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The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is ready to order! See this thread for details: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/bladeforums-2024-traditional-knife.2003187/
Price is $300 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/ - Order as many as you like, we have plenty.
Lets Talk Muskrats!
- Thread starter perchjerk
- Start date
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- May 27, 2009
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- 1,208
So I haven't updated this thread because I've had a few issues with my muskrat. First one that came had blade rub that I couldn't tolerate. Some is ok but this was excessive. Sent it back for a replacement only to find a new issue. 
The spring on the shield side doesn't sit flush when open. It's definitely enough to tell the blade isn't opened properly, especially when compared to the other clip. Now I'm typically not the guy to return anything. I felt pretty bad about the first one. I'm thinking I'm just going to send this one back to Case. It will take much longer to get resolved but ultimately the dealer would have to send it back anyway I guess. Pretty bummed. I've had good luck with case knives but maybe this muskrat just wasn't meant to be...
The spring on the shield side doesn't sit flush when open. It's definitely enough to tell the blade isn't opened properly, especially when compared to the other clip. Now I'm typically not the guy to return anything. I felt pretty bad about the first one. I'm thinking I'm just going to send this one back to Case. It will take much longer to get resolved but ultimately the dealer would have to send it back anyway I guess. Pretty bummed. I've had good luck with case knives but maybe this muskrat just wasn't meant to be...
herisson
Apple slicing rocking chair dweller
- Joined
- Mar 11, 2013
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The A.G. Russell Reverse Congress Muskrat with hard pear scales has arrived today ! Amazing service by A.G. Russell as always and as always, too, an amazing knife at an amazing price... Tomorrow is photoday and I will provide you with some pictures of this purty knife !
- Joined
- Nov 20, 2005
- Messages
- 19,385
I don't believe anyone has mentioned that the Muskrat pattern is designed as a skinner, hence the long thin blades. If you have ever done a lot of muskrat skinning, you need a really sharp knife to do it well and the muskrat pattern is perfect. You have a spare blade to open to skin some more. I have skinned hundreds of muskrats as a kid and believe me, I lusted for a Case Muskrat back then but muskrats only brought about $1.00-$1.50 each then and I couldn't afford one just for skinning. So, I used the clip blade on my case barlow to skin muskrats. I love the pattern. I just have no use for it any more.
- Joined
- Dec 30, 2005
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- 228
Just as 22-rimfire said, if you've ever had a pile of fresh muskrats to skin, you'd come to appreciate blade redundancy real fast. The long thin blade is used for the initial cuts up the rear legs and around the tail and vent. Once opened, the hide is pulled towards the head and off the carcass. The long thin blades are the perfect size and shape for these cuts. Having two identical blades allows the skinner to keep right on skinning when the first blade has dulled by simply folding in the dull blade and opening the other. Once both blades have dulled then it's time for a few swipes on the sharpening stone. It's clearly a knife designed for a very specific task and thus it's name, the Muskrat.
The Muskrat makes so much more sense to me than the Trapper. I never understand what a spey blade has to do with trapping. I don't care for spey blades and I don't care for Trapper knives. I've never owned one.
The Muskrat makes so much more sense to me than the Trapper. I never understand what a spey blade has to do with trapping. I don't care for spey blades and I don't care for Trapper knives. I've never owned one.
- Joined
- Jul 30, 2006
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- 42,306
Will Power
Gold Member
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herisson
Apple slicing rocking chair dweller
- Joined
- Mar 11, 2013
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Me thinks it's a great idea to have two blades of a shape you love just to extend the use of the knife at its sharpest : when one blade dulls switch to the other, complete work then sharpen both back to shaving sharp. I love clip/turkish/california points so this design really appeals to me.
- Joined
- Dec 19, 2006
- Messages
- 8,210
There's more than one way to skin a cat... or a muskrat. I actually, prefer a shorter clip blade for skinning instead of a long skinny one. But I use a fixed blade instead of a folding knife. My Case/Bose muskrat knife gets used for every day stuff.
