anyone use an old hickory???

[RescueRiley]

I've seen a couple of threads regarding th old hickory knives and the mods people have done to them...Does anyone carryone in the woods??? are they tough??hold an edge???

 

[Foilist]

I read a magazine article in a recent issue of Back Country Woodsman (check this magazine out if you don't know about it already) about converting an Old Hickory into a "Nessmuck" very simply. I am thinking of trying it just for fun.

 

[Scottman]

Never heard of Back Country woodsman. I get the Backwoodsman, and I read it page by page. Great magazine, there is also an article about converting a 6 inch skinning old hickory into a nessmuk.

 

[1whitefoot]

I've used the carbon steel kitchen knives for outdoor work most all my life.
Back in the "Old" days, when I was young and poor, they are what I grew up with.
Yes they can be re-profiled into a lot of different shapes.
They are good for cutting and slicing but you don't really want to baton
with them unless your careful as you can chip out a piece of the blade.
They hold a good edge and are easy to resharpen.
They'll rust easy so you have to care for them.

I really like the Old Forge Brand paring knife and use it more than any of the other styles.
3" spearpoint blade and a thick handle that enables various holding styles.
If you can't find the old Old Forge brand than Old Hickory will do but the blade is a little different.

My other favorite for reworking is the 6" Boning knife.
With this one you can make some very usable knives.

The 6" Butcher knife is pretty usable just the way it is.

For Nessmuk style you'll want the Skinning knife.

You can take one of the Hi-Carbon kitchen knives, do a little or no work on it,
make up a cardboard and Duct-tape sheath, and have an inexpensive knife
that will do most everything you need a knife for. And it won't cost you but a few dollars and a little time.
I like to take the Silicone automobile windshield sealer and run it in the handle/blade cracks
to help keep the water out of there. It's pretty thin and fills in the voids.

Get a bunch and go to making them the way you want.



703 - 3" Paring Knife

72-6 - 6" Boning Knife

7-6 - 6" Butcher Knife

Old Hickory Skinner to Nessmuk conversion

 

[Foilist]

Never heard of Back Country woodsman. I get the Backwoodsman, and I read it page by page. Great magazine, there is also an article about converting a 6 inch skinning old hickory into a nessmuk.

Whoops- yeah, Backwoodsman is the magazine I was referring to. Lots of neat stuff in each issue. I grab it off the rack when I notice it.

 

[Dr. Mudd]

Whitefoot, you hit the nail on the head with what you said about the Old Hickory (and similar) knives. Well said! And anybody who claims to like knives and isn't already reading Backwoodsman Magazine is either a hard core city slicker, just plain out to lunch, or BOTH.

 

[camo kid]

I have also used Old hickory knives for years. The older ones have a bit thicker blade if you can find them. The newer knives have thiner more flexiable blades in most cases. The handles are ok as they come, but they improve greatly if you do a little sanding and steel wool work on them. I treat the handles with linseed oil, Tung oil, or butcher block oil. I carry a 5" boning knife for utility. The 3" paring knife is my favorite trout & squirrel knife. I keep a 7" butcher and 6" boning knife with a 10" steel in my truck for unexpected occasions where I may need to do some butchering. All the knifes are very light and take keen edges, old hickory and dexter russell are the only blades i use in my camp, and also the only blades i have in my kitchen. Joe

 

[Dr. Mudd]

Does it bother you that all the things people found so useful and effective 100 & 200 years ago seem mostly forgotten today in this stainless steel and plastic madness we see all around us? It bothers me sometimes if I let it. These weird shiny geejaws, doodads, and trinkets certainly fascinate a segment of the knife buying public, though. Hmmm... This must be old age creeping up again.

 

[SpookyPistolero]

That might start to bother me, Dr. Mudd, if it weren't for the notion that 100 & 200 years before 100 & 200 years ago old men were almost certainly saying the same thing. Simple is better, but that doesn't mean all new things are not simple.

The more things change, the more they stay the same.

 

[paleo25]

that old hickory skinner looks like it would make a decent chopper....the local walmart carries every model they have

 

[DaleW]

I had another thread comparing Old Hickory knives to moras. They are good inexpensive carbon steel tools. The steel is relatively soft and will lose it's edge faster than the high budget tool steels, but it can be touched up in a heartbeat with a kitchen steel. I have one in the knife block in my kitchen and it gets used. They are just fine for food prep and would do as much as a carbon steel mora in the woods. They will clean up with a little steel wool or a Scotchbrite pad and will take on a nice patina. I put a little olive oil on the handle once in a while.

The Old Hickory's are just a good cheap knife made to cut with. It's a knife in it's basic form-- a sharp metal wedge with a handle. Pick the style to suit the job.

 

[studio]

Good tools, they take a real beating and keep going. The bottom one had severe over grinding but fixed up easily. They look dirty but they are my kitchen knives...

J.

 

[Fiddleback]

I've seen a couple of threads regarding th old hickory knives and the mods people have done to them...Does anyone carryone in the woods??? are they tough??hold an edge???

They're 1095. Nuff said.

 

[masa]

which is better? old hickory or dexter carbon steel? Does dexter use 1095 too?
finally which is tempered harder?thanks

 

[Johnny Cash]

I "acquired" Mom's Old Hickory butcher knife when I was nine or ten.

Great knife.