ALWAYS carry a knife

[Malcolm Schweizer]

I grew up being taught that you always carry a knife.

I am frequently called upon to do light rigging work, and I sail a lot, so my knife of choice these days is a Myerchin rigging knife with a Marlin spike. One such job was helping rig some displays at the children's museum that just opened. They have a fulcrum display with pulleys and ropes. Well, fast-forward to tonight, and they had an after-hours event for museum members, so we took Petra. As soon as I walked in, one of the workers said, "hey Malcolm, how do you untie a knot that is really tight?" (This is actually not unusual for me to be asked such things at random moments.) I asked where the knot was, and he showed me the display. A pad eye had broken and he needed the stopper knot out to fix it. It was so tight that I said, "We need a Marlin spike..." and suddenly remembered I had my rigging knife clipped to my belt. I pulled it out and my friend said, "That's exactly why we keep you around." My wife laughed, then smiled, knowing this is just one of the many reasons she married me.

So tell me- what knife do you carry, and when has it saved your butt, or proven to be handy? I have a few different Myerchin folders, and a Myerchin sheath knife with separate Marlin spike. I frequently wear the sheath knife. It has a decorative knot on the spike for grasping, and a lanyard With a clip. One folder has a lanyard, and the other a belt clip.

When I produce a knife unexpectedly and someone excitedly says, "You have a knife???", I reply very calmly, "You don't?"

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[John Sanford]

I carry either a Spyderco Delica or a Benchmade Mini-Griptilian 95% of the time. I love having a pocket clip. The other 5% of the time I either forget, or carry a Buck Bantam w/o clip.

Both knives and a multi-tool (my preference is Leatherman tools) are very handy to carry. My best "got ya covered" moment was at a breakfast joint where I was checking out. Their stapler was jammed up, I pulled out my Leatherman OHT and between the pliers and one of the blades I cleared the jam. My worst was when I semi-freaked out a co-worker while we were waiting for a meeting room to clear. I was holding up the wall and took out my pocket knife and started cleaning my fingernails. Her reaction demonstrated that she had a fairly strong hoplophobia condition.

[Keith Westfall]

I just carry a 3" folding blade knife, but have carried a 4" crescent wrench in my pocket for 40+ years, and it is surprising how many situations that has helped me
(and others) over the years.

[Rich Engelhardt]

My EDC for years was a Benchmade Leopard Cub. The pivot screw came loose one day & it fell apart in my pocket.
I never got around to sending it back to Benchmade (one of these days,,,,,).

Anyhow, my EDC now is an assisted opening Kershaw. A Kevin Onion Leek.

Two things my dad told me to make sure I always carried.
1.) A knife
2.) A means of making fire

I carried both from the time I was about 6 until I quit smoking a couple/three years back.
Dad never smoked, but, always carried a book of matches. His choice of knives was far more pedestrian than mine also.
He carried a "Trim Trio".

[Malcolm Schweizer]

I just carry a 3" folding blade knife, but have carried a 4" crescent wrench in my pocket for 40+ years, and it is surprising how many situations that has helped me
(and others) over the years.

You have my utmost respect! A man is not a man without a knife and a crescent wrench.


Here is a funny knife story- I was getting on the ferry boat and the guy saw my knife sticking out. (This was recent and with MARSEC now you cannot... or should not... Carry a knife.) He stopped me and said, "Hey, is that a knife?" I said, "No sir, it's just a rope cutting tool." "Oh, alright, you can pass," he replied, and let me board. It's all in the wording.

I was freediving once and some discarded fishing line hung up on my foot and was stuck on the reef. That's one time a knife may have saved my life. I wear a dive knife on my leg most of the time when freediving. Sometimes I just carry my Myerchin.

[Jerome Stanek]

I carry a Gerber and a small Victorinox knife

[Al Launier]

I carried a Kersaw 3" clip point folding pocket knife for many years & still use it, but when my daughter returned from visiting Switzerland a couple years ago & presented me with a beautifully engraved Swiss engraved pocket knife I started carrying that one. It has a 3" & 1 1/2" drop point blades that has the city of Zurich engraved on one side & a floral design on the other side with my initials. It does have & hold a nice edge.

[Mike Null]

I've carried a knife for most of my life. Back when I was a kid most of the boys carried a pocket knife for things like whittling and mumbly peg. I remember a pair of boots that had a pocket for a knife. Even when I was working in an office I carried a small Swiss Army knife and for the last 20 years or so I've carried a larger more versatile SA knife. I use it multiple times every day. I've had a Leatherman tool for years but never carry it.

And I forgot to mention, back when I was kid they still used tubes in tires. If you don't remember that far back, that old tube was cut up and used for numerous things including slingshots. A pocket knife, good branch, piece of old tube and a piece of discarded leather was all it took to make a first class slingshot.

