Cautious to put my slippie to work

B

bladeboss

Joined
Mar 6, 2012
Messages
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Howdy!

By no means at all should this be taken as a "bashing" thread. At all.
I really like slipjoints. The look and overall feel is great to me.

BUT... I've never really put any miles on one.

Ive spent 98% of my life carrying a "modern" folder.

Obviously, traditionals can handle work. They've been around for a very long time and, well, obviously they've been......worked.

I'm sure theyre designed with more than just cutting food and tape in mind.

Are there certain designs and patterns designed for harder stuff? Define: "harder"

For what its worth, the only traditional I ever carry is a Case Texas Jack.

Any help or input is appreciated

Bladeboss
 
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I got an old Sodbuster Jr in like new condition because I wanted to test out the carbon steel, and see how the patina developed for me over time. I have beat the CRAP out of this thing, and a few swipes on the sharpmaker brings it right back to new. Food, yard work, drywall, light prying, shaving sticks for fire material, and it's taken it all.

I'm also a Buck guy. I carry at least one, more likely two, every day. I would not hesitate to pull it out for ANY task that needs a knife. They lock up rock solid, take a very good edge, and their historically low rate of "failure" during use gives me piece of mind. I've stabbed stuff, sawed stuff, batoned stuff, dropped them, beat on things with them. All still functioning flawlessly.

Find your favorite one, and beat the hell out of it. Our parents, grandparents, and great grandparents for some, were harder on knives than most of us will ever be.. and that was all they had back then. :):thumbsup:
 
A good slippie can do anything a locking blade (linerlock, framelock, lockback) can do. Remember that is all we had for many centuries. IMHO, if you "need" a lock, then you probably shouldn't be using a folder - get a fixed blade. No offense intended to anyone, but I just think knife folks have become too dependent on locking blades. I use both, but the lock is just an extra little bit of safety. I do most of my cutting of everything with a slippie (old Buck, Schrade, SAKs, Case etc. - had/have a bunch of most old brands). Now I carry both, a SAK deluxe tinker on my belt and a Kershaw Oso-Sweet or similar in my pocket (mainly because there aren't many OHO slippies that I like on the market and using a slippie is at times difficult when using a cane. Just one of "joys" of getting older). Don't use Case anymore, I found that Rough Rider, Marbles, Colts are just as good at a much lower cost.

Rich
 
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A locking blade affords me the opportunity to pay less attention to how I am using the knife. Whether or not I do is up to me, I suppose. But, aside from stabbing, slip joint knives will and do cut everything that I need for them to cut, often easier than a modern folder because of how thinly ground the blades come. I like small fixed blades for harder edc tasks. Those aren't as much fun to play with, though. Hinged blades are fun, and smaller in pocket.
 
T-

Yes, it is fun laying on the couch and flipping open my Kershaw or which ever OHO I have in my pocket at the time :)
I use to carry a small puukko (circa 4 inch blade) for all my outdoor uses when backpacking/hiking, etc. Unfortunately in my state concealed carry of a fixed blade is illegal :-( so now it's a OHO in my pocket. Would appreciate any suggestions for a good OHO slippie without half stop on blade (don't like the Spydies/SOG or holes in my blades or dark coatings).

Rich
 
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bladeboss said:
Howdy!

By no means at all should this be taken as a "bashing" thread. At all.
I really like slipjoints. The look and overall feel is great to me.

BUT... I've never really put any miles on one.

Ive spent 98% of my life carrying a "modern" folder.

Obviously, traditionals can handle work. They've been around for a very long time and, well, obviously they've been......worked.

I'm sure theyre designed with more than just cutting food and tape in mind.

Are there certain designs and patterns designed for harder stuff? Define: "harder"

For what its worth, the only traditional I ever carry is a Case Texas Jack.

Any help or input is appreciated

Bladeboss
Click to expand...

If by harder stuff you mean more cutting then most traditionals will do the job for you.

It's just a matter of picking your favorite pattern and steel, then enjoying it. These days I just use the one in my pocket at the time. For 30 years I used a stockman for everything from deer and small game to birds, fish, cardboard, banding, blister packs radiator and other assorted hoses, rope. Leather, wood etc. Last week I used a barlow to cut a 3/4” tree out of a bush. I made a few push cuts around it then just broke it.

If I need to pierce into something I just use downward pressure on the edge forcing the blade open. I use a locking knife the same way, I NEVER trust a lock.

If by harder stuff you mean chopping, prying get a hatchet and pry bar.
 
Case and buck both have traditional patterns with thumb studs for one handed opening. I think the case is called the copperlock, and then the Bucks are just 110 or 112 variance, or they sell a little thumb stud that you can add to any 110 or 112 blade. Otherwise, the only one handed opening slipjoint that I'm aware of is non-traditional and would require a trip over to a different Forum, ala Spyderco.
 
