Lets talk GEC!

Pàdruig said:
We are likely heading into waters that are best left to the GBU with regards to the natures of buying/selling GECs. However, I did want to say that though I understand your sentiments that I quoted above, I don't think it would solve the problem. Flipping has become a notorious enough issue that it is getting called out with more frequency here on BF - I think that is a positive thing. But even if we were to find a way to have a more private buy/sell/trade group (i.e. Facebook or the like (and they exist)), it wouldn't be long before it got infiltrated and the problem ends up repeating itself.

I've long held that building the relationships here has its rewards - in more ways than one. I've had folks reach out to me regarding knives I've been vocal about seeking (including yourself) and I've been able to acquire some great knives from folks I consider friends. It isn't going to net me every knife I am after but each one that I do, it is a far more rewarding experience than had I bought it elsewhere.

And a pic - (this is a GEC thread after all). I do love me some Red Sawcut...

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I whole heartedly agree...there is just something special about red sawcut bone whether it be with sheepsfoot, spear, or clip:

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jsdistin said:
If I know someone That is a regular contributor and is looking for something in particular and I have it I will hit them up and sell it for what I got it for plus maybe adding postage and fees to the price as others have done for me. I think that’s the only way to avoid flippers because once a place is identified as a place to buy and sell you’ll have people looking to do just that and profit will be the driving force.
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I don't necessary have an issue with flippers if they are also collectors. As a long time GEC collector the only way to get some of the older rare GEC's is on the secondary market. 33 whittlers, 38 whittlers, and the 98 pattern will not be made again per Bill Howard. I'm willing to pay a premium for the hard to find knives. If I feel the price is too high, I pass. I will also agree that there are abusive rip off flippers around and I avoid them and call them out.
Reasonable profit is not a bad thing. GEC makes a profit as do their dealers.
 
hose56 said:
I don't necessary have an issue with flippers if they are also collectors. As a long time GEC collector the only way to get some of the older rare GEC's is on the secondary market. 33 whittlers, 38 whittlers, and the 98 pattern will not be made again per Bill Howard. I'm willing to pay a premium for the hard to find knives. If I feel the price is too high, I pass. I will also agree that there are abusive rip off flippers around and I avoid them and call them out.
Reasonable profit is not a bad thing. GEC makes a profit as do their dealers.
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I fully agree, I buy from the exchange and from eBay as well so I’ve definitely paid a premium and done so without regret, even if they re-release a pattern they likely won’t release the same covers. I was just giving an example about how some buying and selling can be done more fairly and and good naturedly, I’m not even suggesting that people just start saying what knives they are looking for in the hopes that someone will offer it up to them, that would get annoying really fast. I think when you talk about knives a lot you are bound to say something that you like or are looking for or that is your grail knife, and here on the porch someone might have it and figure you want it more than them and then offer it up. In general I think that is best left for the wanted to buy pages though which I have used with some success recently and gotten something I was looking for for a price that I think was fair for both parties. One of my favorites that I wasn’t actually looking for and was just similar to the one I was looking for in material and blade orientation but not size or pattern was offered up after I mentioned a grail I was after, and still am for that matter. That’s just something that is just happenstance and can’t be created in any kind of sales thread. Just my thoughts though I don’t think people should go around always saying what knife they’re looking for in the hopes that someone will offer it to them, I’d probably avoid someone doing that, I could have mentioned ones I’m looking for twice here but it’s not appropriate to the subject at had so I haven’t.
 
I have been enjoying my jigged bone 33. It will make a great office carry for when I eventually go back to the office. I have worked the joints and the action is smoother and improved. At first I wished they would've left off the shield, but the design has since grown on me.

I was lucky enough to acquire a pretty decent looking stag example. Once it arrives, my set of two will be complete. Here are some photos of it, I've cropped the dealer name off to keep it kosher. Excited to have grabbed this one, I enjoy nice stag.
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Driving down to West Virginia to visit Mom tomorrow for a little more than a week. I found myself taking forever deciding on what knives I would bring, which is stupid because it's only 10 days, and there's only so much whittling I'll be doing while I'm visiting, but there you have it. I think I "over packed" on knives, and packed light on everything else, haha.
I'm bringing:
  1. #35 Churchill (right side pocket companion)
  2. #93 Ramsfoot (big beefy single blade sheepsfoot... why not?)
  3. #62 Pocket Carver (one of the best whittling folders I own)
  4. #48 Queen Whittler (... I love divided spring whittlers...)
  5. ESEE 3 (S35VN) (you never know...)
  6. SAK Recruit (left side pocket general beater & cap lifter/pry device/poker)
  7. SAK Classic (scissors for beard trimming. I lost my super tinker... how?!)
  8. Gerber LST (happened to be in the bag, and why move things you don't have to?)
  9. Rehandled/modified Opinel No. 8 (to show off my handy work, but it's a useful knife!)
That's absolutely stupid. All I really needed was #1 and maybe #3.

