All About Pocket Knives

Ajd3530 wrote:

m0nk wrote:
What I really want to know is, what's GEC going to make next, after the 97s?

Scuttlebutt is a run of #12 Powderhorns, possibly with some new acrylic.

Also, possibly some SFOs as well.

Ajd3530 wrote:

m0nk wrote:
What I really want to know is, what's GEC going to make next, after the 97s?

Scuttlebutt is a run of #12 Powderhorns, possibly with some new acrylic.

Geez, #12s? I hope not. I'd rather buy a 38 Special, which have also been unpopular and are readily available. Toothpick patterns have never appealed to me.

m0nk wrote:

Ajd3530 wrote:

m0nk wrote:
What I really want to know is, what's GEC going to make next, after the 97s?

Scuttlebutt is a run of #12 Powderhorns, possibly with some new acrylic.

Geez, #12s? I hope not. I'd rather buy a 38 Special, which have also been unpopular and are readily available. Toothpick patterns have never appealed to me.

I'd probably be game for a 2 bladed Northfield in Cocobolo or something of the sort, but it would take some really neat looking acrylic, or abalone, to get me interested in a single blade.

Two blade large Coke bottle knives are not common. The only ones I've noticed are Cases with a long broad spey for their second blade and Mahuer & Gorschs (?spelling) with a spear second blade. At least one seller wrote the latter were made by Queen. In knives this large I strongly prefer the second blade be smaller. A pen blade is about the size of a spear master blade in a medium size slip joint. A big advantage of the second blade is the thicker handle makes the knife more comfortable to handle.

Since I prefer a fatter handle on a long folder I might buy a 97 if I spot one with fat stag that catches my fancy. However, large Coke bottles are easy to find in less expensive brands. The two things that set the 97 apart are its shorter length and its blade slopes down from the handle more. Both features are not desirable. I like my large Coke Bottle knives but this one is hard to justify. If some were assembled with secondary blades I'd have no trouble justifying buying a few of them.

To hoist this thread back up onto the tracks I'll write it appears the least popular GECs are all models with more than two blades. For me the more blades the merrier but last year's 66 Stockmans are still plentiful at dealers and December's Dixie Stockmans are selling very slowly.

Modern Slip Joints wrote:To hoist this thread back up onto the tracks I'll write it appears the least popular GECs are all models with more than two blades. For me the more blades the merrier but last year's 66 Stockmans are still plentiful at dealers and December's Dixie Stockmans are selling very slowly.

The 66 and 82 stockmans are my favorite recent GEC's, but it seems many people don't like three blade knives very much. The most popular ones are one and two blades. I'm glad they're making stockmans at least. One of these days they'll do another 81 stockman run and I'll be very happy, and broke.

KnifeSlinger#81 wrote:

Modern Slip Joints wrote:To hoist this thread back up onto the tracks I'll write it appears the least popular GECs are all models with more than two blades. For me the more blades the merrier but last year's 66 Stockmans are still plentiful at dealers and December's Dixie Stockmans are selling very slowly.

The 66 and 82 stockmans are my favorite recent GEC's, but it seems many people don't like three blade knives very much. The most popular ones are one and two blades. I'm glad they're making stockmans at least. One of these days they'll do another 81 stockman run and I'll be very happy, and broke.

Well one thing I've noticed about GEC's stockmans, at least the #82s and especially #66s, is the less than satisfactory pull weights and snap of the secondaries. I have a Case 046 Humpback stockman (granted, it is my nicest Case) with far superior action and snap on all blades as compared to my Great Eastern offerings.

Ajd3530 wrote:

KnifeSlinger#81 wrote:

Modern Slip Joints wrote:To hoist this thread back up onto the tracks I'll write it appears the least popular GECs are all models with more than two blades. For me the more blades the merrier but last year's 66 Stockmans are still plentiful at dealers and December's Dixie Stockmans are selling very slowly.

The 66 and 82 stockmans are my favorite recent GEC's, but it seems many people don't like three blade knives very much. The most popular ones are one and two blades. I'm glad they're making stockmans at least. One of these days they'll do another 81 stockman run and I'll be very happy, and broke.

Well one thing I've noticed about GEC's stockmans, at least the #82s and especially #66s, is the less than satisfactory pull weights and snap of the secondaries. I have a Case 046 Humpback stockman (granted, it is my nicest Case) with far superior action and snap on all blades as compared to my Great Eastern offerings.

Yes the snap is not as good as it should be, but not so bad that it's unacceptable. I had a 66 that had almost no snap on the secondaries and got rid of it but the rest (six in total) have been adequate. The 82's snap a little better overall. I have an older 66 coming to me via trade so I will see how the snap compares to the new run, I was told it was better.

The 81 stockmans made in 2013 had perfect snap, nice and stout but not hard to open at all. Frankly that run was perfect. The 81 stocks are my favorite gec.

KnifeSlinger#81 wrote:

Ajd3530 wrote:

KnifeSlinger#81 wrote:
The 66 and 82 stockmans are my favorite recent GEC's, but it seems many people don't like three blade knives very much. The most popular ones are one and two blades. I'm glad they're making stockmans at least. One of these days they'll do another 81 stockman run and I'll be very happy, and broke.

