How tastes change - new knife.

A

Amos Iron Wolf

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Mar 7, 2006
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Well, there I was in the same little Tru Value where I purhcased my Case Sod Buster Jr. The only Case XXs they have are CV which is the reverse of most places I've found. I was figuring to pickup either a yellow handle or maybe bone stockman. There was also a pretty bone canoe. I was afraid to touch it, I might like it too much and I missed two days of work this past pay period. I handled both stockmans. I used to love this pattern, liked the way it felt in hand. But today, it just didn't feel as right as it used to. In fact it didn't really feel at all.

The one that grabbed me today was a yellow handle Case XX 3254 CV twin blade Trapper. It's big, it's flat, it's kinda heavy, and it has sharp corners on the forward bolsters. It is not a first choice for the pocket. But I like it. Maybe it was all the postings about spey blades that got to me. This one has a nice, long spey on it to augment the clip blade.

I've have a slimmer, single-blade Old Timer 1940T with brass liner lock that pockets fairly well. So I'm not new to trappers. It just struck me that my preferences in actual user knives have shifted a little. For years the stockman was a standard pocket carry until I started carrying a Vic Swiss Champ on my belt. I also started carrying some variation of a one hand opening lock blade. Barlows were another favored pattern. Now that I've moved back to more involvement with traditional patterns I seem to like a longer length to width ratio with longer blades. I have a Remington bone handled Daddy Barlow that feels great in hand with a solid walk and talk. It's the first in the Musket Series and has been NIB since the early 90s when I bought it. I keep getting the urge to just pull it out and put to use. That jr. sodbuster has become an always on me item. I've even taken to eyeing many of those various Jack patterns. Things have changed.

Could it be from all that time carrying those lockblades? Am I, heaven forbid, evolving. Maybe my needs and usage patterns have changed? Perhpas even, I'm a little less drawn to the romance of the pattern name and more to the look and feel of the pattern these days? Will Gilligan and friends ever get off that... Oh wait, yeah they did didn't they.

This trapper will probably end up in an open top sheath on the belt when it's carried as it won't make the "Best Knife in Pocket?" thread I'm thinking. This might make a decent stick shaving and rope cutting knife. Hey, kind like a "trapper" might use? Duh!

I think many hours could be properly wasted eyeing and handling different patterns and just seeing what images emerge as to what each pattern seems it would work best at for you. Just a another suggestion to indulge in even more time with your darlings.

I'm still a little surprised that once again picking up an old favorite pattern after many years, it didn't just fall into place. On many other things, guns for instance I could be away from certain actions and brands and on picking them up years later everything just slides home like it was yesterday. I'm not stressing over it. I'm just intrigued and kind of mulling it over.

Now I'm curious. Have any of you noticed changes in your traditional knife and carry preferences over the years?

Pssst, don't tell anyone, but if ahgar a few of the fellas here who have been trying out the current production Case stainless steels keep reporting satisfaction with them, I may even buy some. It does get pretty humid here in the San Antonio area, especially when your sweatin your ahumpf off. Shhhh.
 
I heard that. I had a trapper like the one you describe and it is on my list of all time screwups for trading off. I really liked that knife and it worked great for anything I threw at it. I'm probably gonna get another one to replace it. if you have a sheath made {or make one} please post some pictures as that sounds like a good idea. Since the sodbuster incident my tastes do seem to be swinging back to the more traditional patterns. I remember reading an article awhile back where they took a group of people and asked them to give there opinions of several different types of knives and then after using the different patterns they asked them to rate them. the funny thing was that on the first questionaire they liked the tacticals, but after using the different patterns the traditional patterns came out on top. I guess there's a reason these patterns have been around for a long time, they work. later, ahgar
 
When it comes to buying knives, I think that for me there are two prime motivating factors behind the decision making process, utility and looks. I used to tend to swing back and forth between these factors as I self justifed a purchase. Utility is the strong point of most traditional designs and once you gain an appreciation for the idea of form following function, you're hookedon the traditionals, because you start to see that traditional designs have removed anything that does not add to usefulness. What attracts us to the traditional knives is the way that a particular speciman represents the design in terms of materials, fit and finish. Once you get interested in traditional knives, aren't looking for evolution as much as execution, the opposite of much of the current marketing trends. At least that's my take on it.
 
Theres been a big change over the decades in my carry knives.

I started out with the traditionals, stockmen, barlows. But in the middle to late '60's I got hooked on the Buck knife. The big 110 folding hunter I got at the base PX for something like 12 bucks. Just about every swinging Richard in the army had one of those on their belt. That got me into lockblades, and through the 70's I tried just about every new lockblade that came out. Al Mar, Puma, Gerber. Funny thing though, I still always kept a sak or scout knife on me. Later I even tried the Pasific Cutlery Company balisong.

By the mid '80's something happened, and I just lost my interest in the modern flashy lock blade. I first went back to my old scout knife, then saks. I fell in love again with the sheer utility of the knife. I dug through my pre-service cigar box of stuff at home, and came up with my old Hen and Rooster stockman. I went back to carrying just a slip joint or two. Usually a sak and a stockman or barlow. I sold off or gave away all my Buck, Gerber, Puma, Al Mar lockers, and never looked back. Just to limited. To this day the only locking blade knives I have are the Opinels, but since they have not changed since 1890, I consider that a traditional. If I'm doing something that I worry about the blade folding, then thats what they make Mora bladed sheath knives for.

Same thing happened to my gun collection. Thats another, but very similar story!
 
Hello all,

I have just gone through a change with my taste in knives. I had all "tactical" style locking folders as well as fixed blades. I have traded all of them for a Grohman #4 in carbon steel, a couple of case large trappers in CV that I will be carrying in a William Henry clip case I just ordered a few days ago. I also got a small EDC fixed blade made by George Roberts, damascus blade with mammoth ivory handle. I'll post a pic when I can borrow a digital camara. Hows that for a change of taste?:D My motivation was, I have always really liked the look of traditional knives, the tacticals have just lost the "cool" look to me. Also I've learned over the years that traditional blade shapes seem to be more practical for everyday tasks and bushcraft.


Randy
 
I guess tastes change as time goes by but over the years some of my likes have been permanent
guns
model 1911 .45
S&W models 10/19/29/36/60/28
Browning Hi-power
ruger .22 auto standard
knives
buck 110/112
sak soldier
old timer 34OT
case full size trapper with yellow scales and cv blades
uncle henry signature trapper.
these seem to be the guns and knives I keep coming back to. both work and work well, no there not new technology or space age polymer but they feel good, look good and do what needs to be done. dang I'm getting old, let me tell you about the depression, well maybe later. ahgar
 
Nice selections ahgar. Excelllent selections on those Smiths too. Toss in a good old post 151 (better grip frame) Ruger Security Six and a three screw Blackhawk or two. Oh, and a earlier generation SAA.

Gotta get going off to work.:barf: Evil necessity.
 
Although I'll always have my favorties, my tastes tend to change often... that's why I have a lot of knives ;)

Today I'm carrying a Tommy Hudson Custom Case 3254 in CV from the mid 80's. I just picked this one up and after some tweaking it's a real gem.

I've been pocket carrying "big" knives for several years (mainly because I don't like belt sheaths) and if you're dedicated you get to the point where you don't even notice them any more.

Commit to carrying a big knife (whatever your definition of big is) 2-3 days a week for 6 months. By the end of that time I bet it won't bug you.


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Love the file work on your trapper. I wish there was someone around me that could do that to mine.:thumbup:
 
Nice filework!! I've don't think I've ever seen that pattern before?!
 
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