I just got a Boker 5464 Congress, and am just wondering what the reasoning is on this knife having two identical sheepsfoot blades. Reasons I can think of: one sheepsfoot for food, the other for utility, or maybe one is a "backup" in case other goes dull. I've seen another Congress model (Queen) that has two sheepsfoots and two pen blades. Any thoughts on repeated blades or history of the Congress design would be much appreciated. Sorry if this is a really stupid question.
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stupid question: why to some Congress knives have same blade twice?
- Thread starter kgeter
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First off, WELCOME to bladeforums!
No question is stupid, only the one you don't ask. My guess would be what you have thought also, the Congress is a working knife and doubling up on blade would give you more work time before having to sharpen.
No question is stupid, only the one you don't ask. My guess would be what you have thought also, the Congress is a working knife and doubling up on blade would give you more work time before having to sharpen.
Sorta like the congress in Washinton DC thinks itself to be.
I do have some with four different blades though. I carried a congress knife for years and as the sheepfoot is my favorite everyday cutting tool having two to rely on was nice. I never had much use for the pen blades though they were nice for cleaning your fingernails.
I do have some with four different blades though. I carried a congress knife for years and as the sheepfoot is my favorite everyday cutting tool having two to rely on was nice. I never had much use for the pen blades though they were nice for cleaning your fingernails.
I think most modern congress knives have identical pairs of blades to make them cheaper to make (both for making the blades and for assembly). It's quite rare to find an older congress with this setup (older in this case meaning before about 1920 or so).
I have a number of congress knives from the 1800s and none of them have this setup. If they have two sheepsfoot blades, one will usually be somewhat shorter than the other, and the pen blades will be quite different (often a pen or coping blade plus a file/eraser/nail cleaner blade).
That said, I find that the identical pairs usually work out fine in use - except for when you've been cutting something a bit nasty with one sheepsfoot, and later you want to peel an orange or cut some jerky or some such with the other clean sheepsfoot, but now you can't figure out which one it is. :grumpy:
-- Dwight
I have a number of congress knives from the 1800s and none of them have this setup. If they have two sheepsfoot blades, one will usually be somewhat shorter than the other, and the pen blades will be quite different (often a pen or coping blade plus a file/eraser/nail cleaner blade).
That said, I find that the identical pairs usually work out fine in use - except for when you've been cutting something a bit nasty with one sheepsfoot, and later you want to peel an orange or cut some jerky or some such with the other clean sheepsfoot, but now you can't figure out which one it is. :grumpy:
-- Dwight
Thanks for the responses. I'm brand new to this forum, and what a great forum it is! One could get a PhD in slipjoints by reading this forum topic. I spent most of the day yesterday (when I should have been working 
) playing around with the search tool and found out a bunch about the Congress pattern and lots of general tips and tricks on slipjoints. One thing I've never been privy to is the trick of accelerating the patina. I've been experimenting with sticking my carbon knives in apples and/or vinegar to build up the patina. I might start a thread on what I've learned, though some may think this has been done to death.
) playing around with the search tool and found out a bunch about the Congress pattern and lots of general tips and tricks on slipjoints. One thing I've never been privy to is the trick of accelerating the patina. I've been experimenting with sticking my carbon knives in apples and/or vinegar to build up the patina. I might start a thread on what I've learned, though some may think this has been done to death.
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>>"... the Congress is a working knife and doubling up on blade would give you more work time before having to sharpen."
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Really, a working knife? Hmmm, I never really thought of this model as a "working" knife. I figured it was just for old Southern gents to whittle off a plug of their chaw. Pretty interesting pattern (I especially like Queen's cool 2-blade variation) but it's not a pattern I've ever owned. Too many knives, too few dollars, I reckon!
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Really, a working knife? Hmmm, I never really thought of this model as a "working" knife. I figured it was just for old Southern gents to whittle off a plug of their chaw. Pretty interesting pattern (I especially like Queen's cool 2-blade variation) but it's not a pattern I've ever owned. Too many knives, too few dollars, I reckon!