- Joined
- Nov 20, 2005
- Messages
- 19,385
When I was in high school and I went to a private high school with a lot of what I considered rich city kids at the time. We had to do a speech/talk on how to do something..... I chose to tell people how to skin a muskrat. Trust me.... I got a few chuckles, frowns, and so forth over that deal. I could almost do it in my sleep and still can even though I haven't skinned on in 30 years. I remember the smells, the texture, the soft fur, everything.....
Yes, supratentorial, there is almost always more than one way to skin a cat. Will.... I missed your statement in post #20. Back in those days, I didn't own a fixed blade. In fact never acquired one until the late 1980's when all of a sudden I was "into" survival" knives. Carried a Case or Remington (Camillus) folder for years small game and deer hunting. Never really had any problem cleaning the knife after the field chores. Finally since joining BF, I have been acquiring more useful fixed blades.
Stanley Hawbaker and his catalog was important to me as a kid.
Those were really wonderful character building days. Freezing your butt off and walking a trap line before school in the morning was great character building stuff.
Yes, supratentorial, there is almost always more than one way to skin a cat. Will.... I missed your statement in post #20. Back in those days, I didn't own a fixed blade. In fact never acquired one until the late 1980's when all of a sudden I was "into" survival" knives. Carried a Case or Remington (Camillus) folder for years small game and deer hunting. Never really had any problem cleaning the knife after the field chores. Finally since joining BF, I have been acquiring more useful fixed blades.
Stanley Hawbaker and his catalog was important to me as a kid.
Those were really wonderful character building days. Freezing your butt off and walking a trap line before school in the morning was great character building stuff.- Joined
- Dec 30, 2005
- Messages
- 228
AFAustin
Gold Member
- Joined
- Jun 8, 2004
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- 2,488
I'm blown away by some of the beauties already posted and so hesitated to put this modest little number up, but what the heck.... I likewise have never been attracted to the Muskrat pattern, but when this one presented itself at a real bargain price, I took a chance. It's my first Muskrat, a Case in smooth persimmon orange bone. It has a touch of the same proud spring issue as perchjerk's, likewise on the mark side, but is otherwise a nice knife. The blades are centered with no rub, the pull is just right for me at about a 5, and it's very comfortable in hand. I sharpened it up today on my Work Sharp KO and the long thin blades took very nice edges.
I'm thinking it might be a good candidate for a small mod---converting one of the clips to a wharnie---but I'll have to think on that a bit.
Andrew
I'm thinking it might be a good candidate for a small mod---converting one of the clips to a wharnie---but I'll have to think on that a bit.
Andrew
- Joined
- Apr 19, 2005
- Messages
- 5,533
You know I think you almost have to be born into the Muskrat world. That is have role models who carried them and you were inoculated to like them as a child. I have used one for skinning muskrats but they seemed to be no better or worse than other long-thin bladed folders. Just my opinion, likely not worth the pixels its printed with. But as for Frank letting the air out of Vapor, my reply to him is 'it is what it is'. Get back over to the Buck forum and do some searchs of individual models. You may go back 10 years or so because good stuff was written there and here that long ago. 300
herisson
Apple slicing rocking chair dweller
- Joined
- Mar 11, 2013
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- 4,754
Well folks, I made a promise and got sort of delayed out of it, but as I see this thread still has some nerve, I might as well bump it instead of starting a new one...
The A.G. Russell Muskrat seems to be a bit special as it is a Congress frame with two trailer clip blades.... Looked so sweet to me, I had to. While I've been a one blade folder guy for decades this (among others but at the top) has really ticked my boxes. It's been sitting in my pocket for a month now and it's still as delightful to use as on day one. Perfect letter opener, teeth picker, nail cleaner and a surgical scalpel to cut out the stem from the big sweet tomatos I like. Only good things, and it's a pleasure to handle, to open, to close and to look at from time to time... A small pocket knife at its best, I call that.
Enough talk, here come the pictures...
Interesting build as it is a double channel with single spring. Notice the bronze inserts at the bolsters and the polished finish INSIDE ! And A.G Russells's pins to keep the blade from hitting the bottom of the channel. Did I say lovely ?
