Northwoods Knives/Dave Shirley Era

Here are some photos of the MSA No. 3 Safety Knife (1905 Pattern) featured in the brochure. Even though the design dates all the way back to 1902, I find the mechanism to be ingenious, and something that holds up to this day. This one is the only knife in the brochure that isn't specifically branded as a Northwoods -- but, Dave Shirley was licensed to produce Marble's folding knives at the time, and included it in the mix.

IXGdvS8.jpg


uZfyOYr.jpg


E4SomXZ.jpg
 
And, here is the Northwoods version of the MSA Safety Knife -- issued as Scagel Series #10. It's a bit of a stretch to connect the dots to Scagel, but the Knife World ad below gives it a shot. ;)

X1SSlwH.jpg


C5TaT18.jpg
 
JW225 said:
Here is a small stag lockback. My hunch is that this one is a very early Northwoods, as it incorporates an oval shield similar to the shields on the MSA slipjoints offered by Dave Shirley/Marbles in the early 2000's -- so, perhaps this one was produced during the transition from MSA to Dave Shirley's own Northwoods brand. Despite its small stature, this is a very handy knife, and the design of the handle makes for a very comfortable grip. I have only ever seen a couple of these -- I know that Will Power Will Power has a similar Queen version of this knife, so it would appear that Queen had a hand in its production...

LSpYhkS.jpg
Click to expand...

Where does a guy go from here?

Absolutely stunning 🥰
 
JW225 said:
This is a Moose pattern made by GEC on its 54 frame that was dubbed the "Gladiator." It was released in 2010, and may have been the last Northwoods model produced for Dave Shirley. Roughly 100 of these were made, all in stag covers. And, in a move likely never to be repeated, GEC actually made these Scagel-style blades in a super steel -- S60V. Three prototypes were done in Buffalo Bone, although no covers other than stag ever went into production. I am told that this particular knife was on display in Dave Shirley's office. Whether that is actually true or not, I have no way of knowing -- but, I like to think so. :) If anyone out there has a stag version of the Gladiator, please share! 👍

YLVuSTm.jpg
Click to expand...

After a long search, I finally crossed paths with one of the stag production models of the Gladiator. As previously mentioned, I think that this may well have been the last production run of the Dave Shirley Northwoods era...

D0oPPh6.jpg
 
IMG_8112.jpegIMG_8107.jpegIMG_8109.jpeg

I have always wanted to try one of these, and it definitely lives up to my expectations. Great Stag, not thick and well hafted. Nice strong pull and centered blade. This was from the 15th Series which would be after 2008. Does anyone know more about the Series 15 knives? My understanding is that the large majority of the Shirley Northwoods were made by Queen, but I remember reading that some were made by GEC toward the end.
 
Leslie Tomville said:
View attachment 2998668View attachment 2998669View attachment 2998670

I have always wanted to try one of these, and it definitely lives up to my expectations. Great Stag, not thick and well hafted. Nice strong pull and centered blade. This was from the 15th Series which would be after 2008. Does anyone know more about the Series 15 knives? My understanding is that the large majority of the Shirley Northwoods were made by Queen, but I remember reading that some were made by GEC toward the end.
Click to expand...
I Have a Gec made scagel fruitport . It’s on the 48 frame . Came with a single clip or wharncliffe . Blade had the hole cut out nick and I believe reground by Bark River . I think they offered smooth bone , stag and maybe ivory . I have a stag clip . Sorry !
I haven’t taken the time to figure out how to post photos once the format changed
 
Leslie Tomville said:
View attachment 2998668View attachment 2998669View attachment 2998670

I have always wanted to try one of these, and it definitely lives up to my expectations. Great Stag, not thick and well hafted. Nice strong pull and centered blade. This was from the 15th Series which would be after 2008. Does anyone know more about the Series 15 knives? My understanding is that the large majority of the Shirley Northwoods were made by Queen, but I remember reading that some were made by GEC toward the end.
Click to expand...
Very nice! Series 15 ostensibly had a production run of 100 pieces.
 
JW225 JW225 , that is a great looking 72. My knife must have been one made by Queen. The look between the GEC’s and Queen’s is quite different. That means my knife may be from 2009.
 
Leslie Tomville said:
JW225 JW225 , that is a great looking 72. My knife must have been one made by Queen. The look between the GEC’s and Queen’s is quite different. That means my knife may be from 2009.
Click to expand...
Thanks, LT.

2009 seems a fair bet for the Series 15. As far as I can determine, 2010 was the first year that any Northwoods/Scagel knives were made by GEC, and these models used GEC's own production frames. Of course, if anyone has any different info, let's hear it! :D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top