TC Barlow...would these things bother you or am I being too picky?

pistonsandgears

pistonsandgears

Joined
Aug 12, 2011
Messages
3,084
Just an update: To each their own.
I love the TC Barlows but this particular one just wasn't doing it for me so I sold it and bought another.

First off I would like to say I love the TC barlows I have 4 of them now. Charlie and GEC have done a great job on them.
My most recent addition however has some issues the other 3 do not have and I am just curious if these issues would bother others or if I am just being too picky.

The first issue is the bone covers have a pretty uneven area on one side, which puts kind of a groove in the handle.
TC%20barlow%20handle.jpg


The second issue is the pins, they seem maybe overspun? They are kinda squished out wide on one side and stick out a bit far on the other side. Also the rear pin has some kind of sharp edges on it.
TC%20barlow%20pin%201.jpg

TC%20barlow%20pin%202.jpg
 
Last edited:
Don't see anything wrong with that bone. I personally find it attractive. With regards to the pins, the middle one looks like it could stand to be flattened a bit more. The rear one looks fine. It will smooth out with time, or you could use some fine sandpaper on it. Still, if you send it in to fix one pin you might as well get them both looked at.

Ironically enough that knife is probably more faithful to its origins than most of the examples we've seen posted. Is it perfect? No, but then again the barlow was never known for its spectacular fit and finish.

- Christian
 
For the price paid if your not happy and the seller doesn't want to work things out with you then I'd say 1) send it back for a refund 2) send it to GEC for repair or 3) keep it as is and always hate those things about it. I personally tried to keep a Case with major blade play but every time I opened it I just would be pee'd off all over again so I finally sent it in for repair and I'm much happier now and glad I did.
 
You asked for an opinion and mine is I would be fine with that knife.

I do understand your feelings since you have three better examples.

Maybe make this one your beater?

Idk.
 
I like the slightly irregular bone, it gives the knife more personality IMO. One of my pet peeves about GEC knives are the sunken pins in many of their handles so the heads on your Barlow would make me a happy camper :D

Best regards

Robin
 
Mine has a proud pin.

I don't find flaws to be troublesome like many on this board do. These knives are made by humans. I accept and even like these small imperfections that attest to this.

Also, I admit this is an oft-used (and often debated) argument but these are work knives. The quality of these GECs (even the most flawed) exceed that of those original knives they were based on. There's no way a barlow was scrutinized even 40 years ago like they are now.

I can imagine 40 years from now, cutlery otaku will look at GEC knives and try to replicate them exactly, proud pins, nail breaker pulls, and all.

Not that we should lower the bar but we should approach these things with a little more forgiveness.

Have you ever critiqued a cloud? A tree?
 
I also like the bone, but the pins would bother me too. I would not send it back though, that would take time and money. Just sand the edges down and use it! I usually end up at least slightly modifying most of my knives before I use them:)
 
I see nothing wrong with the cover in your first photo. For my .02¢, the groove gives it a bit of character. Sawcut bone has a very unique look and the covers on that knife look great

As to the pins, you could use the end of a Dremel grinding bit to take down the proud pin and clean of the edges of the flared pin. Use a 1/8" bit. You don't even have to chuck it in a Dremel motor. Use downward pressure and spin it with your thumb and forefinger.

If you don't think you're capable of cleaning up the pins yourself or don't feel comfortable with it, send it to GEC.

Just take a look at this old Case Barlow I have manufactured in 1970. The covers were intentionally fit to the knife as is. It's one of my favoriet knives.

casebarlowredbone4.jpg


Oh, forgot to say that your knife if very nice.
 
If you don't like it then it's not good enough. To me it looks great though. A barlow to me is a working knife and the things you are pointing out add character to my eyes.
 
Coincidentally, I just got the same knife with the same issues, plus an edge nick which will disappear with regular sharpening. The pin and handle irregularities don't really bother me since this knife went straight into my pocket. "Too picky" is so relative. If I was buying it to keep mint and perhaps resell, I would probably be pickier.
 
I think the bone is fine, its part of the style to be a little irregular. I wouldn't be bothered by the pins, but I can understand if it is annoying for you - as we all have pet annoyance - mine is gaps in the liners, doesn't affect the function, but I just can't stand it.
 
One thing I noticed about the wood covers as opposed to the bone covers on the TC Barlows, is that the pins are flush if not completely smooth agains the wood while the pins on the bone covers are more proud. I also noticed that on some of the bone covers there is that sharp lip on the pin, but I believe that this will smooth out over time (already started to smooth out on mine). I kind of prefer the ebony wood covers for this reason although the proud pins and sharp edged pins on the bone do not deter me from them. Like others, I find that these slight imperfections give good character and add to the tradition of these knives.
 
