3 1/2" Congress?

A

aarya

Joined
Jun 21, 2006
Messages
514
Well, it's time for another thread of mine, where i look for recommendations on a pattern.
Does anyone know of a 3 to 3 1/2 inch congress-pattern knife, with ats34/154cm/13c27/aebl/vg10/bg42/rwl34/s30v/s110v/s35v/s90V, or any other "higher" grade stainless steel blades?
Custom or production makes is of no real importance.
If the size is upwards to 4" is also acceptable, but the steel needs to be one of the listed, or equivalent. (I have a Case congress in their stainless, and it's pretty good on all points, except the edge-holding. It's decent, and the thickness of the blades makes it a wicked slicer, but a thin edge can only make up for so much.)
Also something i look for, is that all blades are different. One spear point, one sheepsfoot/wharncliffe, one small pen and one small coping blade. This isn't of paramount importance, but... It's nice.

If you think this post is disorganized, i appologize. If there are points that makes it difficult for you to suggest or recommend a congress, just ask, and i'll try to clarify.

Lastly, i'd like to thank the great group of people that's gathered in the Trad-forum. You are a great bunch!

Thanks for reading!
 
I've looked high and low myself.

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=799122

The best I could find in stainless is a 4" Schatt & Morgan, 4 different blades, but in 420HC, which is 56-57Rc. Boker makes 3 5/8" congresses in 440C but you'll have at least one pair of duplicate blades. The only Boker I could find with 4 different blades is the Whittler Congress, but afaik it's only available in carbon steel.

Of course, there are some 3.5" congresses I've seen with 4 different blades (the same ones you mentioned) in ATS-34, but they all have the name Bose on them, which means they're not cheap and not exactly growing on trees.
 
Last edited:
Rough Rider has several Congress patterns with four different blades in 440A SS. I won't go into RR here as there is a good thread about them in this forum. In general they are highly regarded.
 
Last edited:
ptradeco said:
Rough Rider has several Congress patterns with four different blades in 440A SS. I won't go into RR here as there is a good thread about them in this forum. In general they are highly regarded.
Click to expand...

I have a RR congress I carry quite a bit. Nice knife. Good size, not too big.
 
I also have a RR congress that gets quite a bit of use at home. F&F is very good and is better than the last to Case half congresses that I recently picked up. Blade steel is certainly not a "super-steel" but is easy to sharpen and holds a decent edge with very little rolling.
 
Queen makes a 4" Congress with D2 blades. The only thing is, there are two sheepsfoot and two pen blades, but the edge holding on Queen D2 is fantastic, even if the initial sharpness is less than desirable. I have seen it for around $90 with their Amber Stag Bone scales.
 
Last edited:
Does the two Mr. Bose have a website or something, as a way to get into contact with them, or do they only make the knives they want to make, and then sell them, having no list of customers to get onto?

(Maybe we could get some pictures of Bose Congress-pattern knives in the 3.5" size here?)

Pictures of any other brands/manufacturers, custom or production is also welcome.
 
I think (and I might be wrong) that Ken Erickson has made some Congress patterns and he could definitely meet whatever criteria you have.

I don't know what Ken's wait is, but I'm pretty sure it's not as bad as Tony's or Reese's.
 
I've now gone completely crazy, and ordered myself a Case/Bose Norfolk.
(A Norfolk is kinda like a half-congress, right? Sorta?)

Also, i'd like to thank the people who sent me pm's regarding my questions. Very tempting, but i think the people who care about me, would kill me if they found out i spent upwards to 800 bucks on a single knife. And a Bose for over 3000? Are they really worth it?

I'm not meaning to criticize anyone or be rude. And i now realize i forgot to add a rather important point. I like to whittle. I use all my knives. Therefore i have no use for a safe-queen or a $500+ knife.

It sure is difficult to find your "grail" knife. Especially so, when you don't quite know what it is.
 
I'll be sure to post an update with my impressions of the Norfolk.

As for now, let the recommendations commence!

