Rough Rider & Related Slipjoints

Awww ... come on ... you know you enjoy trimming the rose bushes. :)
Good looking knife. :)
AlwaysTomboy said:
Impulse RR hawkbill buy. No regrets except that now I have no excuse not to trim my rose bushes. :p

It looks wonky as can be closed since the blade that sticks out is wider than the rest of the handle, but it's super easily pinchable, even with gloves on.

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Click to expand...
 
I was bored today so I took a short 40 minute drive to that store on the river in Sevier Co. TN. I was looking for the RR Rams Horn Bone canoe that another member had bought and had shown a pic here, among some other things that are non knife. They were out of it so I bought a 3 1/4 " half whittler or jack in Rams Horn Bone . The handles are well done and there are no gaps between the springs. It has good snap open and close and was sharp out of the box. I like it. I'll try for the canoe another day. There was also a new line of RR knives they call Bolster stripe that look nice.
 
Do some RR patterns tend to have better snap than others?
I just received my third Doctors knife and it has very little snap. (just like the first two)
On the other hand, all of my half Hawks have very good snap.
Coincidence?
 
I'm sure some do. I've never had one but have had some where the reverse was true. Almost had to pry open so tight until worked quite a bit.
 
hughd said:
Do some RR patterns tend to have better snap than others?
I just received my third Doctors knife and it has very little snap. (just like the first two)
On the other hand, all of my half Hawks have very good snap.
Coincidence?
Click to expand...
I've never had a Doctor's knife.
All my Rough Riders, be they a Stockman, Canoe, Sunfish, Barlow, Marlin Spike, Half Hawk, or whatever have always hand great walk and talk.
Have you tried cleaning them? I know sometimes if the pull is hard, (not saying the pull is hard on your knives) it can be lightened by cleaning the joints, and lubing.
I would think the same might improve a blade that is sluggish when closing.
 
Asking for opinions before I pull the trigger on another sowbelly...
Should I go for the Marble's Ram Horn again or maybe a Rough Rider in bone?

I've mostly (aestheticially at least) ruined the one that I was able to keep by not paying attention applying pressure to try and close the liner gaps. Then I tried to fix that by prying them back a little and now my liners look like I drank too much coffee and tried to draw a straight line!

I, eventually, would like to pick up a Case sowbelly but for the price and variety I'm going to try it out from RR. I guess if other folks have had success with the horn handles I may give it another shot since I won't be out too much even if I can't get it resolved next time.

Thanks
 
Neko, I think I'd go with the Rough Rider.
I only have one sowbelly so far, (their 5 blade old yeller, yes. the blades play nicely together), but they do have some good looking standard 3 blades in bone. (that turquoise peak sowbelly looks good, too)
Tough decision though. The Marbles Ram Horn and Stag Bone look mighty fine, too.
I guess as usual, I am of no help.
 
I have a Marbles Rams Horn Sowbelly and it is nice. Kinda wish they had polished the horn. The RR Rams Horn bone actually looks better than the real horn on the Marbles. No sowbelly in those but they have in a small half whittler, canoe, large and regular trapper I think.
 
afishhunter said:
Neko, I think I'd go with the Rough Rider.
I only have one sowbelly so far, (their 5 blade old yeller, yes. the blades play nicely together), but they do have some good looking standard 3 blades in bone. (that turquoise peak sowbelly looks good, too)
Tough decision though. The Marbles Ram Horn and Stag Bone look mighty fine, too.
I guess as usual, I am of no help.
Click to expand...

Yeah I was looking at all of those too.
If I could afford them all...
 
hughd said:
Do some RR patterns tend to have better snap than others?
I just received my third Doctors knife and it has very little snap. (just like the first two)
On the other hand, all of my half Hawks have very good snap.
Coincidence?
Click to expand...

I have definitely experienced some extremes in this area. I have a RR 375 whittler and the main blade is so stiff I can not open it without using a penny or similar to grab the nail mark. My fingernails are not up to the task. On the other hand my RR 106 split-back whittler is quite anemic. Very weak snap and when doing some carving actions the blade doesn't want to stay fully open. I have a RR trapper that is a mix. The spey blade is about ideal, but the clip blade is stiff and the nail mark is a bit shallow making it a challenge to open. With repeated lubrication and use the trapper's clip blade is getting better, though. I really like all three, though, and at the price I'm not going to complain.
 
Yes, it can be translucent, especially in the smoother bits.

SmoothRam48_zpsffd135ab-1_zpsd9e84726.jpg~original


On this Ocoee River saddlehorn, when it transitions from bark to polished near the bolster, it gets quite translucent.
Xmod.jpg~original
 
hughd said:
I have only oiled the tang and joints. Is there a way to "deep" clean that will improve the snap?
Click to expand...
Warm soapy water and a dedicated tooth brush, is what I use.
Open and close the blades a few times with the joints in the water, and scub with the toothbrush and swish each time. Rinse under warm/hot running water.
Dry the knife, then blow out the joints with WD-40 or compressed air, then oil the joints as usual. :)
 
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