My wife and kid are coming to pick me up at work and we'll be leaving tonight for the first half of the journey... so... oh well! Looks like i'm just bringing a boatload of knives and 4 days of clothes. #knifeLife
 
EngrSorenson said:
Driving down to West Virginia to visit Mom tomorrow for a little more than a week. I found myself taking forever deciding on what knives I would bring, which is stupid because it's only 10 days, and there's only so much whittling I'll be doing while I'm visiting, but there you have it. I think I "over packed" on knives, and packed light on everything else, haha.
I'm bringing:
  1. #35 Churchill (right side pocket companion)
  2. #93 Ramsfoot (big beefy single blade sheepsfoot... why not?)
  3. #62 Pocket Carver (one of the best whittling folders I own)
  4. #48 Queen Whittler (... I love divided spring whittlers...)
  5. ESEE 3 (S35VN) (you never know...)
  6. SAK Recruit (left side pocket general beater & cap lifter/pry device/poker)
  7. SAK Classic (scissors for beard trimming. I lost my super tinker... how?!)
  8. Gerber LST (happened to be in the bag, and why move things you don't have to?)
  9. Rehandled/modified Opinel No. 8 (to show off my handy work, but it's a useful knife!)
That's absolutely stupid. All I really needed was #1 and maybe #3.

My wife and kid are coming to pick me up at work and we'll be leaving tonight for the first half of the journey... so... oh well! Looks like i'm just bringing a boatload of knives and 4 days of clothes. #knifeLife
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I mean, I fail to see the problem. This is essentially struggle many of us have when traveling! :D
 
EngrSorenson said:
Driving down to West Virginia to visit Mom tomorrow for a little more than a week. I found myself taking forever deciding on what knives I would bring, which is stupid because it's only 10 days, and there's only so much whittling I'll be doing while I'm visiting, but there you have it. I think I "over packed" on knives, and packed light on everything else, haha.
I'm bringing:
  1. #35 Churchill (right side pocket companion)
  2. #93 Ramsfoot (big beefy single blade sheepsfoot... why not?)
  3. #62 Pocket Carver (one of the best whittling folders I own)
  4. #48 Queen Whittler (... I love divided spring whittlers...)
  5. ESEE 3 (S35VN) (you never know...)
  6. SAK Recruit (left side pocket general beater & cap lifter/pry device/poker)
  7. SAK Classic (scissors for beard trimming. I lost my super tinker... how?!)
  8. Gerber LST (happened to be in the bag, and why move things you don't have to?)
  9. Rehandled/modified Opinel No. 8 (to show off my handy work, but it's a useful knife!)
That's absolutely stupid. All I really needed was #1 and maybe #3.

My wife and kid are coming to pick me up at work and we'll be leaving tonight for the first half of the journey... so... oh well! Looks like i'm just bringing a boatload of knives and 4 days of clothes. #knifeLife
Click to expand...
When ever I'm taking a trip, this is the issue....what knives to bring!? What things I can see myself cutting. What tasks I will need to complete. I have my annual "man trip" this weekend with a group of my friends. I think I have it hammered down to 4 knives to bring...lol. My choices right now, 1. My stag 73 in my front pocket 2. Mudbug on the belt 3. Beer Scout in coin Pocket 4. #29 stag as a back up.....

1st world knife collector problems!
 
tmd_87 said:
When ever I'm taking a trip, this is the issue....what knives to bring!? What things I can see myself cutting. What tasks I will need to complete. I have my annual "man trip" this weekend with a group of my friends. I think I have it hammered down to 4 knives to bring...lol. My choices right now, 1. My stag 73 in my front pocket 2. Mudbug on the belt 3. Beer Scout in coin Pocket 4. #29 stag as a back up.....

1st world knife collector problems!
Click to expand...

I brought these knives along on the first camping trip I went on as a family man (i.e., fully grown adult or I'm the dad and husband now :eek:).

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With 2 in my pocket, I made a 3 slot leather case to help me decide, 5 is my limit now :D


EngrSorenson said:
Driving down to West Virginia to visit Mom tomorrow for a little more than a week. I found myself taking forever deciding on what knives I would bring, which is stupid because it's only 10 days, and there's only so much whittling I'll be doing while I'm visiting, but there you have it. I think I "over packed" on knives, and packed light on everything else, haha.
I'm bringing:
  1. #35 Churchill (right side pocket companion)
  2. #93 Ramsfoot (big beefy single blade sheepsfoot... why not?)
  3. #62 Pocket Carver (one of the best whittling folders I own)
  4. #48 Queen Whittler (... I love divided spring whittlers...)
  5. ESEE 3 (S35VN) (you never know...)
  6. SAK Recruit (left side pocket general beater & cap lifter/pry device/poker)
  7. SAK Classic (scissors for beard trimming. I lost my super tinker... how?!)
  8. Gerber LST (happened to be in the bag, and why move things you don't have to?)
  9. Rehandled/modified Opinel No. 8 (to show off my handy work, but it's a useful knife!)
That's absolutely stupid. All I really needed was #1 and maybe #3.

