Backpacking/Climbing Knives of the 1960s, 70s and 80s?

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pinnah

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QUESTION: What knives were popular for backpacking, hiking and mountaineering during the 1960s, 70s and 80s?

Obviously, the Swiss Army Knife (SAK) is almost synonymous with backpacking but it's not clear when it gained broad acceptance among backpackers. Nor is it clear to me what other knives were popular and when.

PLEASE NOTE: I am not looking for advice on what sort of knife to carry or buy today. I'm really only interested in hearing about knives in use in the 60s, 70s, and 80s. In particular, I'm interesting in hearing more about the popularity of traditional pocket knives, including the SAK and the traditional "jack knife" for use among backpackers and climbers during the time.

My hunch here is that most people got their knives from some place other than a backpacking and climbing store and I'm trying to get a bead on this.

If you were hiking and climbing during that era or if you were working in shops catering to backpackers during that time, I would love to hear your reflections.

If anybody has or can point to catalogs outfitters of the day that would show what knives were carried, that would be ideal.

Some specific questions:

SAKs - When did they start to become popular among backpackers and climbers? What stores carried them? Which models were the most commonly seen and used?

Boy Scout Knives and Traditional Pocket Knives - These include "Boy Scout Knives" made by Ulster and Camillus among many others. This also traditional "jack knives" like those made by Case, Schrade, Boker and others. Were these commonly used? What brands to you recall being sold in backpacking stores or catalogs?

Buck Knives - These are the large, wood and brass folding hunting style knives like the Buck 110 and 112, as well as the numerous knives of the same style sold by other manufactures like Schrade, Ka-Bar, Camillus and Case. Did you see this style of knife in use during that these times periods? What backpacking or climbing stores carried them?

Multitools - The first Leatherman tool appeared in the early 80s and the Early Winters catalog carried them in the 1982 or 83 time frame. Did you see multitools on the trail during the 80s? Which brand? What stores or catalogs carried them?

Tactical Folders - The Spyderco CO1 Worker was introduced in 1981 featuring a large hole in the blade allowing for one hand opening. Did you see similar tactical folding knifes on the trails during the 1980s? Did any backpacking or climbing stores that you know of sell knives of this sort?

Traditional Fixed Blade Knives - These include hunting knives like the Buck 119 and military knives like the classic Ka-Bar. Did you see them in use backpacking or climbing and were they carried by backpacking and climbing stores?



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I'll start... I was just a boy in the 1960s, which meant goofing around in the Scouts or raising havoc in the neighborhood with a BB gun. I got my first Ulster made Scout knife when I was 8 and lost several. I recall going to Sears stores to buy replacements with my folks, usually with a sterm lecture to take better care of my knife. This continued through the early 70s. I lived in teh mid-west and had never heard of backpacking or climbing. Just camping.

In the mid to late 70s, I discovered skiing and backpacking. I also discovered the REI mail order catalog, which tooks its place on my reading stand next to a stack of Herter's catalogs. Herters sold hunting and fishing supplies. While I still have an old SACS Millet rucksack that I purchased in 1978, I don't recall ever seeing a knife in an REI catalog. I did order a Buck 110 from Herters though, as well as a cheap Barlow.

I remember visiting "mountain shops" in Vermont in the 70s when we would visit in the summer and I remember buying various bits of "gear" like a down jacket (Mountain Lion) and my first real hiking boots (Lowa) but I don't recall seeing knives for sale. Just have no recollection.

I saw my first dedicated brick and mortar outdoor store in the early 80s when I went to college there. There was Wilderness House on Comm Ave and across the street, the big Eastern Mountain Sports. My interest in visiting those stores was more towards things like crampons, sleeping backs and stoves. Again, I just have no memory of what knives were sold there.

I do recall getting my first multitool towards the end of the 80s; a SOG Paratool which went into my pack for a long time.
 
I am sure I saw Elliot post something about this quite some time ago???
Elliot-calling Elliot.....it may have been a conversation with our Jack Black? - I am not too sure.....Jack will be along soon ....
 
I'm hoping both of those guys will jump in. I'm dying to see the responses from outside of the US, including very much both Europe and New Zealand.
 
