Rough Riders!

[Dinadan]

r redden - I pretty much agree with your points. I have used Rough Riders and other China knives to experience patterns that interested me, but I was not ready to spend a hundred dollars on. If I am sure I want a particular knife to use, then I am willing to spend $50 to $100 for a Case, Queen, or GEC. But for just experimenting and playing around a $15 Rough Rider works.

Nice illustrative photos to make your point, too!

[MTURBO]

I have been collecting Rough Riders for a few years now and have a decent collection of the Trappers.
I carry these knives often and when someone comments on one of them I usually just give it to them.
I can afford to do this with the "under $10 knives"

I like them...and when I lose one of them it's no big deal.

[Captain O]

I have but one Rough Rider knife. It is the 1203 "blue swirl" scaled Melon Tester. (It came in a box with an noxious orange frog printed upon it and brazenly marked "Toad Stabber"). It has a 4 3/4" tapered, narrow blade of 440A steel. Trust me, it looks "meaner than a junkyard dog" and twice as deadly! If you're looking for an inexpensive knife for "melon testing" (yeah, right) It's worth a look. They run about $10.00-$11.00 on Amazon and are currently only coming in a white scaled model (model #1201).

It sits in a box, but if I go into a "rough" neighborhood it could ride unnoticed as a "silent sentinel" in a shirt, or sport coat pocket.

[Dinadan]

MTURBO - nice lot of RR trappers. I do not read of many folks who collect Rough Riders, so you may have the best collection of RR trappers of anyone!

Captain O - we need a photo or it did not happen! Just kidding, sounds like a cool knife.

Here is my latest Rough Rider - a Mushroom Hunter's Knife. I just could not resist this knife. I stuck it in my lunch box to use next time I see some interesting mushrooms.

[jerryd6818]

Several years ago, when I first discovered Rough Rider, I went on a spending spree. Ended up with close to a dozen, for which I never paid more than $10 apiece. I have two left and in spite of my prejudice will most likely not part with them.

Just added a Coal Miner Half-Hawk (only God knows why). It should be here tomorrow or Monday.

[jerryd6818]

I have but one Rough Rider knife. It is the 1203 "blue swirl" scaled Melon Tester. (It came in a box with an noxious orange frog printed upon it and brazenly marked "Toad Stabber"). It has a 4 3/4" tapered, narrow blade of 440A steel. Trust me, it looks "meaner than a junkyard dog" and twice as deadly! If you're looking for an inexpensive knife for "melon testing" (yeah, right) It's worth a look. They run about $10.00-$11.00 on Amazon and are currently only coming in a white scaled model (model #1201).

It sits in a box, but if I go into a "rough" neighborhood it could ride unnoticed as a "silent sentinel" in a shirt, or sport coat pocket.

I don't know where you're from of how old you are but back in the dark ages when I was a tad, old Jasper Brown sat beside Route 1 with his team of mules and a wagon load of watermelons for 50¢ each. Before you bought one, he would "plug" it for you so you could taste it. I don't remember what pattern knife he used or whether it was his pocket knife (or maybe yours) or a kitchen knife but I'm pretty sure it wasn't a "Melon Tester / Sausage Knife". The point being that's not just a name that was thought up out of whole cloth. It has roots.

[Captain O]

Jerry, I pre-enlisted in the Navy shortly after I turned 18 on 12/01/1972. (Yep, I'm 61 years old) and missed being shipped of to Vietnam by about seven months. Remember when president Nixon said, "I'm not sending any more of our boys of to Vietnam." That was 1/23/1973. I was sworn into the Navy on 7/19/1973.

When I was 13, I had my first "Melon Tester" 7" Imperial Sabre with cracked-ice scales. Later I bought a 9" Imperial Saber, which also had the cracked-ice scales. I bought my first "Melon Tester" in 1968. They were $1.25 back then and we bought them at the Sprouse-Reitz store 6 blocks from our house in Corvallis, Oregon.

[Dinadan]

Just added a Coal Miner Half-Hawk (only God knows why).

It is a good looking knife, Jerry. I keep being surprised by the quality of bone handles of my Rough Riders and other Chinese knives. I look at one of them and figure it is only ten dollars, why not?