(At times, i'm known for having less common sense than money, and yet manage to be quite economical. So i'm still looking for a congress as mentioned. Pictures are welcomed, nay, demanded!)
 
aarya said:
And i now realize i forgot to add a rather important point. I like to whittle. I use all my knives. Therefore i have no use for a safe-queen or a $500+ knife.
Click to expand...

I would tend to think that if you wanted a congress made to fit the specs you outlined in your first post - four different blades of a high grade stainless - you'd be looking at pretty close to $500 even if you went with less costly steels like ATS-34 or Sandvik 13C27. Moving up to something like BG42 or the high vanadium CPM steels will send the price further north. Something like S90V or 110V is harder to grind and to make/fit/finish four blades out of it for one knife, well, I think you get where I'm going. It should make for a knife with very high cutting performance though. Whether or not it's "worth it" depends on what you consider getting good value out of owning and using the knife, in addition to whatever "really want it" sentiments may be part of the equation.


-- Nate
 
It does not have one of the super steels you mention but the Case #64052 has four distinctly different and useful blades. It is 3 1/2".
 
Last edited:
Hi there ptradeco! I actually have a Case 64052. Green pocketworn bone, and... I love it! But as a i mentioned earlier, as a whittler/woodcarver, i enjoy a harder steel than may generally be normal. I don't pry or twist, and i do controlled small cuts, so there's less chance of me to chip an edge, if it's properly treated. What i've noticed with the case i have though, is that the edge tends to lose its sharpness more quickly than i like. I have other trad slipjoints in bg42, 154cm and vg10, and i sharpen it to a pretty low angle, yet have no issues on chipping or it becoming dull quickly.

The reason behind this thread, is that currently, i'm carrying in my pocket, 1 Case red barnboard 6347 154cm stockman, rather large... 1 A. G. Russell 2007 small stag wharncliffe whittler in bg42, and 1 A. G. Russell chinese quince pinched peanut in vg10. That's all in one pocket. My wish would be to get one knife with both larger and smaller blades, capable of doing everything that these knives do, and in a good "higher" end steel.

I guess, when i get the Norfolk... I'll end up carrying that aswell. I will admit that i am a bit of a steel-queen. But i also think, that if people had high-end steels in the old days, they wouldn't settle for something less, if they could afford something more. One knife to last a lifetime or two, is better than a knife with a soft steel, that you need to replace once a year.

(I do not mean to say with this, that 1095, 420hc, or any other "older/less-alloyed" steels are inferior. They are merely different, as we are. Different things work for different folks.)
 
Update in regards to the Case Norfolk:
The supplier i ordered from, was sold out of said knife, so it may take a little while longer before i get one. Thus you may not rely on me for an impression on this knife.
 
aarya said:
Update in regards to the Case Norfolk:
The supplier i ordered from, was sold out of said knife, so it may take a little while longer before i get one. Thus you may not rely on me for an impression on this knife.
Click to expand...

You may want to check other suppliers, the Norfolk was a limited run and if someplace is out of them it's doubtful they will be getting more.

There are still some available, but not many.
 
aarya said:
Update in regards to the Case Norfolk:
The supplier i ordered from, was sold out of said knife, so it may take a little while longer before i get one. Thus you may not rely on me for an impression on this knife.
Click to expand...

I sent you some info via pm.
Best, Mike
 
wagglebee said:
I think (and I might be wrong) that Ken Erickson has made some Congress patterns and he could definitely meet whatever criteria you have.

I don't know what Ken's wait is, but I'm pretty sure it's not as bad as Tony's or Reese's.
Click to expand...

This is correct, he made one for jivedaddy on this forum a few months ago, 4 different blades in 154 I think. Search will find the exact details:thumbup:
 
Thank you willgoy! I will do a search, and see if i find it. Unless anyone find it before me that is.

I've also now gone completely against myself, and ordered yet another stockman. This time, A.G.Russell with stag, in bg42 to match my small stag whittler in same.
I think i may need to either start giving away some knives, or sell them. Trading is ofcourse an option. *ponders*
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top