Hello, please allow me to introduce myself...

6850

6850

Gold Member
Joined
May 5, 2013
Messages
9,051
Hello fellow blade enthusiasts!
I just wanted to say hello...after lingering, it was obvious you people have a very friendly quality discussion group here!
Thank you for allowing me to join! I will do my best to not mess up, but no promises...
Me & computers...hate each other.
I'm on the old side. Retired Heavy Duty Mechanic.
I don't have a big collection, a bunch of mix matched stuff, one for every possible scenario, then an extra for every scenario...mostly used...
And in a great act of kindness & trust, I have got my first Busse on the way and a sheath for it from another!
I will post feedback asap. Even better, they took a chance on me, a Canadian!
I still have my first knife, a Sheffield RCMP jackknife from age 6.
I used to enjoy hunting a lot, fishing, all outdoors.
I also worked in a slaughterhouse, sticking hogs for 5+years. If anyone wants to know about the knives we used etc, just ask! It was there that I learned how important having a dual guard is for me. Preference anyway.
Bike wreck forced my retirement many years ago...
But I can still walk around, and have much to be thankful for.
And after seeing an act of bravery by other folk, I am also dry for quite awhile now.
I throw it out there just in case someone wants to say or ask me about anything.
I hope this is not too long, or out of line.
So hello and thanks and may all of you have a safe, happy prosperous 2016 and beyond!
6850
 
Welcome to the forums!

Oiler or Flames fan by chance? I grew up around Detroit....Red Wings!!!!!!!!
 
Welcome, 6850. Don't want to promote myself as being too much of a soothsayer, but I have a sneaking suspicion you're going to enjoy your new Busse. :)
 
6850 said:
Hello fellow blade enthusiasts!
I just wanted to say hello...after lingering, it was obvious you people have a very friendly quality discussion group here!
Thank you for allowing me to join! I will do my best to not mess up, but no promises...
Me & computers...hate each other.
I'm on the old side. Retired Heavy Duty Mechanic.
I don't have a big collection, a bunch of mix matched stuff, one for every possible scenario, then an extra for every scenario...mostly used...
And in a great act of kindness & trust, I have got my first Busse on the way and a sheath for it from another!
I will post feedback asap. Even better, they took a chance on me, a Canadian!
I still have my first knife, a Sheffield RCMP jackknife from age 6.
I used to enjoy hunting a lot, fishing, all outdoors.
I also worked in a slaughterhouse, sticking hogs for 5+years. If anyone wants to know about the knives we used etc, just ask! It was there that I learned how important having a dual guard is for me. Preference anyway.
Bike wreck forced my retirement many years ago...
But I can still walk around, and have much to be thankful for.
And after seeing an act of bravery by other folk, I am also dry for quite awhile now.
I throw it out there just in case someone wants to say or ask me about anything.
I hope this is not too long, or out of line.
So hello and thanks and may all of you have a safe, happy prosperous 2016 and beyond!
6850
Click to expand...


Welcome to BF! :thumbup:

Curious as to which knives you did in fact use, in the slaughterhouse. BTW- is this where we American's, get our Canadian Bacon from? ;)
 
Thanks...pleased to meet you!
No, sorry, never watched much Hockey...
It's so expensive to go to a game too...
Takes a lot of the fun out of it for me.
 
Bronco said:
Welcome, 6850. Don't want to promote myself as being too much of a soothsayer, but I have a sneaking suspicion you're going to enjoy your new Busse. :)
Click to expand...

Thank you sir!
Pleasure to meet you!
I am already enjoying it and it's still on the truck bringing it here...
Don't say anything, but Today I bought another...lol!
And I have been treated so well!!
I'll tell you about em when they're here, a I don't want to jinx myself!
 
Hello Kelama!
Thank you, good to meet you!
I worked there in the late 80's.
There wasn't as many "good" knives to choose, and no internet...
Besides, we didn't earn enough to buy something else. But I don't think any of us even thought to being our own knife to work.
You guys might not believe me, but with is 5 guys working in what was called the shackle pen, we killed approx 4500 hogs a day. Our line moves at 600 an hour. The other 40 or so people up on the kill floor processed the hogs, they're line moved at 540 an hour. Of course sometimes the pigs just didn't want to move, there would be spaces in the line and the foremen (who wore Gold coloured hard hats) would pitch a fit...
When I started there we did 3200 a day. When I "quit" we were doing 4500 a day with no increase in staff.
Anyway, the knife... We were given an Old Hickory sticking knife that these days costs around $12 bucks.
I don't know how much they were in 1985 or so...
We also got a chain belt, a smooth steel, occasionally a new sharpening stone, but we had to make do with the flattest part of broken stones we kept.
The knife itself was useless out of the box, and we got big arms pushing dull knives into kicking hogs...
While trying to grind, hone & steel our knives...it was a,long day long day of your knife messed up.
When they were worn down to what looked like a miniature Arkansas toothpick, the foreman "might" being you a new knife when you requested.
So, I guess we all like what we like in knives. I love big heavy duty knives... Even knowing that a cheap old hickory,will stab thousands of hogs without fail...
I hope that installs confidence in any of the knives you folks choose to use!!
Sorry to drone on...haven't talked about that place for awhile...
Hmm, I don't know where your Canadian bacon would come from these days?
In fact, when I look back at that time, and how many hogs were processed everyday in numerous
Slaughterhouses across Alberta (there used to be 4 in Edmonton alone!) I wonder where the pork comes from these days?
There's way more people, with way less plants...around here anyway...
I'm glad I got out while I did.
Have a good one everyone!!
 
