Queen's Bird's Eye Maple

Due to this thread, I've changed my mind,and this is always a good thing:D

Neeman pointed out that the BEM gives the knife a slimmer handle.This is very true, I have 2 Teardrop Liner Locks one in Amber Bone and the other in BEM. The former is considerably bulkier in the handle, I like the bone very much and have used the knife regularly but I've neglected the BEM.

Initially I disliked the colour,thought it odd but now I look on it differently.It is true that the BEM knife was not as well finished as its bone counterpart. For one, the nail nick is absurdly low making opening tricky, it came with a nasty ding in the edge (reputable dealer blah blah) and the shield is poorly mounted,partly proud,partly sunk and a trace of glue....This caused me to neglect the knife, until the other night.

Out it came and apart from that irritating shield (am I the only one who thinks coin shaped shields are inferior to other shapes??)the overall finish on the handles is excellent QC certainly plate their bolsters to a higher degree than CASE. The pins are completely smooth and the wood is unusual but now I feel that's a good thing. It is certainly very well treated as it's hard and scratch resistant.It has also proved to be shrink and warp proof in this very dry environment.Other wooden knives I've had have suffered,not this. I prefer the brushed effect on the D2 with BEM as the polished finish on the bone handles always looks orange peel/steel cellulite:eek: Slaving away on the Sharpmaker for almost an hour... got a decent edge on it and removed the hideous chip on the edge. A very nice slicer that's been in my pocket a couple of days and helped me with tonight's supper.cheese,apple,grapes and raspberries.

The Teardrop pattern is one of my favourites and now thanks to this thread I've got a 'new' knife that has come in from the cold.
 
kidwholaughs said:
Awesome, how would you guys rate F&F and Walk and Talk of the Queen knives vs. Case knives? Thanks

God Bless
Click to expand...

I find Queen to be a significantly better knife.
I have many more Queens than Case

To compare 3 1/4" stockmans:
Case Red bone in CV #6344 CV $42
A simple pocket knife with CV that sharpens easily
Very pink bone dye
Simple jigging
No strong snap

Queen Amber bone in D2 #26 $52
The F&F and the Walk and Talk are a higher quality.
The bone is a much higher quality with a fine finish, almost translucent
The springs are equal and even
The D2 is a much better steel, holds an edge a long time, harder to sharpen at first
The snap open and close is stronger.
The blades are thinner due to the differential grinds
There are swedges and they are sharp
Therefore the blades are longer for the same frame size

Totally worth an extra $10
 
neeman said:
I find Queen to be a significantly better knife.
I have many more Queens than Case

To compare 3 1/4" stockmans:
Case Red bone in CV #6344 CV $42
A simple pocket knife with CV that sharpens easily
Very pink bone dye
Simple jigging
No strong snap

Queen Amber bone in D2 #26 $52
The F&F and the Walk and Talk are a higher quality.
The bone is a much higher quality with a fine finish, almost translucent
The springs are equal and even
The D2 is a much better steel, holds an edge a long time, harder to sharpen at first
The snap open and close is stronger.
The blades are thinner due to the differential grinds
There are swedges and they are sharp
Therefore the blades are longer for the same frame size

Totally worth an extra $10
Click to expand...


Neeman;

Just to add to what you are saying....

I believe that the blade stock is actually thicker on the Queen (on most Queen slipjoints as compared to the same pattern in Case)...as you point out Queen uses asymmetrical grinding on the secondary blades where Case does not, so on a Queen stockman the blades can be thicker stock and still fit compactly in the handle frame.

I also have both knives, in fact I have the Queen in BEM and in ACSB and the Case 6344 in red bone CV and in delrin SS. Both Case examples have very weak snap on all blades.

Another difference is that the Queen knives are more rounded in the handles and bolsters. This is due to the way that Queen forms bolsters the old fashioned way in a half round shape while Case stamps theirs out of flat nickel silver stock. When the knives are final hafted the Case handles are more flat to match the flat bolsters while the Queen handles are more rounded to match the half round bolsters.
 
knifeaholic said:
Neeman;

Just to add to what you are saying....

I believe that the blade stock is actually thicker on the Queen (on most Queen slipjoints as compared to the same pattern in Case)...as you point out Queen uses asymmetrical grinding on the secondary blades where Case does not, so on a Queen stockman the blades can be thicker stock and still fit compactly in the handle frame.

I also have both knives, in fact I have the Queen in BEM and in ACSB and the Case 6344 in red bone CV and in delrin SS. Both Case examples have very weak snap on all blades.

Another difference is that the Queen knives are more rounded in the handles and bolsters. This is due to the way that Queen forms bolsters the old fashioned way in a half round shape while Case stamps theirs out of flat nickel silver stock. When the knives are final hafted the Case handles are more flat to match the flat bolsters while the Queen handles are more rounded to match the half round bolsters.
Click to expand...

The stock on the Case main clip is thicker, but the stock on the Queen secondary blades are thicker than the Case.

I had noticed the differences in the bolsters but had not taken account of it.
now you explain I see the differences!
Thanks! :thumbup:
 
Neeman;

I never knew the actual difference in the bolsters either until I toured the Case factory last fall. They stamp the bolsters out of flat stock the same way and on the same machines that stamp the blades and liners.

The old fashioned way, long used by all knife companies including Case, was to form the bolsters out of nickel silver bar stock with a heavy forging press. In the old days, when the bolster was formed out it would have a projecting lug on the bottom; this lug would fit inot a hole in the liner at the very tip and then the bolster would be hit with another trip hammer that would expand the lug into the hole, affixing the bolster to the liner. Today Case spot-welds the bolster to the liner.

I just got my first GEC knife and I noticed that they use the old process since you can see the extra hole and lug at the tip of the liner. Queen may do it that way as well, I never looked closely at one of theirs.
 
A big thanks to everyone, esp. neeman knifaholic and wilgoy. I am learning a lot from this thread. I have knew all these differences existed untill y'all pointed them out.

God Bless
 
I have a BEM Mountain Man lockback and like it very much. F&F, top-notch materials, very high overall quality, American made... my next folder will likely be a Queen, too. Or maybe a Schatt & Morgan (same factory).
 
kidwholaughs said:
Hey Guys,

I really want a Queen Dogleg jack. However, the current production is in BEM. Can some one tell me how BEM performes as a handle scales, pros and cons? How is it different from bone? Is the wood too soft for handle scales?

All inputs welcome. Thanks

God Bless
Click to expand...

it's my understanding that birds eyes that show up in BEM is caused by a disease in the wood. i've heard from a few people that use woods told me that straight grain maple is stronger than birds eye maple
 
folderfan2093 said:
it's my understanding that birds eyes that show up in BEM is caused by a disease in the wood. i've heard from a few people that use woods told me that straight grain maple is stronger than birds eye maple
Click to expand...

FWIW this is not as I have been led to understand what causes "bird eye maple". As I understand it, the "birds eyes" are the result of the small, "sucker" branches that many sugar maple trees are prone to. The "birds eye" grain structure is the result of such wood being "flat sawed". "Quarter sawing" yields more or less a "fiddle back" grain pattern with the same wood. "Birds eye maple" is not significantly less strong than straight grain maple.

The "disease" that you might be thinking of is the infection that results in "Masur birch". This infection in no way compromises the strength of the wood.

A condition that often does compromise the strength of wood is "spalting", which is another way of saying "rotting". The unpleasant connotations aside, the "spalting" process can make for very "pretty" wood that can be "stabilized" to increase its strength and durability.
 
I wonder if Queen Cutlery does stabilize this BEM because it seems damn hard stuff!
 
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