Lets talk GEC!

[Modoc ED]

Of course I knew that. I just needed a memory bump which Ramrodmb provided while you were posting. Nice knives and thanks for the reply.

 

[Kiteman72]

Very cool pic of that trapper! The shield looks super!

 

[Dr-Mabuse]

All I can say is those are some incredible knives.

 

[Dadpool]

Gotta love GEC. Acorns on the NAVY knives and some good looking jigging on the burnt orange.

I could have sworn I read somewhere that GEC wasn't planning to make anymore stainless knives -- I completely missed that these were coming! :foot:

I love the acorn, and my two examples are two of my favorite knives. Time to go prowl around and see how badly I missed the boat.

 

[TinyDog]

The knives being done right now are the single blade trapper from the USS Texas steel that is forged into raindrop pattern Damascus by Devin Thomas.
And the USS New Jersey two bladed trapper forged into ladder pattern Damascus by Devin Thomas also.
Either knife is the same price and comes in a walnut display box with the ships logo engraved on top, It has two shields and the Name of the ships is on one and then

Here is our USS Texas BB35 Battleship Folder. Steel
forged from the Ship, and handle material of the
decking off the ship.




I was interested and that's the info that was sent to me. Pretty awesome!

Yes Sir, I saw these on the GEC web. Tempting, but we cannot have everything we want! That is an outstanding knife with some serious feel good history!! A true collectible IMHO. I do Like and the price is not too bad.

 

[supratentorial]

These turned out great! The classic appearance of their GEC branded knives is my favorite of their brands. So tempted but it's not a pattern that I would normally use. They did it right though. I would love to see more GEC branded patterns... and I don't even care if they are 440C or 1095

 

[Camillus]

I tend to agree about the pattern. I have one of the previous runs and it's a bit limited by the blade shape. A bit like a hawk bill in that regard, with the added disadvantage of a protruding blade when closed.

BUT the handle materials are fantastic, as is the stainless steel, so we have to acknowledge that GEC is listening to our requests, which is great. I hope they repeat that style of jigging on some of the upcoming patterns like the 72s

 

[supratentorial]

There aren't many of those GEC branded knives which makes it difficult for the "acorn collectors" (GEC brand collectors). I feel a bit like that squirrel from Ice Age.

 

[Kiteman72]

I'm definitely getting one of the Navy knives, so please don't interpret this as a gripe, but the funky main blade shape kinda limits the overall utility of the pattern.

If the upcoming boy's knives would have the acorn shield, 440C, and bails I would just about die of happiness.

 

[B.F.U]

Great knives. Awesome quality.

 

[Dadpool]

BUT the handle materials are fantastic, as is the stainless steel, so we have to acknowledge that GEC is listening to our requests, which is great.

I'm thrilled that the era of stainless GECs hasn't ended! I'm going to be keeping an eye on their production updates for sure.

 

[TsarBomba]

The knives being done right now are the single blade trapper from the USS Texas steel that is forged into raindrop pattern Damascus by Devin Thomas.

Great knives. Awesome quality.

As amazing the history behind that U.S.S. Texas knife (and it is truly amazing), I think I might like the concept behind the oil sucker rod wood best of any GEC product yet. Both knives feature real, honest American working wood. Both look outstanding on a knife. Would love to have one of each.

 

[TsarBomba]

So...uh...since the blog wasn't forthcoming that I could find...

Do we have any hints as to the style of jigged bone and wood for the beer scout?

(It really is a sickness...)

 

[r8shell]

A forum member kindly traded me a smooth ivory bone for my blood red Harness Jack. Now I'm doing thumbnail calisthenics everyday, and it's getting a bit easier to open.

It's fancier than my other GECs, with the extra embellishments on the bolsters, but this knife is so well made and sturdy, I could imagine it being used daily for 100 years as long as its owner doesn't sharpen it on a grinder.

Thanks, Philllll !

 

[bozack]

One of my favorites to carry is the smooth ivory bone HJ. Youhave a nice one, R8shell.

