Quality vintage slip joint brands

Ramon.az

Ramon.az

Joined
May 22, 2022
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4
Hello, the title says it all, I'm starting a collection of slip joint knives, especially whittlers, canoes and congress, and I would like to know what are the 60's, 70's and 80's brands that I should look for without breaking the bank. Right now I'm only aware of the fighting rooster and the bulldog's, so I would like to know more about similar or better brands from that period.

Thank you very much for your help!
 
Case knives from that era are on point. There's also hen at rooster, Utica, camillus, Robeson, imperial... I could go on all day, and the guys in the traditional sub WILL. 😉
 
Hi guys, I'm starting to collect slip joint knives, especially whittlers, canoes and congress models, and I would like to know what are the 60's, 70's and 80's brands that I should look for without breaking the bank. Right now I'm only aware of the fighting rooster's and the bulldog's, so I would like to know more about similar or better brands from that period.

Thank you very much for your help!
 
Ulster, Utica, Camillus, Colonial (Colonial were inexpensive but quality knives and blades) Western (Western (Colorado mfg) pocketknives are not common. They were better known for their sheath hunting knives.) Schrade, Forrester, Uncle Henry, Old Timer, Sears (made by several companies, most may be Camillus made) Sears, Montgomery Wards, I'm drawing a blank on the big hardware chain based in MO. it wasn't ACE)
Depending on your budget, Böker Tree Brand, Otter Messer, pretty much any made in Solingen knife, Several of the now defunct old Sheffield brands, @Jack Black is better to give you the Sheffield brands to look for than I am. I get them mixed up.
SHARP (Kmart specific brand made by several companies), Buck 110/112 (during the time period you mention the Buck slipjoints were made by Schrade or Camillus. Schrade made have the Swenden (sp?) key construction. Camillus made have pinned construction.) A.G. Russell? (good knives, but I'm not sure how economical they are) NYKC and Hammer Brand from that period was owned by Imperial- Schrade. The NYKC produced by Schrade were all high-end knives. Some of the Hammer Brand are as well.
Imperial-Schrade did make Hammer Brand a .,. "discount" ... line to complement the shell construction Imperial's. The Imperial's with pinned construction as opposed to shell construction are equal in quality to the comparable Schrade knives.
FWIW the shell construction knives have the same high quality blades as the pinned construction knives, and are plenty tough, tho slightly more apt to develope blade wobble over years of use, as the pivot pin(s) are not supported as well as on the knives with real bolsters,
My understanding is the Queen/Queen City and Schatt & Morgan knives made between 1960 and 1990 are high quality.
Some - but not all - of the no name "USA" and "Made In The USA" "gas station special" knifes are excellent.

I would avoid anything from Frost and Master Cutlery made during that period (if any still exist), and everything with Celluloid covers.
 
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Winchester black box is great pickup for a high quality older knife produced in the 80s.
 
@Ramon.az For you, what does "not breaking the bank" mean? Are you looking for brands priced in line to what you'd pay for Bulldog and Fighting Rooster?
 
PointyThings said:
@Ramon.az For you, what does "not breaking the bank" mean? Are you looking for brands priced in line to what you'd pay for Bulldog and Fighting Rooster?
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Yes, around 100 to 150 bucks but my main concern is to focus on good quality brands with good fit and finish
 
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Also check out vintage Boker for the patterns mentioned. Great stuff to be had in the $40-100 range.
 
Ramon.az said:
Yes, around 100 to 150 bucks but my main concern is to focus on good quality brands with good fit and finish
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Here's are some options, IMO:

US-made: Black box Winchesters, Queen, Schatt & Morgan (Queen), Case Classics (made by Queen) and Case made from 1965 to about 1985 would be most similar to Bulldog and Fighting Rooster in terms of materials and F&F. With a few exceptions, Schrade, Camillus and Buck from this period tended toward synthetic covers and some wood, and not much in the way of whittlers, canoes or congress patterns (though Camillus of this period did make a congress pattern with bone covers near the end)

German knives: Hen & Rooster prior to about 1982 were high quality. After 1983, the quality was still good, but eventually started slipping in the 1990s. Kissing Crane (Robert Klaas) is another German brand that made some nice knives until they ceased production in the late 1980. The brand was sold several times and knives are now made in China with some made in Germany. I think the Chinese knives are made by the US owners of the trademark, while the German-made knives are made by German trademark owners. It's definitely confusing. You also have Eye Brand knives from Germany, still made in Germany.
 
As far as I know, there were no American made knives after 1962 with celluloid covers, but there were many from Germany, and they have become infamous for failure. The first Delrin plastic company was built in 1960, and American knife makers immediately jumped on board. Anytime you buy good knives with 'natural' covers, such as bone, stag (antler), pearl, ivory, etc., you will be paying more. Not that that is bad, but you did mention economy as a virtue. CASE never gave up on bone covers, and nowadays bone is in good supply but you are talking knives made 50 to 30 years ago. You can always message a member here to ask about a particular knife you are interested in. Reading the posts should be a nice multi-thousand hour learning experience. Welcome!
 
tongueriver said:
As far as I know, there were no American made knives after 1962 with celluloid covers, but there were many from Germany, and they have become infamous for failure. The first Delrin plastic company was built in 1960, and American knife makers immediately jumped on board. Anytime you buy good knives with 'natural' covers, such as bone, stag (antler), pearl, ivory, etc., you will be paying more. Not that that is bad, but you did mention economy as a virtue. CASE never gave up on bone covers, and nowadays bone is in good supply but you are talking knives made 50 to 30 years ago. You can always message a member here to ask about a particular knife you are interested in. Reading the posts should be a nice multi-thousand hour learning experience. Welcome!
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There were some black box Winchesters and Case Classics made with celluloid covers. The goldstone and waterfall celluloid covers are particularly prone to outgassing as the celluloid breaks down. Nasty stuff.
 
tongueriver said:
As far as I know, there were no American made knives after 1962 with celluloid covers, but there were many from Germany, and they have become infamous for failure. The first Delrin plastic company was built in 1960, and American knife makers immediately jumped on board. Anytime you buy good knives with 'natural' covers, such as bone, stag (antler), pearl, ivory, etc., you will be paying more. Not that that is bad, but you did mention economy as a virtue. CASE never gave up on bone covers, and nowadays bone is in good supply but you are talking knives made 50 to 30 years ago. You can always message a member here to ask about a particular knife you are interested in. Reading the posts should be a nice multi-thousand hour learning experience. Welcome!
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Queen still used celluloid up into the 2000's, but never on their own stuff. On special orders by customer request, it was still used pretty frequently.
 
Thanks for the celluloid updates/corrections to my post! I have a bunch of the old ones, which I love dearly. One Utica in particular is over 100 years old and still stable.
 
tongueriver said:
Thanks for the celluloid updates/corrections to my post! I have a bunch of the old ones, which I love dearly. One Utica in particular is over 100 years old and still stable.
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I love vintage celluloid knives, but I'm always aware that celluloid can go at any time and store my cell knives accordingly to minimize collateral damage to my other knives. I stay clear of any celluloid knives made after the 1940s, especially those made in the 1980s through the early 2000s. The celluloid manufacturers seem to have forgotten how to make stable celluloid.
 
Thanks for your suggestions, for now I've got my feet wet with a Rough Ryder RR2424 and a Hen & Rooster 344BRPB :), the vintage ones will be for later, maybe...
 
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