Why do you carry your every day carry (knife)?

[LeRoy]

I'm not looking to steal the thunder from the other pocket knife thread going on currently. But, as I read many of the comments, I find that there's a great affinity for the knives, materials and workmanship. And there are occasional stories of what we do with our pocket knives. That's what I'm interested in.

For years I've tended to carry the biggest Swiss Army Knife I came across. Why? It's the multi-tool thing. I probably use the scissors and knife blades daily, the toothpick almost as often, the tweezers at least weekly, the screwdrivers (Phillips and standard, in multiple sizes) several times a week and the pliars get a regular workout. I've even used the saw to cut some wood found on the roadside to form a spllnt to fix the fender brace on my Eldorado sidecar combo (Guzzi content). So, yeah,  I can justify a bigger-than-necessary bulge in my pocket and a bit of ostentation.

But tonight brought it all into sharp focus. I returned home late from a couple of hours of arduous Frisbee practice and I simply needed some refreshment. So, I got out the old faithful pocket knife and employed one of it's most useful tools.

That's why I carry a Swiss Champ pocket knife. What about you?

[azguzzirep]

If the knife wasn't the first tool invented, it surly is among the oldest tools mam has created.

It has nearly unlimited uses, self protection being one of them.

Let's say you're on an evening stroll with your wife when suddenly a big ( dog, squirrel, monkey) comes running at the both of you, teeth showing, growling, snarling,  hell bent on biting one or both of you!

You can whip out your knife, kill the dog as it leaps at you, then skin it and quarter it and take the meat home for stew the next day.😀

It's always good to carry a knife😆😆

[Lannis]

One might be able to "whip out" a Camillus #3 or a Spyderco in case of a threat of some sort, but that action hardly applies to a 2-1/2" peanut, congress, or stockman.

Never a day goes by that I don't need to do one out of the following:

1) Open a package

2) Strip a wire

3) Cut a piece of rope, string, fishing line, or tape

4) Sharpen a stick

Then there's all the things you might do once a week, once a month, or once a year .... too many to list!  Heck, I carry things every day that I'll very likely never use in my whole life, and hope I don't have to.

Lannis

[rboe]

Not trying to be cute, but to ask "why do you carry a knife" is kinda like asking "why do you have fingers". Each day new and old tasks come up that a pocket knife (depending on which one you carry and the features it offers - and the features you bought to meet your perceived needs) can handle, right then and there - with out running to where you keep your main tools. Many times I use my pocket knife even when I'm in the shop; it can handle so many things "good enough".

I don't use the wood saw blade as much now as I did in college, but because I used to use it I tend to think I still need it.

We are major tool users, and the knife is the uber tool for everyday use.

[Chuck in Indiana]

surly

Not surly.. Shirley. 
Oh, I carry a knife for all the reasons you carry a knife. It's an essential tool. My little single bladed folder will even open that Celebration, Bob. Good choice. 

[kirby1923]

Bottle opener

:-)

[bmc5733946]

Because!

Brian

[webmost]

If the knife wasn't the first tool invented, it surly is among the oldest tools mam has created.

It has nearly unlimited uses, self protection being one of them.

Let's say you're on an evening stroll with your wife when suddenly a big ( dog, squirrel, monkey) comes running at the both of you, teeth showing, growling, snarling,  hell bent on biting one or both of you!

You can whip out your knife, kill the dog as it leaps at you, then skin it and quarter it and take the meat home for stew the next day.😀

It's always good to carry a knife😆😆

Yeah, that happens more often than you'd think. Round here, it's Sasquatch usually tries to jump you.

[webmost]

Gal was in my office the other day, looking down admiring Sopowa, my Indian Scout, in the parking lot. Asks me:  "Why is there a rope tied to the rack?" I answered: "I don't know yet."

