To Take Etch off or To Leave? GEC 25

JerryIsAlive

JerryIsAlive

Joined
Jun 13, 2012
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Just got a new GEC 25 to add to the arsenal. It is an awesome little knife. I just find the etching on the blades to be too big and a bit much. Would you keep them? Would I regret taking them off?



 
I have no way to even guess if You will regret taking them off. I have removed etches from Case, GEC, and other knives before, using different methods. I never regretted it. Bing a carbon steel blade, you could just cut up a bunch of limes, or peel apples and potatoes with it, and the patina will eventually overtake the etch.

PS that IS an awesome little knife! :thumbup: Congrats!
 
Removal of the etch will only affect resale value, as will using it. If you plan to use it and not sell it, then it doesn't matter what you do with the etching. It will eventually wear off or be covered by patina.
 
I would use a little metal polish and take those etchings right off.

But that's just me.

BTW....nice knife!
 
If you are planning to sell or are collecting removing the etch is almost always a bad idea. If it's for your use take it off if you don't like it. Just using the knife will eventually remove the etch either by patina as noted above or rubbing it off.

Edit - oops others beat me to it
 
I don't particularly enjoy even looking at a knife with any writing on the blade. If I plan on it being a user I do what I have to to eliminate the abomination on the blades. If I'm just going to put the knife away for whatever, I don't touch the knife.
If there is 'etching' on the blade it's a borderline non-traditional knife for me. But I do acquire them.
 
jc57 said:
Removal of the etch will only affect resale value, as will using it. If you plan to use it and not sell it, then it doesn't matter what you do with the etching. It will eventually wear off or be covered by patina.
Click to expand...

+1 If its going to be a user I use some flitz to take it off but until the patina develops you can still just barely see it.

I love that knife! Congrats on picking it up the little 25's are awesome knives.
 
Mother's Wheel Polish will safely remove an etching, and Sunshine cloth will do so as well assuming that the etching is an ink etching, which I think it is on the GEC knives.
 
I collect knives of certain patterns from years gone by and finding one with a surviving etch, quite often the only thing which differentiates an SFO from regular production, is a bonus. I actually seek these out to add to my collection. But if I intend to use a knife, the etch means nothing to me as so it didn't to most original owners of knives. We each have to decide for ourselves if a knife is going to be kept as a collectable or put to work as a user. Few knives can be both. If I bought that knife or one of it's ilk and wanted to both use and collect, I would buy two and put one up, use the other.

Camillus c.1938, two examples.
214xc8g.png

axzd4k.jpg
 
Echoing the the others here, if you have it to collect then let it be. If you plan on using it then it doesn't matter since the patina will overtake the etch eventually.
 
Regarding the etch: what everyone else said. How will you enjoy your knife the most, in whatever manner you intend to enjoy it?

No matter what you decide, you sure have a fine knife. Congrats. :thumbup:

... My wharncliffe jack #25 had that etch, and it lasted for all of one initial photoshoot. Not only did I find the etch itself garish, but it was slightly crooked-- having the "underline" not run parallel to the straight edge made me all twitchy.

When new:

IMG_2242.jpg~original


AppleJackFrontII.jpg~original


As you can see, I didn't go after the etch aggressively, so it's still visible as an "after effect" in certain lighting/angle conditions.

IMG_0196.jpg~original


IMG_0187.jpg~original



Or, not. ;)

IMG_0179a.jpg~original


IMG_3883.jpg~original


~ P.
 
Will you be using that knife or putting it up? If it's a user the etch will disappear with time. If it's meant to be a safe queen the removal of the etch will make its condition less than NIB.
 
Thanks for all the opinions. I think I will take off the backside etch and leave the Tidioute etch for now. I will be using this knife.
 
I find some etchings reasonably tasteful but for the most part I think they are garish and usually remove them. The GEC "etchings" seem
to be some kind of paint-like application and are easily removed with a couple of applications of Simichrome. What's left is kind of
a "ghost etch"--visible in certain lights but eventually fades in time.
 
Le Fermier said:
If there is 'etching' on the blade it's a borderline non-traditional knife for me. But I do acquire them.
Click to expand...

OK I understand not liking etches some I do and some I don't. But I have seen them on some old knives and now I am wondering just how far back do they go. Anyone?
 
Back to the early part of the previous century and even earlier. They appear in my 1886 jobber catalogs. And in fact in nearly every catalog after that. If a knife feature dating to 1886 is not traditional, I don't know what is. :)
 
I'm not really a collector, I'm a user. Removing the etch will reduce the value only slightly for most knives. I think the only time it really matters is in 20 years and on a rare knife. I'd rather use the knife. I'd like an etch to stay if I really liked the etch. I've got one of those day's work barlows on the way, and I think the etch is way cool on that one. It'll be a bit of a conundrum for me. I want to keep the etch, but I want to use it..... I like patina too...... What to do!??!?!?!?! Put a little wax on it or let nature take it's course.
 
JerryIsAlive said:
Just got a new GEC 25 to add to the arsenal. It is an awesome little knife. I just find the etching on the blades to be too big and a bit much. Would you keep them? Would I regret taking them off?




I have that same exact knife! However, I did make some changes to make it "mine". I removed the etch, shield and covers, rounded the tang slightly so I could open it, added some filework and mammoth ivory, and VOILA!





Custom work done by Muskrat Man
Click to expand...
 
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