[Some common questions about my knife philosophy](http://brooksreview.net/2012/10/pocket-knife/), answered.
## What blade shape do you prefer?
A few people have asked about what my preference is on [the shape of the blade](http://www.knife-depot.com/knife-information-112.html). Overall I like the standard ‘drop point’ shape. It find it most comfortable to use and highly versatile.
The most common offering besides a drop point is the tanto — which I believe is mostly popular because it looks pretty cool. I’ve only had one blade that was a tanto, and I found it frustrating to use at times.
## Why not spend more money?
A lot of people want to know why I am staying under $100 and why I am not willing to pay for the best knife I can find. This is a good point as it is a break from the norm for me. Typically I’d never hesitate based on price, but I feel differently about spending big money on an EDC knife.
First, I view EDC knives as a tool. Because of this the most important aspect is utility. Secondly, I never want to be hamstrung over when and where to use my knife because I paid a lot of money for it.
There are a lot of instances where I will use my knife that could easily damage the cutting edge of the blade, or snap the blade all together. Things like cutting close to metal, or against metal, and prying are all things I would never do with an expensive knife.
Those scenarios don’t come up every day, but when they do I never want to feel like I can’t just use the knife as a tool to get the job done. I figure that one of those scenarios will come up a year where the knife is damaged, and I want to know that I can afford to replace my knife if it does get irreparably damaged. If I don’t feel confident I can afford to replace the knife, it is far less valuable to me as a tool.
For me, that means keeping the price under, or close to, one hundred dollars. This should vary based on your budget — there are some great knives to be had in the sub-fifty dollar range.
## What about the folding utility/box knives?
I have a couple of these and they are very popular with people that work in construction, but I think they are a very bad EDC choice. I have a few reasons I think these are a poor choice:
1. The blades are brittle. Yes the blades are sharp and cheap to replace, but they are very brittle and it is unlikely that you will want to carry extra blades with you.
2. These knives are typically bulky, this allows for changeable blades, but is also a weight and size factor.
3. This type of knife blade is disposable. These blades also cannot be sharpened and they are therefore a poor choice for a lasting knife. Even when a typical EDC is dull, you can still use the blade however, when a utility knife blade is dull it’s pretty much worthless — I’ve seen utility blades lose their point entirely. These blades are cheap and so is the steel used to make them — they don’t last long even if you rarely use your knife.
Overall these knives are not a good all around choice.
## Will you check out XZY knife I have, or want to buy?
Probably not.
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