To collect, or not to collect!

Collecting knives

Why collect knives? Good question! Where do you start? What are you going to collect? Folding knives, fixed blades, neck knives, Swiss Army knives, factory knives, custom knives, kitchen knives, or knives with different opening and closing mechanisms? Or knives by brand? All questions you could ask yourself.

What I can tell you is that each of you has to decide for himself. Do you want to collect for the value of the knife, or do you just like knives like I do? In that last case, I can tell you, you are screwed (lol).

So how do you start? First, you have to find out what you like; what budget do you have? Knowing that you can find and buy knives from between a one-digit number until at least a five-digit number price category. When you start collecting

handmade knives from custom makers and makers with established reputations in knife making, you will quickly break the bank. So, as I said before, work out a plan, visit knife shows and knife makers. In that case, ask the knife maker if they are okay with the visit. Some makers have an open door once a year; others do not want to be disturbed. So respect that please.

It could be that you like industrially made knives more than handmade ones. No problem! You can find almost everything on the internet, but believe me, it is much more fun to buy a knife in a knife shop or a specialized shop. When you go on vacation or when you go traveling and in some beautiful town or village you find an authentic knife store, then believe me it is a pleasure to have a look around in that store. In France, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria, the Netherlands, and other countries, you will find some beautiful knife shops. That makes it also exciting; you never know what you're going to find. Maybe some older models of a brand that you collect and can no longer find on the internet. In the near future, you will find more stories with pictures of European knife stores on this blog.

So, as you can see, knife collecting is more than a hobby; it is a journey, a bond between one of the oldest tools and humankind. In my case, it is more than a passion; it is a significant part of my life.