Moore Maker's 2-spey-blade trapper

mnblade

mnblade

Joined
Feb 7, 2000
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I was glancing at the Moore Maker web site and came across their COWBOY #5202C knife, which is a 4 1/8" trapper with just two spey blades, rather than the usual trapper setup of one clip and one spey. According to the site, "The Cowboy was created specifically for the southwestern cowboy, who tends to use the Spey blade more often than the Master blade. To accomodate this preference we have created a Trapper style knife with 2 Spey blades." I'd never heard this. Anyone know if this is really common, as they claim? I'm not calling bull puckey on the good folks at MM - it's just something that caught my eye.

BTW, they also make a Buckaroo model trapper (#5202-BB) with two clip blades that they claim, "was created specifically for the cattlemen in the northern part of the United States, where the Master blade is more popular than the Spey blade." Both are interesting variations on the traditional trapper.
 
mn,That's the first time I've laid eyes on that one.Perhaps the 'Muskrat" theory,applies......When one blade dulls,you have a second.
Interesting thread :thumbup:
-Vince
 
Does anyone know who is making their better knives?

I know Bear is making their Economy line
 
Neeman, still Queen afaik.
 
I've seen those but never seen the need.

'Course, I'm not a cowboy...
 
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My dad has carried a trapper as long as I can remember. We had land and ran cattle when I was growing up, but not as a full time endeavor. Anyway, now retired, he lives on our ranch and still carries a trapper. Althought only a single observation, I know that he rarely uses the clip blade and vastly prefers (maybe subconciously) the spey blade. He would probably appreciate the two spey blades.

As the spey blade was originally designed as a castration blade, I can see where the reasoning might come (as flawed as it may be) that cowboys use a spey blade more often than others, but my guess is that it is marketing more than anything else (cashing in on the old west mystique).
 
I work part time riding fence lines on a decent size cattle ranch--farm with pigs and I imagine their would be folks that would like the two spey blade model for say nutting multiple hogs, cattle castrations and such.. However, in my personal opinion its much more a marketing ploy than a real cowboy necessity.. Just saying, my .02 cents.
 
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Marketing. Interesting idea (along the lines of a Muskrat, I think), but marketing, nonetheless. The people I knew in the 80's who still did ranching in Montana always had a few Stockman, Trapper, & Scout patterns around. Why would northern cowboys prefer two clips, and southwestern cowboys prefer two spays? :confused: Most folks I knew would have considered the two-spay or two-clip bladed Trapper a gimmick.

Most also carried a fixed-blade too; a Buck 118, Western brand Hunter, or Schrade small Sharpfinger. Usually, the fixed blade only cleaned fish, and occasionally a deer. The pocket knife got 90% of all the 'chore work'.

thx - cpr
 
About all I know about spey versus clip use boils down to individual preference -- there seems about an even 50-50 split of which blade people prefer and most always use for skinning and such like. I've never heard of any sort of regional bias in which blade is used. So yeah, marketing -- hey, the old Remington did this sort of thing extensively (almost all of their "working" knife patterns were pitched at a certain niche market) - so Moore Maker is in good company. I have one of their #5200 trappers and it's a very nice knife. Their sowbelly moose #5204 is quite tempting though -- anybody have one and want to comment about it?
 
The clip blade on my trappers gets used for most general chores, like sharpening pencils and opening packaging and such. I use the spey mostly for food prep, eating, cleaning fish and small critters, etc. Each blade could be used to perform the tasks of the other, but that's the way I prefer to do it. I agree with the two-spey trapper being a marketing ploy, and I don't hold that against Moore Maker. All knife companies, as well as companies that produce other things, do it. It takes successful marketing to have a successful company. Having said that, I probably won't be picking up one of their two-spey trappers.
 
Does not seem like a particularly useful varient of the standard Trapper to me (but then I'm not a professional de-baller!). The spey blade is useful on a Trapper, but there are a lot of things the clip blade does better.

I'll stick with one of each! :thumbup:
 
Carolina River Rat said:
The clip blade on my trappers gets used for most general chores, like sharpening pencils and opening packaging and such. I use the spey mostly for food prep, eating, cleaning fish and small critters, etc. Each blade could be used to perform the tasks of the other, but that's the way I prefer to do it. I agree with the two-spey trapper being a marketing ploy, and I don't hold that against Moore Maker. All knife companies, as well as companies that produce other things, do it. It takes successful marketing to have a successful company. Having said that, I probably won't be picking up one of their two-spey trappers.
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Castatrator Brand of Germany made the Knife for centuries......

Dave Moore of MooreMaker was just supplying his customer's needs.....
 
Moore Maker got their name catering to NW Texas ranchers. Although it is definitely a niche market, I know several ranchers that use these specifically for working cattle. It gives them double the time between sharpening breaks. If you ever get down there (on the hoof end of the castrating business), you are constantly getting the knife kicked out of your hands and knocked into chute panels. Thus, an edge doesn't last as long as you would think. And if you get to "sawing" on that part of a bull (momentarily) they don't seem to want to be your friend; thus razor sharp is a definite plus.

Mike Latham
CollectorKnives.Net
 
d.parker said:
Castatrator Brand of Germany made the Knife for centuries......

Dave Moore of MooreMaker was just supplying his customer's needs.....
Click to expand...

knifeswapper said:
Moore Maker got their name catering to NW Texas ranchers. Although it is definitely a niche market, I know several ranchers that use these specifically for working cattle. It gives them double the time between sharpening breaks. If you ever get down there (on the hoof end of the castrating business), you are constantly getting the knife kicked out of your hands and knocked into chute panels. Thus, an edge doesn't last as long as you would think. And if you get to "sawing" on that part of a bull (momentarily) they don't seem to want to be your friend; thus razor sharp is a definite plus.

Mike Latham
CollectorKnives.Net
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I see. I stand corrected. My comments were in no way a criticism of Moore Maker. I have a couple of their knives and love them both. I still prefer the standard trapper, however, given that I have no bulls in need of castration. Off topic slightly, but has anyone used their moose pattern? I kinda want one of those.
 
been around ranchers long time 3 blade stock most common .until early 50s clip spey punch clip spey roundnose most seen. lateron clip spey pen. or clip spey roundnose most.
 
DennisStrickland said:
been around ranchers long time 3 blade stock most common .until early 50s clip spey punch clip spey roundnose most seen. lateron clip spey pen. or clip spey roundnose most.
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Thanks, DennisStrickland - very cool. Would love to hear more about what ranchers carry/ied and how they use 'em. :)
 
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