Help me (and others) learn about different patterns

[onojoe]

I have been hanging out here on the porch for a while now. I thought I knew a lot about knives, but the more I hang out here the more I realize I have a lot to learn. I am sure there are more like me, who enjoy the banter but sometimes get lost when certain terms come up. This happens to me when you all mention certain patterns. I think it would be great if there were threads that talked about certain patterns and what distinguishes it from other patterns. Your thoughts, feelings, experiences etc.... and of course pictures.

What do you guys think? What patterns would you like to see on a "help me learn" thread

 

[Modoc ED]

Look for threads with titles that have pattern numbers and pattern names such as #65 Large Stockman; # 54 Trapper; # 39 Sowbelly; etc.. Knives with thumbstuds and clips such as Benchmades don't have a place in Traditionals.

 

[jsdistin]

I think it’s a good idea, but is there a pattern or patterns you want to know more about? That seems a good a place to start as any. Then other people can post their questions.

 

[jsdistin]

Look for threads with titles that have pattern numbers and pattern names such as #65 Large Stockman; # 54 Trapper; # 39 Sowbelly; etc.. Knives with thumbstuds and clips such as Benchmades don't have a place in Traditionals.

I think that’s a good place to see photos of the patterns but not so great for actually understanding what the patterns are. For instance it took someone spelling it out to know what the difference between a stockman and a whittler were. I would have never gotten it from pictures. ( a whittler has the main blade opposite from the secondaries while a stockman has the main and a secondary together with one secondary opposite). Pictures will help illustrate that but not provide the whole story.

 

[Modoc ED]

I think that’s a good place to see photos of the patterns but not so great for actually understanding what the patterns are. For instance it took someone spelling it out to know what the difference between a stockman and a whittler were. I would have never gotten it from pictures. ( a whittler has the main blade opposite from the secondaries while a stockman has the main and a secondary together with one secondary opposite). Pictures will help illustrate that but not provide the whole story.

Many patterns are actually discussed in that type of thread.

Books, either real in your hand or on the internet (i.e. Kindle) are the best place to go.

Look up at the Stickies on the home page of this sub-forum and go through the various threads in the Old Knives thread and look through the Old Catalog thread.

Want to know about a specific pattern? Start a new thread and ask what's the difference between a Trapper, Stockman, Cattle Knife, Whittler, and on and on and on.

Just read and ask.

 

[waverave]

As has been stated already, there are many threads dedicated to different patterns, materials, makers, you name it.
For a general understanding of what the traditional patterns are, you might consider searching through this sub-forum along with referencing some of the manufacturer's websites. For example, GEC provides a way for you to go look at all the knives they have have produced in each pattern. You could go to the Case website and browse their storefront...there is a filter option for patterns so you could easily comb through them.
The pinned posts in this sub-forum contain a wealth of information as well.

 

[HWS]

I really appreciate it when posters include the pattern info with the pics that they post. For someone just learning about traditionals this info is very helpful even if it is an obvious pattern. Thank you to those of you who go the extra step to do this.

 

[duderino]

I'll start: Doctor's knife. This pattern is a holdover from the days of country doctors who often make house visits and whatnot. The pattern traditionally is a 2-bladed design, where one blade is a rather long and thin spearpoint, the other is a spatula. The purpose of the spatula is to use as a tongue depressor, to sort pills, to mix poultices, etc. the blade of course, is self explanatory. The foot of the handle is flat, for the purpose of crushing pills.

I have a modern variation of the Doctor's Knife, which has a smaller spearpoint blade in place of the spatula. The foot of the handle is used by myself as a pipe tamper (my other hobby, making my own pipe tobacco blends). The short blade is kept at a 30 degree edge for use as a pipe scraper. The long blade is kept at a 20 degree edge for general use. For scale, the long blade is 3 inches.

Pardon the wookie, he enjoys sharp things.

 

[Jack Black]

Books, either real in your hand or on the internet (i.e. Kindle) are the best place to go.

Yep It always amazes me how some folks will spend thousands buying knives, but won't shell out $20 on a book! When it comes to patterns, I don't think Bernard Levine can be beat, BRL 4 will set you back a hefty sum, but some of the others in that series can be had for little money, and are a good buy. Unfortunately, the pattern descriptions given by posters here aren't always correct

 

[waverave]

Bernard Levine's Knife Collecting & Identification sub-forum

 

[Will Power]

You can learn a lot by observing here or by directly asking poster's about their knives. I'm a bit surprised to hear you were confused by the differences between say a Stockman and a Whittler, they don't usually look similar for a start.

Also, pattern names and terms can be broad or even vague, often due to marketing strategies by manufacturers and people picking up these terms. I think it is very fair to say that this Forum is devoid of the boorishness that is often the norm elsewhere, people here don't disdain others for being inexperienced or novices and there's not a know all attitude of stand offishness that can permeate other collector places. People delight in sharing their knowledge yet are unafraid to ask about things, so I think this thread could be a useful seek and you shall find place for newer contributors.

 

[dsutton24]

 

[5K Qs]

Although designed for Case knives, I think this is a helpful resource for general knife patterns (especially if you follow the "more details" link for a pattern in which you're interested).
https://www.allaboutpocketknives.co...ttern-name-reference-guide/case-xx-names-a-c/

- GT

 

[JohnDF]

Honestly, just search the Bay and read the descriptions. Search for Queen, Case, Schrade, Etc. You'll learn a lot.

 

[onojoe]

Many patterns are actually discussed in that type of thread.

Books, either real in your hand or on the internet (i.e. Kindle) are the best place to go.

Look up at the Stickies on the home page of this sub-forum and go through the various threads in the Old Knives thread and look through the Old Catalog thread.

Want to know about a specific pattern? Start a new thread and ask what's the difference between a Trapper, Stockman, Cattle Knife, Whittler, and on and on and on.

Just read and ask.

Yes, that's what I was thinking, I was just seeing if it would be of interest to people. What really got me thinking about this was your Trapper thread and your response to my question. It was quite inciteful and really helped me understand the subtleties or different patterns. It can get quite confusing with different blade shapes and number of blades etc. It takes a bit distillation to illustrate what makes a trapper a trapper or a stockman a stockman. I was just trying to gage the interest in those types of threads. I think it is a good thread to share knowledge and share pictures... that's why we are here, right?

 

[dsutton24]

The names of the various patterns is somewhat flexible, every manufacturer has his own interpretation of what a clip or spey blade looks like. Some makers' small pen and spey blades look a lot alike, and so on.

And, unless you can point to a catalog listing or something, one buyer may call certain pattern something different than I would. I like JA Henckels knives, and always troll the auction sites for them. There's a seller who is constantly listing a Trapper as a Copperhead. Both are jack knives, meaning both blades are hinged at the same end of the handle. The handle shape of a Trapper is similar to a Copperhead (usually a Copperhead is a little beefier and shorter than a Trapper). A Trapper has a distinctive combination of blades, a long clip (often called a Turkish clip) and a long spey. The Copperhead usually has a regular clip blade with a drop point blade. The overall effect is Copperhead equals beefy, the Trapper equals slim. I've contacted the seller, and gotten nowhere... the usual eBay genius versus the anonymous internet know-it-all...

...and so it goes.

The drawing above is just an overview. In fact, one of my favorite patterns, the Congress, doesn't chow up there.

Way back in the early 14th century when I was learning this stuff, I memorized Levine's Guide to Knives and Their Values. The fifth edition of that book is deeply flawed, I don't remember what happened, I think Levine lost editorial control over it. But if you can find a beat-up copy of any of the earlier editions you'll find a wealth of information. Those books conain a lot of information that you'll never find on the internet.