What do you actually do with your knife?

[Gaoler]

Used my EDC Rough Rider whittler to pierce the lid of my lunch time cola bottle as one of my colleagues takes great delight in watching me curse as it sprays every where when he shakes it when I'm busy.

Pay back may not be big or clever but it gave me a special little glow inside.

 

[FerlasDave]

Chopping, splitting, skinning, feathering, killing etc.

 

[spader]

I use them for,


1. some whittling (making walking staff, some carving....etc)
2. making feather sticks for wood burning stove (now it is set up properly)
3. food prep.
4. opening incoming parcels (some of the heavy tools are packed with tough materials which are challenge to open - need real sharp edged EDC).
5. making up odd sized boxes (extra large ones) for out going parcels with cardboard cuts.
6. some general gardening chores (making plant cuttings..etc)

For chopping or splitting logs or woods, I would use good old billhooks or small Axe. I have 2x vintage billhooks i.e. 11 inch Whitehouse & 9 inch Elwell. Both are scary sharp and love to do the job.

 

[Siberianfury]

Chopping, splitting, skinning, feathering, killing etc.

mate, you know MOD knives are designed for carving right?

 

[Longstrider]

Opening mail
Whittling various sticks
Skinning and gutting various game
Food prep
Trimming trees and briars
Making pea sticks
Smoothing off hacksaw-cut ends of plastic strip
Building pigeon shooting hides

More 'specialist' tasks recently have been..
2" x 4" wood against the clock
Drinks cans in half (side to side and top to bottom)
Free hanging rope
Cutting rows of lined up water filled plastic bottles
Cutting rolling golf balls in half
Stacks of plywood pieces
Posting tubes
Drinking straws
Rizlas
Hardwood dowel directly across the grain

A boy's gotta have fun !

 

[Celt_Ginger]

Cutting stuff

 

[redneck]

Lately I've been practicing getting the right cuts for a figure four trap, been years since I've made one.

 

[FerlasDave]

mate, you know MOD knives are designed for carving right?

Ofcourse, I do all my whittling with it.

 

[Siberianfury]

Ofcourse, I do all my whittling with it.

thats good mate, you want to use your opi for the chopping, much stronger.

 

[Front Room Woodlander]

Taking me out of the house, away from wife and chivers, into my little shed for some private time sharpening, polishing and such. Really its meditation and good for my mental health.

What do I use my knife for? For cutting my mental clutter from my mind.





(How esoteric?)

 

[redandshane]

Off camping for 5 nights with Mora 2000 and Victorinox Forester so will try and keep a record and post on return

Right I am back
Heres the list as written

Making a clothes peg from blackthorn
Cutting some paracord
Opening a tin of potatoes
Cutting the leather of a boot I found on the beach(hush puppies)
Removing the backing from that leather
Cutting open a pack of bacon
cutting up that bacon to fry
Gutting and skinning a dogfish including rendering the skin(mmm nice job)
Spreading honey on bread
cutting some thread when repairing a rip in trousers
shaving some wood for tinder on fire
Shaving some wax to get fire going in wet
Carving a toggle for day pack
Making an ashtray out of a found beer can

Probably more; but that is my recorded entry
Had a great time walking etcetera weather changeable lol

 

[w00dsmoke]

Last time I was out walking the dog it was to cut broom to make a dry layer to sit on while having a brew. Then it was making a bow drill, collect resin from the fir trees, cut cordage, cut bread, cut sticks for kk.

 

[addo]

All the usuall bushy stuff mentioned.
Carving and making Knives and sheaths.
Randon package opening, and food prep at work.
Making a brew when the spoon has disapeared, as the knife is always there.

 

[ged]

At work we get lots of stuff delivered in cardboard boxes loaded on pallets. Most of the time the boxes are held on the pallets by plastic film such as shrink wrap, cling film or just polythene. We have to unpack the pallets to deliver the boxes in smaller, mixed consignments all over the place.

I cut up an awful lot of the plastic film with a stainless blade (SOG 'toolclip') and I frequently need to touch it up to keep it sharp. I've had it at about 20 years. The blade steel is fairly ordinary stainless - 420 or something similar. At the moment I'm trying a nice steel that I bought from a charity shop for 99p instead of a stone, hoping that if I can work-harden the edge it will last longer. If that isn't successful (early indications are promising but the jury's still out) then I'll probably go shopping for another knife.

My question is what steels do people think might perform better doing this job? There are so many materials and treatments that it's a bit overwhelming. I'm leaning towards something like VG10 but looking for advice. Sharpening will be no problem, even if it's a difficult material to work with, but I'd be happy if I can still just use a simple stone or a steel.

If this should be in another thread, the admins are welcome to move it.

 

[poddle]

Ged why don't you use a Stanley knife?
Just throw the blade away when your done, although you could try and sharpen the blade, if you really wanted to.

No point in spending dosh on a knife for that kind of work IMHO

 

[gregs656]

Opening packets of biscuits.

There is no better way to do it.

Mine get used for as much as I possibly can use them for, a lot of it is food related. I have started going out into the woods and trying more practical things though.

 

[ged]

Ged why don't you use a Stanley knife?
Just throw the blade away when your done, although you could try and sharpen the blade, if you really wanted to.

No point in spending dosh on a knife for that kind of work IMHO

Some of the boxes I'm talking about contain Stanley knives! We sell them. There's one on the packing bench at all times (and I DO sharpen the blades). But the blade on a Stanley knife isn't big enough to do what I need to do. The packaging isn't always nice and neat, and the blade needs to be able to cut in three dimensions, not just two. It needs to be at least three inches long. I'd carry a larger, fixed bladed knife if it didn't bring with it complications like having to remember to take it off my belt if I nip to the chippy or risking arrest if I forget.

 

[poddle]

I use a leatherman, it seems to cover most cutting jobs, and as its a tool, you should have few legal problems

 

[Nat]

My main user, an Opinel No 8

Used for feathering, shaving sticks, carving food, whittling, cutting cord, packaging etc.


Blade is stained from use but at least it gets used unlike a couple of knives i have.

 

[FGYT]

I use a leatherman, it seems to cover most cutting jobs, and as its a tool, you should have few legal problems

you will if its one of the locking ones and no reason to have it on you

same as any pen knife

ATB

Duncan