Shaving and knives?

[fastyouth1313]

Hello B&B,

So I got started in wet shaving in 2015, love be hobby/passion. I also acquired a straight razor and loved using that as well! As the years went on I fell in love with all things sharp, and it has led me to collecting a lot of pocket knives and getting into the EDC world. Just curious if shaving has gotten you into knives collecting or any other hobby’s?

-Scott

My EDC below

 

[AimlessWanderer]

Totally separate interests for me.

Started DE shaving in my late teens. Used the same razor and brand of blades for 20 years. Halfway through that period, I started accumulating a few more knives. By the time I decided to try a couple more razors, I had over 100 pocket knives, sheath knives and multitools. I have offloaded quite a few since then though.

Shaving never followed the same desire to acquire new things. It was more about getting better and better with the same stuff. I have gone on a bit of a spending spree with DE blades, and tried a few different soaps, but any spare cash in my pocket would be more likely to go towards a new pocket knife than anything shaving related. A pocket knife is carried and used all day, whereas a razor, soap or brush is not.

 

[Seveneighth]

Vivid memories I have: my dad taking me to an ironmongers when I was around 10 and buying me a pocket knife - showing me how to test / judge a good quality one. Then we went into the coubtryside, sharpened it and used it to cut a walking stick.

The other memory is my Grandfather a few years later teaching me to shave and strop with a cutthroat.

The two interests have run independently. When I started earning enough money to have some disposable income I started collecting leatherman multitools and some knives with fancy modern metallurgy. The knives were always UK carry compliant and to be honest I got fed up with the modern stainless steels. That has put me off pocket knives now. I still like good quality handmade British knives but these seem few and far between and I haven't been tempted to really start collecting.

Where I have found more of a crossover recently has been kitchen knives. I have a couple of very large coticules - too unwieldy for razor sharpening, so I have been using them for knife sharpening. This has got me interested in chefs knives and cooking with very sharp blades.

 

[member 119848]

When I turned 40, I was already shaving with a plastic DE, but the passion was not engaged yet.
At that time I was more interested in brushcraft. I acquired a good quality bushcraft knife from ESEE knives (USA) and flint & stones to start fire. Watching american videos on Youtube, I would have loved to own firearms. But I sadly live in a country that has no 2nd amendement...
With my interest with knives, I looked into straight razors and finally decided to buy myself a good DE razor to step into the hobby. I discovered B&B at that time. @fastyouth1313 , there must be something with sharp objects that we, men, are attracted to.
I still have interest in bushcraft, survival, and firearms, but wet-shaving is for my situation more practicable.
Wet-shaving has been a blessing for me. I enjoy this daily routine and look much better with a clean shave.

 

[fastyouth1313]

Thank you all!

My father also gave me my first knife, wish I could find it! If my memory serves me correctly it was a little alox Swiss Army Knife.

I have a decent shave den setup that works perfectly for me, and gives me a great shave! But I am always looking for another knife lol.

I love the craftsman ship that comes to shaving and knives. I love old Gillette skins and fatboys, as well as hand made knifes!

 

[njpaddy]

I had knives for many years before wetshaving, but it wasn't until I was in my 60s and joined this forum that I began using a DE and buying decent knives. For the almost 10 years I've been shaving with a DE, I've also carried a Spyderco Delica 4, a perfect jean knife and one of the sharpest out of the box.

My first knife was a Boy Scout style, without the official emblem. I got it in 1959 or 1960, and still have it. Except for school, I think I've carried a knife (mostly crap knives) on my person or in my car ever since. In the early 1970s, my wife and I were on a long road trip when my daughter (under 2 at the time), managed to wrap a string from her doll so tight around her finger that it turned blue and we couldn't get it off. A folding knife I kept in the glove box prevented her from losing her fingertip which had turned blue. It reinforced my belief in having a knife close by.

 

[Macfrommichigan]

Oh, I have always appreciated good knives. And I have wetshaved for a long time. Two separate things, tho.

 

[Ad Astra]

Lots of folks who appreciate the finer things here; whether it's tea, knives, watches ...


AA

 

[Pat Puma]

Spyderco Delica 4

+1 for Spyderco. Mine are Para 3, Paramilitary 4, and Native 5 Lightweight.

 

[jar_]

When I was growing up knives were ubiquitous. Boy or girl, by the time you started school you carries a pocket knife. Recess was games of mumbly peg or whittling and you always had your pencil sharpener with you. When you joined Boy or Girl Scouts you got an "Official Knife" and when you got enough merit badges you earned your first fixed blade knife, usually a Western or Case.

 

[bluesman 7]

When I was growing up knives were ubiquitous. Boy or girl, by the time you started school you carries a pocket knife. Recess was games of mumbly peg or whittling and you always had your pencil sharpener with you. When you joined Boy or Girl Scouts you got an "Official Knife" and when you got enough merit badges you earned your first fixed blade knife, usually a Western or Case.