Same thing applies to the knife in my pocket as to the cord on the rack. The powers to bind and to separate. Some may say the wheel is man's greatest invention. I say not even close. The basics are knife and cordage. You can't so much as fasten a rock to a stick to make a hammer or a spear without both of those.

And, Leroy, I open most all my beers with my knife... but you don't need to call in the Swiss Army for that. Grab your bottle by the throat in your left, grab your closed knife in your right, set the tang under the cap edge, your left thumb is the fulcrum, POP.

[Testarossa]

I've used every device on the big Swiss knife and on the Leatherman. On the Swiss knife it's often the only corkscrew I can find. The screwdrivers adjust ski bindings and carburetors. The files clean electrical contacts and ski-edge burrs. Everything I buy nowadays comes in some kind of tamper-proof packaging that needs to be slit open. Cutting tape, nipping twine, opening mail, trimming nails (very important to avoid poking holes in ski socks).

[Lannis]

 Everything I buy nowadays comes in some kind of tamper-proof packaging that needs to be slit open.

That's true.   And shows how far we've come since our ancestors used a knife to cut the cordage to bind a stone axhead to the haft .... !

Lannis

[Demar]

To open all the packages from Harpers, MG Cycle and AF1.

[sidmonsters]

But speaking of Surly, LeRoy, that brewery is in your backyard and their caps are much more deserving of your knife skills.  Yes, I am bitter and jealous that I can't get my Surly Abrasive fix here in Northeast Ohio, despite our many fine craft breweries.
Steve

[hidn45]

I use my little folder every day to cut & core my apple or pear for an afternoon snack at work.  Much easier to eat that way while I'm at my desk.

I used to whip out my Schrade Stockman every day in the cafeteria in high school to do the same thing - if a kid did that today they'd be calling the SWAT team.....

[John A]

 I usually have two knives on me, one with a razor edge and one to lend out and use as a gasket scraper. I feel unsettled without a knife, Ive carried one as long as I can remember

[Orange Guzzi]

I told my Wife I wanted some change and my pocket knife in my pocket when she bury's me.  Never know whats on the other side.

[ITSec]

Purely utility. A blade is a basic tool, and I probably use it as often as I do the pen that's next to it in my pocket.

[lost]

I've been carrying a pocket knife since I was 8 years old. My grandfather gave me a little pocket switchblade which I still have. I use a knife for work and play and feel naked if I leave home without one.

[Chuck in Indiana]

I used to whip out my Schrade Stockman every day in the cafeteria in high school to do the same thing - if a kid did that today they'd be calling the SWAT team.....

How times have changed. For winning the spelling bee in third grade, Mrs. Fox gave me a nice little pearl handled Case knife.    Dorcia's son Jim has it now..

[LowRyter]

first to clean my nails....then everything else that might happen.

[John Ulrich]

I travel light.  knifes, screwdrivers, Leatherman are carried in the car/cycle for when I might need then.  I have not worn a watch or ring for 20 years.  I only carried 1 key, for the office door on my daily driven car FOB until I retired, now I'm back to FOB's only, no key's dangling.  No house key is needed because the cars hold the Homelinks for the garage doors.  Two neighbors have garage openers if I get separated from a vehicle.  I hate carrying change, I leave the house with only a slim wallet, handkerchief, small Iphone 4.... if I remember it!

Remember Snyder from the TV show One Day At A Time?  His "tick" was that retractable ring of keys hung on his hip.  I'm the Anti-Snyder.

[Lannis]

I travel light.  knifes, screwdrivers, Leatherman are carried in the car/cycle for when I might need then.  I have not worn a watch or ring for 20 years.  I only carried 1 key, for the office door on my daily driven car FOB until I retired, now I'm back to FOB's only, no key's dangling.  No house key is needed because the cars hold the Homelinks for the garage doors.  Two neighbors have garage openers if I get separated from a vehicle.  I hate carrying change, I leave the house with only a slim wallet, handkerchief, small Iphone 4.... if I remember it!

