Timberline Pilot Survival Knife - Sportsman's Guide

B

Bob W

Joined
Dec 31, 2000
Messages
17,079
I just received one of these today:
http://www.sportsmansguide.com/cb/cb.asp?a=163187
There are no tang stamps and the knife did not include any printed packaging or documentation. Did Camillus ever make a knife like this and how come I can find no info at the Camillus website?

I've e-mailed customer service at Camillus and at The Sportsman's Guide. Hopefully I'll hear something back...

Any info is appreciated,
Bob
 
I've seen this knife at several online sites. All about this price. I'm glad you asked, Bob, I'm curious as well.

So what about the knife? Any good? Tell us about it.

Phil
 
It's dull, the handle feels cheap, and the handle end is rather lightweight as if there's not much of a tang in there. Without any markings whatsoever, for now I'm wanting to confirm the information in the S.G. ad.

It's definitely a mediocre knife, especially compared to the CUDA CQ, or the Timberline Specwar of the same design. I'd say it's a $20-$30 value for $30, whereas the CUDA is a $70+ knife for $30.

I'll have a better opinion of it if either Camillus or S.G. can confirm that is in fact 440C steel and made in the USA by Camillus. I send e-mails to both, but haven't heard anything yet. I'll let you know.

-Bob
 
Dunno, something gives me the feeling that that's a misprint in the header about being made by Camillus, that definately looks like a knife made by Timberline. ** edit** just took a closer look at the whole page, and saw the that it said "Camillus(R) Timberline(R)..." not so sure what to make of it now, but the price is really low for a timberline fixed blade, so maybe it's a little known collaboration?
 
I just received an e-mail from Sportsmans Guide. Customer Service has confirmed with the Producs Department that the knives are made by Camillus, but are unmarked. They say I should be able to get more info from Camillus, otherwise the knife can be returned.

I guess I'll keep it, and print out the e-mail as documentation for my own records. Hopefully I'll get a reply from Camillus with some more info. I was under the impression that Camillus set up and supports this Camillus forum (it's linked from the Camillus website) so maybe someone knowledgable will post here.

My gut suspicion, it was a short-lived collaboration. The end product wasn't very good quality, so Timberline backed out. That's nothing but my own conspiracy theory.

Best Wishes,
Bob
 
Thanks for your comments on the quality of the knife, BobW.

Camillus makes lots and lots of knives for other manufacturers. They've made Bucks in the past. And it depends what kinda agreement they have with the other company, whether or not they are at liberty to admit to making them. You'll notice Remington is very upfront about the Camillus connection. Buck seems to appear not to want to talk about it. That may be the case here. But whoever bought those 'Pilots Knives' to wholesale to other retailers, may have no such restrictions upon him. Just my thoughts on the matter.
Phil
 
maybe someone knowledgable will post here
Click to expand...

Sorry, there's only me! :rolleyes:

My gut suspicion, it was a short-lived collaboration. The end product wasn't very good quality, so Timberline backed out. That's nothing but my own conspiracy theory.
Click to expand...

I can tell you it was not for quality issues. Basically, they were closeouts of overrun blades. Lack of markings were nothing more than not putting any more money into a closeout.
 
Thanks for the info! If the steel is 440C, then it's probably still a fair deal. Otherwise, the knife is a little disappointing, especially sitting next to the CUDA that was the same price. But I guess you can't yell out "SCORE!" at every knife purchase. I gotta go to work for the next day or two, but after I'll do a mini review later on the Camillus closeout knives - I bought one of the $15 Barlows too.

Best Wishes,
Bob
 
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