Help for a Newbie.

M

MBKrPeter50

Joined
May 1, 2008
Messages
9
Hello. I am new here to the traditional subforum and I was hoping some of the regular could help point me in the right direction. I have seemed to change throughout the years with my knife acquisitions. When I started out it was something simple and inexpensive at Walmart, to use as a farm tool. Then I progressed into basic Case knives and that phase didn't last long. I guess I just never really appreciated their simplicity and usability. From there I went towards the "tactical" folders for their one handed opening. I found myself looking at a knife the other day, and the sole purpose would be self defense, and at that point I realized that I had forgotten why I originally started using knives, and that was as a tool to get the job done. I guess to make a long story short I have come back around to appreciating my old slipjoints.

I was wondering if I could get some advice on some makers and maybe even some specific models that would be a good choice to ease myself back into the slipjoint world?

I have done a little bit of research and I have found out that you never really want to order Case online, GEC has strong springs, and you want pinned shields, but other than that I am still in the dark.

Oh I figure I'd better tell you about the couple I have as that might help with recommendations. I have several case knives which include a Baby Butterbean, a Small Texas Toothpick, and a Seahorse Whittler.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
-Patrick

Sorry for the long post, I just thought it might help to know where I was coming from.
 
and it sounds like youve already started! the seahorse whittler is on my short list of "need to buys":)
Pattern Recommendation!
Case Medium stockman or for that matter any medium sized stockman, my Case yeller CV Med stockman is always in my pocket regardless of whatever else i might be lugging around thats the one i go to first!
Brand Recommendation
As far as Brands go, your gonna get a wide variety of opinions and suggestions from people, some people hate case some love 'em and it goes like that for most of the manufacturers.
My experience is a positive one with Case, same with Schatt & Morgan...
I got started with Camillus (they closed in 2007) and they can still be had on ebay, etc. Older Schrade knives are good too. (they were bought out in 2004)
cheers
ivan
 
For Pattern I would suggest the stockman. It seems the most versatile to me. Cases' quality has really gone up lately. I wouldn't be too worried about buying one online. Get a nice medium stockman in chestnut bone, or a large one in amber bone and you will be good to go, I promise!!!
 
Case Medium stockman in cv or case small texas jack in cv. Both are excellent knives. You gotta go CV as first traditional... because carbon steel is as traditional as it gets. I have both medium stockman and small texas jack in cv. Both are great carriers but I do love tad more my small texas jack.
 
Okay, I gotta say something here. If he's going to start 'accumulating' Case knives, he's gotta get a yella CV sodbuster. Somewhere, I don't know where, but it's written down that anyone with any small accumulation of Case knives, must therein, have a sample of a yella CV soddie.

Anyways, if it ain't writ down, it aught to be. :)

Peanuts are optional.
 
Yer right about the yelle Case Soddie. Even I have one. It's a must have.

(Peanuts are optional.)

And as somebody who swore I'd never own a Stockman, you have to get one. I finally broke down simply because I wanted versatility. Boy was I stupid. Should have got it a long time ago. It's a great pattern.

You should own at least one Barlow, too.

The rest is up to you.
 
Pattern: A canoe! Slim and mighty functional, the canoe is a handy one to have! Then there are all the canoe variants, like the mighty Case Gunboat Canoe!

Brands: Aside from those mentioned, I'll mention German Eye and Canal Street. German Eye has some *fantastic* carbon steel in their knives. And Canal Street, I just really like my Canal Street cannitler in D2...so much in fact that it forms the whole basis of me wanting to get more Canal Street knives!
 
Welcome to traditionals Patrick. This is a great forum to hang out in. There are plenty of friendly people in here and jackknife's stories are always a good read.

I agree that the sodbuster is a knife that any knifenut should own at least one of. You've gotten some good recommendations already, but it would help if you gave us an idea of what you're looking for. Size, steel type, number of blades, blade shape, handle material, price, etc. would narrow down the choices. When you figure in all the different patterns and the variations that are available, the choices are countless.

If you find a pattern you like, it's hard to go wrong with Case, Queen, or GEC. Some people don't like the strong springs on the GEC's but they are top notch otherwise. The Queen knives are often dull out of the box, but are a great value with D2 steel (especially the Country Cousin). There are a lot of other quality manufacturers out there such as Moore Maker, Canal Street, Schatt & Morgan, Eye Brand, and older Schrade or Camillus knives. There are plenty of others as well.
 
