Le Thiers Par Le Fidele

[cchu518]

Just picked up this nice little every day carry.

I was looking for something a little different and was wanting to give a Euro style traditional another chance after trading off a Chambriard compact model. The par le fidele is basically a Chambriard compact with a slightly thicker handle which I find very comfortable.

I found that the compact model to be a little lacking in handle girth for it to have been comfortable for me. It's still all in all a very nice regular every day carry size.

This one has a Boxwood handle maybe? I picked it up on eBay so I'm unsure as it wasn't marked and sandvik steel in that typical impossibly thin grind. The file work on the spine is a nice accent to the overall aesthetics. It's super sharp after a few minutes in the sharpmaker btw.

All in all it's a winner and I think it will do well in my rotation. I'm just wondering if there is enough kick for the edge not to hit the spine when closing as happens often on this knives.

 

[Bartleby]

It is boxwood. The spring on these tends to rest farther back on the kick, so they don't usually blunt the blade as is generally the case on a Lagiuole. Enjoy it!

 

[cchu518]

It is boxwood. The spring on these tends to rest farther back on the kick, so they don't usually blunt the blade as is generally the case on a Lagiuole. Enjoy it!

Ahhh so that only happens with Laguioles then? I thought it was with all simar styled frenchy knives, good to know!

 

[TheChunk91]

That looks really nice and classy, the handle shape seems like it would be comfortable to a wide range of hand sizes. How thin is the edge compared to an opinel? How is the w&t?

 

[cchu518]

If I had to guess it's probably Opinel no 7 thin so 1/16 th of an inch.

I definitely like this model better than the Chambriard compact model due to the thickness.

This one almost feels like a sodbuster jr. But with a little taper on the bottom and a little more girth up top.

 

[1066vik]

very nice looking!
appreciate the description and size comparisons.

 

[Gary W. Graley]

Nice one, and you could lay in a thin layer along the back spring, as with the Chambriard knives if you let them snap shut on their own, the momentum would throw the blade against the back spring pretty easily, the Chambriards had a small hump that was part of the back spring, so instead of having a kick like on most traditional folders, they put the 'kick' on the back spring, performing the same function. So take a peek inside to see if you can tell if there is a raised portion up near the pivot area.

Again, nice looking folder,
G2





Barlow, smooth bone for sale in this thread

 

[cchu518]

Thanks Gary, my that is interesting, the blade rests a little differently for sure in the half stop position as compared to the Case mini trapper. I have the le fidele resting on top of the Case in the first pic.

 

[Gary W. Graley]

You'll need a flashlight to shine down into the frame while the blade is open to see if you can make out the small hump I'm talking about, but, again that was on the Chambriard ones I've owned, and even with the hump, the force of the snap shut could still throw the edge into danger, so I sliced some very thin rubberized cork that would barely be pressed down into the frame and lay on the back spring, had to be thin enough of course that the blade didn't touch during a controlled closing, but if someone else closed it besides my careful hands, the rubberized cork saved the day.
G2

 

[Jolipapa]

Ahhh so that only happens with Laguioles then? I thought it was with all simar styled frenchy knives, good to know!

If this was really happening on Lags, don't you think that since they build them they would NOT have fixed it??? I am ready to change my mind as soon as I'll see an example but of the very few I 've seen so far, none had such a flaw...Urban legends have tough lives sometimes...
Further, I'll remember that in France it is considered as rogue manners to snap a knife... with or without kick...

 

[cchu518]

Valid point! I've only had one and have never snapped the blade so I don't really know. A friend liked the style after seeing it so I gifted it to him.

 

[Will Power]

I must say I was surprised that you found le compact's scales to be lacking thickness. The Ebony one shown and the Stag one (unhappily lost ) have nice thick radiused handles.

As for denting the blade, GEC knives certainly display this but none of my Lags have, Jolipapa clearly knows what he is talking about and snapping shut knives is frowned upon in France. The Lag has been around and stood the test of time since about the Napleonic era, rather longer than most other Traditionals...... The blade rides high by design and its serp back allows room for the blade. Actually, both my Chambriards and most of my French knives have such brutal snap that you could lose a finger in there Yet the opening pull is mild, just the way it should be.:thumbup:

 

[cchu518]

That's a splendid example! ^

It's actually why I had to go back to the Thiers knives to give them a second try.

I admit it's quite possible that it could have been just my perception and that vital ratio of hand filling goodness was just in my head.

I had gone through a huge data dump at some point when I discovered bladeforum about 3 years ago. I was exploring everything that I could and with the chambriard it might have been that I was scratching my head at why I was paying $100 for Sandvik.

