What steel is this muskrat

caine

caine

Joined
Nov 9, 2003
Messages
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I just got a Schrade Old Timer 770T Muskrat made in china folder. The box says its high carbon steel. Does this mean its carbon steel or stainless
 
Hi caine! I suspect that your knife is not a Schrade at all, but a Chinese copy stamped with the Schrade name, made for and imported by Taylor Brands Limited Liability Company. The steel is likely Chinese, but you would have to ask the importer to find out what type.

Michael
 
The only thing people like Taylor makes is money. He is the flim flam man of the cutlery business. He buys up trusted American name brands, has the product made overseas and pawns them off as if they were the real deal. just my personal observation for whatever it's worth.
 
caine said:
I just got a Schrade Old Timer 770T Muskrat made in china folder. The box says its high carbon steel. Does this mean its carbon steel or stainless
Click to expand...

I have a 77OT that I have had for years and years. USA. It is not stainless. Western (Boulder) made almost an exact copy that is stainless blades. Both are really nice knives.

Don't know about that China copy tho...
 
Caine, these new Schrades made for Taylor are made from the BEST recycled soda and beer cans that China has to offer. When someone buys the NON-AMERICAN Schrade-Uncle Henry or Old Timer knives, The only thing they have bought THAT IS REAL is the NAME. This is IMHO though.
 
Normally in knife lingo, Carbon steel and Stainless are two different things.
To be sure of the steel in your knife, use a magnet on the blade.
The Carbon is of course magnetic, The Stainless only slightly so.
Respectfully, Zeke
 
Zeke/Pa said:
Normally in knife lingo, Carbon steel and Stainless are two different things.
To be sure of the steel in your knife, use a magnet on the blade.
The Carbon is of course magnetic, The Stainless only slightly so.
Respectfully, Zeke
Click to expand...

Never thought of that, but stangely enough, I have one Uncle Henry with stainless blades, that somehow is magnetized enough to pick up small screws and paper clips with it's master blade.
 
Caine, i have a few Taylor/China/Schrade knives which i bought to learn how to distinguish them from the USA Schrade knives made prior to 2004.
everyone has good fit & finish, strong springs, no play and sharp right out of the box.
as a knife to use, they are fine. heresy ? well i collect pre 2004 Schrades but honestly believe that the new China ones are of decent quality. roland
 
With all due respect its the "quality control" they lack..dont know why they all wear glasses....I have about 1200 genuine USA Schrades and 3 Chinese Schrades which I bought accidentally when they still had USA on the boxes.The horn scale on a Stockman had a 1/4" piece sticking out at right angles to the handle and they would have had to rassle it to even get it in the box.I cut it off with a genuine USA Stockman.IMHO they do not "feel" smooth to handle like the genuine counterpart with rough squarish finish.The leather is reconstituted cardboardy/leather like substance...but hey look at the extreme low prices..you get what you pay for in life. I havnt "used" my 3 yet still out in my fishing box. An observation: If you look at the Recommended Retail prices in the genuine Schrade Retail List at 2004 you see why Schrade could never have continued to compete with the Chinese products and the greatest irony is USA Schrade started to make Chinese type designs and once they were finished the Chinese now make all the Classic Schrade knife designs Schrade had started to eliminate... The rarest knife in future will be a "second" from the Chinese Schrade factory....as Daffy would say....bet it's a.. Doozie! Ahh Soo ..Hoo Roo.
 
I'm afraid that my experience with the Taylor imports is the same. I also have several patterns. Yes the sheaths are all composition leather, shredded fibers compressed and glued to resemble leather. Fit and finish is poor on the knives. Of course I must add that mine are all the soon-to-be-desirable and collectable "first production runs" so I have no doubt they are capable of producing better as time goes by. All are stainless of some sort. The steel isn't identified on the knife or packaging. Since I have no intention of using them, the quality of the temper or type of steel really doesn't matter to me. Yeah, they are cheap. Some retail for less than the real ones did thirty years ago. I don't remember the exact patterns I have, but I believe they include the copies of the Sharpfinger and the 171UH. I will confess to buying the latter on purpose to be able to review it here. The 152OT copy was a con job by the flagged package, but I reviewed it here too. Reviews and comparisons of the imported Taylor copies to the real Schrades have been posted here since 2005. And yes, some people claim they are quite satisfactory to their expectations and needs. But if I just want a cheap throw-down knife I can get that at a local truck stop for $2.

Just my own opinion.
Michael
 
my China "Schrades" have all (5) been bought in last 4 months. maybe quality has improved. these are similar to Marbles, Rough Rider, Owl Head, etc. in quality. but that should not be an issue. i collect Schrade USA, pre 2004 knives,in part because they are well made, but also because of the very interesting associated history, and the bygone times they represent. whether or not the China Schrades are well made, they do not have the important associated "culture". roland
 
Zeke/Pa said:
Normally in knife lingo, Carbon steel and Stainless are two different things.
To be sure of the steel in your knife, use a magnet on the blade.
The Carbon is of course magnetic, The Stainless only slightly so.
Click to expand...

Both the Carbon and Stainless Steels Schrade used were high carbon and highly magnetic. Most 400 series stainless steels are. The true "stainless" materials are the 300 series, but due to the lack of carbon they can not achieve the hardness needed for blades.
 
Actually, because of it's high Chromium content, D-2 a high carbon die steel, approaches the 400 series stainless in rust resistence
Fact is, heat treating methods for the steels are so similiar, they can be heat treated in the same batch.
In my humble opinion, D-2, a WW1 era die steel is unsurpassed for a knife blade.
Respectfully, Zeke
 
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