Looks like a fun thread. Please leave the Spydercos and other non traditional knives out of the discussion.
Thanks,
 
Gary, thanks for the clarification and reminder. To re-emphasize, I'm primarily interested in the use of traditionals in backpacking during these decades. Traditionals such as: SAKs, traditional slip joints (e.g. Scout knives, Barlows), Buck knives (and their variants) and traditional fixed blades. I mentioned the others only to note that they started to show up in the 80s. Something of an end of the era thing, perhaps.

Gary, would love to hear your thoughts on the subject, btw.
 
The 70's found me playing in the mountains in colorado skiing/climbing/backpacking and hunting- the swiss army knife was always along (since replaced by the Leatherman) and the big heavy Buck folder was our standard. I had a Puma "white hunter" for hunting. Prior to that, the army had influenced my feeling of needing to carry a tool with me and I had played with Randalls, Al mar, and SOG's but my service blade I kept locked up- don't know why now. Dad used his Kabar from the navy ww11 the whole time I was growing up- still have it in the safe now.
The Buck was the mainstay - always on the belt, everywhere, and used for everything- also was acceptable wearing it anywhere- even getting on airplanes. SAK was secondary but was so useful that it was like a small tool box for repair of any equipment. just my .02
 
Chuck, could you say some more about where you would have purchased the Buck/Puma and SAK? Did you carry the fixed blades (Randalls and such) backpacking, or only hunting?

My hunch is that backpacking/climbing stores didn't really start to stock knives until the late 70s and then, primarily stocked SAKs until the 80s when multitools started to appear. I further suspect that most people, like you and I did, got their knives from some other sort of store (hunting, fishing, hardware) and then took it camping.
 
Late 70s and early 80s found a Opinel -a N° 6, IIRC and a Victorinox Champion in my pocket and pack. My backpacking mentor gifted both to me. The Opi came straight from Europe. I am almost certain the Champion was purchased by mail from REI.
 
The majority of my hiking and backpacking took place in the mid to late '60s in the West Canada Lake Wilderness area of the Adirondack Park in NYS. My father, brother and I would head out for a weekend hike in what was then some pretty wild territory. No trails to follow just a compass and topographic maps, maybe an old logging road if we were lucky. We were in search of the wild brook trout that populated many of the smaller lakes and streams at that time.

My dad carried the brunt of the gear in an old willow (braided reed) backpack that I'm sure he got via mail order from Herter's in Minnesota. The company folded in the 70s and I think that Cabela's now owns the brand. Most all of our outdoor gear was mail order and most of that was Herter's (including an 18 foot fiberglass lake canoe that still sits in my backyard).

As far as knives go I would have been carrying an Ulster Old Timer that my dad got through an offer on a tin of tobacco in 1964 or so for $2.00. I also had a small Case fixed blade, similar to the Finn. It had the stacked leather handles. I believe I got that one in a trade from a cousin of mine that lived in Pittsburgh. I have no idea where he got it. My dad usually carried a knife that he brought back from WW2. It was a military issue I believe. He did have a balisong that he brought back from the Philippines, after the war, that he'd carry too. I wish I had that balisong. I'm not sure what happened to it. There was always a small hatchet in his pack too. Again probably from Herter's or the local hardware store.

I'd say that most knives that were carried during the 60s came from Hardware stores, Army/Navy Stores or mail order from outfitters like Herter's.
 
I received my first scout type knife when I was 7 or 8 in the 70's. Pretty sure it was a Kamp King with the black plastic handles. I used the heck out of that thing.
Growing up on Long Island, I never really had much exposure to knives or outdoor crafts/skills, but I remember getting that knife for a camping trip down to Florida. We had a small pop up trailer that we took down to Disney, stopping at various camp sites along the way. I think my dad picked up those Kamp Kings from some convenience store along the way. One for each one of us.
Great memories, pinnah. Thanks for reminding me.
 
As I recall during the 70s when backpacking became kind of a fad, it attracted a lot of wheat germ and city folk types that weren't outdoorsmen already. There was a lot of European equipment in the stores. I was a Scout at the time and interested in both backpacking and more traditional outdoors activities. I felt that I needed a SAK for such activities and so did most of my peers. I saw Opinels in the backpacking stores as well as Gerber folders, which were the closest to tacticool at the time. So, an Ulster Scout was among my first knives (Scout should have a Scout knife right) and a SAK huntsman followed, in part because it was the more advanced backpacking knife.

