Stockman, Barlow, or Sodbuster?

I've been carrying an older small Texas jack.It's a great user knife.The CV blades get razor sharp.
 
MN, that Case Small Texas Jack is just downright purdy! One more for the wish list. Looks like a great EDC setup.

Mummbling.. Yellow handled stockman, amber boned Texas Jack, one hand Razor, Queen Cut........ so many knives so little time and money.
 
Well, I passed up my most recent oppertunity on an affordbale BARLOW, because I just did not care for the design that much. I may still buy it- I'm sort of having remorse for not having one on hand. :(

Stockman (Buck 373) goes with me, nearly everywhere. I love that knife, and the versatility that is offered by the different blades.

I also have a thing for Opinels as well. Nice knives, and the Brivette collar lock is very positive. The knives are cheap, and have their own aesthetic appeal. I persoanlly go for the carbon steel blades, there.
 
mp510 said:
Well, I passed up my most recent oppertunity on an affordbale BARLOW, because I just did not care for the design that much. I may still buy it- I'm sort of having remorse for not having one on hand. :(

Stockman (Buck 373) goes with me, nearly everywhere. I love that knife, and the versatility that is offered by the different blades.

I also have a thing for Opinels as well. Nice knives, and the Brivette collar lock is very positive. The knives are cheap, and have their own aesthetic appeal. I persoanlly go for the carbon steel blades, there.
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The wonderfull thing about the Opinels is they are so easy to customize. The first thing I always do is remove the lock collar, duct tape the blade and metal feral. Sand off the lousy orange finish and reshape the handle any way you want. I use 100 grit sandpaper, finish with 220, then 500. Stain in any color you want.

Yes, I love my Opys.
 
I like the Opinel design, the number 7 size is just right for my hand. I've never had any luck with long thin blades though.
 
My favorite design is and probably always will be the Barlow. It rides will in my pocket and feels great in my hand.

I only have a few (3) in my collection but they get carried as much or more than anything else I own.
 
If I had a wharncliffe blade in a barlow, I might carry it once in a while too! Nice Avatar!!
 
stockman all the way. Only one I have now is the Queen d2 stockman with cocobolo handles, the small one. Backpocket, "friendly", edc.
 
The Old Timer Middleman is my all-time favorite slipjoint. Not too small. Not too heavy. Lots of great blades. Spectacular design elements. I have one tucked away for my upcoming child.
 
With all the talk of Opinels my memory got jogged. About all the jogging I do. When I lived in Portland, OR back in 94-96 Kershaw would have an annual factory sale, sometime before Christmas if I recall. I made it there one year and one of the sweet deals they had going was their version of an Opinel. Instead of the wood handle this one had a colored plastic/polymer handle (in blue or red I think) with ribbed rubber inserts. The inserts sort of saddled the handle to the point the handle color was more like accent striping. These even had a lanyard hole on the end. So you had a synthetic, non-slip, very lightweight version of an Opinel. Being a Kershaw the blade was nice, sharp, and easy to maintain. The best part was that day they were going for $2.50 each. I bought 4 for a total of $10 and being Oregon, no sales tax!

I've since let them end up with family and friends and now have none of my own. I have two regrets. One is that I didn't have and spend the money to buy a few dozen of them. And Two, that I didn't keep some of them for me. At that price and configuration they were perfect for tossing into all kinds of places so you always had a knife around. I wish I could find some more even if I had to pay double at $5.00 each. ;)

I'll have to see if my parents still have the one I gave them. Maybe I can get it back.
 
Buzzbait said:
The Old Timer Middleman is my all-time favorite slipjoint. Not too small. Not too heavy. Lots of great blades. Spectacular design elements. I have one tucked away for my upcoming child.
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They are great knives . I have been taking turns with my 33ot and 34ot alot here lately. The sheepsfoot on the 34ot is pretty big for a knife of it's size.
 
waynorth said:
If I had a wharncliffe blade in a barlow, I might carry it once in a while too! Nice Avatar!!
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Thanks, that's my Beefy Barlow made to my spec's by Gary Crowder. There's one other one floating around out there that one of our fellow forumites had made.

It's a robust little folder made from 1/8" stock and micarta scales, made for hard work.
 
I vote for a Barlow, that's if we're voting.

To me it's the classic slipjoint pattern.
It's as much knife as I need for EDC chores, and it just feels great in the hand.
I love to just fondle one of my Barlows (closed) when I'm on the phone at work or watching the tube at home.
 
cpirtle said:
There's one other one floating around out there that one of our fellow forumites had made.
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Guilty as charged :D

Buckhorn handle and a Barlow blade
Best damned knife that ever was made
I've been working all my life
And all I've got is a Barlow knife

If I had a scolding wife
Tell you what I'd do
Trade her off for a Barlow knife
Paddle my own canoe.

Worked in the cotton mill all my life
Nothin' to show but a Barlow knife.
Barlow knife and a Barlow blade
Best ol' knife that ever was made.
 
WooHoo! Talked to my mother and she still has the Opie styled Kershaw I gave her. She said she'd give it to me when they get back here next year.
 
Mary gave him a bran-new "Barlow" knife worth twelve and a half cents; and the convulsion of delight that swept his system shook him to his foundations. True, the knife would not cut anything, but it was a "sure-enough" Barlow, and there was inconceivable grandeur in that - though where the Western boys ever got the idea that such a weapon could possibly be counterfeited to its injury, is an imposing mystery and will always remain so, perhaps.
- The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

All the stores was along one street. They had white domestic awnings in front, and the country-people hitched their horses to the awning-posts. There was empty dry-goods boxes under the awnings, and loafers roosting on them all day long, whittling them with their Barlow knives; and chawing tobacco, and gaping and yawning and stretching - a mighty ornery lot.
- Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

It seems Mark Twain never mentioned any Stockman, Sodbusters, Trappers or Canoe's, only Barlow's.
 
Well, I s'pose Mr Twain was always spinning tall tales so that's to be expected. Since ole Sam Clements was a pipe smoker I reckon I'll cut him some slack. After all, modern day fiction writers tend to latch on to certain brands to lend some legitimacy to their ramblings. ;)
 
Shady Grove
Now when I was a little boy
I wanted a Barlow knife,
And now I want little Shady Grove
to say she'll be my wife.
A kiss from little Shady Grove
Is as sweet as brandywine,
And there ain't no girl in this whole world
That's prettier than mine.

or on a darker note

Rastus Russell
It was down in a grove off Curlew Creek
Mrs. Brown went out on her porch to weep
Was the Sabbath Day, late July
The day Mrs. Brown was bound to die

Was rumor goin’ round about money hid
Not many believed it but Rastus did
All he had in his hand was a Barlow knife
Yeah, that’s what he used to take the first two lives
 
Well, to the core question here, I've decided that I can't decide. I've carried both a barlow, and a stockman (see the "embarrasing question" thread), and aside from a canoe which I currently prefer, these two are both class "A" EDCs.
 
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