Welcome to the Urban EDC Showcase! Each week, we feature one member of the EDC community and the gear they rely on every day. Want to be featured? Submit your gear photo.
Dixon (@dy_xfactor) is the definition of a go-getter, and gives new meaning to ‘seizing the day’. In addition to being a Fusion Center Operator at an oil and gas exploration company, he also runs a print shop, competes professionally in paintball, dabbles in photography and cinematography and is a dutiful father to 2 beautiful girls. So read on to find out all about the carry that accompanies Dixon as he grabs life by the throat, and comes out on top.
Featured Tools:
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Pocket Knife: Boker Plus/Serge Panchenko - Lancer
I was lucky enough to jump on one of the 500 first production run Lancers that hit the market. It has G-10 grips with a titanium liner lock accompanied with stonewashed S35VN steel. It is incredibly light but still robust to handle even the toughest tasks. This knife never leaves my side.
- Fixed Blade: Jeremy Horton Custom Knives - Survival Shawty
This is one of my newest additions to my ever-growing collection. I've had my eye on this fixed blade for the longest time. Horton Knives has one of the more impressive edges in business and that's what drew me to this magnificent steel. This knife is wicked sharp and I honestly think whatever material it’s about to touch splits just before contact. Besides being a beautiful piece of steel this will make a perfect addition to my oilfield carry because you never know what you'll run into in south Texas. - Utility Knife: Rexford R.U.T. (Urban EDC Edition)
This is one of the first utility blades I've had the pleasure of owning. In my opinion, it is by far the most sought-after utility knife on the market. This is a perfect tool for me at my print shop, from cutting media/material to prying open some ink, to popping a cold one after a long day of printing. I forgot to mention that is has a beautiful Damascus blade and a bottle opener feature as well. (>.<)
- Keychain Knife: Titanium Tukk
This magical utility blade is an absolute necessity for me. Its miniature design and portability make it so easy to carry and as a printer, you can never have too many blades. Plus it makes a great alternative if someone asks to use your knife and you know they won't use it properly, I know the look you make when this happens. LOL!!!
- Flashlight: Barrel FlashLight Co.
This beautifully machined titanium flashlight burns a CREE XP-L HI V3 3C LEDs and driven by an H17F. This is a great combination for high lumens and efficiency. When things seem most dark, Barrel FlashLight shows me the light.
- Pocket Tool: Vosofferyn - Ti Raptor "Bird of Pry"
Made from 6Al-4v to grade 5 Titanium, this is a tough use multi-tool/pry bar designed for maximum ruggedness, made by Robert Vosofferyn. Yet another great tool to have when working the print shop, but it also makes a great tool to have when I second shoot for a local photographer/cinematographer. Helps to have a rugged multi-tool/pry bar when switching out rigs and mounts. This tool can also pop at top, starting to see a trend here.
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Key Organizer: Keybar
When you talk about key organizers, Keybar is the first thing that comes to mind. The only way to keep all your keys and then some in one compact place. It is really nice not having to fumble through all my keys to check the mail or open up the shop.
- Lanyard Beads: Scoopyloops XL Titanium, Large Micarta and Ivory -
These are the culprits that baited me into the EDC rabbit hole. Mr. Brown is a mad scientist behind these beautiful beads. He has several designs made out of all kinds of materials. i.e. mokuti, superconductor copper, brass, titanium, Damascus, micarta and acrylic. I'm sure I forgot something but you get the point. He also does wicked in-house titanium anodizing, I’d boldly say he’s a modern-day Picasso of titanium anodizing. - Lanyard Beads 02: MOA Beads Titanium
Joseph also a pioneer in the lanyard bead world. Joseph collaborated with Scoopyloops on a couple of the beads shown. Joseph did the machining and Jon put his anodizing wizardry on them. My reason for this is #beadlife lol! - Knuck: Vosofferyn kNUCLEUS Jr. Ti & ATi
These are a spawn of its bigger brother the kNUCLEUS. These make a fantastic end of the lanyard bead, with its unique shape and pass through lanyard hole. One of my faves for sure. - Leather Goods: Ezra Arthur iPhone Wallet & No. 2 Card Wallet -
I like to simplify my carry and add a little class as well. Plus, I love watching how leather ages and patinas with time. - Watch: Apple Watch w/ Bexar Goods Co. Band
Every gentleman should have a good watch. I chose the Apple Watch as my everyday timepiece. What better way to stay connected yet disconnected. I don’t like to constantly grab my phone to check the time or whatever notification that may come through. So it’s nice the put my phone in my pocket or bag and stay in the moment. - Bottle Opener: Swan Knives “PT” Pull Tab
Machined out of .187 copper, this was 1 of 3 pieces made in memory of “Payton” by Nick Swan and was lotto’d out on his Facebook group. These are pretty hard to attain directly from Nick if you don’t see him at a show. So when Nick contacted me informing me that I was one of the three lucky winners, I was pretty excited. So this piece sticks with me as a bottle opener as well as a lucky charm. - Molle Clip: Burnley Brawler Molle Clip
These are self-explanatory. Adds a little flare to my bag or watch strap.
Background:
My name is Dixon, Son of Felix, House of Yang, father to my little 2-year-old princess and husband to a beautiful wife. I am 35 years old, born and raised in South Texas.
I am a Fusion Center Operator for Apache Corp. where I spend my days monitoring natural gas and NGL sales. I just recently joined Apache a little over a month ago. I spent 5 ½ years at another oil and gas exploration company, EOG Resources, where I was a part of the Pipeline Compliance and Integrity division as well as the infield GIS/Cartography team.
For the past 18 years, I’ve been competing in tournament paintball, 13 of those years have been on the Pro Circuit with San Antonio XFACTOR. This has been my life since high school and it has taken me all over the world, so I wouldn’t call this a hobby.
When I’m not gas controlling or throwing paintballs around, I also own a small print shop. We offer the following services silkscreen, full dye sublimation, water base discharge, embroidery and digital designing. As you can see, I stay pretty busy with all my work, so this is why I keep a pretty hefty carry on me. I usually lighten the load on weekends though. LOL!!!
When I finally get some free time from all the jobs I juggle, I spend the majority of that time with family and friends. We like to go out on adventures in the Yang family, so we will hit the trails or state parks, also like to take the bicycles out and ride around the city. In addition, I enjoy playing tennis, basketball, ping-pong. Shoot! I’ll play almost any sport and enjoy myself. I also love breaking in a quality pair of selvedge denim.
Finally and certainly not the last hobby I’ll pick up, I dabble in photography and cinematography. When I can, I’ll second shoot for a local photographer/filmmaker (Squinted Cinema). And that’s all I can probably handle at the moment.
I’d say EDC gear is another hobby of mine. I’ve always had items that I would carry on a daily basis, but I just got into the EDC movement about a year ago… and I dove in head first!!! Instagram is where I found Jon Brown of Scoopyloops, and after going through his feed and seeing all the sweet gear, I was done for.
Favorite EDC Tool:
What’s my favorite piece out of this bunch. Man, that’s tough. I’d say the Boker Plus Lancer, because of its thin profile and lightweight, you almost forget you have it in your pocket. Which is why you’ll never see me without it.
Next On Your Gear Radar:
As for my next piece of gear, I’ve been on the hunt, and probably many of you that are reading this, for piece of Andy Frankart’s single finger knuck. F-13, Toe, mutant I don’t care, any SFK will do for me.