Best traditional brands?

T

TheMonsterTruk

Joined
Aug 13, 2012
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I got a case barlow from my grandpa yesterday and now I think i want to start getting into traditionals.
I know that Case is kind of like Spydeco equivalent in terms of quality, but what are some other good companies that specialize in traditionals?
 
Hi, and welcome!
Not sure about the Case/Spyderco analogy myself, but this is not the place to discuss such matters :o
To answer your question, take a look at:
- GEC (probably the most loved factory among slipjoint fanatics)
- Queen
- Canal Street Cutlery
- Buck
- Schrade, Camillus, Utica if you like to dig a bit in the past
- Rough Rider as inexpensive alternative
- Opinel, Laguioles and Boker as main European options
Now the captain suggests that you buckle up and keep your wallet tight... :D

Fausto
:cool:
 
GEC also makes a lot of knives for other name brands. Northwoods for example often uses GEC.
 
I've been on the forums awhile, but am just starting to follow the traditionals. I have a bunch, mostly Schrade, the USA ones. I just got a new Fremont Jack. Man, is it sweet! Honking for the pocket, for what I'm used to. I've been toting a Case baby Butterbean Canoe (SS) in my left front pocket and a Boker medium stockman (carbon) in the right. Getting more interested in my folders now, thanks to this sub-forum!
 
If you like modern PM super-steels in a traditional folder, check out the Northwoods Knives: Indian River Jack with CPM154.
 
quattromori said:
Hi, and welcome!
Not sure about the Case/Spyderco analogy myself, but this is not the place to discuss such matters :o
To answer your question, take a look at:
- GEC (probably the most loved factory among slipjoint fanatics)
- Queen
- Canal Street Cutlery
- Buck
- Schrade, Camillus, Utica if you like to dig a bit in the past
- Rough Rider as inexpensive alternative
- Opinel, Laguioles and Boker as main European options
Now the captain suggests that you buckle up and keep your wallet tight... :D

Fausto
:cool:
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Some folks may not agree that Swiss Army knives are traditional, but I'd add Victorinox to Fausto's excellent list. Happy Hunting!

-GT
 
5K Qs said:
Some folks may not agree that Swiss Army knives are traditional, but I'd add Victorinox to Fausto's excellent list. Happy Hunting!

-GT
Click to expand...
I believe the SAK to be a traditional knife and from older thread where I asked people have told me the same. A 60+ year old SAK officer is apart of my edc rotation. I'm still pretty new to traditionals myself and if all goes well I should receive my first GEC on Tuesday or Wednesday. My last gec order unfortunately disappeared in the mail--still trying to sort that out. I've handled maybe just 2 case knives belonging friends and family and not many other traditional knife so I can't chime in on that. I really appreciate traditional designs for their thin blades and good cutting performance. It was after I found that old SAK I started to get into traditionals.
 
TheMonsterTruk said:
I got a case barlow from my grandpa yesterday and now I think i want to start getting into traditionals. ... what are some other good companies that specialize in traditionals?
Click to expand...

At under $50, I like the Case offerings (specifically their CV steel ones), and a lot of guys like the Buck slipjoints. When you go north of $50, you have to check out Great Eastern. Fantastic knives well so well that any of our grandfathers would have been proud to carry one.

-- Mark
 
Take a look at the D2 knives in Queen Cutlery's range of jigged bone or wood handles. Some of my firm favourites to be found there.

Thanks, Will
 
Make sure you know what you're getting into with Queen D2. I have one and is the one knife I can't get quite sharp. I know that I am most likely the problem as it is a beautiful knife. It is just frustrating as I like sharp knives.
 
jsg71 said:
Make sure you know what you're getting into with Queen D2. I have one and is the one knife I can't get quite sharp. I know that I am most likely the problem as it is a beautiful knife. It is just frustrating as I like sharp knives.
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You might want to do some reading over in the Maintenance and Tinkering forum. There are a passel of folks over there who can provide tips on D2. Queen tends to sharpen at a fairly oblique angle. To get the most out of Queen blades, I change the bevel angle on mine. This can be a time consuming task, depending on your sharpening equipment.
 
jsg71 said:
Make sure you know what you're getting into with Queen D2. I have one and is the one knife I can't get quite sharp. I know that I am most likely the problem as it is a beautiful knife. It is just frustrating as I like sharp knives.
Click to expand...

If you'd like to PM me, I can give you advice as well. I frequent the M&T subforum quite often and its the members there that helped me learn to freehand sharpen well. Also I agree with what knarfeng said. A lot of knives not just queen often come with thicker obtuse angles. Maintaining them will mean just keeping the poor cutting performance and sharpening at a shallower angle than the one on the knife will yield an edge that stays the same unless you completely reprofile it.
 
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