Here's a fun debate--a biker's knife.

Rock said:
All you nonconformists look alike.
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Boy, does that strike a chord. I've never owned a motorcycle in my life, but I was pretty into punk rock in the 80's. Man oh man, talk about some nonconformist folks who love to all dress the same! :D Yeah, I was the stubborn one who wore my hair long just to irritate them.
 
My last donorcycle was a a 1983 Yamaha XS850 that would stand up in fourth gear. I sold it in 2002. Lost a lot of friends along the road; decapitations, amputations, broken backs and bones, and head injuries. Yea, freedom.

Youth is wasted on the young. :D
 
james terrio said:
knife that costs more than $50...Why does a biker need a knife? Same reason I do, to cut things!!
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And that's one of the points of this thread. It is said that a 'cutting tool' was one of man's first implements. I agree. In fact, it seems to be one of our rites of passage when a father or an uncle presents a boy with a folding knife. (And I still have that first knife.)

But along the way people change or evolve. I'm not really singling out the Buck 110, but it doesn't always meet my needs. I doubt I'll ever go back to Sturgis, but if I did I'd take something better. Oh, I might pack the 112 on my belt for tradition, but I still have to eat.

Yes, old habits die really hard. Admittedly, I ride much the same bike as I did in 1971. This is a picture of me and "Black Betty" right before I changed her front end over to the CVO inverted fork.

Perhaps that's another bedrock reason. The Buck 110 reminds people of their youth, and it's a comfortble old ffriend.

http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb231/TheTourist_bucket/DSC00118.jpg
 
BTW, and not to belabor the point, do you know of any cutler here who is refining, re-inventing or re-designing a good, sturdy lock-back folder at a reasonable custom knife price?
 
James, I followed your link and looked over those folders. The locking design doesn't bother me as long as it's secure. For a biker's knife I doubt that speed is needed, but strength sure is.

If you bring up the Graham Brothers Knife website you'll see some pics of their folders, both full size and gents. With Josh leaving I think the folders are on the rear burner. But your link shows a similar design--clean lines, no schmaltz. I like that.

For example, one of sheath knives is just a simple 80 dollar Mikov with yellow plastic handles. (I did purchase the fancy-schmancy sheath.) Simple is good.

Edit: This is my Mikov sheath knife. (I can snap a pic of the sheath if anyone wants to look.)

http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb231/TheTourist_bucket/DSC00475.jpg

Eh, what the heck, I was up...

http://i209.photobucket.com/albums/bb231/TheTourist_bucket/001-8.jpg
 
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The Tourist said:
The locking design doesn't bother me as long as it's secure.
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I've owned a couple low- to mid-range liner-lock knives and have very few complaints. I love the fact that I can open and close them one-handed without looking, if my other hand has a workpiece in it, or I just want to look cool. I haven't experienced any problems with the strength of the design, but then again if I'm truly concerned about absolute strength, I'm not going to choose a folder. I can say I've never had one close up on me and if you do, there's a good chance you're doing something stupid. The general principle is a sound one.

My biggest beef with liner-locks is that many of the spines are left "open" and tend to fill up with gunk. Maybe it's just me, but I feel I should be able to pull a pocketknife out of my pocket and not have to fish a wedged-in dime or guitar pick out of the darn thing before I can even open it. Even when carried in a sheath, these seem to attract lint and other unpleasant things like a biker's belly-button. :D (sorry, couldn't resist)

Better factory models and many, if not most, customs have a simple spacer along the spine of the handle which prevents this. The custom makers often put really nice filework on these spacers.
 
I'm a big Buck collector and I'm not a knifemaker but I thought you bikers all carried a set of these wrenches with you :D...


DSCN1016.jpg
 
Clydetz said:
bikers all carried a set of these wrenches
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LOL. I was more of a lover than a fighter. Now if you could make me a box-end attached to a bottle of Viagra...

james terrio said:
My biggest beef with liner-locks is that many of the spines are left "open"
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Strangely, I read an article where this "open spine" was included on the original CQC7 so that grit could be cleaned out.

I have found that fuzz and loose change manage to fall into the worst places at the least opportune of times. And it was usually my luck to be chatting up a nice looking girl while still having a June-bug stuck in my moustache.

I had one client who said he was having trouble closing his folder. I started to pull scotch-tape out of the mechanism, and it kept unravelling like a magician's hankerchief. How he got so much debris packed into a knife is amazing.

The things people do to knives...
 
Way back when, places like Emerson and MercWorx weren't making jackknives for us civilian clowns. They wanted military business. (You might be able to include Mick and Dwayne in that goal, but I'm not sure.)

If the SEALs were going to work in dirt, sand and water, then the folder would always need cleaning. Using this type of a cutting tool would be tantamount to firing a rifle. Simple use would necessitate maintenance.

Yes, I do have to wash cheeseburger grease out of the pivot of my CQC-16. I doubt Ernie envisioned that...:p
 
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