Long story short, I think backpacking made a lot of people buy a knife and it was frequently a SAK. Even those of us that had good outdoor knives felt compelled to get a SAK.

In Scouts I saw a lot of SAKs and Scout knives. also some miscellaneous knives. Most of us coveted a Buck 110 or 112 and those of us that hunted with our dads had one, but they stayed with the hunting gear and were frowned upon in the Scout troop aa just a bit too much knife.
Today, the large SAK one hand Trekker tends to come camping and backpacking with me. Usually with a fixed blade and/or smalker knife.
 
I can't for the life of me remember what I took when I started backpacking in the late 60's. I know I would have had a little Utica Cutlery slipjoint (my grandfather was the VP of UC then) but I recall a larger fixed blade knife I had. Probably pretty dull. The first camping knife I specifically remember would have been my Buck 110 that I bought in 1974 when I became a deputy sheriff. Used that as my primary workhorse for many years after. I later bought a Buck 119 but not until around '92 which is after the time period for this thread.

I also had a SAK of some sort in those days but can't remember what it was. Something close to a Climber. Hiker, or similar.
 
Most of my hiking occurred in the 60's and 70's. In the 70's I used to backpack.

I don't remember what I carried when hiking with my parents.

I do remember that a standard piece of my backpacking gear was a red SAK. It was as much a standard item as my sierra cup.
 
I got started in Scouting around 1951 and had a standard Cub Scout Knife - just like the Boy Scout Knife except with the Cub Scout emblem on it. I also had a Case fixed blade knife but it had the Boy Scout emblem on it - stacked leather handle, 6" clipped blade. We also used surplus knife/spoon/fork sets - the knife I think it was had two studs welded to the handle, the fork nestled into the spoon and both of those were slipped over and down the two studs on the knife holding the whole kit together. That's what we (the guys in the pack and troop) carried while Scouting.

Of course I carried either a Barlow or 2-blade Jack knife when out and about in the neighborhood doing what kids did when not Scouting.
 
My Dad & I relied almost exclusively on the Victorinox SAK he carried on our backpacking & fishing trips, starting back in the late '70s at least, extending into the late '80s. He also used a Sabre brand fishing knife, when we were fortunate enough to have some trout to clean.

I used to have a Case scout pattern that I usually carried when backpacking, but seldom used it for any 'essential' tasks (Dad was doing all that). It was nice to have it in my pocket, though. It went missing years later, though I have no idea when, where or how that happened.


David
 
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During the early 1970s I use to take along an Edgebrand hunting knife and a Valor brand trapper.

n2s
 
When I´m talking to my dad about the "old" times when he was a boy (he is 61 years old now) he often tells me, that a simple fixed blade was the knife for guys to go outdoors these days. It was the regular version of Pfadfindermesser (Pathfinder knife or better Boy Scout Knife in english language)... I was able to get one some time ago made by Otter, Solingen

Here´s a pic



I believe that Tom (Vanguard) once told that it is pretty similar the HJ-Messer (Hitler Youth) which was still around when my dad was a boy. When it comes to guns in general as well as the Mauser K98 or the Luger 08 ... but that´s another story ;)

SAKs were known in that time but not that common. Folding knives were around of course but more for EDC and something like this. This knife shown above was very well known and on many belts of boys outdoors in that time. As much as my dad tells me.
 
I did a lot of backpacking in the mid-seventies. I hitchhiked across the country in 1975 for several weeks and hiked in the Grand Canyon and Yosemite during that trip. I had this SAK with me. Huntsman maybe? I don't remember the pattern.

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If I recall, I bought it at a larger sporting good store that carried more fishing and hunting supplies than camping supplies. SAK's were getting quite popular around that time with backpackers.

It had replaced this Kabar stockman which I carried all through high school and college. The Kabar replaced a scout knife I lost. I also had a Western scout fixed blade.

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Later, about 1978 I bought this Gerber.

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That's my 1970's knife history.
 
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