Boy Scout Knives

R

Rick1955

Joined
May 6, 2000
Messages
358
Any Boy Scouts (current or former adult or youth) out there?

What knife or knives do/did you use in Scouting? Did Scouting get you started with knives?

I know that Scouting got me started with knives. Their Totin' Chip training program is great. All knife users should be trained in my opinion.

As for me, I currently carry a Camillus Deluxe Official Boy Scout utility pocketknife at Scout activities. I have others but that is what I commonly carry. I did pick up an official Scout Leaders pocketknife this summer.

Thanks.
 
Started out with my Dad's Remington Scout knife, then down that slippery slope, SAKs, Buck 110, now hooked on Talonite (too lazy to sharpen) and wonder-steels.
 
I went through to scouts canada line from 1989-1997. I started on knives from my grandfather the spring of '89, started "beavers"(lowest level) that fall.

Starting from a micarta handled penknife(2" blade) I moved on to SAKs. After my 2nd one, I moved to just a nice big lockblade! It wasn't about to close on my fingers...

I ran with a 3" that I picked up cheap, then a better 3"(still a cheapo). Picked up a 4" skinner, found it akward to hold... still use the next purchase, a 3.75" beater("River Trail" is on the blade, if that makes any difference)... wood handles, brass bolters.

The hard use in scouts canada(beavers->cubs->scouts) gave me an appreciation for good tools. I broke my first SAK, and totally destroyed a POS multi-tool... all thanks to them...
 
Hey, I can think of a handful of knives NOT suitable for the scouts! ;) "That's not a knife...THIS is a knife..."

Seriously, a small field knife type fixed blade would be best (but fixed blades are likely banned by the scouts). A utility folder of about 3" to 3.5" (Buck 110 is a nice choice) and/or a multitool would be my other votes.

Nothing really expensive (even the best kids lose stuff) and one with easy to sharpen steel.
 
Fixed blades are not banned officially - but discouraged - and when you stop and think about it, they are not usually needed anyways.

Originally posted by Ron@SOG
Hey, I can think of a handful of knives NOT suitable for the scouts! ;) "That's not a knife...THIS is a knife..."

Seriously, a small field knife type fixed blade would be best (but fixed blades are likely banned by the scouts). A utility folder of about 3" to 3.5" (Buck 110 is a nice choice) and/or a multitool would be my other votes.

Nothing really expensive (even the best kids lose stuff) and one with easy to sharpen steel.
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Hi Rick,
Originally posted by Rick1955
Fixed blades are not banned officially - but discouraged - and when you stop and think about it, they are not usually needed anyways.
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A prudent fixed blade is much safer than a folder. Many knife accidents happen during the opening and closing of a folding knife or accidental closing of a folding knife.

And isn't "safer" what the Scouts are all about?
 
Not sure I agree about a fixed blade being safer but I understand what you are saying. But, the Guide to Safe Scouting does say that fixed bladed knives are to be discouraged. I have been to some activities that banned "lock blade" knives. Seens to me a knife that locks in the extended position would be safer from the standpoint that it will not close on the user's hand - but none the less they are banned in some activities in Scouting - regardless of their size. Strange.

But the same concept applied to may knife laws - which often fall under the category of "public safety". In some jurisdications a small pocketknife can get you in a world of legal hassles. Sometimes carrying a small ordinary pocketknife is considered no different that carrying a combat knife or concealed firearm. Makes no sense. I read one case of a girl who was suspended from school for having an ordinary table knife in her lunch box to spread condiments on her bread. Even my daughter's school does not have even plastic knives in the cafeteria. The kids have to spread jam and such with a spoon. I keep hoping that common sense will prevail but I often see the opposite. Even I have been confronted for carrying a little Schrade Old Timer Junior 3 bladed Stockman (no longer than 3" total when closed) - the person asked why I was carrying a weapon - after she asked me to open a box.... (In my state one can legally carry most knives with blades up to 5 1/2 inches under most circumstances - we are lucky I guess. Maybe someone else has an answer. In some areas - even official Scout pocketknives fall in the area of "illegal" knives to carry. I carried a pocketknife all through school - they were allowed. Now the kids go to jail for carrying them. I keep hoping for that common sense though. I am just thankful I live in a state that allows carrying most knives.

I fear that one day carrying a pen or pencil will be illegal because they can endanger the public safety because they can be used as a stabbing weapon.




Originally posted by Ron@SOG
Hi Rick,

A prudent fixed blade is much safer than a folder. Many knife accidents happen during the opening and closing of a folding knife or accidental closing of a folding knife.

And isn't "safer" what the Scouts are all about?
Click to expand...
 
My first knife was an Ulster Scout Knife. After a friend lost it, I used a Buck 301 and a fixed blade no-name German knife, later supplemented by a Buck 110, 118, and 120 (I used a lot of Buck knives in the 70's). Now I am a Varsity coach, and the list of knives I may take on high adventure trips is too long to list here. But I also have acquired some antique pre-WWII scout knives, too, gives a sense of the history of scouting.
 
Rick,
Originally posted by Rick1955
Not sure I agree about a fixed blade being safer but I understand what you are saying. But, the Guide to Safe Scouting does say that fixed bladed knives are to be discouraged.
Click to expand...
I've read the Guide to Safe Scouting in relationship to knives, and it is clear that the author(s) both have little or no knowledge of knives and their practical uses and was very likely written with legal liability in mind rather than practicality.

I sincerely do believe that a conservative fixed blade is safer than most folders for many reasons.
 