I'm about as light as you.   Flashlight in a little belt sheath, thin card case in the front pocket, pocket comb in the back, knife in the other front pocket.    No keys - the car keys stay with the car, the house key (when I need one) has a hidden spot at home.   

I do wear a watch, but no ring - despite appearances ("Why aren't you wearing a wedding ring?"), I've been shocked, burned, and "hung up" on my ring over the years and now it stays comfortably at home ....   

And that's it.   

Lannis

[John Ulrich]

I'm about as light as you.   Flashlight in a little belt sheath, thin card case in the front pocket, pocket comb in the back, knife in the other front pocket.    No keys - the car keys stay with the car, the house key (when I need one) has a hidden spot at home.   

I do wear a watch, but no ring - despite appearances ("Why aren't you wearing a wedding ring?"), I've been shocked, burned, and "hung up" on my ring over the years and now it stays comfortably at home ....   

And that's it.   

Lannis

Being hair challenged eliminates the need for a comb. My BIL "hung up" on a ladder by his ring recently.  Hopefully our wives can identify us without the ring on. 

[Chuck in Indiana]

Yeah, wedding rings have gotten electricians killed, machinists fingers pulled off, etc. They are just to dangerous to wear if you are a mechanic. I used to take mine off every day when I went to work, put it back on when I got off work, etc. Eventually, I just said screw it. Sorry, sweetie, I don't even know where it is any more. I'm pretty sure she understands..

[John A]

Yeah, wedding rings have gotten electricians killed, machinists fingers pulled off, etc. They are just to dangerous to wear if you are a mechanic. I used to take mine off every day when I went to work, put it back on when I got off work, etc. Eventually, I just said screw it. Sorry, sweetie, I don't even know where it is any more. I'm pretty sure she understands..

In the military they showed us a picture of a ring finger that had caught on something when the guy fell off an airplane . It had long tendons attached .ruined his day

[Demar]

Yeah, wedding rings have gotten electricians killed, machinists fingers pulled off, etc. They are just to dangerous to wear if you are a mechanic. I used to take mine off every day when I went to work, put it back on when I got off work, etc. Eventually, I just said screw it. Sorry, sweetie, I don't even know where it is any more. I'm pretty sure she understands..

Same here. When I first started work I worked for Schlage Lock Co. and worked on automated assembly machines, stamping dies, etc. We were required to wear clip-on ties so the tie didn't pull you into the equipment. I had one machine snag my ring and after that I stopped wearing one. That was 34 years ago.

We had an electrician who smoked cigars working on the main panel in the plant. Something arced and exploded the bic butane lighter he had in his front pocket. He was burned very badly and missed almost a year of work.

[Sasquatch Jim]

  To stab grizzly bears in the butt.  Just because I don't live in bear territory anymore is no reason not to carry it.

[bassa99]

Old timer said to me on day. Boy what happens to you if the circus tent should collapse and you don't have a pocket knife to cut your way out? Made sense to me so I carry one all the time.

[Rough Edge racing]

Old timer said to me on day. Boy what happens to you if the circus tent should collapse and you don't have a pocket knife to cut your way out? Made sense to me so I carry one all the time.

 Exactly, years ago I went to see some bands under a huge tent...My girlfriend at the time asked me why I had the larger knife... I don't carry tools in the cars or more than a Leatherman while on the bike...But do have small flashlights....
  On my person I carry the small knife, keys, wallet and I phone....No watches or jewellery...I always wear sturdy boots just in case I have to kick my way into or out of a situation 
  Seriously, I know some of you carry firearms...Some of us have knives, some have fast fists and feet.......You always have to be aware of your surroundings...Know where the exits are ..And the difference between punks and punks who might try to jack you up..

[Monza-jockey]

I carry a basic Leatherman tool. I probably use the screwdrivers and pliers more often than the knife blade. I've even used the ruler markings to measure stuff. Pretty handy tool.