GEC #79 Workhorse Whittler Review and at Work "RATTLESNAKE" Added

[Modoc ED]

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[supratentorial]

I'm thinking ebony. If it were in an old Maher & Grosh catalog, it would be stag, ebony or pearl...

 

[Humppa]

Ed,

the long pulls and the swedges, even on the secondary blades, make the Northfields looking real traditional.

Thanks for giving a comparison shot between the Tidioute and the Northfield

Kind regards
Andi

 

[richstag]

Ed,

The jigging on that Ruby Red is the very best I have seen from GEC to my eye! Thanks for the photos and write up.

Kevin

 

[Modoc ED]

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[supratentorial]

Thanks, Ed. The one above the "Texas Toothpick" is the "Montana Mountaineer"...aside from the three springs, the "Montana Workhorse whittlers" look pretty close to the old knives to me. Although I had been hoping for a split backspring originally. I saw a well shot of the knife and noticed that the blades completely fill the well --no empty space. That makes full use of the three springs and reinvigorated my interest in the knife. With a $50-80 premium for stag on this pattern, I'd have to cherry pick. That one that I missed was a real beauty. I'm thinking that I'll opt for the ebony.

 

[Modoc ED]

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[Modoc ED]

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[jujigatame]

I think this pattern is one of the best looking I've ever seen from GEC.

 

[Modoc ED]

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[richstag]

Correction - the red dawn northfield, long pulls and swedges is the nicest jigged bone I have seen.

 

[Modoc ED]

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[Peter Parker]

Nice review Ed! They all look very nice but the ruby red jigged bone looks best to my eyes!

 

[richstag]

Say what is right, Ed. I goofed it all up. The one with red jigged bone, I guess its the ruby red. I couldn't keep up with all the knives you were posting.

It reminds me of peachseed jigging.

 

[Modoc ED]

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[pertinux]

I debated where to add more #79 Workhorse Whittler content, and decided to post in this thread instead of starting/choosing another even though so many image links in this thread are now broken. (If I missed a better place, please move this post and I will edit this very paragraph accordingly. )

First, some background:

A little while back, rockgolfer and I arranged a consecutive borrow. I sent him my White Owl to try out, and he just returned it to me with his Workhorse Whittler.

Here's my White Owl back home again, with Jeff's #79 in tow:

As great as everyone's pictures are, most especially including the helpful comparison shots in this thread, there's nothing else like evaluating a knife in-hand. I'm grateful for this opportunity. The #79 is not nearly as cumbersome (weight, bulk) as I'd expected, and its configuration and pleasing pulls render it surprisingly comfortable in carry and in use.

#25, #79, #15

Clip blades:

#79, #15

Wharncliffe (lambcliffe on the #79? ):

#79 bracketed by #25s

Here's where it gets fun:

Spring shot:

Wait, what's this...?

Hmmm, inconclusive. Another angle:

And one last look, for further confirmation:

... The brass scales of the #79 are slightly further apart than those of the #25-- on the frame level, the #79 is an oonch thicker-- but clothed in their respective covers, the little #25 is just a snook wider at its bare end than the 3-spring #79.

Revelatory.

Then, on the eve of returning Jeff's knife to him, this happened:

This Jobillo is really something, putting the "chatter" in "chatoyancy" (hard for me to photograph accurately all that's going on in and around the crazypatch grain and coloration). Here's mine again, with rockgolfer's Ruby Red (thanks again, Jeff!):

~ P.

Jobillo: I was leery of taking a flyer on a hitherto unknown wood, but as soon as Barry (gunstockjack) described it to me as similar to mahogany, I went for it. Mahogany's a favorite of mine (dating to my first guitar at age 14).

Note the family resemblance (mahogany bookshelf as backdrop):

Interestingly, the jobillo often appears redder in outdoor light. Regardless of setting, it requires the full range of vintage Crayola browns to catch its variegations-- raw sienna, burnt umber, goldenrod, sepia, you name it.

A few areas in the grain flash gold, including just to upper right of the shield. You can sort of see it in the above picture, a little more here-- the lighter brown color in the upper right quadrant is all shimmer, not flat color:

I prefer satin-finished blades to gloss, so have taken the knife from this...

... to this:

(So far; it's a work in progress.)

This one's going to keep me interested for a good long time.

~ P.

 

[Shaggy]

Sarah, looking at that last pic...you weren't kidding about needing whole spectrum of colors to describe this one. Very nice...sorta the "calico bone" version in wood. That is the nicest Jobillo model I've seen to date. How did you apply your satin finish to the blades? (they look great)

-Greg

 

[Finedges]

Very impressive ~P
Once you gain the fact of how useful the 79 is, the handles push you over the top. Great pics!

 

[pertinux]

How did you apply your satin finish to the blades?

Bravely.


~ P.

 

[pertinux]

I appreciate the kind words. Thank you.

How did you apply your satin finish to the blades? (they look great)

Thanks! I was trying to work out a "progression," but went back and forth a few times so forget what finally got me there. I do know I ended with 0000 steel wool.

Mostly, I used a small 3M Scotch-whatever green scrubbing pad and 0000 steel wool. 400 grit sandpaper was also used here and there, but I'm not sure I actually needed it in the long run. Interestingly, whether this actually aided or thwarted my eventual progress, it seemed that wiping the blades with mineral oil throughout evened out the results. It felt more productive and less damage-y, at any rate.

There are still some areas I might tend to a bit more, but overall I'm very pleased, too. Whew.

~ P.