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Here's all the stuff Abe had in his pockets. The stuff is now in the collection of the Library of Congress.
Thank you for your kindness on this question of mine, Sir. I had no idea such things were on the internet and wouldn't know how to find 'em if I did know it !!!
I was fascinated to see the knife I had heard about well over 50 years ago now. It is just as fascinating to see it is an ivory scaled congress knife. The only thing I had ever learned about it before was it being a five bladed congress pocketknife. To be frank I had my doubts it was a five blade congress as that is such an odd blade number for a congress, but anything is possible.
I was fascinated to see the knife I had heard about well over 50 years ago now. It is just as fascinating to see it is an ivory scaled congress knife. The only thing I had ever learned about it before was it being a five bladed congress pocketknife. To be frank I had my doubts it was a five blade congress as that is such an odd blade number for a congress, but anything is possible.
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I only own one congress patter, but I'd love to have more (anyone have a few that would like a nice home?).
When I carry a slipjoint, the sheepsfoot is the most used blade, and on my congress (an old Boker) I ground different edge angles on the two sheepsfoots. One is a pure slicer, and the other one can chew through just about anything. It's a wonderful knife that I wish I carried more often.
When I carry a slipjoint, the sheepsfoot is the most used blade, and on my congress (an old Boker) I ground different edge angles on the two sheepsfoots. One is a pure slicer, and the other one can chew through just about anything. It's a wonderful knife that I wish I carried more often.
Its to have one when the other gets dull. The congress is (mainly) more of an old southern pattern. They were very popular in the south on tobacco and cotton plantations. They were used in the field to cut samples, plugs of tobacco, and other tasks (around the plantation/farm, etc.). The idea was to have a secondary blade as one blade dulls in the field you have another (back up) before you have to go back and resharpen.
Carbon steel is great, but it of course does not hold an edge like the new higher end steels do. So when you take into account working outside all day you want to have enough "blade edge" to keep working so you do not have to go and resharpen again.
Not that many cutleries made the old congresses. Most of them were in the north of course and would ship them down south. They were not popular north of kentucky and were rarely seen. Abraham Lincoln was one of the few (how many, who knws?) up north who preffered that pattern (I believe his knife is on display in washington dc?).
I have a boker congress in the red jigged bone in carbon that is a great edc. It however has one main blade as a sheepfoot and the other as a spear. The traditional congress though will have two main sheepfoot blades.
Carbon steel is great, but it of course does not hold an edge like the new higher end steels do. So when you take into account working outside all day you want to have enough "blade edge" to keep working so you do not have to go and resharpen again.
Not that many cutleries made the old congresses. Most of them were in the north of course and would ship them down south. They were not popular north of kentucky and were rarely seen. Abraham Lincoln was one of the few (how many, who knws?) up north who preffered that pattern (I believe his knife is on display in washington dc?).
I have a boker congress in the red jigged bone in carbon that is a great edc. It however has one main blade as a sheepfoot and the other as a spear. The traditional congress though will have two main sheepfoot blades.
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mnblade said:
It was actually 6-bladed and marked "WILLIAM GILCHRIST'S CELEBRATED RAZOR STEEL". I have no idea about exactly which blades are in that knife.
mnblade said:
Levine's Guide #4 says this. They were hardly seen outside of the Southeast United States. That's where I found the above information as well.
Im basing that on over 23 years of knife collecting experience and talking to many old timers over the years, knife shows, not too mention manufacturers who have said this also. Some things you can read in books, other things you learn from experience, people, and books
Oh....by the way, I did not say how many, Icould not know that, I was not there
Oh....by the way, I did not say how many, Icould not know that, I was not there
Im basing that on over 23 years of knife collecting experience and talking to many old timers over the years, knife shows, not too mention manufacturers who have said this also. Some things you can read in books, other things you learn from experience, people, and books
Oh....by the way, I did not say "exactly" how many, I could not know that, I was not there
Oh....by the way, I did not say "exactly" how many, I could not know that, I was not there