Lets talk GEC!

Pàdruig said:
I am not generally a fan of the spey blade on a small pocket knife but it has more to do with aesthetics than anything and on a multi-blade pattern like a stockman, I'll simply never use it.
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It's interesting to see people's different perspectives on this. As for me, I've always considered the spey blade to be the defining element that makes a trapper a trapper. So, I may be in a distinct minority, but I actually love the aesthetics of the spey blade. :)
 
Kiteman72 said:
Plus, single blade spey? Who lost what bet?

I'll elaborate. The spey blade, tolerated on the trapper and obligatory on a stockman, almost always improves a knife by its absence. Who wants just a spey??
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As I'm writing this comment, there are 236 comments on the Speys Welcome!!!! thread, so somebody likes this blade as a main. GEC seems to have had no problem selling these - which isn't always true (think how long it took those keychain knives to clear out a few years ago).

Pàdruig said:
I am not generally a fan of the spey blade on a small pocket knife but it has more to do with aesthetics than anything and on a multi-blade pattern like a stockman, I'll simply never use it. That said, anyone who has skinned an animal knows the value in that kind of blade and I could very much see the larger folding hunter/trapper types utilizing that shape quite well.

I haven't used a pocket knife in any of the skinning I've done, save for the one time I used a modern folder on an elk, but if the opportunity presents itself I might try to use one of my 2-blade 73s one of these days. It would be a fun and enlightening experience.

I might not like the general lines of this blade type but this one of Charlie's is a handsome piece. (old pic)

SuNDHMa.jpg
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I have always thought of the spey on my stockmen as the emergency blade I can turn to if I forgot to sharpen the useful blades. But I suprised myself when I got my first trapper - I find a full-size spey incredibly useful for a lot of things. I don't yet own a single spey, but I think a lot of them are good looking (I think the TC barlows with long pulls are probably the best looking single speys I've seen).
 
Tyson A Wright said:
As I'm writing this comment, there are 236 comments on the Speys Welcome!!!! thread, so somebody likes this blade as a main. GEC seems to have had no problem selling these - which isn't always true (think how long it took those keychain knives to clear out a few years ago).



I have always thought of the spey on my stockmen as the emergency blade I can turn to if I forgot to sharpen the useful blades. But I suprised myself when I got my first trapper - I find a full-size spey incredibly useful for a lot of things. I don't yet own a single spey, but I think a lot of them are good looking (I think the TC barlows with long pulls are probably the best looking single speys I've seen).
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Spey TCs 1.jpg
I agree with you Tyson!! It's a great blade!!
 
The only issue with a single spey blade is when you need something "pokey". Would like for these to have a secondary pen blade. That would have been nice.
 
JW225 said:
It's interesting to see people's different perspectives on this. As for me, I've always considered the spey blade to be the defining element that makes a trapper a trapper. So, I may be in a distinct minority, but I actually love the aesthetics of the spey blade. :)
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Tyson A Wright said:
I have always thought of the spey on my stockmen as the emergency blade I can turn to if I forgot to sharpen the useful blades. But I suprised myself when I got my first trapper - I find a full-size spey incredibly useful for a lot of things. I don't yet own a single spey, but I think a lot of them are good looking (I think the TC barlows with long pulls are probably the best looking single speys I've seen).
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My dad generally carried a stockman pattern of some sort. I think it largely had to do with the fact that there were three blades he could go through. The spey was always the first one to break - that was his prying, scraping, driving, etc. blade, until it snapped, of course. After he passed, I went through his knife drawer and there were very few that were fully intact and most of them had a broken spey blade. He obviously found it to be one of his more useful options.

I am a big fan of the Kephart pattern fixed blade but Horace himself called it a "homely" blade and a lot of folks might find the knife to be unremarkable, even ugly. But like the spey blade, its brilliance is in its design and functionality. I may not be overly attracted to its appearance but its usefulness cannot be understated and that has an attraction all its own.

(another older pic)
s2PxFe5.jpg
 
Find the 39 with single Spey to be a brilliant idea as the long blade fills the frame very nicely, an aesthetic thing.

Speys on Stockman are better replaced by Pen or Drop-Point blades unless you have to geld animals (there again a fixed blade is safer & more hygienic) or skin them as on a Trapper. Lot of people like to joke about using Speys as spreaders of Jam, P.Nutbutter etc but that sticky gunk in the pivot is not welcome here ;) Good for taking cuttings though, maybe making fire-curls too and any knife given the correct grind and sharpening can excel at slicing:)

Never thought I'd be drawn to a single Spey but it somehow looks really at home on this frame, nor do I like blue as a colour for knives, don't own any but with luck I've landed a blue micarta one and it's the one I really wantedo_O:D All the scale choices for this release look very good and the Maple leaf shield (Canadians SHOULD be allowed first shot:cool: ) is another example of GEC workmanship at its best.
 
I like the idea of a Spey but in practice I do prefer the spey/pen combination. I’m also not a huge fan of two full-length blades.
 
That's why I like a drop point on a single blade knife - kind of halfway house between the clip and spey.

That said, a traditional Trapper is my most carried knife when I'm spending time outdoors - the pointier blade gets used for dirty stuff (cleaning fish, etc) and the spey kept clean for eating lunch etc. It helps that there's a divider between them.
 
The spey was always good on the trapline, one winter I must of skinned 200 Martin alone and the spey(also used a royal Albert butter knife sharpend were it was sharp but not to sharp)was used sporadically but on links and female fisher you never wanted to puncture or slice the fur so spey was optimal.
 
Alex.Y. said:
It's not the picture issue. waverave waverave used to create a new thread each time, but it looks like he shifted from knives recently, but that's only a guess based on an observation.
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Dudes I am so sorry for my absence and lack of new production threads!!! I am not out of the game by any means just haven't been available to be here as much as I used to.
I promise to pick it up soon!
I've also had a little something GEC related in the works...pretty sure waynorth waynorth caught wind of it :)
 
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waverave said:
Dudes I am so sorry for my absence and lack of new production threads!!! I am not out of the game by any means just haven't been available to be here as much as I used to.
I promise to pick it up soon!
I've also had a little something GEC related in the works...pretty sure waynorth waynorth caught wind of it :)
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Nice to see you, Darren. I’m sure you got your hands full juggling a thousand things.
 
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