Help, I am drowning in traditional folders

Just stick with a Case. They have an excellent distribution network thru out Europe, and the excellent fit and finish belies its low cost of membership. Any perceived F&F issues you may find with any Case will quickly disappear given what you pay for an otherwise outstanding value for an American made traditional.
 
If it is one and only trad. knife to use i think you should give case-Bose collaboration knife a try, the 2014 wharncliff trapper will suit your requirements. These collab knives have almost custom qualities regarding steel, F&F and overall quality. You can find good deals sometimes on the big auction site.

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Mike
 
mike Berkovitch said:
If it is one and only trad. knife to use i think you should give case-Bose collaboration knife a try, the 2014 wharncliff trapper will suit your requirements. These collab knives have almost custom qualities regarding steel, F&F and overall quality. You can find good deals sometimes on the big auction site.

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Mike
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These aren't for everybody but are close to the dollar amount you posted.
If you're looking for an almost custom build, that will not disappoint, you can't go wrong with this knife. Just keep your eyes open and be on the lookout for a deal.
 
matus said:
Just found a knife that I really like (the look of) - the Nortwhood Wilamette Whittler with blue camel bone scales - just gorgeous (way beyond a 'testing knife' - that would be an insult to that knife). But the shipping cost & taxes bring it to Robert Klaas damascus blades ... tough world we live in ;)

So I keep searching. Pity that there are way too few of knives I am considering (GEC, queen, etc.) directly available in Germany. Not only matter of cost, but especially the hassle (long shipping, customs)
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You might consider trying out a GEC #57 Half Whittler if you like the Willamette Whittler. It's essentially the same knife, just a little shorter and not quite as slender looking. Still a fantastic choice.

Here's a few pictures of 57's with a Willamette Whittler:








If you're worried about blade play, I would probably avoid Queen. The last 2 Schatt & Mogans (Queens premium line) I bought had pretty bad horizontal blade play. Canal Street makes excellent knives and their fit and finish is typically top notch.
 
Indeed case knives are somewhat easier to find around here and I even like some designs - for example Sway Back Gent, but I would prefer carbon or semi-stainless blade - for the sake of testing and now I am trying not to buy that lovely looking Northwoods knife (I am even tempted to use the relatively expensive shipping as an excuse to buy one more knife for a friend) :) ... down the rabbit hole I go ...

EDIT: only now I saw the last two posts - both I ideas will be looked at closely - thanks!
 
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I have a Willamette Whittler and boy but you don't want to use it with an apple. It's not a great slicer firstly and you will taste that carbon blade taste with every piece of fruit. With patina or without (been there tried that, I'm an apple or two a day man and I had to give up on one cut with the WW, the carbon taste was really that terrible). If you specifically want a knife for fruit I would discount carbon blades, period. As someone has suggested and was my choice for the same uses as yourself, the forum 2015 knife does seem to make the most sense. Eagerly waiting for mine. Until then have been using and enjoying my Case Sodbuster Jr in stainless or a simple Opinel 6 Inox. Both excellent, simple and cheap blades that slice well (incredibly well for the Opinel).

I'd also suggest, if you're willing to consider a single blade, a Chambriard Thiers knife. Supposed to have incredible build and F&F, full choice of handles and sizes, looks incredible and slices better and the price and location are perfect for you?
 
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I've got several older model Case XX Knives that are great, however I won't buy one now unless I can put my hands on it first to check for flaws. And, I've seen many flaws from Case during the past year. If you can find one with FF that you're happy with, it should be a good knife to last you quite a while. The GEC #15 is a great little knife with a variety of blade shapes in 1095. I have several and every one of them is a testament to craftsmanship. I've personally been eyeing a Boker Carver in a congress pattern. The 4 blades it has should handle most jobs. I grew up seeing Bokers as an alternative to Case. They aren't as sparkly, but I've never been let down by one. Something about them that just always pulled me in.
 
gec lists an U.K. dealer on their website who also has a number of custom knives. no idea about import taxes,etc. ,but it might be a place to look.
 
Pomsbz, that is no good news :( I did expect patina and a little discolouring of food with a new carbon blade - after all most of our kitchen knives are carbon blades in san-mai style were the cladding is basically a pure iron which is even more reactive than the core steel. Still it surprise me that your problems with oxidation are so severe.

But you also mention that the blade is no good slicer - that is not as much surprise as the blade has no belly ( a wharncliffe after all), but is the lack of slicing ability caused by the blade shape or geometry (grind)?
 
Maybe you should check out other European brands. Someone mentioned Le Thiers. Those are supposed to be really nice. The Lion Steel Opera is a nice small sized folder which comes in cocobolo, horn and olivewood. Another company to look at is Viper, from Italy. Some of them may be a little large for you, but they have some outstanding traditional designs.

These all have stainless, or mostly stainless steels.

Here's a Viper Gobbo:

 
matus said:
Pomsbz, that is no good news :( I did expect patina and a little discolouring of food with a new carbon blade - after all most of our kitchen knives are carbon blades in san-mai style were the cladding is basically a pure iron which is even more reactive than the core steel. Still it surprise me that your problems with oxidation are so severe.

But you also mention that the blade is no good slicer - that is not as much surprise as the blade has no belly ( a wharncliffe after all), but is the lack of slicing ability caused by the blade shape or geometry (grind)?
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Hi,

Firstly the image I posted was of the new knife. I tried forcing a patina to help with the carbon taste but it didn't make any difference. On contacting KSF they honestly told me to try a different knife. I'm grateful for their honesty. With or without the patina the carbon taste given to the fruit was strong and unpleasant.

As for the slicing, I'm not sure about the why but it would reliably get stuck mid slice on an apple and need force to continue the cut. This despite being arm shaving sharp.
 
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Thank you. I really appreciate your input. You say that you get stuck in the apple is probably caused by the fact that the blade is a little too thick for its width. That is after all fair enough as it is probably more intended as utility blade than a slicer. Still the knife looks amazing and I am having hard time not to get one (I plan on buying just one knife at the moment and see how the situation develops).
 
It is incredibly beautiful isn't it? I would give the forum knife though a second look. Main blade for food having the belly and FFG to deal with it. Secondary blade perfect in both size and shape for a utility, cut paper, packaging, etc usage. It has a 3" main blade which is the perfect length for apples/fruit/meat, etc but because both blades are on a single spring, it will still be both light and thin. Those are the reasons I chose it, despite the good looks, for my EDC knife after the WW fell short with the food use.
 
Yeah, it is getting harder and harder to ignore the fact, that the upcoming forum knife is actually exactly (utilitly wise) what I am looking for. It just does not really triggers my fancy quite as much. But I am also sure it will look mut better live. The wharncliffe blade could have been a little pointier though. I guess I just need to let it grow on me ;)
 
It's not a wharncliffe, it's a sheepsfoot. I'd have preferred a small pen myself but that is the only small 'issue' I have with it.
 
OK, I decided to end this agony and ordered the forum knife. It has after all features I need in apparently lightweight package for a reasonable price (including shipping). Now comes the tough part - the wait :)
 
The call of the Northwoods Willamette Whittler with that lovely blue camel bone was just too strong - so I pulled a trigger on one from Exchange forum - I am really curios about the knife. I should have it in some 2-3 weeks.

On top of that I have decided to get one of the damascus folders from Robert Klaas - I plan to make the final choice next week. This traditional folder thing seems hard to control :)
 
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