When buying a "user", it's not a bad idea to choose one that comes with a good warranty. That way if the knife has some sort of defect that reveals itself during use, there's the possibility of receiving a refund or replacement. You're not going to get that with a vintage knife from a defunct manufacturer.
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I think I scored. Just need help identifying this Parker Bowie.
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Not sure on what you are basing this view of Aus6. In 1992 the US Navy carried out evaluation tests of several knives from every major US knife company, which included the following tests: Tip breaking strengths, blade breaking toughness, sharpness and edge retention, handle twist off limits, two week salt water emersion tests, gasoline and acetylene torch resistance, chopping, hammering, prying, penetration, cutting of 6 different types of rope and nylon line, low noise and reflectivity evaluation, plus an intense hands-on competition in the field. The SOG 2000, a knife manufactured by the same Kinryu Factory in Seki as the subject Parker knife using Aus6 was ranked the highest of the entries.
Al Mar's SERE survival knives also made in Seki but by G.Sakai in the 1980s were made in Aus6. It's very easy to look down on the widely used steels of decades ago today with the benefit of "super steels" we now have, but they were top of the line back then and fulfilled their purpose satisfactorily. Aus6 is totally trustworthy as a blade material for a "survival knife" which relies on far more characteristics to be a good "survival knife" than just the steel type. Today we have far more options and steel choices and I doubt any of us would choose a 30-40 year old vintage knife as our "survival knife". But to say that an Aus6 knife is good only for a decoration is, quite frankly, in my opinion ridiculous.
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Well said. Also, a simple steel with a good heat treat will still out perform a "super steel" with an inferior heat treat. Sometimes buying a blade from a place with a solid history of making knives is more important than a particular steel type. I have a feeling that a lot of these new super steels aren't all that necessary. And then different steels have their own strengths and weakness. AUS 6, while on the soft side, means that it'll be more resistant to chipping, and the high amount of chromium provides good stain resistance and low maintenance in the field.
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That's fine, that is your opinion. Do you know for sure that this Parker knife will perform the same? If it doesn't, it's not like you can send it back for the warranty. I've broken or messed up a few knives in my time. I know I'm tough on knives, and if I had to have one in a survival situation, it would be something better than Aus 6.
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Yeah, SOG’s older AUS6 knives have served well and have been tested hard all around the world. I have several in emergency kits and have no doubts about their readiness to perform.
I don’t know about the quality of the OP blade, but the AUS6 SOG knives I use are not just for looks.
I don’t know about the quality of the OP blade, but the AUS6 SOG knives I use are not just for looks.
You declared the steel Aus6 to be unfit for anything other than a wall decoration. I have proven to you that the US Navy found otherwise and with all due respect, I tend to place more weight in their opinion than in yours. Who considers a warranty when they are purchasing a vintage discontinued knife made 30-40 years ago by a company that has no longer existed for decades?
Everybody on this forum if they wanted to purchase a "survival knife" would and could not buy one with an Aus6 blade because no manufacturer makes one in Aus6 any more. And they haven't for decades as newer and other steels have been introduced and become available. If you want to tell the OP that there are new and better "survival knives" that can be bought today, that's true and that's fine. But I believe it's wrong to base that view entirely on the steel being Aus6.
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Whatever those Parker fixed blades are made from, I know first hand they'll break into fairly easily. My dad had a few laying around from the 1980's and we used them for rough work, and no they don't hold an edge or hold up at all. In fact my dad never throws anything away that has possible use left and none of his old fixed blade Parkers survived.
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Nooo, this is reading comprehension, I said the only thing I would use it for is decoration, especially in light of newer and better materials available. And as I mentioned, I am tough on knives. So to me, Aus6 is not useful and I wouldn't spend money on it if I wanted performance. Just relax a little bit, if you like it, that's fine, but because the Navy tested a knife made of it almost 20 years ago doesn't mean that the Parker Bowie will fare as well.