I totally agree you should get you a Case Soddie. Just love mine! I would recommend a Case Barlow as well. Those are 2 of my favorite patterns. Good luck in your search.

I also like GEC scouts!
 
jackknife said:
Okay, I gotta say something here. If he's going to start 'accumulating' Case knives, he's gotta get a yella CV sodbuster. Somewhere, I don't know where, but it's written down that anyone with any small accumulation of Case knives, must therein, have a sample of a yella CV soddie.

Anyways, if it ain't writ down, it aught to be. :)

Peanuts are optional.
Click to expand...

+1. Darn it JK. You beat me to it! :D

Yes, I didn't know I needed a sodbuster 'til I bought one. Now, I always wear a smile when that sunny yellow knife is with me. Mine is a Case. The thing is rugged, and that thin cv blade is super sharp.
 
I use my knife for all sorts of stuff, and I own many patterns, but I always come back to a stockman because the sheepsfoot blade is just so handy. I could probably get along with a GEC ez open sheepsfoot single blade, but occasionally the stockman's long clip comes in handy too.

Most of my friends are life long trapper lovers, and almost everyone I ever see carrying a slippie is carrying either a trapper or a stockman. My father was a trapper guy. I have liked the stockman a little better since I was a kid.

I find that I the ones I end up carrying are usually 4" or 3 3/4" Lots of people prefer something smaller.

In slippies nowadays, GEC is probably the best bet for quality + carbon blade. I usually carry a Case stockman, but it was made in 1970. I have a few extras from the 70's so I am set for life with them, but if I was going with brand new I would look at GEC first. My only complaint with them is the springs on some and the lack of a pattern like the Case 6347, which is my favorite.
 
I really enjoy the Texas Jack 6244 pattern. It is what made me love slipjoint knives. Yes, it is a little small, but a great one. I seem to be walking a little lighter on the days I carry it. Other patterns......
Canoe by Queen in D2
Case Swayback Gent Tony Bose design for about 50, cannot go wrong with that purchase.
Schatt and Morgan File and Wire series to name a few. I prefer CV for my Case knives, but I have a couple of special stainless ones as well.
 
Picking a slip joint, is like picking a pair of boots. There are a lot of great ones to choose from. and everyone has their own preference.

I'm a little different than most, I prefer slip joints that only have two blades.
Medium Jacks and Mini trappers (one of my all time favorites). The MT IMHO is one of the most comfortable knives, pockets easy at around 3 1/2 inches, but thinks its bigger knife :D.

I think when you decide which size is best for you, then you can narrow it down a little.
Case makes a terrific knife, and they are still in business, and have great customer service should you need it...
The original Schrades are excellent knives as well. Their 1095 steel is outstanding, and they can still be had for a very reasonable price if you look around. They are no longer in business, but I wouldn't let that stop you from buying one.

My favorite scale material is early Case red bone, and most of the early Case knives were carbon steel although some were stainless. The older knives have a look and feel that the current production knives don't have IMHO. Maybe its all in my mind :D

You mentioned pinned shields. They are a nice touch, but a lot of slip joints don't have them. I wouldn't let that stop you though because if by chance one does fall off, just a little glue or epoxy and it will be good as new.

You will end up with more tha one, so don't worry to much about getting the perfect knife the first time. Most of us are still looking, or at least thats our excuse.

I guess if I was going to make a recommendation for a particular knife, it would be an early (40-64) Case XX 62087 serpentine jack in red bone..
Why? Because that was the last knife I bought a few weeks ago, and it hasn't left my pocket since. Carbon steel blades, beautiful red bone scales, pinned shield, and terrific craftsmanship in a package that is about 3 3/8 inches long closed.... It may take a little looking to find one, but I think if you do, you won't regret it. I have other older knives, but this one easily took over the favorite spot.

BTW... Did JK say peanuts were optional ? :eek::eek::eek:

Heres a picture of her...
DSC02049.jpg
 
MBKrPeter50 said:
When I started out it was something simple and inexpensive at Walmart, to use as a farm tool. Then I progressed into basic Case knives and that phase didn't last long. I guess I just never really appreciated their simplicity and usability.

