Boker slipjoints

H

huugh

Joined
Jul 16, 2005
Messages
1,772
What do you think of Boker slipjoints (especially those with carbon steel).
How is the fit and finish? Do you have estimate on blade hardness?
Thanks.
 
Hi,

The carbon steel Bokers I have are pretty nice knives. Some people claim that the fit and finish can vary some. But the two I have are just fine. I really like the Grand Canyon bone on my Barlow.

I find Bokers C75 carbon steel to be a bit softer than say, Case CV. But not by much. It will take a wickedly sharp edge with out hardly any effort.

This one get s plenty of pocket time with me.

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dalee
 
I have a Boker Barlow in red bone and am very happy with it. I couldn't tell you how hard the steel is but it comes up to sharpness easily and holds the edge well, especially if it gets stropped occasionally when being used.

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The blades are centered pretty well with the main off just a mm or two...

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The only fault in fit and finish on mine is this minute gap between liner and spring. Other than that it is very well fit with good snap both at the half stops as well as when completely open.

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Of course older Boker's like this 5252 Congress Pen knife speak for themselves...

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I only have one Boker but it does have their carbon steel. I have been carrying it now for about two months and have been pretty impressed. The blades are a little off center and the stag is very uneven but other than these two minor complaints it is a great knife.
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A new Boker Synthetic Tortoise Shell 140th Anniversary Stockman. I understood that this was some sort of acrylic and not true celluloid. Apparently these knives sold out fast and I can't find A.G.'s exact description of this Synthetic Tortoise Shell. 3-7/8" closed. Nickel Silver Round Boker '140 JAHRE' Inlay Shield and slanted Bolsters. The blades are 1095 carbon steel.
XXX
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As you can see the blades are set well in the liners.
XXX
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The blades, when open, are shy of the backsprings.
XXX
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The backsprings are not as strong as some of my better knives but the blades do snap open and closed just not with authority. The blades were newspaper slicing sharp out of the box. It will get its share of pocket time and usage in the future.
XXX
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boker had plants in germany,argentina, & america at various times. i always preferred the german bokers in carbon.some of the knives available were real fancy, they were in business from 1860s.now some production is from china & looks fairly good. i know the early production & would'nt pass on a good find at the right price .
 
I also have the Grand Canyon Barlow, but my pen knife would not open fully. It was off by maybe 10 degrees. A little file work and it was fine. I really like it!
 
I had only one Boker with a carbon blade. It was a rosewood handle pen knife about 3 1/4 inches closed. I loved that little knife as much as a peanut, and it had the single backspring that made it slim in a pocket.

It held and edge very good, and had great fit and finish. I let it go to somebody who lusted after it, and it's been one of only a couple of knives I've missed. Like dalee said, it was a tiny tad soft, but i could touch it up on a coffee mug bottom and strop it a little on my belt, and it wold be razor sharp in a few minutes. Blade developed a nice patina that went well with the nice grained rosewood.

I'd buy another one if I run across it.
 
huugh said:
What do you think of Boker slipjoints (especially those with carbon steel).
How is the fit and finish? Do you have estimate on blade hardness?
Thanks.
Click to expand...

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I carry these two fairly often.

The brown handled was belonged to my great uncle and takes a wicked edge. I've thinned it down and it'll slice almost as well as an Opinel.

The black one is more recent and takes just as good an edge. Edge retention on both are pretty good, considering how thin I've ground them. Both have excellent walk and talk and the fit 'n finish is great.

Just from these two examples, I wouldn't hesitate to try a new Boker.

Jus
 
I have some Boker Tree series.

They have a good F&F easily in the same standard as Case
The carbon sharpens easily, a little softer than Case CV.
The carbon holds a very good edge.
The blades are flat ground and thin out nicely for very sharp

They patina very quickly with all sort of colors

The springs are soft, but that is a European thing.
I never remember strong springs on my English knives as a kid.

Some of the knives can be fussed with for getting the blade further back, but so do many of the cheaper Case knives.

For the price range of not over $40, I think these knives are excellent.


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Neeman, how do you like that congress? I'd been looking it over a few years ago, but passed on it because I didn't like how long the bolsters were. If they were the same length as those on that whittler below it, I'd probably have one in my pocket right now.
 
I really like the long bolsters.
Another detail that increases the quality on a $40 knife!
I presume they make the knife stronger

Spear and Sheepsfoot as main blades
The second pen blade opposite the sheepsfoot is close to a modified Warnie, and can be aggressively sharpened to go even flater

I talked about fussing.
Well I could fuss/file down the back of the tang to make the blades sit more in line with the frame, but I have not bothered

Again for $40 you cant go wrong for a 4 carbon bladed, bone scaled, long bolsters Congress!!!
 
Thanks for the input.
One more question: given the choice, would you prefer Queen (D2), Case (carbon steel), Boker or something else?
 
Boker carbon steel slips? I like em a lot.

A single blade Boker trapper came out on top in a recent Blade mag cutting test.
 
huugh said:
Thanks for the input.
One more question: given the choice, would you prefer Queen (D2), Case (carbon steel), Boker or something else?
Click to expand...

I have all three and I would take them in the order you have them listed - Queen first, Case second, and Boker third. As far as the quality of the knives is concerned, I would list them in the same order.
 
I have about 40 German Bokers. most older, but a few recent ones too.
they are very good knives, even the recently made ones and price is very reasonable for many models. i have an extremely nice 4 blade Congress in Sambar Stag from AGR that was expensive but is superb.
i disagree with poster above and think the Boker/Queen/Case are all reasonably comparable. it comes down to personal taste.
i bought 1 Boker Magnum(China) to see what it's like. O.K. but not equal to the German ones. but a sample size of 1 doesn't say much.
the older Boker U.S.A. knives i also have, but don't really like them. don't seem as well made or attractive to me.
roland
 
I've been very pleased with the German made Bökers I have: Copperhead in Grand Canyon Bone(very well jigged) Large Stockman in Apaloosa Bone - very good fit on this with a heavy snap too,Pen in Honeycomb with stainless, and the Russell Barlow nice finish and snap. I have a Sodbuster which is Argentine made, a bit rough&ready but a respectable tough work-knife. All steels sharpen up keenly.

Decent knives at a decent price in my view.
 
I am glad to hear about the soft 'European' springs on these Böker slippies. That makes me feel better about my new stockman. The opening action still isn't 'smooth as glass' but I'll give it time to break in some more.
 
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These are the three I have. None are old, but I must say that for a medium use EDC they suit me well. The F & F is good on all three and these days it's kind of comforting to be sure of where a "German" knife brand is actually made.

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Apologies for th quality of the last pic. The scales are wormgroove bone, but I really need to retake the photo.

David
 
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