corollary of Rule 9, myself, meaning that unless specific circumstances (or the law) prohibit it, carry more than 1 knife.

I normally carry 2-4 knives, but when I'm in the surf I only carry 1 folder, being a Spyderco Salt I with plain edge, although I have it in the back of my mind to eventually replace it with a fully serrated Salt version.

I have an older Police model made with the GIN-1 fully serrated blade, engraved with the Seal Team 2 logo ( Spyderco Model C07 Seal Team 2 ), which I understand were made under contract by Spyderco distributor John Jensen back in the mid 90's. I don't have a letter or the original box, as I intended for the knife to just be a secondary workhorse. It's still in like-new condition, though, as I seldom ended up carrying it. Guess I ought to correct that oversight and add it to my normal carry routine.

One of my retired LE friends still carries his regular Spyderco Police everyday, everywhere. Old habit from his time working UC, he said. I bought one for a former partner upon his retirement a few years ago, one of the current production models. I had a local company engrave it commemorating his service as USMC Military Police and for 3 civilian LE agencies. Nice knives, if a bit thin and slick in the hand and long in the handle.

Edited June 24, 2019 by fastbolt

[Maccabeus]

SwissBianco Yeoman SAK https://www.sakwiki.com/tiki-index.php?page=Yeoman

TANGRAM Amarillo folder  (A rare intersection of affordability and being lefty friendly).

 

And, while I don't carry it anymore, honorable mention to the Spartan SAK that I carried for decades and served me well.  It now lives retired in a drawer on call for back-up purposes if the Yeoman ever goes missing.

[fastbolt]

It's amazing how many formerly carried SAK's seem to end up in a drawer, toolbox or workbench top and continue to provide service for years. I think the Spartan and the Tinker are probably a couple of the most commonly purchased and used daily workhorse SAK's. I seem to always be finding copies stuck away in drawers, tool boxes/bins, armorer tool kits and former range bags.

That Tangram is one of the Kizer company folders made under their Tangram brand, right? From what I understand, the ACUTO 440c alloy has a bit more chromium and some vanadium than regular 440c, so it ought to have some decent corrosion resistance and may keep an edge a little longer than regular 440c. Kinda depends on the heat treat as far as ease of re-sharpening . Personally, I think some of the Chinese-made folders are competing quite favorably in the modern market, at least as long as good QC is demanded and maintained.

Edited June 23, 2019 by fastbolt

[Maccabeus]

6 hours ago, fastbolt said:

It's amazing how many formerly carried SAK's seem to end up in a drawer, toolbox or workbench top and continue to provide service for years. I think the Spartan and the Tinker are probably a couple of the most commonly purchased and used daily workhorse SAK's. I seem to always be finding copies stuck away in drawers, tool boxes/bins, armorer tool kits and former range bags.

That Tangram is one of the Kizer company folders made under their Tangram brand, right? From what I understand, the ACUTO 440c alloy has a bit more chromium and some vanadium than regular 440c, so it ought to have some decent corrosion resistance and may keep an edge a little longer than regular 440c. Kinda depends on the heat treat as far as ease of re-sharpening . Personally, I think some of the Chinese-made folders are competing quite favorably in the modern market, at least as long as good QC is demanded and maintained.

 

I like the idea of the Tinker better, but the Spartan was the first SAK I bought, so I just carried it year after year.  While I would have preferred the true Philips head, I was surprised how often I used the corkscrew over the years, both for corks and other random purposes.  The Yeoman has both.

All my toolbox and junk drawer knives seem to be random things collected over the years.  I never left my SAKs alone long enough for them to migrate to a toolbox. ?

As for the Tangram, I'm not actually sure of the ownership or construction without looking it up.  I was having a hard time finding a folder with a left-hand friendly reversible clip that also rode very low in the pocket.  That model Tangram is about the only one I found on Amazon that fit my requirements, so I bought it.  I've been pleased with it for the low cost.  The blade opens without too much pressure, so if you depress the lever too gently it will only partly open and not lock.  As long as you open it with some gusto, it works fine.  That's my only complaint so far.

