Spotless Tidioute/Northfield/Unxld

VictorLouis

VictorLouis

Joined
Mar 6, 2000
Messages
976
I've been gawking here a lot this year. It's one thing I've noted, that most pics of these knives show them immaculate. Is it just because so many here collect and leave 'em in their tubes? Or, are you all simply anal about maintenance, LOL?:D
 
Mine are all purchased to collect. I also suspect that most of other peoples' photos are taken when the knives are recently purchased and haven't been used yet. :)

Want to see a bunch of used GEC photos, check out the For Sale forums. It can be difficult in there to even find a GEC knife that isn't used. :(
 
The phenomenon you've noted is very real. You're not imagining it. It's simple really. You're on a website for knife enthusiasts. Everyone has several knives. I don't know anyone around here who has just one knife that he uses for everything, day in and day out. Even the guy with the most meager of collections has a small rotation of two or three. That mitigates wear and tear a fair bit, and you won't often find old, worn out blades of the type your grandfather carried. If you want to see rusty toothpicks, you'll have to check out EBay or your local junk emporium.

- Christian
 
Pretty much what Christian said. I have dozens of GECs, many of which don't get carried, but quite a few do enough to show it.

BKE_zps769e788f.jpg~original


BulletJackPatina_zpsfa183b58.jpg~original


CubanEDC_zps66afcf06.jpg~original


EurekaEDC_zpsd41f8788.jpg~original
 
My stag Half-Congress and Chestnut jugged bone #25 still look pretty spotless. Only carried the Half-Congress a few times and the #25 for some reason sees very little pocket time. My Ebony Pemberton though has seen quite a bit of use and has a couple of scuffs on the bolsters and a patina on the blade.

Stich2442 - the pic of your White Owl has me looking at that model in an entirely new light. Beautiful looking knife.
 
Most people take pictures when they arrive in new condition and don't update the pictures as the knives are used. As an example;

GEC Harness Jack when it arrived new.

gecnfharnessjackburntst.jpg


Same knife after it had been used for awhile.

gecnfharnessjackburntst.jpg
 
I have quite a few safe queens. However, I tend to reuse the first pictures I take of my EDC's and am too lazy to take fresh pictures:rolleyes:
 
Thanks Halfneck, Sarah's #68 white owl pics got me to look at them. It rides really nice in the pocket, I think it is one of the most aesthetically pleasing Gec knives, but had the worst edge and most uneven grind of any knife I've purchased new, took a while to get it where I like it, now it's a fantastic slicer.

Pete
 
Another factor, age. Great Eastern Cutlery is rather new in business. So you aren't going to find any ancient hand-me-downs that have been passed from generation to generation, the knife grandpa used for thirty years to cut bailing wire for example. The odds of someone sharpening a knife blade into a toothpick in only a couple of years is quite remote.

Due to the price GEC products aren't likely to be used as beaters or hard use knives; most Great Eastern knives aren't purchased by construction laborers, and someone paying GEC prices will almost certainly take better-than-average care of it.

The age of shoppers. How many kids in the age range of 8 to 16 are buying these knives?

Look at the "used" pictures above as an indicator. I see some patinas, faded etchings, and sharpened edges. I don't see any dinged blades, chipped handles, grinder marks, dents on the backspring from someone hammering it...
For comparison, check out the average condition of used Buck knives and Old Timers being sold on eBay. :eek:
 
wOW, lots of fast response, and the cumulative comments all make sense to me. Stich, I see your's ARE being used, showing only the patina. BobW, your summary wraps it up nicely.
 
Bob W said:
Another factor, age. Great Eastern Cutlery is rather new in business. So you aren't going to find any ancient hand-me-downs that have been passed from generation to generation, the knife grandpa used for thirty years to cut bailing wire for example. The odds of someone sharpening a knife blade into a toothpick in only a couple of years is quite remote.

Due to the price GEC products aren't likely to be used as beaters or hard use knives; most Great Eastern knives aren't purchased by construction laborers, and someone paying GEC prices will almost certainly take better-than-average care of it.

The age of shoppers. How many kids in the age range of 8 to 16 are buying these knives?

