Help choosing stockman

M

myar

Joined
Dec 11, 2013
Messages
3
Hi y'all,
I'm hoping you guys can help me out. My husband lost his knife, an old hen and rooster stockman. I would like to get him a new knife for christmas, and wanted to ask people who know what they are talking about (I don't want to get him a pos!). He is a rancher and uses his knife for marking and cutting calves as well as general ranch stuff. My budget is up to 100$. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
 
I would go with a Case medium stockman .. Love mine, it's model 3318HE with the carbon metal and yellow handles..;)
 
Thank you Adam12, I will check that one out. I may have to give it to him early because I know he feels like he's missing something without a knife in his pocket :)
 
Also check out the Buck 301 stockman. Perhaps not as "pretty" as a Case (subjective), it will last forever and can be had for around $35. Alot of people like the sawcut delerin handle material- the buck logo shield is nicer and cant fall off. I personally like the cherry diamonwood.
 
Man alot of Stockman threads now, I love a good Stockman, I like the larger ones, I really like the Case Large CV Stockmans, About $39.00 Bucks, they look great, feel great and cut great, like a razor blade. I can not recommend a Case Large Stockman enough.
 
What is your budget? If you want one of the best and a more solid knife you can't go wrong with the GEC #66 Calf Roper or the #68 Buckaroo. I have 2 of the Calf Ropers and love them! On a budget the Buck knives are great and Case makes some good knives too for the price. Do you know if he prefers carbon steel or stainless? Did the actual blades on his old knife he lost look nice and shiny or did they look discolored and dirty?

You might ask a mod to move this to the Traditional sub forum as you would get a lot more helpful advice about the stockman options there. Also just browse the Traditional sub forum as there are tons of topics there about stockmans and make sure to use the search feature on this forum. You could read all day long about stockmans. :)

Here is a link to a pretty good Stockman thread http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1096171-Who-carries-a-Stockman

And here is one that has some good Calf Roper pictures in it. :) http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1106022-GEC-Calf-Roper
 
Last edited:
Budget around 100$. The old knife was pretty big and the blades were almost black. He won't care about pretty, just dependability. Thanks for all your replies, now I'm off to read those sub threads :)
 
Search around for Amercian made Schrade Old Timer stockman knives. Their old carbon steel takes a wonderful edge.
 
myar said:
Budget around 100$. The old knife was pretty big and the blades were almost black. He won't care about pretty, just dependability. Thanks for all your replies, now I'm off to read those sub threads :)
Click to expand...

He definitely had carbon steel blades on his stockman then. I love carbon steel and generally wont buy any traditional knives that are anything but carbon steel. You will want to look for 1095 blade steel or some companies call their carbon steel something else like with Case you would want to get their CV steel. The two GEC patterns I told you about are 3 1/2" closed so if his was big then you might want to look at something like the GEC #53 Cattle Rancher or they make a #53 Stockman as they are 4 1/8" closed. Just shop around and don't be afraid of the Boker Tree brand either just make sure it says Boker Tree Brand made in Germany and nothing else because a lot of the rest of their line is made in China. Same with Buck they have a China line and a U.S. made line so just make sure you are getting the better version. You should be able to find a GEC under $100 dollars though and if you have a particular pattern your trying to find and not having any luck then shoot me an email and I will help you out. Thing with GEC is they make a very limited run of each one of the the patterns they put out as they are handcrafted more like how knives where made in the early 1900's so some of them can be difficult to track down.
 
You can't go wrong with something made by Case, Queen, or Great Eastern Cutlery (GEC). Those or lined up in terms of my sense of quality with GEC being the highest quality.
 
A third recommendation for the GEC #81 Abilene.

Both the Buck and the Case are nice, but the GEC is, IMHO, a cut above both.
 
I'm personally not a fan of the shape of the Stockman pattern but it's an iconic knife so I've given them as gifts. My fav are the Case G10 ones. I like the way they look and G10 is the most durable material offered other than carbon fiber which in my use is on par with G10 as far as nicks and scrapes. It does appear that Case puts a little more time and effort in overall fit and finish in the carbon fiber knives though. They are both stainless but I prefer that as well. Sooner or later I'll check out a GEC because it seems that folks around here believe they are a finer knife.
 
i had the CASE medium stockman for 4 years before i lost it, i used that knife EVERY day and it hardly lost its original edge. they are probably the best pocket knife you can own (in my opinion). i replaced it with the Large stockman which is one HELL of a handy knife.
 
Another vote for the Great Eastern 81 Abilene for a large stockman. It is right at (or just above) your price range, depending on materials. The osage orange or acrylic handles are $100 with free shipping from several vendors, while bone and blackwood are just a few dollars more. This is one really nice knife, and if your husband likes the carbon steel blades that patina with age this is a good choice. The Abilene is 4" closed, a good full-size stockman. Here is mine with african blackwood handle scales:
 
Last edited:
I forgot to mention another high quality option - The Queen-made Moore Maker. Here's mine


PM or email if you need help finding one that is made by Queen.
 
Another vote for the Abilene. I have a GEC #66 Calf Roper in Ebony, which I carry very day. I'm thinking of the #81 Abilene for weekend carry, as it's about 1/2 " larger. Let us know how you net out.

Peter
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top