Lets talk GEC!

mrknife said:
wasnt there a few 2014s bladeforums knives where the shield sat proud because of the nature of the stag?
Click to expand...
I believe so. That's always a risk with stag and shields, unless the stag has been shaped to fit better, which makes it lose some of the character.
 
They also stopped using shields with text on smooth handles because it was a chore.

I know GEC can do no wrong! ;) Most folks would probably continue to buy the knives even if they stopped grinding the blades and just used blanks. :p :D It is what it is. We can all spend our dollars as we see fit. I will be pickier about the quality of the stag covers on a knife without a shield. SOME of their stag is exceptional. Some of it is just OK. Some of it isn't very good. That's the way it is with buying stag in quantity.
 
Last edited:
jc57 said:
I believe so. That's always a risk with stag and shields, unless the stag has been shaped to fit better, which makes it lose some of the character.
Click to expand...

yeah, just checked the third one, it sits proud a little bit, but nothing to panic about. were these glued in? or pinned?
 
mrknife said:
wasnt there a few 2014s bladeforums knives where the shield sat proud because of the nature of the stag?
Click to expand...

jc57 said:
I believe so. That's always a risk with stag and shields, unless the stag has been shaped to fit better, which makes it lose some of the character.
Click to expand...

Can't please everyone. Here are a couple of knives with proud shields.





Doesn't detract at all. YMMV of course.
 
mrknife said:
wasnt there a few 2014s bladeforums knives where the shield sat proud because of the nature of the stag?
Click to expand...

The 2014 forum knives were what Mr. Howard was referring to when he mentioned not putting shields on stag to me.
 
mrknife said:
yeah, just checked the third one, it sits proud a little bit, but nothing to panic about. were these glued in? or pinned?
Click to expand...

All their shields are pinned in as far as I know. GEC does not glue their shields in as some other companies may do.

I have no issue with proud shields, often that is the case with jigged bone as well on customs. If done correctly it looks amazing in my opinion as Kamagong has shown above.
 
I like shields on all my traditional knives, including those handled in stag. I know it takes some skill and extra time to place a shield on any knife. Maybe that's why I like them. They're an indication of quality and superior craftsmanship in my opinion.

Most of the custom slip joint knives I have are stag. They all have shields and almost all are proud. They are all exceptional knives and the fact that they have proud shields is of no consequence to me.
 
Agreed Gary, one of the first things I look for on a slipjoint is shield inletting. Even more so pinned shield inletting.
In my opinion the one's GEC has done on their stag knives have been more than up to spec.
It'll be a shame to see all shields go if this is the case.
 
Peregrin said:
I like shields on all my traditional knives, including those handled in stag. I know it takes some skill and extra time to place a shield on any knife. Maybe that's why I like them. They're an indication of quality and superior craftsmanship in my opinion.

Most of the custom slip joint knives I have are stag. They all have shields and almost all are proud. They are all exceptional knives and the fact that they have proud shields is of no consequence to me.
Click to expand...

Agreed, I have a particular fondness for stag, i understand it can be a tough material to work with. I guess as long as its not sticking out and can cause it to be pried off/broken or damage to the stag, im happy. so far all the knives with stag handles that i have do not have any issues regarding the shields. and i did dig out the my other 2, its barely sticking out. if future gecs im interested in, that are in stag, do not have shields, i wouldnt be too broken up about it, but atleast ill know the reason why they dont have em.
 
Proud shields have also been done on jigged bone covered knives and as a matter of fact, GEC mounted some shields proud on the Fire & Ice Trappers they did for Schrade in 2007. Other manufactures have done it too.
 
amen to that. i have one knife with a shield that would probably snag on clothing if i put it in my pocket
 
Modoc ED said:
Cory, Cory, Cory. Listen, back in the day, some manufactures pinned their shields with a minimum amount of inletting, if any, on their stag covered knives. They drilled the holes for the shield's pins, placed the shields on top of the stag covers and set the pins. As a result, some shields rode proud of the covers. It was not a matter of cutting corners. I have a Case that was done that way as well as an old Schrade. I don't have pictures of them so you'll just have to take my word for it.
Click to expand...

Ed, I've seen knives like this and actually think it's pretty cool. This would be greatly preferred over no shield at all, in my opinion.

