Schatt & Morgan #69 - Review posted 2/6/15

H

High_Noon

Joined
Nov 14, 2014
Messages
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I appreciate well-made, quality, relatively slim, traditional folders and I have been looking at the limited run Schatt & Morgan #69 Winterbottom, with an ATS-34 Sheepsfoot blade. It looks to be a vey nice traditional folder and I have been seeking another nice sheepsfoot blade knife in a modern steel (rare animals). I have never owned a S&M knife, but I have many traditional knives made by other manufacturers (including GEC, Northwoods, Queen, Case, etc.) Although I'd love to have a custom maker like Davison or Menefee build me a custom, limited funds preclude this option. Does anyone have an opinion of this particular knife or know of a review that has been written? In advance I thank you for your comments.
 
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Here's what Mike Latham (Collectorknives) wrote on his website....

"Secondly, the Schatt & Morgan #69 Barlow. These are really nice knives in my opinion. They run the spinner into the bone when doming the pins, but that is really the only negative I saw when you consider recent offerings. A nice knife with good snap and finish; and in 1095...."

Link.....
http://www.collectorknives.net/news/the-loading-dock-a-first-impression-of-new-deliveries/
 
I posted this in the Barlow thread earlier today so I'll just copy & paste it here. The more I fiddle around with mine the more I'm liking it. Going to carry it tomorrow.

"Fit & finish are actually very nice. I don't have much experience with S&M so not sure how it is compared to others but I would put this one right up there with most of what GEC puts out. Most of my GEC's have maybe a little better walk and talk but that is subjective and this one isn't far behind. I also have not flushed the joint out yet which could make it just as good. Just going from half stop to fully open feels a little gritty but I think it will clean out or wear in with time. GEC should hire whoever sharpened this one though as it is sharp as a razor."

IMG_20150123_133115337_zpsdde2f0f4.jpg
IMG_20150123_132919725_zpsigau66js.jpg
 
I liked them so well, I ordered a bunch of them with some cool Northwoods flair.
 
jkulysses said:
I posted this in the Barlow thread earlier today so I'll just copy & paste it here. The more I fiddle around with mine the more I'm liking it. Going to carry it tomorrow.

"Fit & finish are actually very nice. I don't have much experience with S&M so not sure how it is compared to others but I would put this one right up there with most of what GEC puts out.
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Thanks. The S&M #69 does indeed look like a very nice knife. I also looked at the Spear Point (1095) and the Clip Point (ATS-34). It seems that the Spear Point blade sits a bit more "flush" than the Sheepsfoot or the Clip, which I like. The Sheepsfoots blade rides high and I'm not sure if this would annoy me. Although I do like 1095, the ATS-34 models are tempting. Perhaps a Spearpoint is a more useful (all purpose) blade shape. It seems as if old style knives like this one just beg for 1095. I also like the TC Barlows, but they are difficult to find and are considerably more expensive. The S&M #69 certainly seem like a good value. I just need to decide on the Sheepsfoot in ATS-34 or the Spearpoint in 1095. I understand the difference between the two steels. Any opinions on which I should choose?

bdev: thanks for the info.
 
okbohn said:
I liked them so well, I ordered a bunch of them with some cool Northwoods flair.
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Derrick, What is the ETA on the Northwoods S&M #69? Any word on scale material, steel or price, or will I just have to wait it out? BTW, the Indian River Jack I ordered from you several weeks ago has quickly turned into my EDC - thanks!
 
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I guess it depends on what you do with your knives & preference. 99% of the time mine get used for opening packages and mail etc at work and you can't do better than a sheepsfoot/wharncliffe blade for that kind of stuff. I don't really find the sheepsfoot sticking out makes them ride in my watch pocket any different but I know some people say different. I also like to be able to easily pinch a blade open and a high riding sheepsfoot is perfect for that. As nice as ATS34 is I would have preferred the 1095 blade steel or at least a satin finish blade instead of the high polish.
 