Jerry, I pre-enlisted in the Navy shortly after I turned 18 on 12/01/1972. (Yep, I'm 61 years old) and missed being shipped of to Vietnam by about seven months. Remember when president Nixon said, "I'm not sending any more of our boys of to Vietnam." That was 1/23/1973. I was sworn into the Navy on 7/19/1973.

I am just a year older than you, Captain. I went into the Navy early in 1973. I was sent to the Sixth Fleet in the Med.

[deltaboy]

I gotten 3-4 of them and they are as good as Imperial or Colonial back in the day or modern Taylor made Old Timers. IMO for 90% of all knife users would be fine with one as.part.of their EDC system.

[Dinadan]

I gotten 3-4 of them and they are as good as Imperial or Colonial back in the day or modern Taylor made Old Timers. IMO for 90% of all knife users would be fine with one as.part.of their EDC system.

Deltaboy - welcome to the forum! I think you are right that 90% of all knife users would be fine with a Rough Rider. But, on this forum, we probably have the most discriminating 1% of users! I still carry and use my RR knifes at times and they work fine.

[deltaboy]

I am working on my local hardware store to pick up Rough Riders since they don't have a under 20 bucks line in Traditional folders.

[redferd]

I have several of them. I like mine . I can get a razor sharp edge on all of them. No problems cutting heavy cardboard or whittling a hard piece of wood. I could not afford the different patterns from a company in the USA. There are a lot of things that are made in foreign countries. My friend gave me a nice Buck liner lock made in China. It has good blade steel and gets sharp and stays sharp just like the RR knives do. I also have USA made Buck , Case, Utica, etc. knives and like them just as well. However, I'd die if I lost one of the USA made knives. The loss of the RR knife would bug me but not so much as the loss of the USA knives. For the price and the quality, hard to beat 'em.

[SteelMyHeart85420]

I am working on my local hardware store to pick up Rough Riders since they don't have a under 20 bucks line in Traditional folders.

That's either a really great, or really bad idea....lol, eh, there's worse things I can throw extra green paper at!

[kootenay joe]

I bought my first Rough Rider about 8 years ago because i could not believe that any knife no matter how 'junky' could be sold for under $10, delivered ! I bought one just to see how bad, bad could be. Well the knife i received was lovely, smooth action, rock solid in the open position, hair popping sharp, etc.
My logical brain still believing in itself thought i must just have gotten super lucky because it was not possible to make such a knife and box it up and ship from China for $10 or even less, even if the workers were never paid. So i bought 2 more, and of course, same thing, 2 great knives, zero 'issues'.
So then i really bought a bunch and slowed down at around 200 Rough Riders. I still buy more because RR 8 years later continues to bring out 'new' patterns(many of them old & Traditional) that interest me.
A few years ago i fully field dressed a Whitetail using an RR Jumbo Trapper. It was the slickest knife i have ever used and made for a fast and easy job and still shaved arm hairs when finished. I have field dressed about 50 deer and used maybe 15 different knives, including Customs costing over $500, and this Rough Rider Jumbo Trapper was sharper than any of them and did not dull even with cutting through the hair to amputate the forelegs. I never expected anything like this performance which again defies all logic.
What i find interesting is that i get as much enjoyment out of examining and handling my Rough Riders as i do with my collections of expensive knives, including Customs costing 50-75 times as much. i.e., with knives, increasing cost is not directly connected to increasing enjoyment.
I like Rough Rider Traditional style folders.
kj

[TripleF]

Man, these knives are crazy.....GOOD!
I reviewed one a couple years ago after cutting 12" x 10ft strips of carpeting so it could fit into the garbage can and I was like

I gave it to my brother in-law.....he still carries it today.

I just so happen to have a couple and I think I'll add them to my EDC rotation!

[montemojo]

I bought two RR rigging knives. I used them when I was building powerlines. I used the marlin spike to finish putting preforms on guide wire. The locks on both failed in less than a week. The reason I bought two was because I thought the first might have been a dud. The back spring on the marlin spike side failed on both knives. The cutting blade was fine. Tried two smith and wesson china made hawkbills with marlin spikes they failed also. The old Kabar rigging knife worked great, still does.

