Alternatives to "Beer Scout Knife?"

GEC#69 Beer Belly Knife , a single blade with a cap lifter at the opposite end. A happy hog drinking a beer etching ! (3 3/4" to 4") closed
 
MCar said:
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The Beer Scout Knife appears to be one of GECs great classics. I believe we all have some kind of an understanding that the Boy Scouts of America (now "Scouting BSA" in many instances)...persuaded GEC to stop making the Beer Scout Knife.

I wonder if GEC has considered producing a sheepfoot + cap opener on the #15 frame (maybe without an EO notch, so it'd be a different knife) and use a different shield, albeit one with engraved words, so as to still be a branch-off of their "Scout" knife on the #15 frame. I'm not affiliated with GEC in any way, but I've wondered this. Perhaps this thread could serve as a place for members to post ideas...in the unlikely event that anyone from GEC might happen to stumble across this thread...and read it...and get an idea they could freely use without anyone trying to "persuade" them otherwise. ;)

I have a beloved orange camel SFO "Beer Scout" that has a hotdog sheild. I love the knife and love the hotdog shield, in general, but really wish it had the Beer Scout Knife shield. :(

So what are your alternatives to "Beer Scout Knife?" I'll start us out with a couple of the most obvious. :thumbsup:
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In your next few posts you have suggestions. It is the nomenclature that was challenged by BSA as a trademark infringement. BSA secures licensing fees from cutlery companies who want to manufacture official “Boy Scout Knives” ... anything that starts to “infringe” on this trademark could be challenged by BSA. I’m sure GEC has no wish to waste funds battling the BSA. So right off the bat, I would assume Root Beer Scout is off the table. I think GEC could just go back and reintroduce the Radio Knife/Radio Jack on the 15 frame as they had before the “Beer Scout.” Personally, I would like to see a stainless 15 crown lifter with rope knife blade, a drunken pirate type knife. If you want a completely new knife, I would like to see a “Beer Hunter” on the 73 frame...nice drop point and a crown lifter.
 
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MCar said:
But wasn't "Radio" (which I never understood) the designation for the clip point with a crescent nail nick + bottle opener? And the "Crown Lifter" the designation for the long pull clip + bottle opener?

I could be over thinking it, but I thought GEC was trying to have a different name for each iteration.
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Nope...Mr. CC's Diamond Radio Jack was a spearpoint. Here are some of the 15s with cap lifter/crown lifter (crown lifter introduced as name in 2014 as a stab at Queen). Top: 2013 Boys Radio Knife with clip point and nail nick; next: Mr CC’s 2014 SFO Diamond Radio Jack with spearpoint and nail nick. There were also standard issue long pull clip as well as nail nick spearpoint with end cap Crown Lifters in 2014; Third from top is a 2015 Rendezvous Beer Scout with spearpoint and 2014 stamped blade; Fourth from top: 2015 Beer Scout with long pull sheepsfoot. In 2015 we also had SFOs including Gun Scout and Soda Scout (nobody's official name as suggested earlier in this string, just a nickname that was adopted). Fifth from top: 2016 Beer Scout with long pull sheepsfoot again and we also got the Crown Lifters with sheepsfoot and nail nick (sixth from top). Bottom is a custom Beerlow on 2016 TC. Also note that the cap lifter on 2013 Radio Knives is different from later releases, the notch of the opener being larger resulting in a shorter “blade” on the screw driver.
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Rockon75 said:
Well, I think it was back around 2013 or so that GEC ran a 15 pattern knife that had a shield with engraved word "scout". These were and are extremely highly sought after. It was a sheep with pen secondary. Esnyx was taking caplifter/screwdrivers off of the second run of clip/caplifters (crown lifter version) and putting them on sheepsfoot 15's and let's face it, kids aren't buying these GEC's, adults are and we drink beer and used the crown lifters for such, so beer scout.....you'll have to talk to Evan or Bill to find out more, probably quite a bit of joking around at Rendezvous (Evan used to go each year) and well, they know the story and I can only speculate but beer scout- combo of the venerable gec scout and crown lifter used for opening bottled beer seems to make sense. Again, Evan @esnyx would have the whole story.
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The Rendezvous parts knives with cap/crown lifters were the 2014 Sheep Lifter (sheepsfoot with end caps and yellow acrylic...perhaps Sunbrite) and Radio Scout (sheepsfoot with E/O notch and scout shield with jigged bone), and the 2015 Beerlow (TC sheepsfoot with soup bone...Mr. CC not responsible) and Spearpoint Beer Scout (2 tortoise acrylic, 5 smooth ivory and 3 blood red sawcut). Evan did much to promote the cap/crown lifters and I think he was responsible for coining the term Beerlow when he converted Radio Knives and Crown Lifters into custom Beerlows.
 
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TraditionalMedicinal said:
I'm guessing they simply respected their wishes perhaps out of respect but I don't think they had a case imo due to the term being so broad, for infringement it has to mimic sign, design, or expression
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I don't think the BSA called GEC and said please don't use that name for your knife. I and others have posted various legal findings concerning the case. Here is a brief one and you can see GEC abandoned their pursuit of the trademark "BEER SCOUT KNIFE" nearly a year after filing. What I could never figure out was the filing date in 2017, given the BSK was introduced in 2015...outcome would likely still have been the same.

Word mark: BEER SCOUT KNIFE
Status/Status Date:
ABANDONED - AFTER INTER-PARTES DECISION
1/31/2018
Serial Number: 87344877
Filing Date: 2/22/2017
Registration Number: NOT AVAILABLE
Registration Date: NOT AVAILABLE
Goods and Services: Folding knives; Household knives; Hunting knives; Pocket knives; Sport knives
Mark Description: NOT AVAILABLE
Type Of Mark: TradeMark
Published For Opposition Date: 7/18/2017
Last Applicant/Owner: GREAT EASTERN CORP
TITUSVILLE, PA 16354
 
TraditionalMedicinal said:
I'm guessing they simply respected their wishes perhaps out of respect but I don't think they had a case imo due to the term being so broad, for infringement it has to mimic sign, design, or expression
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Indeed otherwise they'd have to go after

Duluth
Ruger
Steyr
Indian Bikes
George Lucas
and Bruce Willis...:D
 
TraditionalMedicinal said:
Ohh thanks for clearing that up, I didn't know GEC was trying to trademark the name, makes more sense now
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No problem, several of us dug into this a few years back. After the pursuit of trademark was dropped GEC scrubbed a bunch of their references to the BSK suggesting that there was more too this than a simple courtesy. Check their production blog, Radio knives and Cap/Crown lifters are all pictured/referenced but all the pictures relating to the BSK releases were removed:

https://greateasterncutlery.net/blog/patterns/15-huckleberry-boys-knife/

This was all discussed over on the BSK thread, we even posted some of the pictures that were deleted from the blog...actually this whole new name for a 15 with crown lifter was already started on the BSK thread a few years back...I'm kind of waiting for the moderators to fold this in over there.
 
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