Right. I remember carrying a pocket knife to grade school daily. Never even thought about using it for ill intent.

When I was in cub scouts and boy scouts, a scout pocket knife was part of the uniform and you were expected to have it. I often wonder how the pocket knives are handled today in scouts. Surely whittling, rope craft, and camp uses still include them. Do they sign them out and have to return them at the completion of the task??

 

[Bhugo]

My first knife was a really old Boy Scout knife. It had a blade on one side and a bottle opener/screwdriver on the other side. I was 8 in 78. I loved it. It ended up breaking some years later but I used it for everything. I grew up in the country and went to a rural grade school but I never took my knife to school. My dad would have skinned me alive if he found out. I doubt the penalty for bringing one back then was much more than confiscation back then but making dad go get it from school would have meant I would lose it for a long time! I remember hanging it from my belt in cub scouts. Cool times and memories.

 

[TomFoolery]

Right. I remember carrying a pocket knife to grade school daily. Never even thought about using it for ill intent.

When I was in cub scouts and boy scouts, a scout pocket knife was part of the uniform and you were expected to have it. I often wonder how the pocket knives are handled today in scouts. Surely whittling, rope craft, and camp uses still include them. Do they sign them out and have to return them at the completion of the task??

Relatively recent Scout graduate here, only a few years back. It depends on the region - most troops who operate in more of a front country setting tend not to use or encourage their use as much. Although the boys still love them as always, they were not always trusted to carry them - and the way discipline ran in some of the groups I've seen, I can hardly blame them. Such is the penalty of being a scout on the populous east coast though.

I did notice troops from more rural settings tended to be more open about it, perhaps because they treated them and used them as everyday tools, encouraging a more mature view, etc. I do believe that BSA has kind of become "watered down" overall, though, if that makes any sense. Rope craft didn't really have much to it, camping overall doesn't need them as much anymore because of the products available these days, etc. While it's still a good base for some important skills, it doesn't do as much as it used to, despite the fact that there are more boxes to check now.

 

[bluesman 7]

Thank's for the insight @TomFoolery

 

[Frozenshades]

While I can appreciate both the looks and utility of a good knife I’ve never become a collector or splurged on anything fancy, though I’ve certainly been tempted. I don’t carry a knife normally.

I did just aquire a nice new dive knife though.

 

[Joshua223]

I grew up admiring the knives my Dad had accumulated over the years. Our "go to" gift for him was a Case XX or German pocket knife! In rural areas most guys carry a knife. So, for me, knives came first!

 

[Earcutter]

While I can appreciate both the looks and utility of a good knife I’ve never become a collector or splurged on anything fancy, though I’ve certainly been tempted. I don’t carry a knife normally.

I did just aquire a nice new dive knife though.

View attachment 976172

That’s a pretty nice dive knife going on there! A titanium blade though? Wonder how the edge on that thing will hold up though? Either way, at least the metal runs through the tang and is exposed at the base of the handle, so you can use it tap your tank under water. I don’t know who started designing dive knives without that feature. Not divers I’m thinking lol.

Aqua Lung. Going to look em up. Maybe a titanium blade will be awesome. A lot more water friendly I’m sure. Cool.

 

[Frozenshades]

That’s a pretty nice dive knife going on there! A titanium blade though? Wonder how the edge on that thing will hold up though? Either way, at least the metal runs through the tang and is exposed at the base of the handle, so you can use it tap your tank under water. I don’t know who started designing dive knives without that feature. Not divers I’m thinking lol.

Aqua Lung. Going to look em up. Maybe a titanium blade will be awesome. A lot more water friendly I’m sure. Cool.

Yep, titanium seems to have become popular since it's lighter and more resistant to rust and corrosion than steel. Easier to set it and forget it. This one uses a squeeze lock mechanism that seems pretty secure and easy to draw with one hand. The sheath is attached to my left side BC pocket.

Probably harder to sharpen (I haven't tried), but without cause to use it that often I don't worry about the blade dulling.

And yes, I like the metal peg on the end. Good noise maker. My fiancee has one of the little quackers that hooks into the inflator to get attention underwater lol.

 

[Niles]

I've loved pocket knives since I was a young boy. My interest in classic shaving didn't come until I was a teenager.

 

[Earcutter]

Here’s my EDC set-up.



It’s kind of odd that with all the knives I own, I choose to carry this Benchmade. It’s just the perfect amount of utilitarian and fun (to flick open). I used to carry it because it was relatively inexpensive and easy to replace. Now that it’s no longer in production and has worked it’s way into my heart over these years, I think I’d miss it.

Same with my 43. Cheap and easy to replace in case I ever went fishing and dropped it in the lake. Of course now with it having been ported and having added the red dot, internal upgrades etc., edc...