Traditional Folders 101

sabre cat

sabre cat

Joined
Jul 4, 2014
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Hi Everyone,

Not really new to knives but here I am at 58 years of age and I came to the realization that I don't know anything about traditional pocket knives. Most of my knife life has been Buck 112, CRKT, Benchmade, Kershaw and the like. My nails flex and break easy so I keep my nails short and lean towards modern folders. Rarely have I had anything traditional in my pocket.

Recently, my neighbor gave me a couple of inexpensive traditionals. One is something called a congress knife and the other is called a trapper. I am finding that I like the congress and would like to explore the world of traditional pocket knives. The problem is that I don't know jack **** about traditional pocket knives.

What I would like, if possible, is for you fine folks to post some pictures of different styles of folders with a short comment about the knife. What kind of knife, what the different blades are used for, etc, etc. What brands are good and which ones to stay away from would also be helpful plus anything else you feel I should know about.

Like I said I am a complete noob about this stuff. Any assistance you can give would be much appreciated.


Thanks, SC
 
Welcome! If you have trouble with your nails you could look at patterns with easy-open notches or blades raised up enough to allow you to pinch them open. The Great Eastern Cutlery (GEC) Beer Scout is an example of an easy opening pattern. You'll also see people referring to a knife's "pull" which is a rough gage (1-10) of how easy/difficult it is to open the blade or tool. A 5 would be a pretty easy pull while a 9 or 10 might be considered a nail breaker.

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Agreed with knarfeng. That thread has every pattern and option known to man in it.

As far as the nails. I find that case knives have light "pull" (the force required to open the blade) as compared to some of the makers you will see referenced. Maybe you could take a ride to your local case dealer and find a trapper or Congress that favors the light pull side that suits you?
 
I am like you and have very weak finger nails.
Not all Case knives are going to have a pull you can work. It really depends on the pattern just like with other brands. One issue for you is the ones mostly likely to be easy are single blade ones especially ones with the easy open notch. If you can find a local store that sells traditional folders you should give them a try and see what works for you. I don't expect you will find too many dealers that stock GEC's and many knife shops don't stock Case. You can find Case dealers by going to their website.

Pull is also not the only factor in being able to open the knife. How much clearance around the nail nick to the body of the knife also matters. You may also find knives with out a half stop might be easier to open. The half stop makes the blade stop at a 90deg angle to the knife body (half way open).

First thing I do is see what people rate the pull as. 4-5 is worth a try. I would avoid 6 or above unless you can pinch it open. That takes the pressure off your nail and works well.

In a small single blade knife a GEC #18 Coyote is easy to open by pinching the blade.
Coyote.jpg

A Case teardrop single blade is very light in pull. Very easy and is also available in a two blade model but I don't know what the pull is like. I have the single blade one. Its a long thin knife.
MTearDrop-1.jpg

The Case Mini Copperhead is a two blade knife that is easy to open.
copperhead.jpg

Another very nice knife that is two blades that is not hard to open is the GEC #33 Conductor/Dog Paw Cody Retriever
DogPaw.jpg


The GEC #14 Boys knife is not too bad but would be better with an ez open notch. You might look at a #15 instead...
GEC14SWBlue.jpg


The Case Peanut is ok on the main blade and the pen blade is not that high a pull but its so close to the knife you may still have an issue opening it. The mini copperhead is much easier to work as is about the same size.
BluePeanut.jpg


I would avoid the Case Sway Back Gent. The pull is a little harder then all of the above but the nail nick so close to the knife it makes the pull worse. If the knife had a blade that you could pinch to open it would be fine.
CaseSBG.jpg


Sorry I can't help on any 3-4 blade models. I don't own any so have no advice about ones that might work for you.
 
Oh on a follow up note. You should be just fine with any Swiss Army Knife (SAK). So if its more for utility then good looks a multi blade SAK will do you just fine.
 
Sc, I also recommending reading as much as possible. Try hunting for comparison and pic request threads as well.

What will happen is the more you read the more you will want to try different pattarns in hand based on your needs/wants. As you learn your taste will change. Dont be suprised if you have a couple dozen before Christmas. I honestly spent months reading but made the mistake of buying to many to fast. I enjoyed it severely, but wish I had studied more and tamed the wallet and "I'll take it!"

Rough Rider is a good brand to try out new patterns and save money on until you find what you like. Enjoy the learning curve. And welcome
 
Im fairly new to the traditional game as well, but figured out fast what I like. For me its single blades. Dont know why but I just cant seem to get into multi-blades. Maybe its the asymmetry screwing with my OCD. Anyway, heres two of my favorites. Both Böker single blade trappers...one in cocobolo and the other in smooth green bone. F&F is really good for $40 and the C75 steel performs well and sharpens up nicely.

20160727_124549_zpsxoho1ml2.jpg


20160731_085321_zpspd4nypjz_edit_1471129175456_zpsk3rfjyei.jpg
 
Hey, I'm learning stuff already, in just these few post.