My wife and kid are coming to pick me up at work and we'll be leaving tonight for the first half of the journey... so... oh well! Looks like i'm just bringing a boatload of knives and 4 days of clothes. #knifeLife
Click to expand...
 
kamagong said:
I brought these knives along on the first camping trip I went on as a family man (i.e., fully grown adult or I'm the dad and husband now :eek:).

14475496187_bb87e4c325_b.jpg
Click to expand...
Looks about right to me! I do the same. Two different fixed blades 4 different folders. Not counting a modern or two....:cool::D
 
EngrSorenson said:
What constitutes a "large enough" knife is different for everyone, but for me a knife is sufficient when it has at least 1 blade that can cut halfway through an average apple with enough space to keep from getting juice in the joint. The #14 is right on the edge (no pun intended).
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With your love of the nostalgia of the traditional folder and all things old timey about it, you're not holding the knife in a pearing grip and eating the fruit strips right off the blade old man style?
 
tmd_87 said:
Looks about right to me! I do the same. Two different fixed blades 4 different folders. Not counting a modern or two....:cool::D
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Modern folders are city and suburban tools. If I'm in the outdoors I'll most likely have a more capable tool in the form of a fixed blade or two. Why even bother with a folder?

Still, the SAK lives in my pack as a backup. It's a sensible precaution. And of course there's the normal spring knife that I make sure to carry everyday. If I have pants on I have a knife in my pocket, no reason to change that.
 
Jiki said:
With your love of the nostalgia of the traditional folder and all things old timey about it, you're not holding the knife in a pearing grip and eating the fruit strips right off the blade old man style?
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You know me surprisingly well. If I'm just sitting around with nothing better to do, I do precisely as you describe. Most of the time when I'm cutting apples I'm at work, so I usually quarter it and do a quick core removal and eat them that way. Either way, I find using a knife less messy than eating a whole apple.
 
EngrSorenson said:
Well I’m holding the #33 I’ve been waiting for. I want you guys to chime in here.
  1. Looks like the blades are right against their respective liners. You can see the oil pool up on the master blade where the tip rests against it.
  2. The pen blade has a nearly obscured nail nick, and you’ll notice that the tip is just short of proud. I will not be filing the kick on this one: looks like the pen blade will have to become a Spey and then a sheepsfoot.
I like the bone, the color, the jigging, the shield, and even the size. I understand not wanting collisions of the blades, but there’s a country mile in there. What do you guys think? Pics to illustrate.

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I think it’s got potential, I’m just wondering if the execution just isn’t there?

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I'm not going to tell you how you should feel about your knife. I'm just going to add an additional data point to the discussion.

I am carrying my micarta 82 possum skinner today. A wonderful slicing knife with a very smooth action and sufficient snap. It is also a single spring pen style knife. I am not as thorough as you when inspecting a new knife, quit honestly I may have never noticed this unless I read your post. All that said to show you that the blades appear to touch the liners on both blades. I don't carry this knife daily but I do carry it regularly. There has been no scratches on the blade from the liner and I am not easy on my knives.

Take it for what it's worth, more data.
Crappy indoor photos.

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Jiki said:
I'm not going to tell you how you should feel about your knife. I'm just going to add an additional data point to the discussion.

I am carrying my micarta 82 possum skinner today. A wonderful slicing knife with a very smooth action and sufficient snap. It is also a single spring pen style knife. I am not as thorough as you when inspecting a new knife, quit honestly I may have never noticed this unless I read your post. All that said to show you that the blades appear to touch the liners on both blades. I don't carry this knife daily but I do carry it regularly. There has been no scratches on the blade from the liner and I am not easy on my knives.

Take it for what it's worth, more data.
Crappy indoor photos.
Click to expand...

I immediately thought of the possum skinner when I started having second thoughts about the 33. You're right- the blade seems to only look like it's touching, or if it's touching at all, it's not going to impact the edge which is the only thing I care about. The blade rap against the catch bit is unfortunately real, and the secondary has no real room for blade shrinkage due to sharpening, aside from filing off the point which unfortunately needed to be done after the first sharpening. This is where sheepsfoot/wharncliff secondaries excel. the possum skinner is, I believe, superior to the #33 as a user. GEC can make beautiful knives, we've all seen that- but not all of them are equal as users.

I mean, case in point, your picture shows a lot of buried clip tip. You'd have decades before you'd be filing the kick or point on those blades. I consider that the sign of a well designed knife. I almost pulled the trigger on one of those! It's alright- I'm sure it won't be long before GEC produces the next pen-style knife I just have to have.
 
EngrSorenson said:
I mean... just mention 2 spring Whittler and I’m falling all over myself to be in the conversation. I have a passion for them, particularly divided spring variants. I have 2 of the #62 pocket carvers which I enjoy very much, but I’m still waiting for a Grinling, Geppetto or something other version I haven’t even considered yet.
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If you like that 62 carver, add a 62 split back courthouse whittler to your list of in search of ;)
 
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