 

[Jfowl31]

I'm happy to say that at least one of those that went through the fire cleaned up to a really nice looking piece that fits perfectly in the pocket. I cleaned up the Bolsters and bone and polished them back up. The bone still has a very smokey color which tells quite a story. The blades, I just cleaned out all the rust and left most of the pits and patina and put a satin finish back on them. It disappears in the pocket and the walk and talk is still great! I'll get some pictures posted up shortly.

Jordan

I haven't felt the need to add much to this forum as of late, most of what I have to say is in the way of praise for GEC anyhow and that seems to be covered in here a lot, which I think is well deserved considering the affect they have had on the traditional knife world thus far.

Every company has something different to offer and appreciate, but in my experiences it's hard to even call it close when quality is on the line. Although the steel choices are limited from Great Eastern when compared to the likes of Queen, I've personally never had to deal with grinding an edge onto a GEC like i have with Queen. Now, all of my experiences with Queen predate the Daniels ownership, so I'm a little dated when it comes to the newest offerings. I had called it quits on trying with their product based off of a few really bad knives. The worst being when I bought the Queen show knife years ago and instead of receiving the knife I picked out, I received one with a cracked scale and a ton of blade play. It was made worse because I bought it direct from Queen. Now, many moons have passed since then, but the experience has left a bad taste in my mouth. I still appreciate their presence in the traditional knife world, but as long as Great Eastern is in the game I'm sending my business that way without worry.

As far as considering Great Eastern a company geared toward collectors, I have a hard time seeing that. Especially with how beefy a lot of their folders are. I think traditional knives are more of a nitch when compared to the regular knife user of today and so we see a ton of "old timely" references that can seem a bit gimmicky, but we get that from every company. I've personally put a lot of GECs through the paces, wether it be on the farm or in the field. My go to knife this season was a #73 that didn't get a break until the season was over. In that time I field dressed three dear with it and skinned just as many, I never once touched the edge up either. Their knives are built tough and are meant to last, wether it be in a glass display case or the pocket of your blue jeans.

I appreciate what Queen does with their kiddo program, it's a great way for kids to get an interest in knives at an early stage. While GEC may not have an actual program devoted to such actions I know that they have routinely donated knives to the local scout troops and charities, along with holding a raffle for the wounded worries at every years Rendezvous. On a personal level Great Eastern has blessed me on a multitude of occasions. I don't think it's fair to name all of the ways they have done so, but I think it's a disservice to have anyone think they aren't contributing to their community. About a year ago my family had a house fire, everyone made it through safely and the only thing lost was our poccesions, those possessions included almost my entire knife collection, a great deal of those GECs. That's life and when no one is hurt you move on. I was hesitant to even start collecting again, but a few months later the Rendezvous rolled around and I couldn't help but ride up there. When Chris and the rest of the gang heard about the fire, they took care of me. They got my collection started again and renewed that passion I had! Mr. Howard pulled me to the side and told me to go through my collection of burnt blades and pick out what I thought could be saved and to send them to him, he would take them apart and access the damage done. It was an amazing offer by an extremely busy man. I didn't feel right about adding to his work load, so I've done most of the clean up myself and while I'm no knife wizard like he is, I can use most of my knives! It's that kind of compassion and friendship coupled with a traditional pocket knife executed to near perfect that has earned my almost complete devotion.

 

[Jfowl31]

Here's some pictures of one of the knives that survived the fire...

 

[Ramrodmb]

Love that one Jordan!:thumbup:
Mark

 

[Dadpool]

Here's some pictures of one of the knives that survived the fire...

I'm sorry to hear about your fire. This one did clean up well, and like you said it has a heck of a story to tell. It's a gorgeous knife.

I just read that these have brushed acorns and bolsters (and bails), rather than polished. Which, looking back at this photo, I can kind of see. Is this the first acorn knife that's been finished that way?

 

[Jfowl31]

I'm sorry to hear about your fire. This one did clean up well, and like you said it has a heck of a story to tell. It's a gorgeous knife.

Just to clarify, the fire was not mine. It was Johnny Two Shoes that went through that. I can't even begin to imagine the devastation. He and I had the pleasure of working a trade here recently and this was one of the knives involved in the deal.