Northfield Lockback Hunter

kamagong

kamagong

Gold Member
Joined
Jan 13, 2001
Messages
10,937
Here's a new one, a Northfield lockback hunter. Build quality is typical GEC, in a word excellent. The burnt stag scales are nicely fitted and very well matched, maybe the best I've ever had in a production knife.

northfieldlockbackhunte.jpg


northfieldlockbackhunte.jpg


I don't know how I feel about the bulbous blade shape. It's visually interesting, there's no denying that. It's just so different from my other knives that I find it weird looking. Hopefully it'll grow on me.

- Christian
 
There's something about the combination of a long pull and swedge on a spear that I find very classical and very pleasing. And with stag, well... :)
 
Fes,

I have no idea what the weight is, but the OAL is a shade under 7".

- Christian
 
i have an ebony one of these. at first i regarded it as a freak.
now i see its functional beauty. it will take a loong time to sharpen that blade away. its future proof.
 
I've been looking at these, on the on line catalog. A Great looking knife from a great company. Congratulations. :thumbup:
 
wow, now i like the looks of this! beautiful and awesome blade shape
just beautiful, looks like a tank of a knife
gene
PS if it doesnt grow on ya i run a home for wayward weird knives:D
 
Let us know what you think about the blade shape after some use. I personally like all the belly you get with a spear blade.

Congrats, its a great looking knife :)
 
Christian, I have a couple of clip blade #72s and they are a couple favorites. I am a member of a different forum and they chose the spear blade #72 as their club knife, normally I never thought about buying a spear, but I went ahead and gave it a try. I like it a lot more than I expected to. The belly definitely gets the most use on this knife, but I cut with the belly on most of my blades. I think it will get the nod as a skinner this hunting season, blade is perfect for it.

I love the stag and long pulls on your knife though, very attractive. :thumbup:
 
Thanks guys. The thing that gives me pause about this knife is how uncommonly wide it is. Here are a couple of pictures of it next to my Hiroaki Ohta knife, which is a similar size to the Northfield apart from the width.

nicestag1.jpg


nicestag2.jpg


Still, I'm astounded by the quality of this knife. Although it isn't at the level of the Ohta, it compares very favorably for ~ 1/4 the price. If GEC had the selection then that they have now I don't know if I would've ever gotten into custom slipjoints.

- Christain
 
Christian, those scales look really something, with a bit of use they'll look even nicer! GEC turn out a quality knife, never been disappointed in the finish of any of mine.

I like the blade shape myself, kind of Spear crossed with a Leaf blade. Great for cutting fruits too:thumbup:

Regards, Will
 
I thought the same thing at first...why put something like a morphed cotton sampler blade on the lock back,but after a little use I echo everyone opinion....wonderful stag by the way
 
Boggs said:
I thought the same thing at first...why put something like a morphed cotton sampler blade on the lock back,but after a little use I echo everyone opinion....wonderful stag by the way
Click to expand...

Interesting that you pointed that out Jim. That's exactly what I thought when I first saw this knife.

- Christian
 
Stunning knife, Christian! I, too, am visually drawn to the blade shape, and have had many large spear masters over the years. They are a workhorse of a knife blade.

What I have found, though, is that they are not very versatile, and not as useful for the mundane light tasks which make up the majority of what I use a pocket knife for. It should be equally at home as a hard, possibly outdoors, worker or in a display case. The matched stag, triple-lined bolster, UN-X-LD shield, long pull and gorgeous swedging make it perhaps the most visually appealing GEC to date. Congrats!
 
Very nice looking #72. I love the scales.

I have four of 'em, and prefer them to the similarly framed #73, but I'm not sure that the spear and Wharncliffe blades are as well suited to the frame as the original low-profile clip point blade, due to the exaggerated width when closed, but that's just me.

Question: I haven't handled the spear version. Does it do the hand-exerciser squeeze like the Wharncliffe version? If you press gently on the closed blade, the Wharnie's tip will eventually hit the lanyard tube; an attribute that I find a little disconcerting, though it's not likely to happen unintentionally.

GEC72WharncliffeBladeSquish.jpg



OTOH, squashing the blade down into the handle only partially allows it to fit into a sheath that would otherwise be too narrow, making it a more compact package to carry.

GEC72Wharncliffe024aJPG.jpg
 
The blade shape isn't my favorite, but the stag and craftsmanship on this knife make it a keeper. I agree with you though that this particular spearpoint is less than ideal on the #72 frame.

I think I want to pick up a #72 in single bladed slipjoint form. Something with a clip point. Those flush tangs are an incredible detail in a production knife.

I just tried the squeeze exercise you described and the blade definitely approaches the lanyard tube. Fortunately it doesn't look like the blade makes contact. I don't know if that will hold true with all the spearpoint lockbacks.

- Christian
 
The slipjoint version of this frame is the #73 Scout. Great knives, but the pulls can be on the stiff side (some of the old ones were real nail-breakers), and you have to watch out for the blade rebounding and allowing the edge to hit the backspring at the rocker pin hump if you let it snap closed under full spring pressure.
 
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