KEN ERICKSON 3 1/8 Sowbelly

ken erickson

ken erickson

Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Aug 27, 2004
Messages
2,701
I thought I would share pictures of 3 1/8 Sowbelly made up for a Forum member.
This one has my jigged bone dyed a dark brown.
Any comments good or bad more than welcome!

3 1/8 closed
410 bolsters/frame mill relieved.
ATS-34 blade and back spring
stainless shield pinned
stainless pins
cut swedges
standard nail pull.
half-stop

Ken

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Ken,That turned out quite beautiful.What a neat little knife! I bet I can guess who it is for.
-Vince
 
I have always like a single sow....and you did a great job...thanks for showing it
great pics btw
 
An absolutely gorgeous looking serpentine traditional pocket knife - slippy from top to bottom, Ken!! . .

But, I am puzzled because I was always led to believe that a Sowbelly was a pattern loosley born out of the Stockman mold if you will, as was the Cattleman pattern. And understood that it had at least 3 blades inside its frame. Please enlighten me if you will as I am always learning here and would be happy to be set straight!.

Thanks in advance to any and all information folks can bring to the table here.



Anthony
 
Anthony,

I think your correct as far as the origins of the sowbelly pattern.

I added this pattern to my inventory of patterns after having discussions with my customer whom likes small knives. He wanted to scale down a traditional pattern and after throwing a few ideas around decided it would be neat to scale down a sowbelly pattern to a 3 1/8 single blade. I have never seen a vintage sowbelly with a single blade or one in this size range. If any members know of any I would be thrilled to see it.

Ken
 
sunnyd, while I agree that most of us tend to think of a sowbelly as having 3 blades, the designation as a "sowbelly" comes from the shape of the frame rather than the blade configuration.
 
Durwood said:
sunnyd, while I agree that most of us tend to think of a sowbelly as having 3 blades, the designation as a "sowbelly" comes from the shape of the frame rather than the blade configuration.
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In the old days they made a sowbelly jack with a clip and a pen. I have made but never seen a 1 blade old sowbelly. Several cos. made a scaled down version at about 3 3/8 maybe but they are rare. I made a 1 blade lock back sowbelly one time. The 3 blade is my least favorite. They also make a nice trapper.
 
Ken & Durwood,

I completely agree with the both of you, on every word of each of your statements.

And, when it comes down to the nut-cutt'n, the maker is the creator after all, and hence, can deem whatever he/she wants to name the pattern they produce. I apologize and was just going by what I have learned about patterns in a strict sense in regard to categorization in the traditional pocket knife realm.

Pardon me,

Anthony
 
Anthony,

No need to apologize! Its input like yours and everyone else here that makes this forum a enjoyable and quality learning experience for ALL of us, including Me!

Ken
 
Tony Bose said:
.... I made a 1 blade lock back sowbelly one time. The 3 blade is my least favorite. They also make a nice trapper.
Click to expand...

Why is the 3 blade your least favorite, Tony? I ask because it is MY most favorite.

That Erickson is a handsome knife, regardless of what you call it.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
Tony,

Your input is very informative as well here. Much obliged.

Thank You,

Anthony
 
Ken, I really admire the clean lines and simplicity of all your knives, especially the single-bladed knives you've been showing here. It's a shame you're not taking orders now. You make incredible designs. :thumbup:
 
A nice one Ken. Thanks for posting.

To all concerned is the Sowbelly Pattern a English or a American pattern. Stan Shaw a English or Sheffield Maker has made a lot of knives of this pattern. The 3 blade is also my favorite configuration of this pattern.
 
In 3 blades I like a regular stockman better. I think the back blade comes out of the knife at a more useable angle. The sowbelly stock is hard to beat for looks but for me a regular stock uses better. By the was Ken, nicely done. I like 1 blade sowbellies.
 
That's a great smaller knife Ken. It boggles me how you can make those smaller pieces and come up with a graceful and cohesive design. A nicely scaled down rendition of that pattern. And I agree with Tony on the back blade of a three blade, or a one-spring 2 blade; it opens at an odd angle.
The "Erickson Jigged" bone makes this knife particularly special. From here (I'd sure like to be a lot closer) I can't find anything I don't like.
 
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