In my mind there are two categories that most knives without shields fall into. There are the small pen knives whose size dictates that a shield isn't necessary or practical and there are throwaway knives that the makers didn't think were worth the time and energy to bother with a shield. I know that there are millions of larger knives of really good quality that don't have shields, but as a general guideline most seem to fall into these two categories.

Most of the knives made nowadays without shields seem to be throwbacks to patterns that historically would have been five and dime type knives. Among these are the sodbusters, boys knives, and barlows. It makes sense to me for GEC to leave the shield off of a #15 or a Bull Buster. There's historical precedence for that. Leaving the shield off of a stag congress? Like I said earlier, I'm hoping that it's just a matter of Mr. Howard thinking that stag looks better without a shield. Personally, I'd rather see them do as Ed says and just pin the shield on top of the stag without any inletting. It would have the same effect while keeping the classic look of the patterns that they're making.
 
Although shields are typically inlaid seamlessly with smooth covers, I don't think that the purpose is to avoid snagging on clothing. If that was a concern, there would probably be more effort to sink the joints. (The old Robeson Pocketeze knives are one of the few examples that particular attention is paid to the joints.) On a bumpy surface like stag or jigged bone, milling out a flat surface is sometimes necessary to seat the shield. It doesn't necessarily have to be flush. There's a bit of an art to it. In manufacturing this sort of thing requires skilled labor and time (money). Streamlining production is more efficient (cheaper).
 
As a dealer, I have a little different perspective.

I can't tell you the number of negative comments and returns we get with "proud" and "uneven" shield placement on stag. It can be the most beautiful piece of stag and IMO the shield is set properly, but if it has a corner that you can feel because the stag has some character, it is on its way back.

I MUCH prefer shields on my knives and shields on stag knives. I haven't had a chance to talk to Bill yet, but I will be requesting shields on our Northwoods, but I totally understand their frustration and decision.
 
Makes sense, Derrick. It's quite possible that this is one of those things where you don't hear much from the people that are satisfied, but you hear quite a bit from the people that aren't.

As somebody that doesn't mind a seam here and there that I can worry with my finger I might have a skewed perspective on this.
 
Derrick, I don't disagree with anything you said. There is a bit of an art to seating a shield and some are done better than others... but it sort of blows my mind that folks would return a knife because of a proud shield. Some of the stag knives are extremely expensive so I can understand being picky. And buyers will want to see the multiple angle photos at this price. But after seeing photos of both sides and photo of the top and bottom of the knife, you can pretty much eliminate any big surprises. The mechanics are something that can't be seen and there are sometimes loose blades or the tips of the blades are exposed in the closed position etc. GEC is usually pretty good at catching these things but it happens. I've never considered returning a knife because of a proud shield.

I can appreciate GEC's perspective even if it's just to reduce costs. Same goes for the set length pins (and holes in the covers) and omitting text on the shields of knives with smooth covers. They need to do what will keep them in business. Manufacturers are always trying to be more efficient.

But I think their best work is on small factory orders. Some of what they've learned from these orders has trickled into regular production. Some hasn't. I think they're still learning what people want. But they've come a long way from where they started.
 
Cory Hess said:
Ed, I've seen knives like this and actually think it's pretty cool. This would be greatly preferred over no shield at all, in my opinion.

In my mind there are two categories that most knives without shields fall into. There are the small pen knives whose size dictates that a shield isn't necessary or practical and there are throwaway knives that the makers didn't think were worth the time and energy to bother with a shield. I know that there are millions of larger knives of really good quality that don't have shields, but as a general guideline most seem to fall into these two categories.

Most of the knives made nowadays without shields seem to be throwbacks to patterns that historically would have been five and dime type knives. Among these are the sodbusters, boys knives, and barlows. It makes sense to me for GEC to leave the shield off of a #15 or a Bull Buster. There's historical precedence for that. Leaving the shield off of a stag congress? Like I said earlier, I'm hoping that it's just a matter of Mr. Howard thinking that stag looks better without a shield. Personally, I'd rather see them do as Ed says and just pin the shield on top of the stag without any inletting. It would have the same effect while keeping the classic look of the patterns that they're making.
Click to expand...
No shields have a practical application, they are all aesthetic. That's one thing Mr. Howard mentioned on this topic.
 
ALLHSS said:
No shields have a practical application, they are all aesthetic. That's one thing Mr. Howard mentioned on this topic.
Click to expand...

So is stag... as well as many of their other cover materials. But other materials are easier to work with and they're only eliminating the shields on stag.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top