Rough Rider 1160 Peanut Sized "Armor Hide" Lockback Barlow

cchu518

cchu518

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I have definitely been very lucky in my experience with Rough Riders. All three of the knives pictured are from RR. The knife in center is a Colt branded Peanut. My coworker had told me the story of how his whole family carried knives as they are from the Midwest but when he moved to NYC he stopped even though he appreciated the usefulness of a knife on one's person. So you know what that meant right! I had to get him a NYC friendly knife and decided to gift him my Peanut which was made with impeccable fit and finish.

I decided to not be so stuffy and instead of getting another peanut, I was going to pick up a G10 peanut from Case, I happened to have gazed onto this little guy. It is an Armor Hide lockback from Rough Rider in a Barlow style and runs about 2 3/4" closed more or less. I had thought that most Barlows were quite a handful but this one is tiny as you can see about the size of the Colt Peanut. I quite like it though. The pins are sitting proud of the scales which is not an issue. The Armor Hide is stupendously neat but because the scales have that 3 dimensional texture to it I suppose it was hard for the machines to properly press in the pins. I'll fix that with a punch when I get home.

Nice little edition I hadn't seen the lockback Barlow from Rough Rider before in traditionals so I thought I would share it. The open is significantly less snappy than the Colt Peanut maybe a 4 or 5 so if someone has arthritis and needs an easy opener this one is it. The Colt Peanut was maybe a 6. Grind is totally even, no grittiness in the opening or movement of the blade. The lockback works as it should, no sharp edges on the bolsters or gaps. I'm fearful that the shield may pop off at some point but there is nothing about it to cause this I just think it in the back of my head. It's a nice little knife for $9 though! The Colt was twice that and probably worth much more. The Armor Hide Barlow is probably a $12-$15 knife at best but just a very fun little pocket EDC for daily use. Not nearly as nice as the peanut that I gave away but I couldn't give a gift of a less than stellar example for someone's only EDC.

Some more closeups:







 
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Very nice. I have an armor hide medium stockman from RR, and it has a great look and feel.

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Thanks! I wish Case or someone would steal the idea from RR and create a fun BarNuts series! Shaped like a Barlow with a lockback but size of a Peanut... Basically a copy of this 1160 but with better materials...does that exist? :-)
 
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I've got one of those Armour Barlows and find it a well made and useful small knife, very grippy too!
 
Very cool knives. I too have had a streak of good luck with Rough Rider, mine have all sported excellent fit and finish. They're a good deal, especially considering the price. I think of the Colts as being slightly better quality though, I've seen some scary good Colt knives. Not saying they don't put out lemons, but I've been lucky.
 
Very nice knife, I always hear more good than bad when it comes to RR knives. I've never had a RR but will have to order a couple as many of their designs are very unique and well done.

Thanks for this thread.

Paul
 
Great knives for the money. It feels like the HT has been done right through some of my minor uses. Fit and finish on the ones I've handled and the one that I own is as good as they come with production knives. Some fit and finish is better than my Case knives. Take "China" and the other stamps off and I wouldn't know that it's an imported knife.
 
The last RR I bought was a mini trapper. Terrible gaps in the back springs. Super gritty action out of the box. Dull enough that I could drag it across my finger and not get cut. I've had bad luck with RR for the half dozen or so I've bought.
 
Both the Colt and the RR look like a good knife for the money. Thanks for posting.
 
Rough rider makes a small barlow that IMO is one ofr their best patterns. Here's a pics comparing the Case mini copperhead and a RR peanut. I think they're 3 inches closed.

Best regards

Robin

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MarkPinTx said:
I see your Colt is one of the "Titanium" coated series. What do you make of that coating?
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I think it might be real. There is what I presume to be a Ti nitride coating on the 440a. The same stuff that was on my crkt drifter.

Upon first use the edge on the peanut rolled. Then I reprofiled the Colt to my liking and after another sharpening the edge kept. I was able to whittle the handle of an opinel with the colt and I was surprised that the edge on the main blade was still usable after.

The titanium nitride coating has a slick feel to it and the only thing that I guess it is useful for is in preventing the blade from rusting. But there is a thin coating on the blade for sure.
 
cchu518 said:
I think it might be real. There is what I presume to be a Ti nitride coating on the 440a. The same stuff that was on my crkt drifter.

Upon first use the edge on the peanut rolled. Then I reprofiled the Colt to my liking and after another sharpening the edge kept. I was able to whittle the handle of an opinel with the colt and I was surprised that the edge on the main blade was still usable after.

The titanium nitride coating has a slick feel to it and the only thing that I guess it is useful for is in preventing the blade from rusting. But there is a thin coating on the blade for sure.
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440a is a stainless steel.

Regards

Robin
 
I know! I left it short of saying the coating was gimicky because I liked the knife a lot. Lol.
 
I ended up receiving a RR large Hawkbill in that Armor Hide finish. Really a nice knife. I find myself using it especially in the garden and for opening tough bags. According to the side of the knife box the Armor Hide is suppose to mimic the leather armor worn by ancient samurai. Cool.
-Paul
 
Thanks for the picks Robin. I ordered the small Barlow, two mushroom knives and a Marbles axe. All for $45.00.......couldn't hep myself. :eek:
 
Markesharp said:
Thanks for the picks Robin. I ordered the small Barlow, two mushroom knives and a Marbles axe. All for $45.00.......couldn't hep myself. :eek:
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I think you'll like the small Barlow. The full size barlow (not the grand daddy) is also a great knife.They also make a knife that they call a three blade barlow it's also a great knife, it has three back springs though, so is wide. Here it is.

Best regards

Robin
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