Jay Lagare

The knife was one of the greatest inventions of man. Next to fire, it was probably the next in line. It allowed man to cut up meat, fruits, roots, and leaves for cooking. It allowed him to craft his more advanced weapons: the spear and the bow. In a pinch he can even use it for hunting and self-defense. For the next hundreds of years he carried it, changing in form and function, but always fixed bladed.

A revolution in knives was the invention of the folding pocket knife concept. With its concept, you can now carry a knife without having to carry a bulky sheath. You simply fold it and put it in your pocket. And to make things even better, people started adding various other tools into the pocket knife. Now that is function and convenience all in one and millions of people started carrying pocket knives. I am one of them.

I got my first pocket knife when I was still in grade school. It was a small folder with a 1 inch sheepsfoot blade. It also came with one other tool: a bottle opener. That’s it. But it was marvelous to me… for a time.

Soon I wanted more and it was replaced by another China made pocket knife. It had a 2 inch blade and a few other tools. But still I wanted more: a larger blade and more tools. So I sold it to my brother and bought another knife.

The knife I bought was a red-handled Swiss Army Knife knock-off from China. It had a 2-1/2 inch blade and a few other tools, including one which I now realize was a prying tool. I lost it to the sea when it slipped off my shorts’ waistband while swimming at the beach (yes I was carrying a knife while swimming).

The lost Swiss Army Knife knock-off was replaced by a genuine Victorinox Champ Swiss Army Knife that my dad gave me as a graduation gift. Swiss Army knives are not famous for nothing: This pocket knife was great! I still have it less the red handle covers and it is still providing great service opening bottles and cans in the kitchen.

During college, I switched to a Buck Hunter knock-off from China. Quality was pretty good for a Chinese manufactured good at that time. I gave it away but I’m sure it’s still sharp and functional to this day.

I switched to the Gerber EZ-Out which I still carry on a daily basis. I don’t know if it was made in China, but with everyone outsourcing manufacturing operations to China, it could just well be. I also carried it while swimming and even while diving. Saltwater is not very friendly to steel, even stainless steel, so I got a fixed-blade Gerber River Shorty specifically for water activities. But I still carry it during water activities when the River Shorty is not available.

I also used to carry a Leatherman Wave pocket multi-tool in addition to the EZ-out. But it’s a bit heavy so these days it usually stays in the glove compartment of the car ready for possible auto problems.

Knives have proven useful through the ages and they will continue to do so even in this modern world. I’ll continue carrying them if I can help it.