You brought up a very good point. That camera gear is very expensive and also very sensitive. I can certainly see why Les carries one. I wouldn't' be a bit surprised if he carries spare ones in case one gets lost or broken. An $80 knive is a drop in the bucket when compared to $10,000 camera gear. In fact, I would hope he would carry a spare just so the show doesn't end prematurely due to a camera being knocked over or something like that.

In certain situations, I would probably carry one if they weren't so expensive. I might even EDC one. In my BOB though, the place is taken by a regular fixed blade, and for EDC I carry two small pocket knives. I carry two only because they get borrowed alot and I frequently need one while the other is in service somewhere else. I also carry two lighters for the same reason (I'm a smoker but the guys at work like to light firecrackers out back or fire up the grill). Sometimes the lighter never comes back but the knives always do.