What traditional knives have you seen people in your area with

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WinchesteRalox

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I have seen some old timer stockmans/stockmen? And one guy who collected small stainless zippo/case lockbacks, some buck 110s, saks (mostly classics) case trappers and stockmans.
 
In my area, NE Oklahoma, trappers followed by the stockman seem to be the traditional patterns of choice. Case is the most popular brand by far. Plenty of Buck 110s, too.

It’s funny though, as a kid fascinated by knives, I remember more stockman knives 40 years ago. Might just be me remembering what my family carried most, though.
 
Here in South Central Idaho, the most common traditional knife I've seen people carrying is the Buck 110 or Old Timer 6/7OT (maybe an Uncle Henry LB7, too) and the occasional Buck 112 size knife on their belt.

Exactly which traditional slipjoint people may have in their pocket, I don't know, since I've not seen them pull it out of their pocket and use it.
It's kind of like back in the "olden days". You know 97% of the men have a pocket knife on them (and at least 75% of the women have one in their pocket or purse) but they don't go around showing them off.

I can say, based on what the local Walmart and Sportsman's Warehouse usually sells out of first, the stockman, trapper, and the two and three layer SAK's are the most popular slipjoints.
These patterns are also the least likely to be found in the pawnshops, as well. What few they get, I'm told, are usually sold the same day they were put on sale.
 
The only traditional knives I see are the ones that old guys are carrying, not because they are enthusiasts but because that's just what they have always carried. And even then it's not enough really for me to spot a trend.

That being said, I live in a relativly knife-unfriendly area (Monterey, CA) so people here are less open about using their knives in public. Pocket knives here are more socially acceptable than places like San Francisco or LA, since there are a lot of farmers in this area, but there's also a lot of hippies too.

And since traditionals ride IN the pocket and not on a clip, you don't see them until the owner takes them out. That's probably the hardest part of spotting a traditional knife owner over a modern knife owner.
 
Piles upon piles of 110's here in Central Pa. Case seems to have a pretty large fan club here as well. I've seen them about as often as I have Bucks. That's pretty regularly.
 
Among the Buckaroos and Cattlemen in my area the Stockman is carried often. These 6392 - 3347 - 3318 Stockmans are seen regularly at calving time, branding time and at the stockyards. Sometimes, a Trapper will show up as will small fixed blade sheath knives..

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The above being said and pictured, many of the guys/gals here are carrying modern knives too.
 
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My boss carries a small single blade Case knife.

Edit: Also, I gave one of my colleagues an Opinel no. 6 in Bubinga that he uses.
 
None usually. When they do they are construction workers that usually have a Mora - puukko hanging from their work clothes.

Things could be better. When having a holiday at Mallorca resently I noticed a local who had a finely decorated belt sheath. Judging from the curved shape and size he had a 4 inch folding knife, propably something traditional to the area. A navaja perhaps?
 
Trappers!

Don't really know why, but lots and lots of trapper. Mostly Case, some Boker, and a few actually Moore Maker here and there. Must be a Texas thing. Around town like in closer to Austin, I see some pocket clips, but if we head west from Georgetown out to Llano and Burrnet, and into the hill country there seems to be more ranches and a tradition sort of thing going on.

And the trappers seem to be in custom made belt pouch sheaths that match the western type belt with all the floral designs and buckles the size of the average tea cup saucer. It's got to be some sort of cowboy thing that this eastern political refugee doesn't understand. :confused:

I'm still not up to speed on the BBQ gun thing either!o_O
 
I am up in northern Canada. Knives are pretty common here but largely modern is what I see. Leathermans in a belt sheath are likely the single most popular piece of cutlery.

Traditional have their place though. Old Timer is the respected brand here. Every time someone borrows my barlow, they always ask if it is an Old Timer and how they were great knives. Buck is the popular fixed blade brand here with many using their more traditional models.

We are fairly remote so I am guessing that this brand popularity is based largely on what you could get with the mail order catalogue. The general store here keeps Taylor Schrades in stock and I see them move pretty well along side the moderns. They have Old Timer written on the side so those that aren't quite knife nuts take them at their word.

All this being said, some of the most competent bush men I know carry a beat up old SAK. Maybe an old sheath knife in the truck or if cutting meat. And here a competent bush man is a lot more than a guy that hunts and fishes a lot. I speak about an intimate knowledge of the land that comes with a lifetime of personal experience taught by their elders before them.
 
I would have to say Buck 110's here In my rural NorCal town/counties.

All I see are the iconic black Buck sheath, Leatherman PST's, as well as fancier hand tooled belt sheaths, but I never see the knives in those sheaths.
Those other sheaths could contain $5 Pak copies, and who knows what everyone's got in their pockets, I rarely see the knives themselves.
 
In my part of Texas I see a lot of sodbusters with a few trappers and stockmans mixed in. Occasionally I will see a SAK but not nearly as often as the others.
 
In a nutshell: Cattle / oil country Texas here. I see lots of Case large trappers and/or Case medium stockmans. Moore Makers are also "cool" and geographically close, but they not as common as Case.

The demographics are also intriguing. I usually see middle-aged and older white males carrying Case trappers/stockmans and some middle-aged and older hispanic males carrying Boker "Tree Brand" in trapper and stockman patterns. Many of the gentleman I work with are either 1st generation Americans or are originally from Mexico. Boker "Tree Brand" knives have quite a following in Mexico and are considered the premium knife. Everything I have said is strictly anecdotal but almost every time I pull out one of my customs or GECs at work, the question I get asked is, "Is that a Tree Brand?"
 
Here in the southern San Joaquin valley, I rarely see a knife being used. Therefore the only ones I see regularly are those that are in belt sheaths. Buck 110 is common, and I occasionally see the large fruit knives on a belt. This should come as no surprise, since this valley produces the majority of tree fruit in the US. Lots of peaches, nectarines, oranges, etc. Plus huge areas planted in almond, pistachio, walnut, raisin grapes, etc.
 
Most co-workers, if they carry a knife, will carry a modern one-handed knife with a clip. The few traditionals I see are usually something smaller like a 340T or smaller. I will see a few buck knives on the belt but just not a lot of traditional stuff with the younger crowds.
 
None. I've recently just gotten back into them and no one seems to have to much to say when I show them my knives.. Even the guys in there sixties and seventies like the new ones that clip to their pocket and flip open with one hand.. and I'm from a small town in oregon.
 
ccsavage said:
None. I've recently just gotten back into them and no one seems to have to much to say when I show them my knives.. Even the guys in there sixties and seventies like the new ones that clip to their pocket and flip open with one hand.. and I'm from a small town in oregon.
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Really , well that's a shame.
A couple years ago when I sold my collection of modern style flea market " knives " ( if you can even call ghem knives ) in my yardsale most people who checked them out were searching for lockbacks to close them with or simply trying to close them as they would a slipjoint.
Maybe they weren't knife people, they sure didn't ask about the fixed blade on my hip.
 
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