Hard to believe You still have that old jackknife, it's great that You've been able to hang on to it. Not to long at all, some'll read and some'll skim anyhow.
Welcome 6850!
 
Where in Alberta do you live? My grandparents homestead at Hazel Bluff near Westlock over 100 years ago. I was born in the states but was drawn north when I was young.
 
6850 said:
Hello Kelama!
Thank you, good to meet you!
I worked there in the late 80's.
There wasn't as many "good" knives to choose, and no internet...
Besides, we didn't earn enough to buy something else. But I don't think any of us even thought to being our own knife to work.
You guys might not believe me, but with is 5 guys working in what was called the shackle pen, we killed approx 4500 hogs a day. Our line moves at 600 an hour. The other 40 or so people up on the kill floor processed the hogs, they're line moved at 540 an hour. Of course sometimes the pigs just didn't want to move, there would be spaces in the line and the foremen (who wore Gold coloured hard hats) would pitch a fit...
When I started there we did 3200 a day. When I "quit" we were doing 4500 a day with no increase in staff.
Anyway, the knife... We were given an Old Hickory sticking knife that these days costs around $12 bucks.
I don't know how much they were in 1985 or so...
We also got a chain belt, a smooth steel, occasionally a new sharpening stone, but we had to make do with the flattest part of broken stones we kept.
The knife itself was useless out of the box, and we got big arms pushing dull knives into kicking hogs...
While trying to grind, hone & steel our knives...it was a,long day long day of your knife messed up.
When they were worn down to what looked like a miniature Arkansas toothpick, the foreman "might" being you a new knife when you requested.
So, I guess we all like what we like in knives. I love big heavy duty knives... Even knowing that a cheap old hickory,will stab thousands of hogs without fail...
I hope that installs confidence in any of the knives you folks choose to use!!
Sorry to drone on...haven't talked about that place for awhile...
Hmm, I don't know where your Canadian bacon would come from these days?
In fact, when I look back at that time, and how many hogs were processed everyday in numerous
Slaughterhouses across Alberta (there used to be 4 in Edmonton alone!) I wonder where the pork comes from these days?
There's way more people, with way less plants...around here anyway...
I'm glad I got out while I did.
Have a good one everyone!!
Click to expand...

Thank you for sharing this. It's really hard to fathom, picturing you & your co-worker's killing & butchering 4500 hogs every single day...day...after day...after day! Mind boggling actually. It definitely sounds like very hard work,

I wonder how some of the newer knives, with the super steels (3V comes to mind), would hold up to this type of super intensive use?

You, most likely spent more time using a knife for butchering those hogs, than most of the people here, will ever spend using one in their lifetimes!

Nice to hear that you moved on to better things! :thumbup:
 
akivory said:
Where in Alberta do you live? My grandparents homestead at Hazel Bluff near Westlock over 100 years ago. I was born in the states but was drawn north when I was young.
Click to expand...

Good Morning Akivory!
I live near Edmonton...
I just had surgery on my foot at the Westlock Hospital!
Westlock is one of the nicer lil towns left...
My family homestead was North of Bruderhiem.
 
Thanks KELAMA!
There were times I thought I would never get out of there.
But at the same time, I guess it was a job...
I had started in the oil patch very young. But after a lay off, I needed work. I could walk to the plant...
When I was applying for the packing plant job, they had turned away the guys in front of me...
So I thought there's no jobs here... But when they got to me, they called a foreman down to meet me.
He shook my hand and said "he's got strong hands, I'll take him"...
It was a hellish place to work. I had almost as many fights at the plant, as I did as my second job as a bouncer.
We usually switched jobs among 4 of us, so stuck for half a day and switched off other guys the rest of the time.
When I met my future ex, she was shocked at how much bigger my back & muscles were on the right side. I looked like a hermit crab... That came from shackling hogs, which is just that, as they are being stuck, the guy shackling grabs the rear foot, wraps this chain/hook around the foot and then lift up to hook it on a chain that carries the to the scalding tank.
Hard to explain,,sorry. Just imagin lifting weights all day, every day, 10 times a minute, for 8 to 9 1-2 hours a day.
Just for fun, so some math...
2250 hogs x 5 days = 11,250'a week. 45,000 per Month. 540,000 a year. 2,700,000 in 5 years...
That's, one mans 1/2 day. Remember we killed 4500 a day total.
Now, that's not accurate because like a I said, we kept breaking out previous records and went from 3200 a day to 4500 a day with no change in staff numbers. Also, I didn't count for holidays, and days I was too drunk to find my way to work.
But then again, I didn't allow for weekends, we often did 8 hours on Saturdays. I left that out because then it really adds to the crazy total.
But, for high school dropouts like me, out of work roughneck, recent immigrants, ex cons, soon to be cons, it did pay better than other places...$9.50hr in 1984. Paid every Thursday. Credit union in cafeteria, so I had money every weekend, broke every Monday...
But yes, thank God I got out... Went from trucking to eventually becoming a Heavy Duty Mechanic.
But years later, when the company was threatening...they actually shut it down. They shut the damn plant down that we hated, but that most of those guys needed for work. Instantly 1200 people out of their crappy job, with what transferable skills?
Oh heck,,sorry to drone on again...like I said, I hadn't thought about that place for awhile.
I've seen some crazy things there... For another day...
Everybody have a great weekend eh!!
 