But I was also jumping back and forth between ti framelocks and the whole modern thing as well. I just picked up a lovely modern gent's knife. It cost 16X times more than the La Fidele and I can say that I honestly don't like one over the other costs be damned.

Well I do hope we see more threads like this exploring these excellent French knives. They just have a lot of character and utility to their designs.

What really endures me to the pattern is that I have an affinity for clip blades, spears as nice as they are just don't do it for me. The Le Fidele's blade shape really does it for me in this sense. And with its thin grind gets scalpel sharp!

Photo courtesy of a post from Daniel Dorn.

 

[Jolipapa]

...

Photo courtesy of a post from Daniel Dorn.

Not exactly, this will be more correct On the picture, both are "cran forcé".

(rear) lock : cran d 'arrêt
liner lock : platine bloquante

 

[cchu518]

This...Explains the smear campaign against Laguioles! Haha just joshing! Thanks for the fix. I'm going to study the nuances more over the weekend.

But you are 100 percent correct. The stiffness of the Thiers feel very safe ensuring that the blade would not slip and close on a finger under regular moderate use.

 

[Ernie1980]

That is a good looking little knife! I like the color of the covers and the filework is a nice touch.

 

[Bartleby]

Ahhh so that only happens with Laguioles then? I thought it was with all simar styled frenchy knives, good to know!

While blunting on the spring is not always the case with Laguioles, it is seldom the case with Le Thiers. Le Thiers was designed as a knife representing an agreed upon pattern by knifemakers in Thiers in response to claims that the Laguiole could only be stamped Laguiole if they were made in Laguiole proper. This step seems to have been taken mostly in response to Asian knockoffs, as makers in Thiers have been making Laguiole type knives for a very long while. To my eye, the design of Le Thiers was influenced by this long association and while fairly modern for a traditional knife, it has very well thought out. Personally I view Le Thiers as a contemporary minimalist development of the traditional designs of France, refined for modern urban use. A classic for the next hundred years.

 

[Bartleby]

Btw, I don't mean to say anything in any way bad about the Laguiole. I enjoy them greatly as well. Like most things French, they remind us that enjoying the present is appreciating the past and embracing the future. Sorry to get philosophical, I was over there last summer and have not fully re-adjusted.

 

[cchu518]

Personally I view Le Thiers as a contemporary minimalist development of the traditional designs of France, refined for modern urban use. A classic for the next hundred years.

Well said! This describes this little gem of a pattern perfectly. Working in NYC I always feel a little uneasy carrying anything with a stabby profile or a locking blade.

I had recently picked up a CRK Mnandi which I enjoy very much. But I gotta say, I like Le Fidele's version of a Thiers every bit as much as the mnandi even though it was much cheaper.

Possibly even a little more so as I feel like I would have no reservations to use it in public. Additionally it has really strong blade retention for a slippie which makes it impossible to argue for it being a gravity knife which happens so often in NYC with knife folks when they have run ins with police.

I like this particular one better than the one with a single bolster version I had prior. There is that minimalist aesthetic with this knife that is quite a joy to use and carry. It's a true gents knife.

 

[Bartleby]

Well said! This describes this little gem of a pattern perfectly. Working in NYC I always feel a little uneasy carrying anything with a stabby profile or a locking blade.

I had recently picked up a CRK Mnandi which I enjoy very much. But I gotta say, I like Le Fidele's version of a Thiers every bit as much as the mnandi even though it was much cheaper.

Possibly even a little more so as I feel like I would have no reservations to use it in public. Additionally it has really strong blade retention for a slippie which makes it impossible to argue for it being a gravity knife which happens so often in NYC with knife folks when they have run ins with police.

I like this particular one better than the one with a single bolster version I had prior. There is that minimalist aesthetic with this knife that is quite a joy to use and carry. It's a true gents knife.

Especially in the smaller bolsterless version it is very non-threatening, it looks like a folding food prep knife (an area in which it shines btw). I agree that this smaller version is just about ideal to carry and use just about anywhere.
Since you are living close by NYC you likely know this quite well, but just as a reminder for the sake of those younger friends visiting the porch who may travel there on a visit. If one is in NYC carrying a knife, kindly avoid run-ins with the NYPD. If this is not possible, please do not argue with the officer. NYPD officers can act on their own judgement during an interaction. The design does give a lawyer a basis to later counter-argue if the officer misjudges, but it is no fun waiting on this process. Sorry to preach, and I sure don't mean to suggest you are implying one should argue with an officer, but someone might mistakenly misread. Stepping down from soapbox, back down on the porch.