Both trailing point blades are straight (not crinked or offset, thanks to the double channel) but full flat ground on the inside and partial flat ground on the outside. I don't know why (some meat for the nail nick ?) but it sure shows a lot of thought went into that little knife. Notice also the sharpening choil... Well, that's classy as hell in my book.
Another shot just to show how powerful and elegant this little knife is. Despite the second blade it handles very well and feels like a gunstock handled folder : squarely and securely seated in the palm.
And there's no reason you should be spared the other side...
This last shot shows how cleanly the knife is finished overall : no rub, no wiggle, no awkward spaces. It's clean as it gets.
I just love this little knife and I haven't even one single muskrat to skin. Go figure...
The A.G. Russell Muskrat seems to be a bit special as it is a Congress frame with two trailer clip blades.... Looked so sweet to me, I had to. While I've been a one blade folder guy for decades this (among others but at the top) has really ticked my boxes. It's been sitting in my pocket for a month now and it's still as delightful to use as on day one. Perfect letter opener, teeth picker, nail cleaner and a surgical scalpel to cut out the stem from the big sweet tomatos I like. Only good things, and it's a pleasure to handle, to open, to close and to look at from time to time... A small pocket knife at its best, I call that.
Enough talk, here come the pictures...
Interesting build as it is a double channel with single spring. Notice the bronze inserts at the bolsters and the polished finish INSIDE ! And A.G Russells's pins to keep the blade from hitting the bottom of the channel. Did I say lovely ?
Both trailing point blades are straight (not crinked or offset, thanks to the double channel) but full flat ground on the inside and partial flat ground on the outside. I don't know why (some meat for the nail nick ?) but it sure shows a lot of thought went into that little knife. Notice also the sharpening choil... Well, that's classy as hell in my book.
Another shot just to show how powerful and elegant this little knife is. Despite the second blade it handles very well and feels like a gunstock handled folder : squarely and securely seated in the palm.
And there's no reason you should be spared the other side...
This last shot shows how cleanly the knife is finished overall : no rub, no wiggle, no awkward spaces. It's clean as it gets.
I just love this little knife and I haven't even one single muskrat to skin. Go figure...
herisson
Apple slicing rocking chair dweller
- Joined
- Mar 11, 2013
- Messages
- 4,754
These small trailer point blades are terribly efficient stabbers. The Muskrat is the supreme blister pack killer ! And as soon as I've finished polishing the edges, it will be a razor, too ! (AGR carries this Muskrat in abalone and pearl also, currently. Looks very classy. A perfect gentleman knife, I'd say).
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How well does that 8cr13mov steel from agrussel hold its edge? Ive been tempted to get a knife or 2 but unsure of its ht. To keep this on topic, i have a schrade usa muskrat with its VERY thin blades act like a scalpel when cutting things, i love it. I replaced the delrin with jigged hunter green bone, sanded the blades and springs to 2000 grit for a very fine satin to nearly mirror polish making it look like a much better knife.
Forgot to add, i end up using the muskrat to skin and process squirrels for the pot, for which its blades excel.
Forgot to add, i end up using the muskrat to skin and process squirrels for the pot, for which its blades excel.
Rookie82
Gold Member
- Joined
- Nov 25, 2014
- Messages
- 2,368
I have always found the muskrat really appealing to the eye. It's not my favorite pattern to carry and use, but there are some really nice ones that I have in the collection. This is my favorite muskrat I have. 2015 Tuna Valley with Buffalo Horn handles.
herisson
Apple slicing rocking chair dweller
- Joined
- Mar 11, 2013
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- 4,754
To herektir : I use this little Muskrat for quite light tasks, as described. However, I have some bigger folders by AGR (in 8Cr13Mov, too) and they hold up very well to more brutal requests (Cowboy and Sowbelly, for example). I'd say the performance of this steel by AGR is quite similar to AUS8 (as done by Cold Steel, example, again...). It could hold an edge for a tad less longer but is really easy to get back to shaving sharp. So.....
And, yes, that Tuna Valley Muskrat is a beauty !!! Elegance and efficience combined...
And, yes, that Tuna Valley Muskrat is a beauty !!! Elegance and efficience combined...