Anyone into "traditional" folders?

[yablanowitz]

I guess you could say I'm into traditionals. I actually carry and use more traditional slipjoints that I do Spydercos. I find many are ground far thinner than the tacticools that are so popular today, so they cut much better, even if they don't make very good crowbars.

[ourgon]

My french Douk Douk.

[Jeremy_A_Neel]

I acquired a Great Eastern Cutlery boy's knife a few months ago, and it came literally dull as a spoon. There was no edge geometry to speak of. Anyone have experience with Kabar or Queen cutlery's traditional folders? I'm not buying the GEC hype anymore.

[GronK]

I acquired a Great Eastern Cutlery boy's knife a few months ago, and it came literally dull as a spoon. There was no edge geometry to speak of. Anyone have experience with Kabar or Queen cutlery's traditional folders? I'm not buying the GEC hype anymore.

I went on a traditional knife binge for about a year. I bought Case, Canal Street Cutlery, Queen and GEC. My GEC's (total of 8) have all arrived nicely sharpened other than one with an uneven bevel which worked out in the first sharpening. I suspect yours was one that got by them and I'm sure if you sent it in they would make it right.

[yablanowitz]

My GECs have all come with a reasonable facsimile of an edge. I have not purchased a new Queen since the company changed hands, but before that they were noted for poor edges. The few Kabars I have (and I haven't bought one of those new in many years) did not impress me.

[DeathBySnooSnoo]

I acquired a Great Eastern Cutlery boy's knife a few months ago, and it came literally dull as a spoon. There was no edge geometry to speak of. Anyone have experience with Kabar or Queen cutlery's traditional folders? I'm not buying the GEC hype anymore.

I own about 12 or so Boy's knives and I found that the sheepsfoot ones came quite dull. The others were pretty good and required just a bit of touch up to make them very very sharp. My sheepsfoot that I regularily carry though, I took to a medium grit water stone and just redid the edge a bit...now, its the sharpest of the bunch, but yes sometimes they do come dull.

Apparently it was a serious issue a few years back and they have come a long way in improving, but some still are not to sharp...however, the overall knife is still probably the best quality traditional you can buy unless you go custom.

[SpyderEdgeForever]

I am into traditional "Mountain Man" style folders, like single-blade, simple spring-lock knives, such as the Okapi, Opinel, Navaja, and others. There was a whole heap of different ones made and mass produced in the 1500-1900 period. Also known as the "Fur Trade" period (some may disagree on my time frame).

[xceptnl]

Wow Landon, those are some great knives. I really like those blade shapes as well. That Northwoods is something else!

Thank you, I am really looking forward to having it in hand.

Excellent photography as usual Landon. That Talon bladed #92 E. Jack and the Charlow are definitely right up my alley. The old Schrade USA liner lock has a double here somewhere safe no doubt. The Northwoods look really nice with the little bit of scale from the heat treat left on. I have a custom Fixed blade like that. I've never owned a Northwoods. I might need to begin saving my money. I really do like that.

I have a #23 LL in Horn. It's massive. Maybe too much so. I also have a $42 Missouri trader (LB) in Cocobolo. I could really get carried away on those if I had money.

Joe

Thank you Joe. Good to know we share a similar love for the Wharncliffe and Sheepfoot. That Schrade is the exact same model my father carried for decades and it represents my first experiences handling a folding knife. I am always looking for old hardware stores with these just sitting around, NIB, for practically nothing. I can't resist picking them up when I see them. I like the look of the HT scale left on the blade flat. I expect to have more of these in my collection soon.

I guess you could say I'm into traditionals. I actually carry and use more traditional slipjoints that I do Spydercos. I find many are ground far thinner than the tacticools that are so popular today, so they cut much better, even if they don't make very good crowbars.

yab,

That is a humbling collection. I can see you have your favorites and I respect the **** out of that. The Congress, Trapper, and Toothpick gatherings are especially impressive. I see some buttons and locks on some of those toothpicks... :D Thank you for sharing your terrific group of traditionals

My french Douk Douk.

This and the Japanese Higonokami are on my list of "must experience" Where did you source your Douk Douk?

[RanCoWeAla]

I have been collecting Case knives a lot longer than I have Spydercos. My favorites are the 087 Stockman, 087 Pen , 087 Jack, Canoe, Drop point Russlock , Sway back Jack and Sway back Gent. I am a life member of the Case Collectors Club which is $150 or $15 a year. They allow you to buy , sell and trade and that's the best place there is to do all three. I always carry a small classic slip joint because small knives with Spyder holes or thumb studs are awkward and hard to open. Please do check out the Case Collectors Club. I airways tell anyone the best way to trim your knife collection to fit your budget is to keep finding things you don't like until you have accomplished that. For example I don't do serrated edges tan to points recurve blades Damascus steel butterfly knives fixed blades seat belt cutters hawk bills tactical that are too small or classic slip joints that are too large. That's just some of the things I don't like and I have trimmed my collecting to perfectly fit my budget.

[ourgon]

@xceptnl, mine is from filofiel.com but it's european store and I'm from Europe. Search on ebay.

PS I had japanese Higonokami in hand and Douk Douk is much better for EDC. It's very strong slip joint with slim carbon steel 1075 (XC75) blade.

[yablanowitz]

yab,

That is a humbling collection. I can see you have your favorites and I respect the **** out of that. The Congress, Trapper, and Toothpick gatherings are especially impressive. I see some buttons and locks on some of those toothpicks... :D Thank you for sharing your terrific group of traditionals

Thanks, but those are just some old pictures of portions of my 50 year accumulation. I'm more packrat than collector.

[xceptnl]

My newest arrived earlier this week.

[jmh58]

WOW!! Real nice one there Landon.. And KSF are super to deal with too!! SWEET!!! John

[RanCoWeAla]

I like the small slip joints like the Case Peanut or Yellow 087 Pen which is my all time favorite. I always carry one in my left front pocket for when I might need to use a knife in a crowd and don't want pull out a tactical with three and a half or four inch blade.There is a point for me also where small knives are too awkward and even dangerous to try and open with thumb stud or opening hole.That being anything below about four inches closed.

[Ned]

I was just looking at that knife at KSF, I was eyeballing the one with the lighter bone coloring with the blue, great looking knife, just love the blade shape.

[xceptnl]

These traditionals I carried this weekend

Le Garronais




VIC Sea Rancher




(Newest) GEC #65 Ben Hogan in Ebony

[Greg Walker]

Great thread!

Awesome examples!

I have / carry at times Buck 110 or Al Mar Eagle.

No screws...low profile...does everything I need well.

[VictorLouis]

A Buck 3-series medium stockman and a 91mm SAK are with me daily. The OHO job is usually a Stretch, LOL.

[Waco]

I've been on a Case Sodbuster kick lately. I have a blue one in SS and a yellow one in CV. The blade is just starting to develop a patina from kitchen use. Great US-made knives for under $30.

[JD Spydo]

There was one more German folder and I used to have two of them and traded them to a guy who collected German made folders. But I do remember the name of the company>> Weidmannsheil" was the name of the company and I also had one of their fixed blades too. They were precision built and very hard to come by here in the USA. I was told that the company has gone out of business or was taken over by another company in the past 2 years.

Germany had a lot of great knife companies that had traditional folders. Even some of Boker's old stuff was great. Not to mention most of the German made straight razors were great quality. I don't know if Wustof ever made folders or not but their culinary fixed blades are great.