A friend of mine dropped off a knife he got, it is well used but a descent blade (IMO).  It was a CRKT Mirage, non-serrated.  He asked me to touch it up for him on my Spyderco sharper.  I immediately noticed that the last .5" had a CURVE on it.  I also noted the there was a faint line on the blade where the curve (bend) started.
    Not soon after I started in on it, the part that was obviously used as a pry bar BROKE off!  He got it real cheap, now we know why.  It is not the manufactures fault, but some one broke the rule that Scotty from Star Trek once recited "the right tool for the right job"

Anyone else have a "tool abuse" story?

Art in KY

That's a real shame. The Mirage is a really nice knife. In this picture it's the one on the top. The Mirage is another of those great unknowns out there.

Looks like my ol' Doolittle there on the bottom

The worst case of tool abuse I've ever seen was a WWII vet keeping his issued KaBar- after showing it to me and then refusing to sell it.



JerrY

I was redoing the valve clearance on my old Yamaha motorcycle, the kidn where you have to swap out shims to make the clearance....  well, I had teh right tool to push the valves down so that I could access the shims in their "cups" but the magnet was not strong enough to break the suction of the oil, so I took my leatherman and used the knife tip to pop the chims out, it worked great, except the last one, I lost a quarter inch of my knife tip by accident.....

Of course, I have also used my prybar as an impromtu cruise control....  rest it against my gas pedal and my driver's seat....   in fifth gear I wind up doing exactly 58 MPH......

I seem to remember a quote from my youth.  I'm not sure who said it, but it sure is right:

"A knife is the most expensive and least effective screwdriver you will ever own."

Interesting quote Fatman.  All CRKT products come with a pamphlet.  On the same page as the warranty stuff is "A knife is the most expensive and least effective pry bar you will ever own."

Art in KY

not truly "tool" abuse but still abuse of a fine blade.  also makes me wish I'd been able to find out the details of how the lady got the damned thing!!

older lady that lived down the road from my Great-grandparents in MS. had what she said was her husband's "old cavalry sword" , which a few years later I went back to find b/c it sure as the devil looked like the 1914 Saber designed by George S Patton!  this lady had been using the derned thing pretty much like a general hacking tool around the garden and yard of her house. I remember the blade being pitted, dinged from hitting nails or other metal pieces, and dirty as hell.  and the scabbard was dirty, with slightly dry rotted canvas and rusty steel but identifiable as well.

as I said I never knew the whole story behind how that thing wound up where it was (other than Mr. swords [yes their REAL name, kind of ironic], who was dead by the time I showed up, had it when she married him in the 1920's). by the time I saw another "Patton saber" a number of years had passed and Mrs. Swords had passed, her house had been condemned, and leveled.  no one that I talked to about it knew what had happened to that saber. :(  I truly wish I'd found it.

I continue to abuse my Kershaw folder.  It is a cheap - probably Walmart - model that has a belt clip.  My mom gave it to me for Christmas.  I have had it over 4 years and it continues to serve me well as a knife, screwdriver, prybar, etc.  A few nicks on the cutting edge that have not sharpened out yet, but great other than that.

Who needs a Leatherman?