[Dave Beauchesne]

I am a HVAC Tradesman and have been for the past 35+ years. Up to this day, I don't like ' Multi -Tool ' screwdrivers, wrenches and the like. My pouch contains individual screwdrivers, nut drivers, wrenches and such ( mostly Snap-On ).

25 years ago, I got convinced into buying a first generation Leatherman - that thing has got me ( and others ) out of many binds - nothing life threatening mind you, but when I bought it, I thought it would be a waste of money. Not so.

I am on the third leather pouch, carry it whenever I have my pants on, and have had it hanging over the edge of the boat to unhook at least 500 salmon, and have never dropped it ( knock on wood ) in the 'chuck. I swear by it, and it has held up very well, despite the abuse hurled its way.

Dave B

[Mike Cutler]

I don't "carry" a knife on me, but every vehicle I own has at least one in it, Swiss Army Knife, as does my knapsack which is always near me. I'm never far from a knife of some type.
I have to basically go through "airport security" every morning to get into work, so anything on your belt, or in your pockets, has to come off. It's easier to just run my knapsack through the x-ray machines.

[Wayne Lomman]

I used to always carry a miniature Swiss army knife on my key ring - the blade was 1.5" long and it had a small spike and a pair of mini tweezers. It was a perfect 1st aid kit and removed many splinters. However, I go through security in airports too often now and can't carry anything so my wife has it in her handbag. When at work or at home I carry a Leatherman multi tool. I keep one at each place to avoid the security issues. 2 weeks ago the Range Rover air suspension had a fit and I managed to repair it with the Leatherman. Cheers

[John K Jordan]

So tell me- what knife do you carry, and when has it saved your butt, or proven to be handy?

I carry always, except in airport security lines. Absolutely mandatory on the farm.

For me it is only the Sog Visionary I. I like this knife so much I would become emotionally despondent if I lost it even temporarily or permanently in a hayfield so I have a drawer full of spares.

I keep these razor sharp with a pro belt sharpening machine. When one gets a little dull I swap it for a sharp one. I have had many excellent knives over the years and for me this is the best of the best.

What I like most (in addition to the small size and quality of the steel) is the clip placement and incredibly quick one-handed operation. Once for a test I pulled the knife from where I keep it clipped in the corner of my pocket, opened, closed, and reclipped it five times in five seconds.

The speed can save your hide in an emergency. Once I had a horse tied to a post at the barn with a nylon strap with a clip and for some reason known only to her she suddenly freaked out and started to jerk and pull and try to rear. She was about to hurt herself or me or both of us - a 1200 lb horse is monster when out of control. There was no possible way to release the tie under tension but in about two seconds I had the strap cut. (I learned my lesson that day and put quick disconnects on all my tie-down straps.)

Handy? Every single day: shop, barn, fields, house, orchard, garden. I used it even last night after dark while repairing a bent tie rod on my little utility truck.

JKJ

PS, always carry some kind of small knife when scuba diving. Once on a recovery dive in murky water below a boat dock I got tangled in a spider's web of years of accumulated nylon fishing line. Without the little knife strapped to my sleeve I might still be down there.

[Gordon Eyre]

I was approaching the airport security check station when I realized that I had my knife in my pocket. I placed my knife in the bottom of the basket and my coin purse and keys on top of it. It sailed right through but it did teach me to be more careful in the future.

[Jim Koepke]

I think my father gave me my first pocket knife when I was 6 or 7 years old.

The common small Swiss Army knife has been in my pocket since the early 1980s. Before that it was a larger model until I broke the screwdriver blade off.

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(picture taken from the internet)

Besides being able to tend to a broken fingernail, pull a sliver or remove things from between my teeth, it is great for opening the mail on the walk back from the mail stop.

A larger single blade knife, a Boker c. 1940s, is also carried when working with rope is on the day's to do list.

One time while hiking with some friends at a landfill, converted to an urban park, we came upon a dog with its head stuck inside a large, plastic food service container. My little knife was able to first cut a breathing hole into the side of the container and then carefully cut the side open to remove it from the dog's head. He was one happy doggie after that. We didn't find the owner, but the dog did seem attached to one person who disavowed knowing the dog.

Whenever I find one of these at a yard sale or thrift shop for ~$5 or less it gets bought and put in a drawer as a back up or saved as a gift for one of my grandchildren.

jtk

[Jim Koepke]

I was approaching the airport security check station when I realized that I had my knife in my pocket. I placed my knife in the bottom of the basket and my coin purse and keys on top of it. It sailed right through but it did teach me to be more careful in the future.

I always have to think when I am going into an airport. Since our grandchildren travel unaccompanied we are required to meet them at the gate.

My father gave me a key ring I still carry when I was about 9 years old. It has a screwdriver, a folding can opener, commonly called a P38, and a bottle opener. The can opener has a sharp blade and is not something one wants to explain to the TSA.

jtk