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Parker marked the vast majority of his Japanese manufactured Surgical Steel. They used real bovine bone and we still have a lot of those folders from back in the eighties. They are pretty and lock up tight when new, but the steel dulled easy and the pinned blades become loose if you use them moderately hard. I still have some even new in box and they're worth a lot more than they sold for. (Which still isn't a lot)
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I think I scored. Just need help identifying this Parker-Bowles
Am I the only one who misread the heading?
Am I the only one who misread the heading?
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I think I scored. Just need help identifying this Parker-Bowles
Am I the only one who misread the heading?
I believe that is a vintage Camillus Parker Bowles.
Something else that would concern me about a vintage knife with a rubber handle (particularly from a lower-end manufacturer) would be the durability of the rubber.
Rubber breaks down over time. Cheap rubber breaks down even faster. It can become stiff and brittle, it can split, crack and crumble, it can come apart in your hand during use.
And again, if it doesn't have a warranty, there's nothing you can do about it.
I had a few Parker knives in my teens and 20's. I had 2 Gerber Mark 2 copies, an all-stainless steel boot knife, a folding lockback, and a butterfly knife. I don't have any of them anymore. The only one I miss is the boot knife. I gifted it to a friend who liked it after he did me a favor (26 years ago). I still search the internet for one. I'd probably have a better chance finding a unicorn.
Rubber breaks down over time. Cheap rubber breaks down even faster. It can become stiff and brittle, it can split, crack and crumble, it can come apart in your hand during use.
And again, if it doesn't have a warranty, there's nothing you can do about it.
I had a few Parker knives in my teens and 20's. I had 2 Gerber Mark 2 copies, an all-stainless steel boot knife, a folding lockback, and a butterfly knife. I don't have any of them anymore. The only one I miss is the boot knife. I gifted it to a friend who liked it after he did me a favor (26 years ago). I still search the internet for one. I'd probably have a better chance finding a unicorn.
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Ok you're done, get out
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There's three on eBay at the moment and I see them on there regularly.
Thanks for the heads up Jill
.I just checked, they do have several Parker boot knives, but unfortunately I didn't see the model I'm looking for. The one I'm looking for is one-piece stainless steel, around a 4.5"-5" blade, skeleton handle. The handle had 3 or 4 identical round holes in it, and a very distinct diamond shaped hole where the handle meets the blade in between two guard-like points that stuck out from the sides.
My search continues.
No comprehension issues a all. You stated that you consider an Aus6 knife fit only as a decoration. And I am pointing out that as a steel type Aus6 was not the garbage you make it out to be. And there is clear evidence of that. The testing standards for a knife would not have changed significantly in 20 years. Nobody is comparing the SOG 2000 with the OP's Parker Bowie as being equal performers. An Aus6 blade passed the military tests and is obviously not a "garbage steel". The US Navy did not consider an Aus6 knife to be fit only as a wall decoration. And I am confident that they are as tough if not moreso on knives than you are. The now legendary Gerber MKII daggers were made of 440A which is the equivalent of Aus6.
And no I don't particularly "like" Aus6 any more than I would like or dislike any steel type no longer commonly used.
Today everyone on this board (after endlessly debating the definition of a "survival knife") would choose a better steel, either Carbon or Stainless than Aus6, because as I said more and newer steels are available and nobody makes "survival knives" in Aus6 anymore.
But that doesn't change the fact that back in it's day Aus6 was a very acceptable working knife steel. That's all I'm saying. Do you agree with this?
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No, I have never had good results with it so I stick by my experience. The only thing I'd use it for is for a knife to hang up. And I certainly wouldn't use that Parker Bowie as a serious survival knife. So let's agree to disagree
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That sounds like a very interesting test and set of test parameters you mentioned. Do you have a link that describes what knives were tested and what the metrics were for each test? Or are we just supposed to take your word for it?
There's a reason the phrase "Good enough for government work" exists. The lowest bidder always wins.