Monte

[Dinadan]

I bought two RR rigging knives. I used them when I was building powerlines. I used the marlin spike to finish putting preforms on guide wire. The locks on both failed in less than a week. The reason I bought two was because I thought the first might have been a dud. The back spring on the marlin spike side failed on both knives. The cutting blade was fine. Tried two smith and wesson china made hawkbills with marlin spikes they failed also. The old Kabar rigging knife worked great, still does.

Monte

Thanks for the report, Monte. I guess the RRs with marline spikes may not be too good, based on your experience. Did the job you were using them on put a lot of stress on the spike spring?

I just so happen to have a couple and I think I'll add them to my EDC rotation!

Good looking knives, there, Scott!

Here is a little RR that I keep in my tackle box. Mainly it is there in case I forget my normal fish knife. It has been used some, and exposed to saltwater many times over period of a year. Note that the blades do have a bit of rust. I have not cleaned it other than rinsing it in saltwater so I guess the rust is reasonable.

[montemojo]

Hi Dan, yes building powerlines is very hard on tools and workers. There were all kinds of uses for a marlin spike, such as separating choker cables, making up preforms on guide wire and so on. The only promlem was the marlin spike. The blade was fine worked well skinning underground wire. I dont do linework anymore that's a young mans job. I think the lock release may have pulled the spring past its limitations. The Kabar did fine. I never tried a camillus or a schrade. I've heard that schrade had a problem with their marlin spike lock years ago. Well I guess I would have to try one to know for sure

Thanks Monte

[deltaboy]

Love all my RR Knifes so far. Great buy for the money.

[deltaboy]

Got a Barlow on the way.

[kootenay joe]

I bought my first Rough Riders in 2007. Most were under $10 shipped at that time. I bought the first one because i could not believe any knife no matter how bad could be made shipped marketed sold & delivered for $10. I was amazed by the very good knife i received and thought it was a fluke. I bought a few more (always on ebay) and same thing: very good knives and what i liked best: very sharp edges, unlike the Queen & Case knives i had been buying. So i posted in BF about RR knives being very good even though it did not seem possible for the extremely low price. I was told to shut up about Chinese Crap by many members and a moderator. So i did not post anymore RR's for about 4-5 years but i kept buying them and now i have about 250 (?). Not even one has blade play and every one has shaving sharp blades.
What i find interesting is that i get as much enjoyment and feeling of satisfaction from getting a new RR as i do from receiving a new GEC, or Northwoods, etc., knives that cost more than ten times as much.
I have given quite a few RR's as surprise gifts to unsuspecting people and they are so pleased. Often it is the first truly sharp blade they have ever used and this sharp cutting bonds them to the knife & it becomes 'special'.
Whomever the owners are of Rough Rider knives, they have done a great deal towards the appreciation of Traditional style pocket knives.
kj

[jerryd6818]

I've been under the impression that the owners of the Rough Rider brand is Smokey Mountain Knife Works. Am I wrong?

[Dinadan]

What i find interesting is that i get as much enjoyment and feeling of satisfaction from getting a new RR as i do from receiving a new GEC, or Northwoods, etc., knives that cost more than ten times as much.kj

There is a special satisfaction to unwrapping a new knife, be it ever so cheap! When I get a $100 knife it is a special treat to be savored and displayed. When I get a $15 knife it is a special treat to be shoved in my pocket and used. One thing I can say is that I have never regretted getting a new Rough Rider.

I've been under the impression that the owners of the Rough Rider brand is Smokey Mountain Knife Works. Am I wrong?

Good question Jerry! But then the question is: who owns Smokey Mountain Knife Works?

[Quick Steel]

Recently got a Rough Rider trapper so I could see what the discussion is about. Also have a canoe on the way. So I find this a perfectly useable knife. I was drawn to this as my first RR because Kentucky is on the orange and black shield along with Coal Miner. Don't know what the symbol of the owl is doing there. It seems unlikely to be the state bird. Blades are nice and tight; and sharp. The fit of bolster and scales is unrefined. A solid value; should provide years of effective use.

[jerryd6818]

That looks like an "Owl Head" shield. See Owd Wullie's post (with picture) here --- viewtopic.php?t=13256