I am, not all of us are mall ninjas with fully serrated blacked out death machines. :D All kidding aside you're generally right, though there are exceptions. I'm fourteen. :)

Look at the "used" pictures above as an indicator. I see some patinas, faded etchings, and sharpened edges. I don't see any dinged blades, chipped handles, grinder marks, dents on the backspring from someone hammering it...
For comparison, check out the average condition of used Buck knives and Old Timers being sold on eBay. :eek:
Click to expand...

Underlined text is mine. :)
 
Bob W said:
...I also suspect that most of other peoples' photos are taken when the knives are recently purchased and haven't been used yet...
Click to expand...
I believe this is the most likely reason for most of it.

If you read the "what are you carrying" and "did your knife get a workout" threads you'll see plenty that have some patina developing.
 
Bob W said:
Another factor, age. Great Eastern Cutlery is rather new in business. So you aren't going to find any ancient hand-me-downs that have been passed from generation to generation, the knife grandpa used for thirty years to cut bailing wire for example. The odds of someone sharpening a knife blade into a toothpick in only a couple of years is quite remote.

Due to the price GEC products aren't likely to be used as beaters or hard use knives; most Great Eastern knives aren't purchased by construction laborers, and someone paying GEC prices will almost certainly take better-than-average care of it.

The age of shoppers. How many kids in the age range of 8 to 16 are buying these knives?

Look at the "used" pictures above as an indicator. I see some patinas, faded etchings, and sharpened edges. I don't see any dinged blades, chipped handles, grinder marks, dents on the backspring from someone hammering it...
For comparison, check out the average condition of used Buck knives and Old Timers being sold on eBay. :eek:
Click to expand...

My moose was used on many a job site, I know Jeff uses his hounds tooth on job sites and Paul his #15, but it's right tool for the job, I would never take a hammer to the back of a knife, that's what chisels are for, snips are for wire, screwdriver for screws etc. I also would not lend a knife to someone on a job site,

Larry Dablemont wrote a piece entitled, “A Good, Sharp Knife Tells a Lot About an Ozark Man.” He wrote, “A knife was a prized possession in the hills. You could judge a man by his knife. If he wore a large, sheathed knife everywhere he went, he was something of a showoff. If his knife was dull, he was a bit lazy.

If the blades were broken, he was, perhaps, a bit careless. A man who had to borrow a knife wasn’t too wise, and a man who loaned his wasn’t much wiser.”

Also I cracked the scale on my #62 crawling and laying down on a concrete floor doing work, it's the only knife scale I've ever damaged in 36 years of pocket knife carry, kind of bummed me out at first but it's a character mark.
Pete
 
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If I ever post a photo of an immaculate knife, it's because the picture was taken when the knife was new. All of mine get carried & used, and they show it.
 
Near blasphemy not to use them,well my ones anyway.....only one not used is the red #73 because thats my sons knife...it will be a number of years before he can open that bear trap...love it!!!.............FES

 
I still don't own a camera or smartphone so I can't put up pics, but my knives are users, whether inexpensive, basic beechwood handled Opinels or a $130 stag handled Northfield 73. Some get used more than others, but all get used. Some have a deep patina from being used on anything and everything including lots of food prep (no forced patinas though, just natural usage), some have been used lots but, while dull in colour, have no patina due to the types of materials they cut, this being the case with my Opinel #6. But while that Opinel has no deep patina on it's blade, they blade is scratched up, had a tip broken off and only recently sharpened out, handles that I once sanded down to remove the logos are now a greyish tan from dust and dirty sweaty hands.

I have nothing against a knife being kept pristine, but it's not for me. That would mean the knife isn't getting used much, and if it's not getting used much I just can't develop a bond with the knife. That means it's a pretty that gets glanced at once in a while. Pretty girls in make up are alright, but girls that look good without makeup and aren't prissy are where it's at.
 
Bob W said:
Look at the "used" pictures above as an indicator. I see some patinas, faded etchings, and sharpened edges. I don't see any dinged blades, chipped handles, grinder marks, dents on the backspring from someone hammering it...
For comparison, check out the average condition of used Buck knives and Old Timers being sold on eBay. :eek:
Click to expand...

Here you go.


image by Campbellclanman

charlowchip.jpg

image by puukkoman

py77.jpg


- Christian
 
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