Lets talk GEC!

EngrSorenson said:
If you could only have one knife (perish the thought), would it be GEC?
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I love my GEC knives, but if forced to pick just one knife, it would not be one of theirs.
I'd pick a knife based on how useful it is, how long it would last, how tough it is, how easy it is to carry, how hard you could use it, and how replaceable it is if anything ever happened to it. So, price factors heavily into my decision.
My choice would be an A. Wright Rosewood Lambsfoot. It aint fancy, but it sure does get the job done.
If forced to keep just one GEC knife, I'd use the same criteria as above and be forced to keep the F&F Bullnose.

 
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I think both sides have merit.
No one is "nuts" for wanting a GEC just as no one is "nuts" for wanting a custom, although I personally don't get the latter.
I'd most likely pick a GEC because that's what I like.
 
Ron Sabbagh said:
If......

One knife: Tony Bose Remington Bullet

Not my pic and I don't own it. But it would be this.

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One GEC

54 Burnt Stag Moose. Not my pic. But I was fortunate enough to grab this knife from Dave ;)

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I could go with that too.... as long as someone else paid for it.
You could buy a TB knife or 2 small rental properties. :D(Not quite, but close.)

Beautiful Stag 54 and still affordable by the average person.
 
It's a tank and very versatile.
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EngrSorenson said:
...If you could only have one knife (perish the thought), would it be GEC? and if so, what pattern would you choose?
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No.

If I could only have one knife it would have to be a Victorinox SAK. First choice would be a Compact; second choice would be a Pioneer.

I love GEC knives, and it would break my heart to have to abandon them. But the humble SAK has saved my bacon on too many occasions to not make it my #1 choice.
 
Ramrodmb said:
No one is "nuts" for wanting a GEC just as no one is "nuts" for wanting a custom, although I personally don't get the latter.
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Agreed, it's all a matter of taste and no one is nuts for wanting what they want. Fifteen years ago I would have been tickled pink with any one of the GEC knives I own. I had no idea where to get a contemporary knife of that quality. But that was then. I now know better. As good as GEC is, they are not the be-all and end-all of knives.
 
kamagong said:
Agreed, it's all a matter of taste and no one is nuts for wanting what they want. Fifteen years ago I would have been tickled pink with any one of the GEC knives I own. I had no idea where to get a contemporary knife of that quality. But that was then. I now know better. As good as GEC is, they are not the be-all and end-all of knives.
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I’m not sure I understand what you mean. Can you explain what it is that you now know better?
 
There's more to slipjoints than GEC. In addition to customs, there are vintage knives as well as knives made from outside the US. With the rise of online commerce, I have access to sources that didn't exist before.

My finest slipjoint is a stag covered beauty made in Japan. When I go camping I have on my belt a Tommi made by a puukkoseppa from Finland. When I finally decide to pull the trigger, I will have a Sardinian resolza made for me. When I was younger I would have had no idea where to get these knives even if I had known they existed. I'm not even taking into account the difficulty in communicating and making payments on a knife across languages and borders.

Coming back to domestic knives, there are production knives every bit the equal of GEC. They're not currently made, but they can be found with a bit of searching. (Just another aspect of the hobby) My Winchester 38081 was constructed better than any GEC whittler, sans sinkholes and with genuine nacre covers.

The more I learn about slipjoints the more I'm reminded of Einstein -

The more I learn, the more I realize how much I don't know.
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Kamagong,
I agree.
I am a big fan of GEC and acknowledge there are other brands and ages of knives that are great products. The use of technology has provided us with the ability to communicate and learn with people and access items we couldn't just 20 years ago. Technology is a....I want to say blessing but I think it's not always. It's a gift to us in leisure and work. I don't recall buying a GEC knife from a brick and mortar store. I've ordered them all on the interweb from a company or individuals. One of my favorite and best made slip joints is a Ohta made in Japan. This would not have been possible without technology.

If I could have only one slip joint knife it would a GEC. Maybe something along the size of a 43 or 71.
 
I loved these responses. I agree GEC isn’t the only good knife manufacturer- I do happen to love that product in the face of useful benchmade knives and similar. Something about the old fashioned style I just love- like a revolver, or hand tied flies, or a boy and his dog at the ol’ swimmin’ hole.

I even see a valid reason why someone would say their one knife would be a utility knife. It’s just interesting to see how GEC stacks up, and the reasons people would choose GEC.

Personally if I could only have one I would probably choose a GEC #35 Churchill. Seriously useful.
 
I would definitely chose a Great Eastern Cutlery. Handmade from basic parts by people who care. Traditional patterns, materials and build. Will absolutely outlast me. Not a steel and synthetic screwed together sandwich built by robots to software encoded standards, and don’t forget the clip, hole or thumb stud designed by marketing MBAs to coordinate with your tactical pants.

That rant felt pretty good…

I like traditional pocket knives and in my opinion no one does them better than Great Eastern Cutlery, especially at their retail price and market value.
 
EngrSorenson said:
I loved these responses. I agree GEC isn’t the only good knife manufacturer- I do happen to love that product in the face of useful benchmade knives and similar. Something about the old fashioned style I just love- like a revolver, or hand tied flies, or a boy and his dog at the ol’ swimmin’ hole.

I even see a valid reason why someone would say their one knife would be a utility knife. It’s just interesting to see how GEC stacks up, and the reasons people would choose GEC.

Personally if I could only have one I would probably choose a GEC #35 Churchill. Seriously useful.
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Is the Churchill a big two blade?
 
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