A slipjoint will handle any knife cutting task as well or better than a modern OHO.
As mentioned by others above, the blade geometry has something to do with that.
In addition, different tasks can be done better or at least easier with different blade shapes. A sheepsfoot blade, for example, is better for cutting leather than a clip point.
Since no one blade shape is ideal for every task, I prefer a knife that gives me a choice. My main EDC is a Stockman, (usually a Buck 301 or 371) and a Scout/Camp knife,(a SAK Huntsman, SAK Recruit, "Demo" knife, or an old Ulster Boy Scout) along with a Buck 110 or Schrade 6OT or 7OT on my belt, and a SAK Signature on my keyring. (I'm never without a pen as long as I have the Signature.)
To be honest, I use the Stockman and Huntsman maybe 99.998% of the time.
I would suggest getting a Rough Rider in the patterns you think you might like, and go from there.
Rough Rider are equal to (and can exceed) the build quality of a Case, and hold an edge just as well - if not better.
The Rough Rider's cost a fraction of what a Case of the same pattern costs, too ... providing of course Case even makes that pattern. (The Barlow, for instance, is not made by Case, but is by most (but not all) other Traditional knife makers.)
 
afishhunter said:
A slipjoint will handle any knife cutting task as well or better than a modern OHO.
As mentioned by others above, the blade geometry has something to do with that.
In addition, different tasks can be done better or at least easier with different blade shapes. A sheepsfoot blade, for example, is better for cutting leather than a clip point.
Since no one blade shape is ideal for every task, I prefer a knife that gives me a choice. My main EDC is a Stockman, (usually a Buck 301 or 371) and a Scout/Camp knife,(a SAK Huntsman, SAK Recruit, "Demo" knife, or an old Ulster Boy Scout) along with a Buck 110 or Schrade 6OT or 7OT on my belt, and a SAK Signature on my keyring. (I'm never without a pen as long as I have the Signature.)
To be honest, I use the Stockman and Huntsman maybe 99.998% of the time.
I would suggest getting a Rough Rider in the patterns you think you might like, and go from there.
Rough Rider are equal to (and can exceed) the build quality of a Case, and hold an edge just as well - if not better.
The Rough Rider's cost a fraction of what a Case of the same pattern costs, too ... providing of course Case even makes that pattern. (The Barlow, for instance, is not made by Case, but is by most (but not all) other Traditional knife makers.)
Click to expand...
Ya know, I never thought about the blade geometry being different, allowing it to cut different things easier...
 
You need a case sodbuster jr or any other sodbuster pattern.
Mine was one I had no problem putting right to work even though I also had doubts about a non locking blade.
 
You can loosen up an opinel so that it flicks open one handed pretty easy. Or you can learn to open a lot of other types one handed. My Mercator is easy to pinch the blade spine and open the knife by wiping the handle on my leg. Or flicking it works too.
 
Traditionals can handle work just fine. IMO, modern knives just handle it better. At least the one I carry handles it better than any slipjoint I've ever carried. The only reason I sometimes choose a slipjoint is aesthetics.

I prefer the lock on my modern knife not because it's needed to prevent the blade from closing on me while I'm using it, but because it means that there doesn't have to be any pressure on the blade preventing it from closing when I want it to. It's much easier and smoother to push the lockbar over and let the blade fall shut than it is to close a slipjoint. Add this to the fact that a modern knife is much easier and smoother to open and it makes for a better overall experience.

Another great advantage of modern folders is that they can be tuned very easily. I regularly get slop in any knife I carry for any amount of time. With a slipjoint I have to take the knife to a padded vice and tighten the joint back up, then peen the pin back down, then sand and polish the bolster back smooth. With a modern knife I just tighten the screw and I'm done. If I want to get crazy I pull the screw out and apply some locktite and then tighten it down.

Traditionals are fun and definitely beat most modern knives hands down in the looks department, but if your top priority is use, a modern folder will serve you better. That being said, most any halfway decent folding knife will easily handle any cutting tasks you're likely to throw at it.

If you're looking for a slipjoint that will handle rougher use I'd suggest Queen. Their D2 is fantastic and I've been pretty rough with them and have been very impressed with their performance. By pretty rough I mean that I used a Queen to cut up the carpet in my basement and install the new carpet, cut the vinyl tile for my bathroom, etc. My luck hasn't been nearly as good with 1095 like you find in GECs. I've had GEC's "workhorse" patterns fail me in mundane tasks like cutting cardboard and shaving wood. However, the GECs are often the prettier knife, so it really depends on what you're looking for.
 
bladeboss said:
Howdy!
Are there certain designs and patterns designed for harder stuff? Define: "harder"

Bladeboss
Click to expand...

When I was a young man several decades ago, I carried a Camillus-made Buck 303 every day for well over 10 years. The 303 is a small stockman with a 3 1/4" closed length. Mine had 440A blade steel. During that time I worked in construction, drove a truck, worked in a materials lab, and few other things. Lots of cutting chores associated with all those jobs. Cutting rope, opening boxes, scraping carbon off spark plugs, cutting rubber hose...
I never found myself in a position where I needed anything else.
 
Got my first modern knife about 4 years ago and they're OK but probably not as necessary as some might think.
50+ years of cutting things with various slip joint pocket knives has proven to me they may be all that is actually needed.
 
redsparrow said:
Got my first modern knife about 4 years ago and they're OK but probably not as necessary as some might think.
50+ years of cutting things with various slip joint pocket knives has proven to me they may be all that is actually needed.
Click to expand...
Can't really put a generalization on things because some people will swear up and down that they really do need them ( a few people actually might ), but id wager that you're statement is true and I certainly don't have any true requirements for a locking blade.
 
knarfeng said:
When I was a young man several decades ago, I carried a Camillus-made Buck 303 every day for well over 10 years. The 303 is a small stockman with a 3 1/4" closed length. Mine had 440A blade steel. During that time I worked in construction, drove a truck, worked in a materials lab, and few other things. Lots of cutting chores associated with all those jobs. Cutting rope, opening boxes, scraping carbon off spark plugs, cutting rubber hose...
I never found myself in a position where I needed anything else.
Click to expand...
Maybe the doubt is just in my head.
Maybe I should carry a slipjoint only for a while and see for myself.
Maybe I'll like it more.
:)
 
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