High_Noon said:
Derrick, I looked at the S&M #69, ATS-34 Sheepsfoot on your website. How do the ones you ordered differ from the standard ones (e.g. Northwoods flair?) I don't see any difference. BTW, I love the Indian River Jack I ordered from you several weeks ago - thanks!
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Oh...this are not the Northwoods ones. I sat down and speced some out with queen at SHOT. We won't see them for a while. :)
 
High_Noon said:
Derrick, What is the ETA on the Northwoods S&M #69? Any word on scale material, steel or price,
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Questions such as these need to be asked outside of the discussion forum. The forum is not a commercial web site. Derrick's response was per the guidelines of the forum.
 
I have the S&M #69 in both a clip blade and spear point and they are pretty nice. Both have a "touch" of side-to side blade wobble, not too bad. One has a slightly "sunken" spring and on the other the blade is not quite centered. In either case I bought these as "users" and the imperfections are minor. Both came very sharp! I would say that they are slightly below GEC, but still worth it.:thumbup:
 
High_Noon said:
Of the two, which do you like better - which do you find yourself using more often?
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I'm a big fan of clip points, so that's the one I reach for more often. BTW the #69 is a very "pocket friendly" size, not too big and not too small with just the right amount of heft. Its a nice EDC size for sure.
 
Perhaps I could order a TC Barlow w/ Blood Red jigged bone & a 1095 Sheepsfoot blade directly from GEC. Can such orders be placed direct from the factory?
 
I don't believe so as the TC Barlows are all special ordered as I understand it. Hence, from GEC's point of view, they are all sold. Check some of the dealers that post here in traditional and you should find some TC Barlows when a new batch come out. They sell pretty quickly, so you have to make decison.
 
There is just something about a nice Barlow that really appeals to me. Frankly I get a little twinkle in my eye with many slip joints. I still prefer a slightly larger barlow pattern, but not as large as the grand daddy barlows which are huge. I have two of those. Thought I had one, then I was digging around and found another Remington in my knife stash. No telling what might be in there that I haven't layed eyes on in years.
 
neeman said:
I have not purchased a slip joint in a time
Willing to make an acceptation........
Very nice

I have an old inventory end of line
A #69 with red bone handles and a spear main blade
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Please share pictures of that! Sure sounds amazing. :)
 
I went ahead and ordered an S&M #69 with ATS-34 Sheepsfoot blade. This will the first Barlow I've had since I was a kid. Thanks everyone for your input.
 
I received the S&M Barlow #69 w/ ATS-34 sheepsfoot blade and although a nice knife, I was not overly pleased. I purchased the knife in new condition from a well-known knife vendor. The price was decent and the shipping was fast. Additionally, I received a hand-signed note of thanks from the owner, which was a nice touch. It’s nice seeing business owners taking a personal interest in their customers.

Now to the knife. The S&M F&F was good, but definitely a step below GEC quality. The blade was centered well, with no visible gaps, the Winterbottom bone was good and and well matched as far as pattern was concerned, but faint saw marks were visible on the flats - definitely not as nice as the GEC variety of Winterbottom bone. There was no blade play when the blade was open. Walk-and-talk was ok, but not great. The half-stop was positive and the blade shape was good as well as sharp. The knife was a bit smaller than I expected, but it was slimmer than I expected as well, which was nice since I appreciate slim folders. The knife rode unobtrusively in my pocket, but did not carry as unobtrusively as an IRJ. The knife would definitely be suitable for EDC. The S&M initials on the bolster were nicely done as well. What I didn't like about the knife and the reasons I returned it are as follows: The pull was very light - lighter even than my Case Mini Copperlock, which I consider light indeed, 2) the Keystone shield was not properly centered, 3) the spinner was run into the bone when the pins were domed (as noted by others), 4) there was what I consider excessive blade play at half-stop, 5) one of the scales was noticeably thicker than the other and had the faint saw marks on the flats of the Winterbottom bone as mentioned above. For the price, I realize one cannot expect much more, but I expected better from S&M. On a scale of 1-10, I would rate the S&M #69 a 7. Overall, I would say the S&M #69 is a quality made knife, but after owing several GEC knives over the last several years, I have been spoiled with great quality and the S&M #69 simply does not match GEC's incredible quality.
 
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