Schrade Old Timer

F

fishbulb

Joined
Sep 18, 2001
Messages
1,196
Does anybody want to see Schrade put bone or wood scales on the carbon steel Old Timer slipjoint series?

I've come very close to purchasing one on several occasions, but I could never get past the Delrin handles.

Even if it required doubling the price, they would still be less expensive than competitive products. I think it would be a winner.

Why do companies insist on pairing carbon steel blades with plastic handles, and stainless blades with natural handles?
 
I think it is because most people who collect knives insist on stainless blades,while people who use them daily prefer carbon steel blades for sharpening ease.
 
I think they mainly do it because the general public is more excepting of stainless steel. The vast majority of America still buys their pocketknives at Walmart, etc..., and would probably scoff at the extra cost.

I, too would like to see Schrade jump into the high-end production slip joint market. Every once and awhile, Schrade puts out a high grade line of knives that proves they can rival anything Queen makes. The Schrade Heritage line of the 80's & New York Knife company Ltd. editions come to mind.

:D:).
 
I would vote for that!
It would also be nice if they
could have bone in a variety
of colors and jigging patterns
like Case.

-Rebus
 
That is often requested over on the Schrade forum. It would be a great idea, not just as a special release, but as a standard item.
Don't let the delrin scare you off. For the money, it is well worth it, like those thermoplastic handled Moras everyone on the outdoor forums talk about. Ugly as sin, but because of performance and price, I'm almost convinced to get one.
 
I like Schrade delrin handles/scales. I don't like bone. Maybe for wood I would pay a little extra. But, delrin is just fine with me.
 
I agree with marty. I actually prefer delrin over bone or wood for a work traditional.
Now if Schrade would make some yellow delrin knives like the Camillus Yello-Jaket line...

Good luck,
Allen.
 
I would relish the opportunity to buy some Old-Timers with jigged bone scales. OldTimers are a great using knife and well worth the money. I would gladly pay extra for the upgrade in scales.
 
I was at Wal-Mart today, and it looked like they carry a Schrade trapper with wood handles, but Schrade+ steel. It wasn't the Ducks Unlimited edition, as this one had nickle silver bolsters and no DU emblem. Too bad about the Schrade+ steel 1095 would have been better. Anyway, it's a start.

They don't use real knives in their display now, only photos, but it sure looked nice. There wasn't a clerk around to show me a real one, however, so I only have the photo to go by.
 
I've been sharpening my knives(trying to sharpen my knives) tonight and I must say that the Shrade OT is the easiest to sharpen and the easiest to maintain of any of my slipjoints. I'm comparing them to Case(true sharp&CV),Camillus(yellowjacket series),and Bulldog carbon blades. The OT came sharper out of the box than any of these knives. I would like to see a variety of handle materal and patterns but not a change in the blade steel. I have a shrade that I have had for over 30 years and the delrin handles are still in real good shape and the knife has been used and abused. Not flashy but still one of the best slipjoint users for the buck. Just my 0.02 worth....


Dean
 
I've had two Old Timers (both Middleman jacks ... one was stolen in college, now I have its replacement). Also, I had an Uncle Henry stockman. No question, the carbon steel in the OT was leaps and bounds and bounds and leaps above the UH's Schrade+ steel. I could never get a satisfactory edge on the UH, so I sold it. It takes about a minute per blade to put a killer edge on the Old Timer! I was really bummed to see Schrade bring out their nice-looking line of Old Timer Classics with the crappy stainless steel. Who do they think we are? Case collectors!? No, I'd actually prefer a nice-looking knife that will also take and hold a cutting edge. Call me lulu, but I actually enjoy USING knives, not just putting them on a shelf.

For a good-looking, reasonably priced slipjoint that has bone handles and quality stainless steel, probably the best bet is a limited edition Buck 301 or 303.
 
I was at Wal-Mart this evening and handle the wooden handle trapper. F/F looked very good,the blades were very sharp,and the walk&talk firm and solid snap open/close. The knife was heavier than the large stockman,a real hand full. It had the Shrade+ on the blade. The price was around $30.00. Over all a nice shrade too bad about the steel... :(



Dean
 
I'll have to throw in with Marty and Allen on the Delrin. Delrin replaces steel in many applications. The plastic gears in many machines are Delrin. They'll last a long time if you don't jam the machine up and strip them out.

Anyway, I've got several Schrade 50T lockback pocket knives. They're good enough knives, but Schrade did a poor job on the lock spring, using two pieces of sheetmetal for the spacer and extending these to serve as springs. Mine broke within a couple of months.

I drilled out the scale rivets and replaced the sheetmetal with a solid piece of steel, drilled into the edge of it, stuck a piece of spring wire in the hole, then reassembled the knife, setting new brass rivets in the Delrin.

Naturally, I didn't get the right gauge of spring wire the first time. Or the second. Altogether, I drilled out these rivets and set new ones three times before I had the tension I wanted, and the Delrin didn't even offer to crack. I've only seen a few knives with any age on them where the bone or wood hasn't cracked around at least one rivet. I've only been carrying this knife about six years, though.

The file and polishing wheel had less effect on the Delrin than on the brass rivets when I finished up. Not counting all the times I slipped off the brass and hit the plastic with the drill and the mototool bit, that's still a lot of abuse for plastic.

I made a couple of quick scans of the worst looking area of the first one of these knives I fixed, but I see I can't attach pictures here.

At any rate, I'm sold on Delrin for durability.

Paul Baker
 
Yes, I would love to see Old Timers with natural scales. Even as a special run, at twice the price, it would be a deal. Camillus should do this too. Maybe their OVB line will have some. Not enough makers are offering carbon steel and natural scales in the same knife. Case does not offer patterns enough with both. A whittler and a congress in CV and bone, that would be nice.
 
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