Northwoods Indian River Jack

The Northwoods Knife brand name originated in Gladstone, Michigan when a man named Dave Shirley adopted it as his knife company's name in 2004. Dave was well known for collaborating with popular knife companies to have knives made to his specifications for resale well before 2004 & beyond. KnivesShipFree bought Northwoods from Dave & has continued to team up with respected makers to produce knives marked with the Northwoods brand name.
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gsmith7158
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Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by gsmith7158 »

Well I'll throw out another pattern thread for discussion. This one is handled in Ebony wood and and made by Queen with154cm stainless. As you can see it is marked 2015 which would indicate that it is a Derrik Bohn or KSF knife. It also tells us that the Gladestone, Mich. Stamp was used fairly recently.
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by kootenay joe »

Interesting observation Greg. I have the same knife but with smooth yellow bone. Derrick did 2 runs of the Indian River Jack. First one in ~ 2013 has a curved nail nick and the second one in 2015 has a long pull.
I think he used the Gladstone marking because the original Indian River Jack was a Dave Shirley design. There could be other explanations too.
kj
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by robbobus »

Here's my earlier version with the nail nick, stamped 2014 and Northwoods iver Gladstone, Mich over U.S.a. Its a user. Stiff pull. It has a half stop, but the "top"half is curved like a cam and the transition is ground a bit for smoothness. Bit different and not my favourite. Couldn't get a good picture. On a side note, my 5 year old daughter just told me "Dada that is going be your last knife cuz I can't look after so many when I'm bigger."
20171231_120923_HDR_Film2-1.jpg
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by RalphAlsip »

kootenay joe wrote:Interesting observation Greg. I have the same knife but with smooth yellow bone. Derrick did 2 runs of the Indian River Jack. First one in ~ 2013 has a curved nail nick and the second one in 2015 has a long pull.
I think he used the Gladstone marking because the original Indian River Jack was a Dave Shirley design. There could be other explanations too.
kj
My Indian River Jack is marked 2014 for the year with "Gladstone Mich USA". I wanted a smooth white bone example, but wasn't able to coordinate timing well enough to make it happen.
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Northwoods Indian River Jack by Queen 2015
Northwoods Indian River Jack by Queen 2015
Northwoods Indian River Jack by Queen 2015
Northwoods Indian River Jack by Queen 2015
Northwoods Indian River Jack by Queen 2015
Northwoods Indian River Jack by Queen 2015
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by gsmith7158 »

Outstanding knife Jerry! I think you made out pretty well even though you missed the smooth bone. ::tu::
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by Railsplitter »

[/quote]My Indian River Jack is marked 2014 for the year with "Gladstone Mich USA". I wanted a smooth white bone example, but wasn't able to coordinate timing well enough to make it happen.[/quote]
gsmith7158 wrote:Outstanding knife Jerry! I think you made out pretty well even though you missed the smooth bone. ::tu::
I'll second that! That might be the best looking IRJ I've ever seen.
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by kootenay joe »

I did have both the 2014 & 2015 IRJ's but i gave the 2014 one as a gift to a knife maker friend.
Here is my 2015 IRJ with smooth yellow bone. Made by Queen i believe so likely cow bone and not camel ?
Simple pattern but an elegant knife.
kj
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by Sharpnshinyknives »

That is a beautiful knife. That color is great. Looks very close to most of the Eureka Jack Camel bones that just came out.
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by kootenay joe »

Queen made many Moore Maker knives with handles of yellow bone, both jigged and smooth. Those were cow bone so most likely this is as well even though the color does resemble the yellow camel bone GEC has used.
kj
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by cudgee »

kootenay joe wrote: Thu Oct 31, 2019 3:48 pm I did have both the 2014 & 2015 IRJ's but i gave the 2014 one as a gift to a knife maker friend.
Here is my 2015 IRJ with smooth yellow bone. Made by Queen i believe so likely cow bone and not camel ?
Simple pattern but an elegant knife.
kj
That is magnificent, anyone would treasure that in their pocket. Well done. ::tu::
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by kootenay joe »

