Schatt and Morgan Heritage series and a couple Queens

Thank you for the apology ~ accepted. But there were never any hard feelings, as the statement wasn't aimed directly at me.
Your experience with Queen has been statistically very different than many other members here, but your opinion on Queen's quality is valid based on your sample group.
However, extreme naivete wasn't involved in my interpretation. The combination of "haters are going to hate" and "many jump on the all Queens come dull bandwagon without ever owning one" projects the idea that poorly ground Queens are slanderous rumor. Most of the negative statements in this forum concerning Queen knives have been from actual purchasers of the knives: this very thread has numerous members commenting on their personal experiences.
 
Gents, we need to take this down a notch. I will admit to also raising an eyebrow at both of Mark's comments. I have been called many things over the years. "Naive" is not generally one of them.

For the record, I am one of those who have posted that Queen knives are famous for their "edges which rival those of a butterknife for sharpness". This is based on my own experience of buying 7 knives made by Queen. It is also based on years of reading posts from people I trust who posted that they have not received Queen knives with sharp edges.

So, all that being said, let us drop that part of the discussion.

I like Queen knives. As with any other knife, the blades can be re-bevelled and will take a good edge. With one exception, the Queen knives I have bought have had excellent fit and finish. The blades all take a good edge and hold it well. In the future, I will doubtless buy more Queen knives.
 
I'll tell you, there are two of those fellas I'd love to get ahold of. 1) The SM Heritage series single blade jack. I love the style and traditional looks of it.....oh yea, the swedge! 2) The Queen DB barlow with the red handle and second blade wharncliffe. Super looking knife!

On a different note...the picture with the 357 mag. I have always liked the feel of that revolver but just couldn't bring myself to get one becuase it says "Lady Smith" on it.
 
Well, now the SM single blade jack has a nice patina on it. It was sitting on the kitchen table and someone spilled flavored water on it. Now it is used and I can carry it without fear. No rust thank God, but a really nice patina. So, I guess you can use Sams Club flavored water to promote a patina too ;). Nommee is the one that did it by the way.
 
kamagong said:
I'm glad I'm not the only one. Reading the comments here I sometimes feel all alone. Queen remains my favorite out of the remaining slipjoint manufacturers. Other than the clip point #72 and single blade #73, GEC doesn't make any knives that appeal to me. The proportions of their knives seem off and don't pass the eye test. Case on the other hand has never interested me. Maybe it's the use of hollow grinds in their knives. Perhaps it's the choice to use Tru-Sharp stainless as their default steel. It might even be the gaudy bone scales. All I know is that apart from the annual Tony Bose collaborations, Case doesn't offer a knife that I want.

I have more Queens than any other slipjoint brands, but all of mine have been fine examples of production slipjoints. Maybe I'm just lucky, but my experience with Queen made knives has been positive. And whenever I think of classic looking slipjoints, the only current manufacturer that comes to mind is Queen.

- Christian
Click to expand...

I don't know how I could have expressed myself better. For the reasons you list, I see little reason to post most of the time as Queens are my favorite at this time. I have a few and a couple were in the near custom range. Gorgeous knives, very reasonably priced. I understand that folks have had bad examples of their work as many have with any maker you can name.

But my overall recent experiences of the last 3 - 5 years puts Queen on top of the mass produced traditional lines for me. I like their designs, their scales, and really, really like D2. It is rust resistant enough for my purposes, and it holds an edge very well. I used 1095 in all my folders for about 40 years in my work and hunting knives and I am no longer a fan. I always thought of it as a serviceable working steel and it still is of course. But for ME, (not trying to offend the legions of 1095 fans here) I like harder more weatherproof steels that are still easy to sharpen. Queen D2 fits that perfectly for me and it confounds me that folks have trouble sharpening it.

The most popular knives on this forum I admire, but not so much when I handle them. I guess at $125 - $150 for some of them, I simply expect too much. They seem to have the same problems as every other maker but the folks here write that off to character. I won't buy a knife I have to rework out of the box. It has taken me some time to get to the point where I am not irritated to the point of not purchasing when a knife comes to me dull. But hard to open, hitting liners, hitting other blades, gaps, and on an on shouldn't happen when you get in their price range.

Still to each his own. The only unacceptable Queen I bought came from a dealer here, and when I let him know he replaced it right away with one that was just about perfect. Plus, I don't think I have ever paid more than $75 for a Queen, not even my Dan Burker Barlow. And as far as their famous (notorious?) edges, I am hitting 50/50 on them being OK, so I am fine with that as long as the rest of the knife is good.

Just my opinion... not trying to ruffle feathers.

Robert
 
I've got Queen knives that I would be very reluctant to part with, much prized: Muskrat, Serp Jack, Teardrop, Heritage Series, HJ.

That said, some others have certainly had unacceptable issues. I'm optimistic that the new direction in ownership will improve consistency, as this is a company with genuine heritage and potential.
 
I can sharpen the heck out of your basic carbon steels and tool steels, and lower end stainless. I think that my hard time with my Queen 11, directly out of the box, is user error somewhat.
 
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