I've fished since I could hold a rod. There's a picture of me pulling a double out of Lake Michigan perch fishing that was before I can remember. I was probably 4 or 5, maybe younger. I do remember the first time I was allowed to shoot a real gun; a 22 when I was maybe 8 or 9 years old? I was with my grandpa who was sighting in for deer season. I had a bb gun before then, but that doesn't really count
I wasn't allowed to really hunt with my grandpa until I turned 13. I continued to hunt whitetail with him until I left my local community college for the main campus for my junior year. I would've been 20. So, that would be 8 seasons in total, I guess. We only shot bucks, never doe. My grandpa liked to preach that killing a buck killed one deer, but shooting a doe killed 3. We never needed more than 1 deer to feed us for a year, probably because of all the coho, lakers, steelhead, and perch in the freezer. Since we only got skunked one year out of the 8, that's 7 bucks field dressed on my watch with the Uncle Henry below. We cracked the pelvis open with brute force and used a bone saw for the sternum. So, I think that's why he didn't feel the need for a fixed blade. But, the liner lock certainly came in handy safety wise. I'm sure he had a backup blade, just in case the folder broke, but we never needed it.
We also did a LOT of rabbit hunting in those 8ish years. I couldn't even begin to count the number of rabbits this Uncle Henry has field dressed in my time alone.
And, none of this even takes into account the number of deer/rabbit this one knife dressed before I was allowed to hunt. My grandpa was given a Case 5165 by my grandma as a gift in the late 60s. He used that knife and that knife alone for all of his hunting until his buddy accidentally threw it away in the 80's. He bought this Uncle Henry around then and he used it ever since. Always carried in the pictured sheath.
The Uncle Henry has a stainless blade but carbon springs. And boy do the springs have patina for all the years of use. They're nearly black.
I'm more than a little sad that I haven't been hunting since I moved away. I have gotten back into fishing, but hunting has alluded me. I only ever hunted with my grandpa and so I kept my guns at his place. But, I do have all of mine and my grandpas guns at my house now that he's passed. So, maybe I'll manage to get out sometime now that they are in my possession.
Either way, it's very cool to see everyones pictures and their take on various knife patterns for hunting. I never knew brand names or patterns when I hunted. Couldn't tell you a clip from a drop point or a sheepsfoot
I just saw the knife my grandpa used and figured that was the right tool for the job. Given he used a 5165 before using this Uncle Henry, I'd say he felt a clip was the best tool for the job!