Yes, design is everything. The proportions and shapes of the IRJ must be in perfect balance and harmony to create a knife that looks 'just right' and instantly appealing.
This pattern goes back to Dave Shirley days. Anyone know if it is based on a vintage USA equal end jack ? Or did D.S. design it ?
Would be very interesting to know. If based on a vintage knife, that is one i would try to find.
kj
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by RalphAlsip »

Roland, Beautiful IRJ. ::tu:: ::tu:: For what it is worth, my opinion is cattle bone for a couple of reasons. 1) I believe that is what Queen was using at the time and 2) I think camel would show a bit more variation in color - your example is very uniform.
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by RAMROD »

Green camel IRJ.
IRJ.jpg
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by Buckibbq »

My varying examples of the latest run of mammoth Indian River Jacks
EA19AE90-25DC-443A-B003-3C3EB25F010C.jpeg
I’m a long time collector in search of rare and limited GEC AND Northwoods knives. Always looking to add ivory pieces to my collection. PM to discuss sales or trades, please!
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by edge213 »

Buckibbq wrote: Tue Mar 23, 2021 2:14 pm My varying examples of the latest run of mammoth Indian River JacksEA19AE90-25DC-443A-B003-3C3EB25F010C.jpeg
Quite stunning!
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by Railsplitter »

Buckibbq wrote: Tue Mar 23, 2021 2:14 pm My varying examples of the latest run of mammoth Indian River JacksEA19AE90-25DC-443A-B003-3C3EB25F010C.jpeg
Wow!!!
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by Buckibbq »

Thank you for the comments, David and Rick!
I’m a long time collector in search of rare and limited GEC AND Northwoods knives. Always looking to add ivory pieces to my collection. PM to discuss sales or trades, please!
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by doglegg »

I agree with David. Very knice. ::nod::
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by kootenay joe »

I did not know that there was a new run of the IRJ. Were these bought from Knives Ship Free ? And who are they made by ? I think the first ones (2014 ?) were made by Queen which is no longer in business and GEC has said they will not be making any more SFO's. However i suspect these are GEC made knives ?
I am jealous that i did not know about these new IRJ's and therefore missed out on a chance of getting one.
kj
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by Railsplitter »

kootenay joe wrote: Wed Mar 24, 2021 3:44 pm I did not know that there was a new run of the IRJ. Were these bought from Knives Ship Free ? And who are they made by ? I think the first ones (2014 ?) were made by Queen which is no longer in business and GEC has said they will not be making any more SFO's. However i suspect these are GEC made knives ?
I am jealous that i did not know about these new IRJ's and therefore missed out on a chance of getting one.
kj
You are correct. GEC made. Released from KSF on 11/11/20.
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by Buckibbq »

kootenay joe wrote: Wed Mar 24, 2021 3:44 pm However i suspect these are GEC made knives ?
kj
This version of the IRJ was made on the GEC #35 frame which made its debut as the “Churchill” in 2017.
I’m a long time collector in search of rare and limited GEC AND Northwoods knives. Always looking to add ivory pieces to my collection. PM to discuss sales or trades, please!
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by kootenay joe »

Buckibbq wrote: Sat Mar 27, 2021 5:41 am
kootenay joe wrote: Wed Mar 24, 2021 3:44 pm However i suspect these are GEC made knives ?
kj
This version of the IRJ was made on the GEC #35 frame which made its debut as the “Churchill” in 2017.
I would love to have one of these IRJ's but i doubt any will come up for sale any time soon.
kj
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by Railsplitter »

Buckibbq wrote: Sat Mar 27, 2021 5:41 am This version of the IRJ was made on the GEC #35 frame which made its debut as the “Churchill” in 2017.
That's close but the GEC #35 frame actually made its debut as the 2016 Bladeforum Drover.
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by Buckibbq »

Thanks for that correction, Rick...I should have remembered that. That’s definitely one of my favorites on the 35 frame. Love the bone on those!
I’m a long time collector in search of rare and limited GEC AND Northwoods knives. Always looking to add ivory pieces to my collection. PM to discuss sales or trades, please!
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Re: Northwoods Indian River Jack

Post by kootenay joe »

Is the "Drover" a double end jack ? i.e. punch at opposite end from the blade.
kj
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