Most Useful Traditional?

[JAB]

I have to vote for the medium stockman (preferably with pen blade in lieu of spey) as well. Also, as much as I love natural handle materials, I'll lean a little more towards synthetics in this instance.

 

[rinos]

most used,
now i need to found same as this just 1/2 inch longer

 

[Rsmith_77]

Wenger Soldier
or two blade jack

 

[Gevonovich]

I will have to go with the Primble Stockman at 4 inches and the Camillus Whittler at 3 & 5/8ths.

I rather like a 4 inch knife for the size of the blades and durability, although the Camillus is very durable and has a very nice assortment of blades.
I like the coping blade for opening blister packs and just its utility. The small clip blade is great for everything else when a small blade is needed. The main blade is quite large for the more diminutive size of the knife compared with the large Stockman.

 

[thawk]

I use a medium jack 3 1/2" with a clip point and pen blade on a regular basis. I carry a Camillus 12. Plain old sleeveboard jack.

 

[Modoc ED]

This #79 GEC Workhorse Whittler which we all know isn't really a whittler in the pure sense of the word is the hardest working traditional type knife I own. These are newish pictures of it. It no longer has the appearance of a new knife but a well used one. I mixed up some JB Weld with the sheepsfoot blade and got it all over the knife while doing so and spreading it with the sheepsfoot blade. Moved on to another project and the JB Weld nearly dried on the knife. Had to use naptha, a single edged razor blade, and a Scotch Brite Pad to get it off. The worst part was getting the JB Weld out of the nail nick and pivot joint of the sheepsfoot blade. Oh well, things happen but everything came out ok so no harm no foul. As I said in another thread a couple weeks ago; this knife isn't meant for small, easy, delicate, jobs but rather heavy commercial use or heavy home shop use. Heck of a knife!!

 

[lobodelanoche]

The knife that gave me the most of your criteria is the Sodbuster,

 

[Doug Add]

Well I'd have to say a SAK I prefer a Fieldmaster or Huntsman.

But that's no fun now, is it? So besides that, I'll go with a medium stockman. Hands down.

That sounds just like my choices.

Victorinox Fieldmaster (to be reshod with nylon handles later this week)

Schrade Walden 832 stockman

 

[Nixelplix]

A stockman (or cattle knife) with a pen blade instead of a spay is IMO the most generally useful knife to have on you. Like a Case 6332/63032 or 6318HE. Second place would go to a wharncliffe trapper or Hawbaker muskrat.

Enter, the Woodsman!

This year's forum knife is a great wharncliffe trapper, too. I don't mind having a spey blade, as I have found them useful in a number of applications. Before I bought the Woodsman, my four bladed Henckels stockman was my edc, with all of its blade-variety goodness!

 

[matt1987]

Buck 301 is the first one to come to mind.

 

[richstag]

My work knife, hands down, is my Sodbuster. This traditional folder has always come to the front and has never let me down. Of all the Sodbusters and Sodbuster-like knives that are out there, my AG Russell Cowboy is my favorite. I don't see this one leaving my pocket. Oh, and this Cowboy wears Red Rucarta. Pix soon.
Rolf

I need to see this Red Rucarta! How could you not like it! All we need next is a green one for your boy

 

[Paradiggum]

For me it's the knife that's comfortable enough for me to actually carry all the time. I have to admit that years of carrying a knife clipped to my pocket leaves me with an aversion to a larger framed knife bouncing around in my pocket. For traditionals it goes from a peanut up to a medium jack for the most comfortable. Nothing larger than a mini trapper or medium stockman.
Luckily that still leaves a lot of knives to choose from. I'm starting to really like the medium coke bottle type jacks. Kind of between the sizes of a peanut and a medium jack.
My main computer is non-functional at the moment, so no pics for the time being.

 

[OzarkCreekWalker]

I've found that the stockman has one too many blades and is uncomfortable, the Trapper is better suited in the outdoors than an EDC role, the peanut is delightful but too small for my hands, sodbusters opinels slimline trappers and lockbacks are close but the absence of a secondary blade is annoying, scout knives are too heavy, canoes are really close but a little too wide,

Like many of you have said, a two blade jack of some sort can't be beat. For me, I would prefer it to be between 3 1/4" and 3 7/8", 3 1/2" being optimal. Easy open would be the best but I don't see those made any more (unless probably by GEC). A good carbon steel barlow would be awesome, but they seem to be becoming extinct, as well as harness jacks and all the other fun patterns.