I remember being a Boy Scout in Virginia in the early '80s. My father had gotten me a sheath knife for my birthday and I chose to take it with me for one of our Scout camping trips. I had my Tote and Chip card and everything and the scoutmaster still was inclined to refuse to let me take it with me. My parents stated that it was ok with them, so he relented. All that weekend I felt a bit under the microscope. For cryin' out loud, a hatchet was part of our normal loadout. You would think that a sturdy sheath knife for going into the woods would be eminently reasonable.

Considering the popular trend these days, I highly doubt that I will encourage my sons to join (should I ever have any.)
 
I was in the Scouts for a shorter period.
We were allowed to carry fixed blades. The standard Boy-Scout knife was a wodden handled Frosts of Sweden with a double guard. I think I remember that you had to pass some kind of test to see that you could use your knife responsible.
Unfortunately me and my brother were banned from the scouts after just a few mounths so I don´t remember to well. As I remember it I think part of the reason was that my brother broght some kind of machete that my father used to cut insulation with. We were also pests in all other ways so we had to leave.
 
On Saturday, my wife and I went on a day-long canoe trip. At the halfway point, where most folks tie up their canoe and have lunch, there was a Boy Scout troop there. I was using some cord to secure our canoe and took out my Endura to cut the rope. I overheard one of the scouts say to his buddy, "Man, THAT'S a knife!" :D Good kid, well on his way to being a certified knife knut, I reckon. Seeing them brought back a lot of good memories of my all-too-brief days as a scout.
 
All 3 of our kids are in scouts in Toronto and once they reached the age of 12 they were allowed to carry fixed blades while camping. It is even mandatory to carry at least a folding knife even when they were younger. (Our daughter proudly carried her new Spyderco drop point this summer to Algonquin Park...next year she may take her upcoming Christmas present...a custom by Grant Fraser)
 
When I was 16 my father gave me a Schrade LB7, the big lock back. He had my name engraved on the right wood scale. That knife was my constant companion for many years - even on my belt during my Eagle Court of Honor. I carried that knife as a firefighter and reserve police officer. Thanks Dad.

My sons each have a Gerber LST for their Scouting adventures.

Be Prepared!
 
Now I'm feeling old as I was a Cub Scout in Ottawa, Canada the early seventies. I had a huge (to me) folding knife that had EVERYTHING on it. Blade, fork, spoon, file, corkscrew, awl, saw, bottle opener, etc. I remember it had stag (probably imitation) scales. It came in a large leather sheath that had a metal spring-loaded closure tab. I learned something very important when I tried to eat a steak with this great knife. You see, the fork was on one end and the blade was on the other! It was still a great knife, but it taught me that sometimes the sum is not better than the individual parts (aka "keep it simple", something that guides me today in my work an engineer).

It is encouraging to learn that the Scouts have not completely given in to the movement to make things for kids, as Richard Lee put it in 'Modern Reloading', "well rounded, soft, and too big to swallow".
 
I was in the Scouts all the way through the rank of Eagle. In those days the only knife I had was the Ulster boy scout knife. My father found the knife recently and gave it back to me, along with a couple of kinfolks sheath knives that he had when HE was in scouts. He won one of those fixed blades in a contest in the scouts, a far cry from the present.
I learned the joy of camping while in scouting, but it wasn't until my college days that I started camping with better equipment, including knives. I used a gerber drop point lockback and a couple of different SAKs during that time.\
Nowadays, I definitely have better tools for the job, but much less time to go camping. Hope to pass the habits and lessons on to my kids.
G.
 
Knives are still alive and well in Scouting.

You could get back involved in Scouting. They need all the adult volunteers they can get.

Originally posted by mnblade
On Saturday, my wife and I went on a day-long canoe trip. At the halfway point, where most folks tie up their canoe and have lunch, there was a Boy Scout troop there. I was using some cord to secure our canoe and took out my Endura to cut the rope. I overheard one of the scouts say to his buddy, "Man, THAT'S a knife!" :D Good kid, well on his way to being a certified knife knut, I reckon. Seeing them brought back a lot of good memories of my all-too-brief days as a scout.
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I have my very first and only Ulster. i used it hard. I gave it to my Oldest, he used it hard, but also used a Swiss army, then the leatherman tool came out. My youngest also got my Ulster, but it seems Today's scouts use other cutting systems and the Ulster now sits like a beaten tool, but it still cuts, opens and closes and NOT ONE blade is bent!!!!!!. Now it is just 32 years old!!!! wolf
 
When I was a Cub Scout I carried a Camillus Cub Scout knife, and soon after I got a SAK and carried it until I was in Boy Scouts. By the time I got my Eagle, my standard carry in the woods was a BM Panther in my pocket, and a Buckmaster tucked away in my pack. Guess they didn't know about the Buckmaster, but it was fun to take anyways:D
 
I also have a circa 1940s Ultster official Boy Scout utility style pocketknife. I bought it at a gun show a few years ago. My first Boy Scout knife was a Sabre brand utility pocketknife. I currently carry a Camillus official Boy Scout Deluxe utlity pocketknife.

It appears that you an both of your sons took very good carry of that Ulster! I wish all were as well trained and take as good of care of their things.

I don't suppose that you would be interested in parting with that Ulster?

Originally posted by wolfmann601
I have my very first and only Ulster. i used it hard. I gave it to my Oldest, he used it hard, but also used a Swiss army, then the leatherman tool came out. My youngest also got my Ulster, but it seems Today's scouts use other cutting systems and the Ulster now sits like a beaten tool, but it still cuts, opens and closes and NOT ONE blade is bent!!!!!!. Now it is just 32 years old!!!! wolf
Click to expand...
 
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