Queen Cutlery Muskrat

I

initb2009

Joined
Jul 7, 2009
Messages
51
Is this a good slip joint knife? Are queen cutlery knives good knives? Does Queen Cutlery offer a lifetime warranty? Are they truely handmade?
 
I really like Queen knives. I find the fit and finish excellent. They do a good job of heat treating the alloys they use (IIRC, they send the D2 out to be heat treated elsewhere. It holds an edge really well.) Their only downside is that their D2 knives are often not very sharp out of the box. Since I reprofile every knife I buy, this is not really an issue for me, but for some folks it is a deal breaker. D2 requires a certain amount of determination on the part of the sharpener. Extra coarse diamond hones are helpful as well.

All traditional knives require a fair amount of hand fitting, but this isn't a custom.
I do not know about their warranty. I've never had to use a warranty on any knife I've ever bought, so it's not important to me and I never check.

There's a Queen thread on the traditional forum right now. You could read that to get other folks' opinions about Queen.
 
knarfeng said:
I really like Queen knives. I find the fit and finish excellent. They do a good job of heat treating the alloys they use (IIRC, they send the D2 out to be heat treated elsewhere. It holds an edge really well.) Their only downside is that their D2 knives are often not very sharp out of the box. Since I reprofile every knife I buy, this is not really an issue for me, but for some folks it is a deal breaker. D2 requires a certain amount of determination on the part of the sharpener. Extra coarse diamond hones are helpful as well.

All traditional knives require a fair amount of hand fitting, but this isn't a custom.
I do not know about their warranty. I've never had to use a warranty on any knife I've ever bought, so it's not important to me and I never check.

There's a Queen thread on the traditional forum right now. You could read that to get other folks' opinions about Queen.
Click to expand...

This is my experience exactly.
 
Is the Queen Muskrat a single spring knife? Does anybody have spine shots or dimensions of thickness?

Regards, W
 
I've had my first queen for around a week or two now. I love it. It's worked it's way up to a tied first place as my favorite knife.
 
I just finished reprofiling a Queen fixed blade in D-2 steel. The guys are right on about not being sharp outta the box. I spent about an hour working the bevels on an 800 grit Japanese water stone just to get the bevels set right, and work out grinding inconsistencies. It's sharp now, and I look forward to using it. I grew up with Queen Knives in my pocket, and I'm 65.
 
knarfeng said:
Their only downside is that their D2 knives are often not very sharp out of the box. Since I reprofile every knife I buy, this is not really an issue for me, but for some folks it is a deal breaker. D2 requires a certain amount of determination on the part of the sharpener. Extra coarse diamond hones are helpful as well.
Click to expand...

I'm having that exact experience now. I have a Ontario Ram's horn made by Queen, Excellent in all respects except that it was not 'knife knut' sharp out of the box. I tried using a Sharpmaker with coarse and fine rods to get it up to snuff; no dice. Now, I'm working away at it with diamond rods. It's getting there.

Apart from that, Queen makes great slippies with excellent craftsmanship.
 
I too agree with everything here. Its a bitch to profile but once you do, its sure to be a favorite. IMHO their honey amber bone stag is custom grade stuff. Oh as far as the Muskrat pattern, just recently started using this pattern. Its become a favorite!:thumbup:
knarfeng said:
I really like Queen knives. I find the fit and finish excellent. They do a good job of heat treating the alloys they use (IIRC, they send the D2 out to be heat treated elsewhere. It holds an edge really well.) Their only downside is that their D2 knives are often not very sharp out of the box. Since I reprofile every knife I buy, this is not really an issue for me, but for some folks it is a deal breaker. D2 requires a certain amount of determination on the part of the sharpener. Extra coarse diamond hones are helpful as well.

All traditional knives require a fair amount of hand fitting, but this isn't a custom.
I do not know about their warranty. I've never had to use a warranty on any knife I've ever bought, so it's not important to me and I never check.

There's a Queen thread on the traditional forum right now. You could read that to get other folks' opinions about Queen.
Click to expand...
 
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I only have the fixed blades but they are some of my favorites. They also needed reprofiling, a diamond hone is the way to go. Once you get them where you want them they will hold a great edge for a long time. Great knives for the price.
 
I love the wood Queen models. The Cocobolo is getting rare, but I'm fine with the Maple too. The Mountain Man lockback models seem to be very well made compared to some of the other models. The D2 works out well, but if you find any of their 420HC, don't bother. At best it's mediocre. Nothing like Buck's version of the steel IMO.

I believe the aluminium folding "dive" knives use this steel, as well as some older runs of Queen. The Honey stag looks very good also. The large 5 1/4th inch ( closed) folding hunter models in one blade, or two blade models are sure a bunch of knife for the money. They seem larger than their 3.5 inch blades really are.
 
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