However, I can't stop carrying my SAK (as unfair as it is). It has two thin blades that are easy to sharpen, an awl, a couple screwdrivers, and a method of attachment. It is a good size for both edc and the outdoors. It is comfortable in both hand and pocket. I can easily change out the scales if they break. If I want to add or subtract a tool, shrink it in size, or get it with aluminum handles, it is available. I can easily replace it if lost. I also won't break down in tears if I do lose it. The are legal and accepted almost everywhere.

The jack is a classic. It was the ideal and preferred tool for many many years and still is to this day for many. But much as i hate to admit it, the SAK has become the modern man's jack knife, IMO.

 

[JAlexander]

For me it's the full-sized trapper with clip and spey blades, followed by a sodbuster or other medium-frame single blade knife. Pictures to follow. Probably.

 

[sitflyer]

My work knife, hands down, is my Sodbuster. This traditional folder has always come to the front and has never let me down. Of all the Sodbusters and Sodbuster-like knives that are out there, my AG Russell Cowboy is my favorite. I don't see this one leaving my pocket. Oh, and this Cowboy wears Red Rucarta. Pix soon.
Rolf

Rolf, You should mail this one to me so I can take pictures of it and post them for you here...yeeeeahhh, I'll just take pictures...

 

[knarfeng]

From the standpoint of utility, versatility and durability, what is your favorite traditional knife?

I'm looking to hear from people who use their knives. What do you use them for and what is your favorite knife for getting the job done, day in/day out. Key attributes are:
a) Utility - straight forward functionality; the ability to do the job with no hassle or compromise
b) Versatility - the ability to be used effectively for the widest range of cutting tasks
c) Durability - the ability to take the use and abuse without squawking or complaining

This isn't a thread about the prettiest knife you own. Nor the rarest. Nor the most treasured even. It's about the single most useful traditional knife that you own.

Please tell us about the range of things you routinely use your knife for. I suspect many of live in different places, doing different kinds of work and I'm betting that we'll hear very different knife choices because of that.

And of course, no thread counts unless it has pictures.

a) Utility - straight forward functionality; the ability to do the job with no hassle or compromise
Something that takes a keen edge and holds it well.
b) Versatility - the ability to be used effectively for the widest range of cutting tasks
For CUTTING tasks? A stockman pattern because of the range of CUTTING blades.
c) Durability - the ability to take the use and abuse without squawking or complaining
Stainless blades, covers made of synthetic material, rather than bone

As a young man working at everything from truck driving to construction, I carried a Buck 303. It never failed me. YMMV.

 

[orca8589]

Great thread. I started carrying a knife with less than three blades because it's less maintenance intensive. I used to carry a serpentine Stockman all the time, mainly because I often used it for food prep, but it's a bit of work to clean out all the nooks & crannies every time I cut something up with it. My usage was the large clip point blade for utility cutting; a sheepfoot for carving/whittling/packages, etc.; and I used the spay almost exclusively for food prep, but it also works rather nicely for hollowing out the bowl of a wooden spoon, but that dulls it quickly.

I love my babies, but my needs have changed.

Now, these days, it's this GEC #12 Powderhorn. I traded for it, and figured I'd put it up for trade later for another pattern, but it's grown on me. There's something to be said for having a nice "purty" knife like this for Sunday meetings, special occasions, Christmas & birthday package duties, etc. One nice benefit of this one is that I get asked about it often, and I can introduce knives to non-knife-carrying folks in a way that's interesting to them. GEC's way of layering the natural materials veneered under acrylic is genius.

I've also carried my grandfather's old TL-29 a few times over the last several months: the screwdriver comes in handy opening cans, scraping terminals, tweaking spark plug gaps, etc., mainly things I wouldn't want to use a fine-edged blade for.

I just had a conversation with my son about his knife two weeks ago: deciding what he really needs, as one or two blades take less time to sharpen than three or more. I won't let him just sharpen one blade and leave the others dull. We're having some . . . well, some issues on that topic. Patience. 12-year-olds with ADD don't have much of it. Grumpy old dads with ADD have less of it.


~Chris


ps: Elliott and OzarkCreekWalker both make good points. Elliott's point about being able to have a say in what blades your knife has, and how they're shaped, would make all the difference in the world (to me, anyway). And OCW's point about the SAK is good too: there are so many options out there, and you can have one made specifically to your needs.

 

[Lycosa]

Guys! I'll have Red Cowboy pix, asap! Promise!
Yer gonna love these Red Rucarta slippies when they are available!
Rolf

 

[Casares]

medium stockman is my favourite really, something like this one below, which I really like carrying.

http://i36.photobucket.com/albums/e13/twaddly/P1000610.jpg

 

[jth250]

Stockman for me. You can do so much with those 3 different blade shapes.