Picking your favorite pattern

[Old Hunter]

315 Jim, is that third one down a GEC #66 Calf Roper? Nice looking jigged bone. I have one Calf Roper, but in the acrylic, faux-Tortoiseshell, nice size medium. OH

 

[Rsmith_77]

Maaaan that reminds me
I saw a 66 serpentine Jack on the Facebook group
I think im purple sage

Holy moly she's gorgeous

 

[315]

315 Jim, is that third one down a GEC #66 Calf Roper? Nice looking jigged bone. I have one Calf Roper, but in the acrylic, faux-Tortoiseshell, nice size medium. OH

It is a Calf Roper. They are my absolute favorite GEC pattern. I was fortunate enough to grab a few here and there. I think if they ran them again it’d be hard to pick any up. I’ve never been good at getting any of the GEC drops.

 

[Old Hunter]

Jim, those are fine knives! I have been happy with this one, but looking at your group I need one in jigged bone (and I will never try to be a one knife guy - no worries there!) Picture from a year or two ago, but using it because the first Hickory Shad of the season was caught in the Neuse River at New Bern this past week - three weeks earlier than usual. I'm ready now! OH

 

[blackhawk249]

I carried a stockman for a long while but have drifted away from them. The pattern in my pocket for 95% of the time for the last two years had been a muskrat.

The muskrat pattern works very well for my lifestyle in which skinning and cleaning critters/fish is a regular chore. The thin clip blades on a muskrat excel at this and I keep the main clip blade for general utility while the secondary is always razor sharp for whatever might need skinnin’.

My second choice now a days is a trapper or two blade jack of some sort. Trappers work very well for cleaning game and the Spey blade is a great box opener as well.

I love the peanuts and medium jacks but I have to make sure to have a sheath knife around if I carry one as they don’t provide enough handle real estate to make bigger jobs like deer/hogs easy.



Of course I also like most all patterns… I’ve been eyeing some nice solingen made congresses lately…

 

[mrknife]

Thanks

I am noticing another issue. Fear of breaking or losing a nice knife and being unable to replace either due to rarity or cost or a combination of both.

This is the least logical variable but I cannot deny that it exists. Id be horrified if I damaged or lost my new camel bone 15 I just recently acquired in a trade

But talking this out like a knife therapy session is helping me, hope it's not irritating y'all

i figure thats why we are all here. Along time ago, when I had first got more serious into knife collecting and collecting traditionals, i had worked on the same problem. Id be devestated if i lost or damaged a knife I really loved. This is probably one of my favorite pieces in my collection.

A deleted gec 15 with endcap. Not too big/not too small, not too broad not too slim. It essentially set the precedent of my collection. In fact most of my traditional collection share a similar overall design. Single blade clip, with or without end caps (much preferred with) or single blade usually. Many knives have been recommended over time and they have been added when possible, but I have never been able to obtain another one of those clip 15s with end caps. At one point ive even had single sheepsfoot, and spear and foolishly let them go not knowing i could have blade swaps done. Even scored another 15 clip with pen in nifebrite but didnt want to delete it. I had discovered I had another quirk when it came to my collecting. I needed to buy two of something if I really liked it. One mint, and a second perhaps user so I dont mess up the mint.

So, along the ways, friends made on the forums through good natured ribbing and love and admiration for the subject, comes a most tremendous gift, from a well known forum member who is no longer with us, BigBiscuit , RIP . He loved the 15 pattern, he loved working on them, and modifying them.

He had seen my struggle with the concern of losing my favorite knife and using a new knife, that he had gifted me a very similar one, gently used with new ebony scales mod to make the knife fit in the hand better.

When he passed, the knife had such tremendous sentimental value, that I knew I could not carry it for fear of losing such a valuable object.

And so comes this one. From another mutual forum friend, LastRodeo . It was originally a spey tc BigBiscuit had modded into a spear. I swapped the blade for a 15 clip from a rendezvous sfa. Barlows had been another favorite discussion of ours and several members had recommended I try but I had overlooked since they were sans end caps. Werent too keen on these because they didnt have end caps, but Ive seen the error of my ways. I still love my end caps tho.

It is probably one of my favorite grab and goes. It can go just in the pocket, or if im in scrubs, in the slip. Its always within reach.

 

[Lesknife]

Myself I carry more than one knife. I like the utility of a stockman but I also like my modern single blade liner lock, then I have a Buck 110 in my pickup as backup, oh and I also have a 124 and a froe in my camping trunk in the back of my pickup. Lol along with a couple saws and hatchets ya can’t have to many knives or cutting tools !

 

[Rsmith_77]

Lol I am not an overly sentimental guy
And I am not for safe queens ..it's a knife, it's a tool. Use it!

