KJ, although they are all the same nominal length, all three of those frames are distinct. The #77 frame has little corners on the narrow end. The #78 is rounded on the little end. The Fremont Jack is made on the #79 frame, my examples show that the 79 is maybe 1/16" longer than the 78, and of course the 79 is hinged on the big end. And to my eye the 79 little end is just a tiny bit narrower than the 78 little end. To your point, the NW knife certainly does appear to fetch a higher price. Although the FJ blade is made with 1/8" stock compared to the #78 blade at 3/32" stock, the difference is visible, and the FJ style is unlike anything else. I will admit that the fit and finish on my new FJ is not as good as my Tidioute and Northfield #78 American Jacks. I'm actually wondering if my FJ shouldn't have been a factory second. There's a blemish on one side of the swedge, the little end has an unground "corner", and the blade is off center when closed. Despite all this I'm glad I have the FJ, I love the knife, and I still think it's worth every penny. I suppose you could say I'm a full-fledged Fremont Jack fan-boy, completely brainwashed and googlely-eyed!kootenay joe wrote:The #77 Yankee Jack & #78 American Jack are both made on the same 3 3/4" sleeveboard frame with blade at the narrow end.
Am i correct that the Fremont is made with this same frame but with blade at wider end ?
Two ebay auctions/sales just closed: a Stag Fremont $495, and a Stag #78 $142. The quality of these knives is the same. The Stag is comparable, very nice on both. The blades differ and i prefer the spearpoint on the 78 over the Wharncliffe-like on the Fremont.
My point is that the name "Northwoods" brought in an extra $350. Or you could say the Northwoods branding enabled the knife to sell for more than 3x it's actual value.
kj
Lee