... I have done a little bit of research and I have found out that you never really want to order Case online, GEC has strong springs, and you want pinned shields, but other than that I am still in the dark.
Click to expand...

For use as a farm tool, I'd suggest hitting your local feed store and buying a yellow Case trapper or mini trapper with CV steel.

Honestly, though, if you're talking a newly made Case knife that's going to be a user, I wouldn't hesitate to buy one online (Case's QC had really improved of late and if you get a bad one, they'll make it right). On a popular online auction site, you can find great deals by searching for "Case, yellow, cv" - will be a good bit cheaper than buying from your local feed store (of course some folks would rather pay more and support their local B&M store, and that's valid as well).

Anyway, good luck with your quest. And please let us know what you pick and how it performs for you.
 
Ok dannyp brought up a good point. It would probably help if I at least gave some hints as to what types if slippies are catching my eye.

From the recommendation I have gotten so far, it seems that I have no choice, but to get a Sod Buster Jr., but that is good because I have always looked at one, but just never pulled the trigger.

Now down to the other knife. There is really only one type of blade shape that I am not really fond of and that is a Spey blade. because of where I live I have to keep the blade length less than 3 1/2 inches, but my preference is from 2 3/4 to 3 1/4 inches. Blade steel doesn't really matter to me, because I enjoy maintaining my knives. Handle material does not really matter either. As far as cost goes I would like to stay around $75 dollars for a user for now.

I have heard quite a bit about collecting and I do not really like to part with any of my knives, so I guess I am what you could call a collector, but I guess you could call me a collector of users.

I hope this helps a little bit anf thanks for all the recommendations.

-Patrick
 
mnblade said:
Honestly, though, if you're talking a newly made Case knife that's going to be a user, I wouldn't hesitate to buy one online (Case's QC had really improved of late and if you get a bad one, they'll make it right).
Click to expand...

I wouldn't hesitate either. I got one from that auction site last year with an unevenly shaped handle. Case took it back with no questions asked and had me a replacement within a week. They're good people to deal with.

Pattern wise I'm a fan of the Barlow.
 
Some other patterns available around that size are the whittler, congress, gunstock, and sunfish. If you're not sure what you want right now, just keep checking the threads in this forum and in no time you'll find plenty of knives that you want. My list of must haves keeps growing faster than I can afford them. Then the hard part is deciding which ones you want the most.:D
 
dannyp said:
Some other patterns available around that size are the whittler, congress, gunstock, and sunfish. If you're not sure what you want right now, just keep checking the threads in this forum and in no time you'll find plenty of knives that you want. My list of must haves keeps growing faster than I can afford them. Then the hard part is deciding which ones you want the most.:D
Click to expand...

I think you are right. I keep seeing so many knives that I would like to get, but for some reason I am just having a really difficult time choosing the first one or two.
 
If you want to stay around 75 bucks, you could easily get a nice early Case.
Pattern of your choice. Mint condition specimens bring good money and would be over your budget, but you can still find one that is in excellent condition for about what you want to spend if you do a little searching at that big online place...
The old ones have a feel and look that the new production knives don't IMHO.

For 75 bucks, you could also get two original Schrade old timers, or even Uncle Henrys. They are a terrific knife and will last a lifetime. With the thin grind and the 1095 steel they used, they are a slicin machine :D

As yo have already noticed, it is impossible to narrow it down to just one knife. After you get your first one, you will see a second one that you can't live without, and so it goes
 
For around the farm, definitely a sodbuster (Case CV yellow handle mandatory, well, ok or a Queen or Eye Brand), stockman, or trapper. Have no fears ordering a Case online. I have no Case distributors within a couple hundred miles of me and everything that I've ordered has been great. Queen, who also make Schatt & Morgan knives are a step up from Case. And GEC (Great Eastern Cutlery, Tidioute, Northfield), in my opinion, are another step up. So if I was going to buy something that was going to get beat up, I'd get a Case. If I wanted something pretty AND functional, you can't go wrong with any of the "big three". Do yourself and set up a knife buying budget RIGHT NOW before you're knee deep in knives.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top