I strip and cut a lot of 12-14 AWG copper, remove cementious residue off floors and walls, score and cut cardboard boxes and perform a host of other core duties around our construction sites. The spine of the HCSE is used as an impromptu chisel/pryer, the edge as a light digger, plastic and iron pipe engraver and a quick marker along wood members and CMU blocks. Building modern homes with a knife as a primary tool can really put the blade through some fairly brutal, yet mundane tasks. The edge is usually toast by the end of two typical days, light working conditions extend that time to about three days. It is why I picked up the Peace Maker, to see how 3V will hold up on the job.