FWIW, I own a bunch of SAK Pioneer/Soldiers and do not normally carry them because they are very difficult for me to open. I think my Cadet is easier than the other SAKs I own.

I have been given a Case medium trapper and even it is difficult for me. My budget congress (Trophy Stag?) is kinda fun and I can even pinch one of the blades open.

This is great! Please keep the info coming!
 
If SAKs are hard for you to open you are pretty much limited to easy openers because SAKs are light! I have a GEC 25 easy open that I love, one of my favorite knives, but I will say that I appreciate the easy open notch because it has a strong backspring, I could still manage without it but it's something to consider if you have problems with nail nicks.
 
I'd recommend reading Levine's Guide to Knives and their Values.

Some of the names commonly used today (some posted in this topic) are much newer than the patterns they describe... sometimes the patterns are 100 years older. Some are collector terms. Also companies make up names for marketing purposes. It could be a bit confusing for someone trying to make heads or tails of things.

Here are some old catalog scans showing standard pattern names and blade names.





Here are some scans showing how the knives were made.

 
Something to consider is Bucks slipjoints.301,303 and 302 are worth looking at.

I have read posts where folks say that the pull is to light for their taste.

Also the older Buck slipjoints that were manufactured by Camillus might also work for you.
 
I am not sure if this qualifies as traditional by forum standards, but you need no fingernails at all to open a Case Russlock. It's my go to when I'm doing something where both hands aren't free.

My favorite user GEC Riverboat Gambler clip blade (basically melon tester) has a very nice pull, and should work for you.

My other user is a GEC Eureka Jack, and I would not recommend that for the fingernails. Otherwise it's a great knife though.
8d4fe541b484d4caea092e06f32ead71.jpg


Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk
 
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sabre cat, if you are looking for a traditional knife which is easy to open consider the ...

Buck 301 - Stockman ... (this example has modified blades)


... or a Lock Back - (here are some examples)



all of these are quite easy to open. Good luck and enjoy the search.
 
sabre cat, I was basically in your situation about 2.5 years ago, and I agree with previous posters that advise investing some time in "research". I've gradually learned a LOT about traditional pocket knives (although it's only a "drop in the bucket") by reading here, doing Google searches for specific topics, etc. For example, I Googled "traditional pocket knife patterns" and soon found this site that seems to have some good info but not so much that you get overwhelmed: http://pocketknifecollectibles.com/Pocket_Knife_Design_Shapes.html

Welcome to a fascinating world! :thumbup::D There's enough to learn to keep you busy for the rest of your life if you choose to go that route! :cool:

(This thread is confusing to me! sabre cat asks for advice, and receives it from Sabercat, among others - and the spellchecker changes "sabre cat" to "sable cat"! :confused::eek:)

- GT
 
Sabercat, I am in a similar boat to you, in that I cannot deal well with hard to open traditioanls. My nails are okay, but 30 years of cranking on milling machines and lathes left me with some real ostio arthritis issues. I can deal with SAK's but I have to be careful with others and sometimes I had to do a little tinkering. If you have a very hard to open knife, take a small flat jewelers file, the kind with the cutting teeth on the edge not the flat, and round off the inner corner of the bale tang. This can b e done with the blade open, and you can access that tang corner then. Reshape it and then use folded up fine emory paper oct crocus cloth and Scotchbright to polish it off. It changes things.

Or try to stay with the 300 series U.S. made Bucks like has been said. They usually have very light pulls.

Another approach I've used is, try traditional old style patterns that are NOT American patterns. The French Opinels, Douk-Douk's, German Mecators, Italian Zuava's, Sardinian Resolza's, Japanese Higonokami's, The New Zealand made peasants knife that is a way back friction folder. These knives are easy to deal with if you have nay kind of problem, and a side benefit is, they don't put much of a dent in the wallet. Okay, a resolza may cost a bit, but they are worth it for the artistry the Sardinian makers put in them, since they are made by hand. Almost all of them can be pinched open with no effort.

From top; French Opinel, Japanese Higonokami, Sardinian Resolza,( my personal favorite.)
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The Italian Zuava can be pinched open with ease. A lot of the European knives are this way.
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The Zuava with size comparison to 93mm SAK.
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These knives are some of the most wicked slicers I've ever had. And I've had a lot of knives.
 
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Save yourself a lot of time and money and just get a stockman. Three blades with a clip main, sheepfoot secondary and either a spey or a pen blade for the third. The clip will be long enough for most any task, and with a gentle belly is great for push cutting. The sheepfoot is shorter and stout, great for precision cuts with it's straight edge, also great for opening bubble packed items, cutting cardboard down and for zip ties. The third blade, whether spey or pen, is good for smaller jobs and for scraping, etc. All three blades can have a different sharpening angle to maximize their individual uses. They come in just about any size and price range: these range from 4⅜ down to 3⅜ inches closed, and from $150 down to $10.

FaveStockmenClosed_zpswll8nc4y.jpg~original
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FaveStockmenOpen_zpss1a6u0ya.jpg~original
 
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