Old farts and friction folders.

scrteened porch said:
I've forgotten what that pattern is called. I believe it was issued to the French navy long ago and Cognet revived it more or less recently.
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Yes, this is the same information I found. It is called Le Montpellier and is available in 2 sizes. This one is the larger one but being just a chunk of horn and a blade on one end makes for an extremely light knife.
 
draggat said:
Haven't been around much lately, but what a great thread! According to @Modoc ED I'm a youngster to most of you here, but an Old Fart to a 15 year old, so Apprentice Old Fart is where I probably stand. Lol!!

Friction folders, aka the knife with two nails, are some of my favorite designs because of the simplicity and also because it's like holding a piece of living history every time you use one.

Arguably the oldest knife design from France is the Capuchin.



This Spanish version has been in my EDC rotation for a few years now.



This one is possibly my absoute favorite design though
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Those Capuchin are beautiful! I'll be tracking one of those down thanks to your post.:thumbsup:
 
Olive Opinel #8 - Stainless

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Oo La La! Sweet Olive Opinel, Mark!! :thumbsup::cool::cool::thumbsup:
Didn't know you were an old fart, though! ;)

- GT
 
Can't let this thread slip too far!! Although I consider ring lock knives a wobbler, someone did say earlier that if you didn't engage the lock, it was still a friction folder. So here's my Nontron Dragonfly in boxwood. Even though it looks like it could be a bed post it is surprisingly comfortable in hand.

 
I recently acquired a couple new Capuchin's. These hail from a cutlery in Foix, France called Savignac who have been making these kinds of knives for over 100 years. My understanding is that their current designs, while based on the original Capuchin design, are unique, trademarked and paid for by them.

The Le Grat (named for one of the cutlery's ancestors) is probably my new favorite knife. This one is in 14C28 stainless and a solid piece of cow horn tip.







Next to a GEC 15 for size comparison.
 
I like those European, South American friction folders, but never see them for sale on my knife dealers. Where do you all get those beautiful FFs?
 
I purchased all of mine from overseas dealers and manufacturers in France, Spain and Italy. Shipping costs have gone down a bit in the past few years so it's usually not crazy expensive. European knives do tend to be more expensive than American, a higher price generally reflects better fit and finish. Website translators are almost seamless now as well, so it's actually rather easy.

Some of the manufacturers actually make your knives to order and I've even had one send me photos of knife handle blanks so I could choose my favorite before they even made the knife.
 
Rich S said:
I like those European, South American friction folders, but never see them for sale on my knife dealers. Where do you all get those beautiful FFs?
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For a pattada like mine you have to either have a contact on Sardinia (which is how I got this one, with the help of another forum member) or deal directly with the maker (Davide Steri in my case).
 
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