Bronco said:
Welcome, 6850. Don't want to promote myself as being too much of a soothsayer, but I have a sneaking suspicion you're going to enjoy your new Busse. :)
Click to expand...

Hello Bronco!
You are insightful, and correct.
I know own a TGLB, a TGBG, and an ASH-1, and just ordered a new Battle Shark Combat Grade.
It will be my first INFI! Yes, I am enjoying them for sure!! I usually have no problem using any of my knives...
I've been hunting with my Randall, one of my Spivey Sabertooths is a constant companion...
But the Busse's...I will choose one once the snow melts & I get my other hog thing on the road...
May as well carry the best...
Thanks for the welcome, and I'm sorry I got in trouble here so soon...
Have a great weekend Bronco!!
 
6850 said:
Thanks KELAMA!
There were times I thought I would never get out of there.
But at the same time, I guess it was a job...
I had started in the oil patch very young. But after a lay off, I needed work. I could walk to the plant...
When I was applying for the packing plant job, they had turned away the guys in front of me...
So I thought there's no jobs here... But when they got to me, they called a foreman down to meet me.
He shook my hand and said "he's got strong hands, I'll take him"...
It was a hellish place to work. I had almost as many fights at the plant, as I did as my second job as a bouncer.
We usually switched jobs among 4 of us, so stuck for half a day and switched off other guys the rest of the time.
When I met my future ex, she was shocked at how much bigger my back & muscles were on the right side. I looked like a hermit crab... That came from shackling hogs, which is just that, as they are being stuck, the guy shackling grabs the rear foot, wraps this chain/hook around the foot and then lift up to hook it on a chain that carries the to the scalding tank.
Hard to explain,,sorry. Just imagin lifting weights all day, every day, 10 times a minute, for 8 to 9 1-2 hours a day.
Just for fun, so some math...
2250 hogs x 5 days = 11,250'a week. 45,000 per Month. 540,000 a year. 2,700,000 in 5 years...
That's, one mans 1/2 day. Remember we killed 4500 a day total.
Now, that's not accurate because like a I said, we kept breaking out previous records and went from 3200 a day to 4500 a day with no change in staff numbers. Also, I didn't count for holidays, and days I was too drunk to find my way to work.
But then again, I didn't allow for weekends, we often did 8 hours on Saturdays. I left that out because then it really adds to the crazy total.
But, for high school dropouts like me, out of work roughneck, recent immigrants, ex cons, soon to be cons, it did pay better than other places...$9.50hr in 1984. Paid every Thursday. Credit union in cafeteria, so I had money every weekend, broke every Monday...
But yes, thank God I got out... Went from trucking to eventually becoming a Heavy Duty Mechanic.
But years later, when the company was threatening...they actually shut it down. They shut the damn plant down that we hated, but that most of those guys needed for work. Instantly 1200 people out of their crappy job, with what transferable skills?
Oh heck,,sorry to drone on again...like I said, I hadn't thought about that place for awhile.
I've seen some crazy things there... For another day...
Everybody have a great weekend eh!!
Click to expand...

^ I'm used to very physically demanding blue collar labor, & I honest feel that my work ethic, & mindset allows me to keep up with & compete with just about anyone else out there. With that said, those 5 years you spent working killing hogs, sound about as challenging & physically demanding, as anything I could possibly imagine. WOW!!!v

"Hard to explain, sorry. Just imagine lifting weights all day, every day, 10 times a minute, for 8 to 9 1-2 hours a day.
Just for fun, so some math...
2250 hogs x 5 days = 11,250'a week. 45,000 per Month. 540,000 a year. 2,700,000 in 5 years..."
 
Hey KELAMA, hope you're having a great weekend man...
I'll write you a bit about it some day soon...
I had a couple pics that are worth a thousand curse words,
but finding them may be a task.
I never drank before I worked there...
Take it easy eh!
6850
 
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