I think if I was able to replace them easily and relatively speaking financially easily

I wouldn't have any of this angst

 

[dsutton24]

In knife collecting you don' pick favorite pattern, favorite pattern picks you.

 

[Rsmith_77]

Myself I carry more than one knife. I like the utility of a stockman but I also like my modern single blade liner lock, then I have a Buck 110 in my pickup as backup, oh and I also have a 124 and a froe in my camping trunk in the back of my pickup. Lol along with a couple saws and hatchets ya can’t have to many knives or cutting tools !

Lol don't get me wrong.
I keep my 12" Ontario in my truck tool box
And a Becker fixed blade in my glove box

A couple hatchets at the house.

Different tools for different jobs. I get that

I've also determined that if I only am carrying one pocket tool/knife whatever...it's a pioneer or Wenger SI

But I often carry a Leatherman for work and for some reason an sak and a Leatherman together feels odd
I know I know ...I'm weird

 

[mrknife]

Lol I am not an overly sentimental guy
And I am not for safe queens ..it's a knife, it's a tool. Use it!

I think if I was able to replace them easily and relatively speaking financially easily

I wouldn't have any of this angst

well thats thing. Sometimes its not. I have not seen another clip 15 with pen in ebony and end caps since 2015. I have seen other 15s from that run. A spear with pen and end cap, etc

 

[JM2]

Myself I carry more than one knife. I like the utility of a stockman but I also like my modern single blade liner lock, then I have a Buck 110 in my pickup as backup, oh and I also have a 124 and a froe in my camping trunk in the back of my pickup. Lol along with a couple saws and hatchets ya can’t have to many knives or cutting tools !

What ya doing packing around a froe? You ever have occasion for making a few emergency split oak shingles?

 

[Lesknife]

What ya doing packing around a froe? You ever have occasion for making a few emergency split oak shingles?

No, I have the Buck 108 froe that doubles as a mechete and I use it to split fire wood out camping. For me I prefer using it rather than a axe or hatchet to split wood and it does a good job on clearing brush.

 

[JM2]

How DO y'all go about picking your favorite pattern

I select the pattern, blade shape and configuration suited best for the task.

I do a very similar thing when I pull out my stockman, but before I open one of the varying blade shapes.

 

[JM2]

No, I have the Buck 108 froe that doubles as a mechete and I use it to split fire wood out camping. For me I prefer using it rather than a axe or hatchet to split wood and it does a good job on clearing brush.

I was unaware of such an item.

 

[Hengelo_77]

I've made a few slipjoints an thought a lot about what would be the perfect slipjoint.
It should be small to medium in size, have a good spear point main, a small coping or warncliff on the same axel for detailed cuts with the point and a medium size big belly blade like a spey with a rounder spine on the other end for food prep.
This will give two work blades that can get dirty and a third exclusively for food.

I have a few challenges ahead of me before I'll take on this challenge. It is something to work towards

 

[GaiusJulius]

You guys touch on a maddening aspect of all of this. Find a pattern that’s theoretically perfect, then find an actual representative knife, spend way too much money on it, then you don’t really want to use it because you’re acutely aware how impossible it is to replace should it be lost or damaged, and also maybe how much it’ll hurt the value should you put honest wear on the thing. I’ve come to the conclusion that we’d all be money and time ahead if we just each found a custom knifemaker and paid him to make us 3 of our ideal knife. But of course, that wouldn’t be nearly as much fun….

 

[JM2]

I’m never of a don’t use it mindset. I came into this world with nothing and I’ll go out the same way; except when I go out I want to leave a heap of worn but not abused knives and guns behind.

 

[christusvictor]

I guess I have developed a particular preference with every aspect of a knife. I am always looking for those particular features, and I judge based on proximity to my ideals.
This Schrade Cut Co. is 'practically perfect in every way.' Grainy wood covers, single blade, sheepsfoot, nail nick, carbon steel, firm pull w/out breaking nails, barehead jack, lightweight, 3 3/8"" closed. It combines all my favorite features with flawless fit and finish.

 

[Rsmith_77]

I guess I have developed a particular preference with every aspect of a knife. I am always looking for those particular features, and I judge based on proximity to my ideals.
This Schrade Cut Co. is 'practically perfect in every way.' Grainy wood covers, single blade, sheepsfoot, nail nick, carbon steel, firm pull w/out breaking nails, barehead jack, lightweight, 3 3/8"" closed. It combines all my favorite features with flawless fit and finish.

View attachment 2039882

That's a big small for me, if you scaled it up to about 3 3/4" - 3 7/8"
It hits alot of my favorite features too