Well one thing I've noticed about GEC's stockmans, at least the #82s and especially #66s, is the less than satisfactory pull weights and snap of the secondaries. I have a Case 046 Humpback stockman (granted, it is my nicest Case) with far superior action and snap on all blades as compared to my Great Eastern offerings.

Yes the snap is not as good as it should be, but not so bad that it's unacceptable. I had a 66 that had almost no snap on the secondaries and got rid of it but the rest (six in total) have been adequate. The 82's snap a little better overall. I have an older 66 coming to me via trade so I will see how the snap compares to the new run, I was told it was better.

The 81 stockmans made in 2013 had perfect snap, nice and stout but not hard to open at all. Frankly that run was perfect. The 81 stocks are my favorite gec.

My #66 is pretty good aside from spey blade. Now my #82, I wasn't impressed with at all (just the stockman, the possum skinner is awesome.) Weak snap all around, minor finishing issues, blades aren't aligned correctly, leading to more rub than there should be.. I really should have sent it back, but I didn't for some reason..

Yes, I'd love to have a #81 stockman. Seems that takes a kidney/firstborn child to get though one though.

Ajd3530 wrote:My #66 is pretty good aside from spey blade. Now my #82, I wasn't impressed with at all (just the stockman, the possum skinner is awesome.) Weak snap all around, minor finishing issues, blades aren't aligned correctly, leading to more rub than there should be.. I really should have sent it back, but I didn't for some reason..

Yes, I'd love to have a #81 stockman. Seems that takes a kidney/firstborn child to get though one though.

You could send the 82 to gec if you're willing to wait a little. I've used their warranty several times and they did a great job each time. I had an 82 with a scuff on the shield, minor, but it bothered me enough that I sent it back and KSF sent me another one. If I were going to carry the knife I wouldn't have cared but I bought it for my collection so I wanted it to be perfect (as much as it can be).

If you keep on the lookout you can get 81's but it's not easy. I am building up a collection of every variant and I want them all perfect and minty, so it's a long haul. It's also hard to convince those that have them to sell or trade.

Too many members presume the rest of a production run has snap like the example or few examples of a model that they've handled. I've handled five Dixie Stockmans. Out of their 15 blades one drop point has inadequate snap into the open position but that blade's only been opened twice. Flushing out a quarter thousandths of an inch of polishing compound might be all it would take to make it snap open. All six blades in the last two Dixies I handled have very strong snap into the open position and lighter snap closing. That is how I like slip joints, easy to open but firmly held open.

While stag 82 Stockmans are my favorite GEC, I am not going to buy a Possum Skinner. Except for their Wharncliff blades being shorter Possum Skinners are single spring Wharncliff or Improved Muskrats which I have a couple of that Queen made. Many members here and on other forums have written that Possum Skinners tend to have stronger snap that Dixie Stockmans. Typical of single spring muskrats Possum Skinners have a spacer beside both tangs to make room for a second blade over one wider back spring. The stronger average pull is from the wider back spring. Despite my Queens being a quarter inch shorter their square ended bolsters combined with the clip blade tip laying over the spacer allows them to have the same length master blade as a Dixie Stockman.

This poor choo choo train just can't stay on its tracks. It's jumped the tracks into the gully again. I'll make one more effort to get it back on track by asking did the #12 toothpick or powder horn pattern sell well? Unlike all other brands of toothpicks they are broader for their length like pre-WW-II Remington toothpicks. I have not seen much written about them.

I think the #97 will be a big hit. The 4 3/4" size i think will feel close to perfect in hand. This pattern traditionally is about 5 1/4" which is big for a folding knife. Schrade made a 4" & a 5 1/4" Folding Hunter (not Swell Center Hunter) and the 4" feels fantastic in hand. I am looking forward to it especially with the aggressive looking clip blade.
The #12 Toothpick is 4" but for some reason it is the only GEC pattern that i did not feel any attraction for. I sold the one i had.
kj

kootenay joe wrote:I think the #97 will be a big hit. The 4 3/4" size i think will feel close to perfect in hand. This pattern traditionally is about 5 1/4" which is big for a folding knife. Schrade made a 4" & a 5 1/4" Folding Hunter (not Swell Center Hunter) and the 4" feels fantastic in hand. I am looking forward to it especially with the aggressive looking clip blade.
The #12 Toothpick is 4" but for some reason it is the only GEC pattern that i did not feel any attraction for. I sold the one i had.
kj

Roland I am familiar with the 4" schrade folding hunters, they are a really nice size and slim. The 97 is intriguing but I really don't like double pulls like on the northfield. I'll just get a tidioute but it won't have the saber grind, unfortunately.

A saber grind makes a blade look more aggressive and adds to a knife's overall attractiveness. To me a double pull is not a deciding factor whereas a saber grind can be.
I say if you like a saber grind that is the knife you should get. I think you very soon would not even notice the second pull towards the tip, but you would always notice & like the saber grind.
You could do a little experiment with yourself: buy one of each of the 97's and then after a period of time, say 3 months, sell the one you don't like the best. Your decision at 3 months might be different from your impression gained now by looking at the drawings.
kj