Hello!

[craftyhack]

Hi All, I am Mike Craft, ordered WE ProII and a bunch of extra stuff to take care of my different needs. I am both a user (hunting, shop work as a mechanic 7 years professionally on cars, 4 years in the USN on Nuke Reactors, and the 14 years since as a side job in my garage), and around the house DIY’er, and with a 50 year old house, there is plenty of DIY to do :)).

I am also a collector (addict), so my needs are both to sharpen my carry EDCs as well as to perhaps refunch / polish used collectibles I purchase.

I have *at least* 3 different knives on me at all times(at work, out running errands, etc, if training or out shooting I have a few more :)).

One multitool out of the 25 or so that I have, but my two favs are my Charge TTi or my Skeletool CX, where I pick based on whether I am going to work (my day job is Health Care IT(HCIT)) which means the CX, or to do errands and work around the house (TTi). I do have a third, a MUT, that I take with me to the range, along with a few others.

My second EDC is my all purpose cutting tool, at least 3″ (prefer closer to 4″) with characteristics that lend to emergency self defense(thumb ramp with jimping, bottom finger choil, decent stabbing edce and decent belly for reverse hold slashing). I am full time CCW, and hopefully I will NEVER have to use either because peace will reign from now on in the US :). My favs for this role are currently either my CF scaled Sebenza 21 Large, Sog Slim Jim XL(this is one ingenious knife!!), Spyderco Endura 4, BM 810BM Contigo, ZT 560, and a couple of others, usually dictated again by where I am going and what I am wearing. With slacks SlimJim, Sebenza, or Endura all the way, with jeans going downtown walking until maybe 2 in the AM on a pub crawl, Endura, Contigo or ZT 560 (or maybe Espada XL :)).

My third EDC that I ALWAYS carry is my Spyderco Cricket, no other contenders for this use, which is my mail, package and blister pack opener, which I use without fail every day many times, I LOVE this little knife. With its small size(but just big enough to comfortably use), I have never found its equal in something that I can carry no matter WHAT I am wearing and never notice it, yet with its hooked blade it is PERFECT for opening anything without damaging the contents. I purchased the rounded set of stones for my WE PPII JUST FOR THIS BLADE :). I love that they made this in VG10, one of my fav steels, so thin, etc., I wouldn’t change a thing. Now that i think about it I am going to buy a couple more as backups ASAP in case they stop making them as Spyderco likes to do sometimes :).

Other than that, I have perhaps 150-200 or so blades in my collection, although most of them are in the “value category”, with one or two that would be considered custom MAYBE. I have several numbered editions and all of that, but nothing worth much. Mostly I collect different styles that I enjoy, sprint runs, etc. Avg value per knife is probably $55, so I am NOT a real collector. I have seen pictures on the several forums with 10 knives from one maker laying side by side where you could pick any 2 that pick that are worth more than my whole collection probably, and they were just showing knives FROM ONE MAKER :).

I would love to be there, but am not sad that I am not, rather I am grateful for the internet so that I can at least get to see so many of the beautiful customs that have been made; the talents of some of these knife makers in both functionality and creativity just astounds me. I do have a few expensive knives on my wish list, but those are on the “if I come into some good money” category :). The Sebenza 21 is the most I have ever spent on a single knife, and for a long while it will probably stay that way unless I happen across a knife that I KNOW is worth many times what it is selling for, and it is something that I like or something I know I can trade for something that I like. I stop by every pawn shop I see looking for that opportunity, but with the internet nowadays… everyone can look up anything so the chances of finding hidden treasures is pretty much gone :/. My only chance is estate auctions, and I haven’t been to one yet where they even HAD knives :/.

Anyway, happy to be here, I look forward to chatting with everyone, thanks to everyone who has contributed so much to these forums already which also made my decision easier to choose the WE, I will do the same as I learn how to work on certain knives if they are not already in the DB (that DB was an AWESOME idea Clay, kudo’s for that!!).

Nice to meet everyone, and take it easy!

[wickededge]

Welcome Michael! I’m happy to meet you (virtually 🙂 I guess you’re already finding that this is a great community, full of wonderful people with lots of information and experience.

-Clay

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