Some rare and unique CSC knives

Former Schrade President Walley Gardner and principal Joe Hufnagel joined with nine master cutlers to form a group of US craftsmen with over 300 years of combined knife making experience to create Canal Street Cutlery. It was first located in upstate New York where a long and rich tradition of quality knife making dates back to the 19th century. Unfortunately, the company closed its doors in 2015, but not before making some great knives. The brand was resurrected in 2018 as Canal Street Cutlery Co-Op & focused on making very small batches of high quality traditional knives. As a Co-Op, it was owned by the knife makers who worked there. Unfortunately, the business model couldn't hold up & the entity again ceased production.
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kootenay joe
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Re: Some rare and unique CSC knives

Post by kootenay joe »

Mention of "Uncle Harold" is Harold Buley, Master Cutler i believe.
I have a CSC 2006 "North American Hunting Club Custom Folding Hunting Knife" which arrive with a little blade play. Still perfectly usable and each Fall i would get it out of the safe and commit to using it. But then i would re-check hoping that magically the blade play had gone. But it was still there, not loose or sloppy but slight side to side movement and feeling this, i would return the knife to the safe unused.
I kept the knife like this for 7 or 8 years before finally asking CSC if it could be fixed. "Absolutely, please send it to us", was the response.
I had not heard back by 4-5 months after i sent it so i emailed asking about it and was told "those are Harold's knives. He has retired now and only comes in on occasion. likely he will fix it on his next visit".
Sure enough a few weeks later my knife arrived, blade play gone. In fact the 'lock-up' is absolutely rock solid . Master Cutler Harold Buey did a masterful job. Thank you Harold. Sorry CSC is no longer actively with us.
kj
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JAMESC41001
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Re: Some rare and unique CSC knives

Post by JAMESC41001 »

That's a cool knife. Great story to go with it. Thanks for posting that.
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Chase
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Re: Some rare and unique CSC knives

Post by Chase »

That's Uncle Harold, he is like a magician with knives...lol

And KJ....he really is my Uncle and I wish I had a fraction of his abilities.

Tom
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Re: Some rare and unique CSC knives

Post by kootenay joe »

Thank you for the comments. I understand Harold designed this knife as well as having built them himself. I think it is a great design and it is a very solid heavy duty knife that you can rely on 100%. I think he made 100 of these but i don't know if all sold.
kj
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Chase
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Re: Some rare and unique CSC knives

Post by Chase »

Got in later last night and went to my Canal Street corner, looking for my Alligator hide knife. No where to be found! I looked into my files and realized, when I returned the alligator hide to Uncle Harold I also gave him the knife. It made sense for him to have the knife that the hide was used to make it from.

My memory is fading.....Dang it

I will get a picture of the knife and the hide the next time I visit him!

Tom
JAMESC41001
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Re: Some rare and unique CSC knives

Post by JAMESC41001 »

I might beat you there Tom. Lol
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Re: Some rare and unique CSC knives

Post by JAMESC41001 »

This was a great canal street pattern. One of my favorite. The green bone knife is special to me. Jeanie was Dave Swinden's daughter and she was a great person. When I read stories about the history of women in the cutlery industry I think of her. She could sit at any station and do that job. If someone got cut Jean would patch them up. And a thousand other things. She had absolutely no problem handling herself around a bunch of rough knife shop guys. She tought me a lot. When she passed Wally was cleaning out her desk and found four of these green bone knives unsharpened. I asked him to set aside one for me and he did. The other two are unique in their own way. The middle one is marked Walden knife co, the other has no stamp and came straight out of Wally's knife roll. I believe it is the original sample for the pattern but I'm not positive.
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D.P. Hunter
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Re: Some rare and unique CSC knives

Post by D.P. Hunter »

Ha Tom

I have one of those Walden Tang Knives myself - a beautiful 2004 sambar stag whittler. I also know the full story about the Walden Tang stamp and those first knives.

There is a stash of them I've been after - I've seen them all - : ) - someone who beat you, James and me out by at least two miles

I will try to photograph my whittler for you guys -- I broke my danged wrist though -- so you are going to have to wait until i'm healed
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Re: Some rare and unique CSC knives

Post by JAMESC41001 »

This is a rescue. Was laying in a pile covered with dust on a work bench. Kind of rare I think. I have seen at least one other. Not sure how many they made With this union stamp. It don't walk and it won't talk but I like it. Go into any knife shop and even if the guy has made one knife there will be a bunch of cool knives laying around. The bigger the shop the more rejects, samples, projects and relics will be around. This always amazed me about CSC. I can only imagine what it looked like moving schrade into the ulster factory. And then moving them both plus imperial all to the new factory. Lots of knive a with a story to tell. All these years later they are still showing up.
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