All About Pocket Knives

These arrived ... a pair of queens... not bad, the bones are great they feel really good in the hand. the snap closing is good the snap opening is OK, but definitely not a 10. The sticker on the wrap on the knives says "Made in USA". I am happy with them; I think they are great for EDC. Or even just to look in a case....

Have you handled enough Bear knives to tell if these were made by Bear TopDog? They look nice, but looks ain’t everything.

GSPTOPDOG wrote: ↑Sat Oct 07, 2023 2:55 am These arrived ... a pair of queens... not bad, the bones are great they feel really good in the hand. the snap closing is good the snap opening is OK, but definitely not a 10. The sticker on the wrap on the knives says "Made in USA". I am happy with them; I think they are great for EDC. Or even just to look in a case....

I say the brown one is definitely Bear.
It has the same jigging pattern as the Remington Barlow made by Bear.

Sharpnshinyknives wrote: ↑Sat Oct 07, 2023 10:49 am Have you handled enough Bear knives to tell if these were made by Bear TopDog? They look nice, but looks ain’t everything.

I only have about 25 various Bear knives, so I am not an expert... I would say Bear is good guess, Edge has a good Barlow photo (above this post) to compare the jigging pattern, I would say it is a good possibility. I have several B.&S. "cheetah" jigged bone folders from about 15 years ago and the quality is great on them and others I have bought... no so great...

The best test for quality is to put them to use and see how the blades hold up, do they stay tight, does the walk n' talk stay with use?

Thanks David and Topdog. I have mixed feelings with Bear. I’ve had them hold up to hard use and think they make some great knives, but the quality fit and finish is so hit or miss and makes it difficult for me to recommend them. Moore Maker uses them for some of their knives and they make knives to be used and used hard so you do have to give it to Bear for making some very usable and durable knives.
These just aren’t my cup of tea so I will pass. I have that same Remington made by Bear and it’s a nice knife. Bear does do a very good job on their Barlows and I’ve always thought it was one of the best patterns that they make and I have a couple of them in my Barlow collection. Just wish I could get in their corner and root for them, but until they get more consistent with their quality I will pass. I didn’t even consider using them for my SSk knives due to the quality issues. That’s something I don’t want to have to apologize for.

Sharpnshinyknives wrote: ↑Sun Oct 08, 2023 12:14 am Moore Maker uses them for some of their knives and they make knives to be used and used hard so you do have to give it to Bear for making some very usable and durable knives.

I agree about Moore Maker, I have beat the He// out of this one and used it hard. I believe this Moore Maker (my EDC today) was made by Queen back in the olden times. Interesting how some things end up tied together... I'll have to dig out my B&S swing guard, it is very well made. It was a favorite of mine several years ago.

Mine