Modoc ED said:
I see nothing wrong with the cover in your first photo. For my .02¢, the groove gives it a bit of character. Sawcut bone has a very unique look and the covers on that knife look great

As to the pins, you could use the end of a Dremel grinding bit to take down the proud pin and clean of the edges of the flared pin. Use a 1/8" bit. You don't even have to chuck it in a Dremel motor. Use downward pressure and spin it with your thumb and forefinger.

If you don't think you're capable of cleaning up the pins yourself or don't feel comfortable with it, send it to GEC.

Just take a look at this old Case Barlow I have manufactured in 1970. The covers were intentionally fit to the knife as is. It's one of my favoriet knives.

casebarlowredbone4.jpg


Oh, forgot to say that your knife if very nice.
Click to expand...

I think it's a nice knife too!
(But I would say that, wouldn't I:D)

Here's a little history from the design phase of these Barlows. Of course you would expect me to defend them, and GEC, but what I am going to say goes outside that!
The design was a year or so in the making - first speculation, then banter, and finally nitty-gritty, nose-to-the-grindstone study and finalizing of the design.
My idea of a Barlow is a simple, somewhat crude knife, very useful, and replaceable! Like the original spirit of the design. I even tried to get GEC to use up the "marrow" bone like the second picture of Ed's knife above - they have quite a bit of it, as you can imagine.
Old cutleries found it the perfect use of less than perfect material, as long as it was reasonably sturdy, and of course functional.
But GEC proposed there would be too many complaints from people who didn't "get it" so we opted for the Sawcut Bone. Sawcut originally was just that, "as it fell off the saw". It was indeed quite irregular, but provided a nice grip. Often a well loved/carried knife would get polished nearly smooth, with only a few furrows left, as seen on the old ones we now collect.
Circular saws are no longer used for that process, so this bone is "planed" with a rough tool, to get the right thickness, and happily, it results in the same appearance as sawcut, and with some irregularity, just as occurred with a circular saw. I like the extra character too. The first Spear blades we did, had too fine a texture on the bone handles, so we cut the second color with a rougher tool, and it was perfect (that is, more imperfect:D), IMO!

The pins - well, if you want them cleaned up, send it in to GEC. However, I have pins with a little "rag" on the edges like that on some of my old Case Tested, and Case XX knives, and I would never touch or change them. I like them just as is.
On my "Old Boily" TC Barlow, I sanded down the pins a little because I carry it, even though they didn't really need it. That crude Barlow in my pocket carries and "uses" like a custom knife!!
 
Modoc ED said:
I see nothing wrong with the cover in your first photo. For my .02¢, the groove gives it a bit of character. Sawcut bone has a very unique look and the covers on that knife look great

As to the pins, you could use the end of a Dremel grinding bit to take down the proud pin and clean of the edges of the flared pin. Use a 1/8" bit. You don't even have to chuck it in a Dremel motor. Use downward pressure and spin it with your thumb and forefinger.

If you don't think you're capable of cleaning up the pins yourself or don't feel comfortable with it, send it to GEC.

Just take a look at this old Case Barlow I have manufactured in 1970. The covers were intentionally fit to the knife as is. It's one of my favoriet knives.

casebarlowredbone4.jpg


Oh, forgot to say that your knife if very nice.
Click to expand...


Love the marrow bone!
 
Five of the six pins on my antique amber are proud and slightly domed, and I like it. The mark side one closest to the bolster is still domed,
but the top is dead flush with the surface of the bone cover.

AntiqueAmberBarlow_zpsa27da616.jpg


Because of the sawcut jigging, they can't finish the pins after cover installation like they can with the smooth ebony.
The difference is quite noticeable.

ClipBarlow_zps8e88ad3e.jpg
 
Same with mine Black Mamba. I'd prefer the pins a little proud than having the covers split because someone was a little too forceful seating the pins. These really are gorgeous knives. My biggest problem is deciding which one (or two) to carry! But to the OP, to me it always comes down to will the knife really come back any better? I'm sending one of my ebony TC barlows off because of a split cover, but I'm hesitant to even do that.
 
I have the same amber clip point, in a two blade. Mine has the same dip. I saw it when I first got it, was fine with it, and have been carrying it a little bit. I haven't found any problems with the pins on mine.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top