[fastbolt]

14 hours ago, Maccabeus said:

 

I like the idea of the Tinker better, but the Spartan was the first SAK I bought, so I just carried it year after year.  While I would have preferred the true Philips head, I was surprised how often I used the corkscrew over the years, both for corks and other random purposes.  The Yeoman has both.

All my toolbox and junk drawer knives seem to be random things collected over the years.  I never left my SAKs alone long enough for them to migrate to a toolbox. ?

As for the Tangram, I'm not actually sure of the ownership or construction without looking it up.  I was having a hard time finding a folder with a left-hand friendly reversible clip that also rode very low in the pocket.  That model Tangram is about the only one I found on Amazon that fit my requirements, so I bought it.  I've been pleased with it for the low cost.  The blade opens without too much pressure, so if you depress the lever too gently it will only partly open and not lock.  As long as you open it with some gusto, it works fine.  That's my only complaint so far.

 

Just to remind us of the way synchronicity often works ...

I was looking through my standing toolbox this afternoon, gathering some odds and ends for a chore i was planning to take care of out on the upper deck, and what did I find mixed in with some odds and ends?

TWO black handled Tinker SAK's. Both showed signs of a lot of usage, and one of them might've migrated to that toolbox "misc" drawer from one of my older range bags. I think I have a red one in my main armorer tool kit, too.

I'd not be surprised to find that I've collected maybe half a dozen Tinker and Super Tinker SAK's over time. Lots of others, but those were my early choices for medium-sized EDC task folders. Thye've ended up being stashed all over the place.

Edited June 24, 2019 by fastbolt

[Spats McGee]

The Benchmade Sequel is getting the most carry time right now, but I do like the Spyderco Native 5.  Nice and light, but a bit too big for my pocket.

[fastbolt]

One of the subtle changes I've made when it comes to my penchant for continually adding to my knife collection is that I'm adding more partially serrated and fully serrated folders. I was buying Cold Steel, Benchmade and Spyderco folders with serrations many years ago, but I've become interested in adding more.

Serrations and their practicality can be a controversial and much debated topic among knife users. However, one thing remains pretty clear, if you really need to rip/cut something thick, serrations can help.

I was helping my brother load a truck for his move out-of-state (now that he's retired), and some of the heavier items were being strapped and tied to the inside of the truck using heavy, thick nylon ties. At one point I needed to cut one and my regular blade was having a hard time getting into a spot so I could apply enough force and leverage to cleanly sever the tie. I also had an older Spyderco folder in my pocket that day, with a partially serrated G-2 blade, and was able to maneuver the blade to where the serrations would engage. The ease with which the serrations smoothly parted the heavy nylon strap was pretty damned satisfying. A single push and the nylon parted like thick butter with one pass of the serrations. No sawing at all.

I can't remember the name/model of that original Spyderco, but it's one of the all plastic handled models (integral plastic clip) with a soft rubber insert in the hard plastic handle on the side opposite the one with the clip (to help prevent slippage). I I remember right, it was the "budget" version of more expensive metal-handed Spyderco of that time period.

If any Spyderco fans might recognize it, here it is in a pic. It's the bottom knife in this pic. Both it and the original Delica with the fully serrated blade are from my younger days. You can see the outlined edge of the softer textured insert in the hard plastic handle on the side facing the lens.

Edited July 5, 2019 by fastbolt

[windowasher]

I carry Swiss Army Supertinker and a SOG Flash II Tanto daily.

[jk_226]

[Moshe]

There should be another rule.  Don't force something, and cut your fingernail in half.

[Eric]

I love Böker knives.

 

[Spats McGee]

I know this is a bit of a bump, but I've expanded my assortment of knives since I last posted here.  To wit, from top to bottom:  (1) A Case Mini-Trapper fished out of my dad's desk drawer.  Not very tactical, but it takes a good edge, is easy to sharpen, and doesn't scare the office ladies. (2) a Kershaw Volt.  I originally bought it as a knockaround, range bag knife.  This one also takes a pretty good edge and is relatively easy to sharpen. (3) My very first CRKT, the Offibeat II.  I spotted it on sale for around $22 to my door, and it's a lot of knife for that price.

[pipedreams]

Bought this Boker a while back, it's nice to carry but it's not

lefty friendly so guess I'll give it to a grandson.