Codger_64
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- Oct 8, 2004
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I just received a new U.S. made Sharpfinger clone in the mail, and thought to post a review and side by side comparison of it and the Schrade Sharpfinger.
This knife is one that can now be found in K-Mart and other major retailers, the Outdoor Life FSO152C by United Cutlery Corp., Sevierville, Tennessee. As you can tell by the use of the “152" in the pattern number (the same with the Camillus GP152), there is no attempt to hide the origins of the design, and in fact, like the Camillus version, an open attempt at filling a market niche for Schrade’s most popular fixed blade hunting knife. While you and I know that there are still NIB Sharpfingers on the secondary market, the passing of two years has for all intents and purposes seen them dry up on the primary market, i.e. brick and mortar stores.
The FSO152C, as the last letter suggests, came in a clampack, all United’s own design, using the copyrighted “Outdoor Life” logo front and rear (licensed from Time4 Media, Inc.). The front of the card has a “Made in the U.S.A.” logo, repeated on the back along with “Sourced and Distributed by United Cutlery Corp.”. While it it not specifically stated as such, the knife is likely produced in United’s Arrowhead Cutlery plant.
The sheath is a genuine leather item, top grain cowhide, well finished in medium russet, the same thickness and pattern as the original Schrade sheaths. They could possibly be sourced from the same manufacturers.
Dimensionally and in profile, the Outdoor Life is very close to the original Sharpfinger. The grind is hollow like the last Schrades, with a very well defined grind line, not polished down to a smooth transition. Blade finish may appeal to some, but I don’t really like the “sandblast” frosted look myself. Admitedly the execution is very good... evenly done including the full exposed tang. There is no blade tang stamp. Rather, a faint, golden etch at the top of the choil has the made in USA logo, and in the tangstamp position, in incredibly small text, is etched “FSO152" over “Stainless”. On closer examination it does not appear to be an etch, but a screen print. The bladestock is thinner than the Schrade, and the actual steel is not specified other than “HC Stainless Steel Blade”. 420HC?? It is razor sharp right out of the package with a needle tip.
The handle, rather than trying to copy the age old Sharpfinger brown dyed over cream Delrin, is black delrin, reminding me of the two Peterson Publishing promo knives I have, the 152 “Guns & Ammo”, and 154 “Hunting”. The sawcut is clean and well defined, the (nickle silver?) shield, slightly larger than the “Old Timer” shield, has the copyrighted “Outdoor Life” text, just as you see it on the magazine cover. The two compression rivets are set below flush, a detail I don’t like, but admittedly have seen on the Sharpfingers.
All in all, I must admit that it is a good rendition of a Sharpfinger, with enough detail differences that a collector can tell the difference. Quality is up there, and it is an American made knife at a very good price. MSRP, according to United’s website, is $49.99, but it is easily found discounted to a much lower price. Or you can nab one off of eBay like I did for less than ten plus shipping. For comparison, the last MSRP on a Schrade 152OT in 2004 was $37.95, but ther were to be found for $19-24.
Next I’ll review the UCC “Winchester G9447" Skinner, their branded rendition of the ill-fated 152OTX.
Here is the same knife under the "Rigid" branding. It is also produced under the Harley Davidson brand.
The 152OTX which was not produced:
Codger
This knife is one that can now be found in K-Mart and other major retailers, the Outdoor Life FSO152C by United Cutlery Corp., Sevierville, Tennessee. As you can tell by the use of the “152" in the pattern number (the same with the Camillus GP152), there is no attempt to hide the origins of the design, and in fact, like the Camillus version, an open attempt at filling a market niche for Schrade’s most popular fixed blade hunting knife. While you and I know that there are still NIB Sharpfingers on the secondary market, the passing of two years has for all intents and purposes seen them dry up on the primary market, i.e. brick and mortar stores.
The FSO152C, as the last letter suggests, came in a clampack, all United’s own design, using the copyrighted “Outdoor Life” logo front and rear (licensed from Time4 Media, Inc.). The front of the card has a “Made in the U.S.A.” logo, repeated on the back along with “Sourced and Distributed by United Cutlery Corp.”. While it it not specifically stated as such, the knife is likely produced in United’s Arrowhead Cutlery plant.
The sheath is a genuine leather item, top grain cowhide, well finished in medium russet, the same thickness and pattern as the original Schrade sheaths. They could possibly be sourced from the same manufacturers.
Dimensionally and in profile, the Outdoor Life is very close to the original Sharpfinger. The grind is hollow like the last Schrades, with a very well defined grind line, not polished down to a smooth transition. Blade finish may appeal to some, but I don’t really like the “sandblast” frosted look myself. Admitedly the execution is very good... evenly done including the full exposed tang. There is no blade tang stamp. Rather, a faint, golden etch at the top of the choil has the made in USA logo, and in the tangstamp position, in incredibly small text, is etched “FSO152" over “Stainless”. On closer examination it does not appear to be an etch, but a screen print. The bladestock is thinner than the Schrade, and the actual steel is not specified other than “HC Stainless Steel Blade”. 420HC?? It is razor sharp right out of the package with a needle tip.
The handle, rather than trying to copy the age old Sharpfinger brown dyed over cream Delrin, is black delrin, reminding me of the two Peterson Publishing promo knives I have, the 152 “Guns & Ammo”, and 154 “Hunting”. The sawcut is clean and well defined, the (nickle silver?) shield, slightly larger than the “Old Timer” shield, has the copyrighted “Outdoor Life” text, just as you see it on the magazine cover. The two compression rivets are set below flush, a detail I don’t like, but admittedly have seen on the Sharpfingers.
All in all, I must admit that it is a good rendition of a Sharpfinger, with enough detail differences that a collector can tell the difference. Quality is up there, and it is an American made knife at a very good price. MSRP, according to United’s website, is $49.99, but it is easily found discounted to a much lower price. Or you can nab one off of eBay like I did for less than ten plus shipping. For comparison, the last MSRP on a Schrade 152OT in 2004 was $37.95, but ther were to be found for $19-24.
Next I’ll review the UCC “Winchester G9447" Skinner, their branded rendition of the ill-fated 152OTX.
Here is the same knife under the "Rigid" branding. It is also produced under the Harley Davidson brand.
The 152OTX which was not produced:
Codger
