Does anyone still carry/use a two blade folding hunter??

T

Tightwad

Joined
Jul 22, 2001
Messages
1,417
I've read these forums everyday and don't remember anyone ever
posting anything about the traditional two blade folding hunter.
This is one knife that has a sterling history with outdoors men
of days gone by being two knives in one. I collect them and
have many fine examples of most makers including one from
Boker that is a double lockback!! The two blade folding hunter
offers a 4" blade in two different blade shapes that cover a wide
range of uses. So I wondered if anyone still used this excellent
traditional knife.
 
I do....weel, sort of. I often carry a "mini" folding hunter from Case. The pattern is the same as the full size, however closed length is 2 3/4" with blades that are 2 1/8".

I really like the looks of that pattern, but the full size is just a bit to much for my pockets.

Mini:
fe3a78db.jpg.orig.jpg
 
I picked up a Schrade-Walden of this style this past summer really cheap at a flea market. It's just the thing to hang on my belt in a pouch when I'm sick of the tac look.
 
Speaking of Schrade-Waldens, just this past Sunday I dug out my old folding hunter I got when I was a kid. I hadn't looked at it since the 70s. The blades developed a very cool patina during that time but they were pretty blunt since I didn't take much care of it back then.

Thanks to the cool carbon steel it just took a couple of minutes to get it sharp again... polished up the old bolsters and there it was - a beautiful, cheap, useful tool that brought back fond memories of all those BB gun forays over the levee and down in the riverbottoms.
 
I don't have any, but I do like the style. If Case would make a bone-handled one in their C-V steel I would likely get one. I do carry a full-size Case trapper quite often, which is almost the same size.

Steve
 
Steve, Consider a Case folding hunter in wood handle. The one
I have is amazing for holding a razor edge. If bone handle is a must
then I've found several nice Case hunters on e-bay.

Richard, Your small case is a beauty. I'll add one to my collection
soon.
 
One of my daily carry knives is a two-bladed 'moose' folder made by Mastersmith PJ Tomes from 52100, stainless, and amber stag. It is a double lockback copy of an old Remington pattern that is exceptionally well made, 4 inches long, and surprisingly thin.



Paracelsus, new fangled old-fashioned guy
 
The folding hunter has always been my favorite pattern but I haven't had one for along time. I ground out the blades and back springs for one a couple years ago but just stuck em in my folder parts box. I'm gonna dig em out and see if I can get it together right. I love those curvey secondary blades.
 
This fine old pattern seems to have outlived the "real outdoorsmen" who found it to be so useful for them. The same fate seems to have befallen the "coke bottle" hunter pattern and large trapper pattern. It is really a shame, too, because these patterns' decline seems to be more a matter of fashion than it is of functionality. About the only "working" version of this pattern that I know of is Queen's in their Delrin-handled "Chipped Bark" line. If one does not have a strong prejudice against 440A blade steel these knives offer good quality and value for the money. Now, wouldn't it be nice if Queen would reintroduce their fine 83A "Queen City" carbon steel "coke bottle" hunter,too?
 
The correct spelling is "fleam". I do not know if this item belongs to you, but knives from (Wade) Wingfield & Rowbothom are considered quite collectable and have fairly high values. It is a Sheffield based company that merged with T. Turner in 1905 and disappeared in 1932.

I know that's not information that you asked for, I just thought it might be of interest.
 
Queen traditionally uses 440C steel, not 440A. There is a big differnce between the two in terms of carbon content. I also love the old two bladed hunter pattern. In fact, a two blade hunter (Schrade Old Timer) was my first large folder. I carried and used that knife regularly for about fifteen years and I still have it after thirty years. It is truly a great knife. BTW, I love that Tomes Moose Para.
 
Hate to burst your bubble but Queen hasn't used 440C to any real extent for a long time. They "got religion" in their high-end lines, for a while, with ATS-34 master blades but their production has otherwise been 440A except for some special edition stuff. The "QS-14" steel that they mentioned in their last catalog was an attempt to camoflage their use of 440A but, now, even that charade has been dropped. I have my own opinions, obviously, and 440A isn't a bad blade steel. It's just that "Queen Steel" ain't what she used to be; i.e. 440C.
 
My Dad uses a large Case folding hunter that my Mom bought for him in 1962. This knife usually only gets used during deer season, but has seen a bunch of carry and use over the years. It's a jigged wooden handle of some dark colored wood and has some great carbon steel blades. The main clip point blade actually reminds me very much of a Benchmade AFCK's blade. Nice and thin, pointy, and takes a razor sharp edge. This knife is as tight as when new and a real family treasure. I wonder what sort of carbon steel Case used in the early 60's?
 
"... and there's nothing like having fond memories of your useful tool."

Yep, I guess that's a topic for another forum.:p
 
Wellllll... not a two blade folder, but in my pocket is my old (1951) Camillus Stockman (three blades), which I've carried in many places in the world, all over the United States, and have used on every kind of game animal in the States, except moose. It's easy to sharpen and is as tight today, as when my father gave it to me when I was a kid.

I always carry a fixed blade, when hunting, but I'd NEVER be without that Stockman folder.

L.W.
 
I've been slowly collecting the traditional Trapper style pocket knife. I carry a Mooremaker every day in addition to my Large Sebenza. Absolutely love it. The scan doesn't do justice to the color or texture of the jigged bone handles. Fit and finish are among the finest I've ever seen. Plus, it has high-carbon (read non SS) steel so I can really use it.

MOORE1.JPG
 
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