Spyderco Forums

Before we all knew the appeal of spyderco cutlery what was your very first knife? Mine was a victorinox classic sd, and I still have it after all these years, missing the toothpick and tweezers of course but otherwise still fully serviceable.

Hydrashok wrote: ↑

Wed Oct 04, 2023 9:42 pm

Before we all knew the appeal of spyderco cutlery what was your very first knife? Mine was a victorinox classic sd, and I still have it after all these years, missing the toothpick and tweezers of course but otherwise still fully serviceable.

I got a red Victorinox Classic when I was 3. My earliest knife memory was "testing the sharpness" with my thumb and slicing it open. Didn't realize at the time how dumb sliding your thumb down the blade was for testing sharpness vs across the apex, haha.

I lost it at some point but I still have a black Classic in my knife drawer.

I do have two of my oldest knives still. A Ruko two finger liner lock with a built in red LED that still works despite using the same battery it came with when I got it around 1989-1991, and a cheap lockback my father brought home from a trade show for the plastics industry.



The Ruko is the first knife I picked out for myself. My parents took me to a surplus shop and I was attracted to all the new tactical style knives they had in stock, and they let me get one of their smallest models.

It'd be fun to sharpen it up and carry it. It's still perfectly functional despite the dumb stuff I used it for as a kid.

I believe mine was a Gerber Gatorback?
*Edit* I really don't ever remember having my own knife as a kid or really ever wanting one either. I do remember an old K-Bar we all used to play with though. I just wasn't into knives when I was little.
I was into football, baseball, basketball and riding my motorcycle 🏍
As a matter of record, I fondly recall my 2 very most favorite subjects in elementary school....they were of course, lunch and p.e.
I was with the Police Department when I bought that Gerber Gatorback...was probably late 92 or early 93

I've had this one for well over half a century, and she was old and used when I got her.

My first knife was a broken blade Imperial Jackmaster single blade fishing knife with a scalier on the back of the blade. It had been mangled on a grinder, had no scales and then just thrown away at a construction site where I found it on the ground around age 7 or 8. It was treasure to me and sure was better than running back to the garage to cut twine on the hand sickle hanging on the wall which is what my father suggested doing.

I found it in a box not long ago and laughed at it. The thing still cuts though. Imagine that. :)

First spyderco was a forest green endura with combo edge/Sabre grind. Still one of my favorites, field dressed an entire black bear with it

Had this little guy for 58 years.

I was six years old. My father gave me a pearl handled automatic. It was very small and had a knob on the pommel that had to be pulled and then the blade would fly open. It took two hands to operate. Likely the pearl wasn't real, but it was my first. I promptly lost it, probably on the playground at school or in the woods on the way home. Schrade, Remington, and others made a knife like that, a ball pull I think it was called. Mine was pretty small. It probably had a 1" blade.

When I was 7 or 8 I got a Buck knife from my grandfather when I joined the scouts. Also the first knife I broke the tip off My first fixed blade was a "Rambo" knife, also from my grandfather. It had a compass on the back and fishing hook, line and matches in the handle. Crappy knife but the memory of my grandfather giving it to me, I will always cherish. It's about 30 years old. Still have it. Just noticed it has a bottle opener in the blade

Holy cow! I think I had the same fixed blade growing up Paul.. I loved that thing.

A James Barber ERA double bladed slipjoint.

I purchased the knife (there was no 18+ law back then) at my local fishing tackle shop with money I got from selling my first Salmon.

But it was a short-lived ownership because my mother took it off me when I got back home showing it off! But later on, she allowed me to carry it as long as I was careful. My father used to sharpen it on one of his Indian oilstones and it was a great companion of mines for many years. Sadly, the blade tension went completely in the main blade through years of wear and it wasn't usable. I wish now I'd kept it and got a knifemaker to repair it but gone's gone.

Mark

In grade school I was being harassed by children who were 3 to 5 years older than me. They threatened to beat me up so I bought a small Case knife. It was the 1960's.

Later that year 2 of the bullies chased me into the church on the grounds of the school, and I drew the knife to scare them off. It worked, and that was my first use of weapons. I was not even 10.

JSumm wrote: ↑

Tue Oct 17, 2023 10:52 am

Holy cow! I think I had the same fixed blade growing up Paul.. I loved that thing.

Awsome Not bad starting out with this and ending up with Spyderco's

Outside of the Rambo fixed blade, I was gifted this knife as a kid by one of my best friends at the time. Old Timer Shrade about Endura sized. Still have it today and take it camping from time to time. Other than that, I think I would usually borrow one of my dad's Victorinox knives he always had in the pocket.

Paul Ardbeg wrote: ↑

Tue Oct 17, 2023 10:40 am

When I was 7 or 8 I got a Buck knife from my grandfather when I joined the scouts. Also the first knife I broke the tip off My first fixed blade was a "Rambo" knife, also from my grandfather. It had a compass on the back and fishing hook, line and matches in the handle. Crappy knife but the memory of my grandfather giving it to me, I will always cherish. It's about 30 years old. Still have it. Just noticed it has a bottle opener in the blade

Here is mine. It was my most valuable posession as a boy!

Recent photos:





It was not my first knife though, that was a 58mm Victorinox with a blade and a nail file. It was before they came with the toothpick and tweezers.

Brock O Lee wrote: ↑

Sat Oct 21, 2023 12:52 am

Paul Ardbeg wrote: ↑

Tue Oct 17, 2023 10:40 am

When I was 7 or 8 I got a Buck knife from my grandfather when I joined the scouts. Also the first knife I broke the tip off My first fixed blade was a "Rambo" knife, also from my grandfather. It had a compass on the back and fishing hook, line and matches in the handle. Crappy knife but the memory of my grandfather giving it to me, I will always cherish. It's about 30 years old. Still have it. Just noticed it has a bottle opener in the blade

Here is mine. It was my most valuable posession as a boy!

Recent photos:





It was not my first knife though, that was a 58mm Victorinox with a blade and a nail file. It was before they came with the toothpick and tweezers.

So cool that you still have this! Even with the matches and saw With the leathers sheath and all, this must be a sprint run

Paul Ardbeg wrote: ↑

Sat Oct 21, 2023 3:30 am

So cool that you still have this! Even with the matches and saw With the leathers sheath and all, this must be a sprint run

The fish hooks even have traces of long deceased earthworm bait! 🪱