All About Pocket Knives

Steve Warden wrote:Sweeeeet, Greg!!!

doglegg wrote:Looks practical Greg but oh that handle!!!!

Thanks guys ! It is perfect in the hand.

Wonderful color and texture on that handle. Exceptional.

Quick Steel wrote:Wonderful color and texture on that handle. Exceptional.

Thanks QS!

Here's a different kind of fixed blade -

An Aqua-Craft Pro-Bar. Used by divers for taking abalone. A very unique tool.

The large, flat bar is used to pry the abalone loose from its rock. It was rounded and blunt to prevent damaging an illegal to keep abalone.

After you identify the variety of abalone, you would then measure the long dimension of the shell to see if the abalone was legal to keep.

Many ab-irons were simple flat bars with some marks on it to measure from the tip of the blade. The problem with that was it was easy to make a mistake. Big time fine if caught with undersized abalones.

If your abalone would not fit between the tines it was legal to keep. Black abalone needed to be at least 5 inches long. Green, pink and white abalone had to be at least 6 inches long. Reds had to be 7 inches.

The tool is capable of measuring lobster and clams as well. The pommel tines are for lobsters. The black abalone tines are also the same as for Northern clams at 5 inches. A separate set of 4-1/2 tines inside the GPW tines is for southern clams.

Interesting tool zzy.

Yeah Steve, it's certainly different. And works well, too. The patent was issued in 1976 and the tool went on the market in California in August 1977. I came back from my first WestPac cruise in January 1978 and bought it in February 1978 the first time I walked into a California dive shop - I already knew I wanted to try lobster and abalone fishing. It was pricey for back then, about $20 as I remember it. The other ab-irons were only $8 or $9, but I could immediately see the usefulness of the tool.

They came in black and orange. I went orange for visibility.

They are rarely seen outside the west coast, since that's the only place that has abalone in the US. Anyone who has one most likely lived in California in the late 70s or early 80s.

There was no sheath. You carried it in you abalone/lobster bag or used a lanyard around your wrist. You could also take a # of lead off your weight belt.

That would explain why I've not seen one over on this side. Very briefly held a diving certification but discovered I couldn't clear my ears but with great difficulty and gave it up. One open water dive was enough to know.

Just googled abalone. Didn't realise the amount of regulation.

They used to be regulated only as to size, time of year and quantity in possession.

They are currently prohibited from being collected through at least the 2021 season all along the US Pacific coast.

The problem seems to have started back around 2013 (probably before that) when a virus hit the sea stars (aka starfish) populations along the Pacific coast. Especially hard hit were the sunflower sea stars started, the primary predator on the purple sea urchin. That allowed the purple sea urchin population to skyrocket, since sea stars were the primary predator of the sea urchins. The urchins destroyed the giant kelp forests that the abalone fed on.

In reality, the prohibition will be decades, since first the sea stars need to be re-established so that the sea urchins can be brought under control enough to allow the kelp beds to regrow, and then the abalone population will have to re-establish itself and grow to harvestable size - that will take 10 to 15 years by itself.

In 2018, scuba divers removed over 1.2 million sea urchins in certain areas in an attempt to lower the urchin population enough to allow the kelp beds to begin regenerating in those areas. The removed sea urchins are crushed and composted. There are also plans being developed to breed surviving sea stars to replenish the population, based on the theory that the survivors have a resistance to whatever disease killed most of them off.

I didn't realize that was happening, thanks zzy.

Well I finally picked up my G.C.Co. Buffalo Hunter from the antique shop.Ten inch long blade with a long sharpened false edge similar in shape to a Woodcraft pattern.Two piece buffalo(cow?)horn handle and aluminum pommel.Sheath is marked Edge Brand and the blade has a number 349 stamped in the pile side.Some slight surface rust which is removing nicely and a small chip in the pile side handle which I think I can fill.Cost me $55 which I don't think was too bad a price.

Thought I would try a GEC fixed blade knife so got this H10 with antiqued cherry wood handles earlier this week. Picked this one because at 7" oal it fell within a size range I didn't have. Made an attempt at antiquing the leather with some dye, rubbed some gray dye and black powdered earth pigment into the handle to darken it some and forced a patina on the blade with mustard. Had to personalize it.
I like the blade size, shape and how thin it is. I feel like the handle would feel better in my hand if it were just a 1/4' longer and a 1/4" taller (spine to belly that is, not thicker). I'll put it to use though camping and hunting.

Congratulations Greg. Very handsome. And with your personalization this knife is going to "speak" to you more fully with the passage of time.
I'm expressing that awkwardly but you know what I mean. Well done.

Ray, that is a big knife, the Buffalo Hunter. Looks like a Gutmann marking so a good quality knife. $55 for a knife with a 10" blade in that good condition is almost a steal.
kj

kootenay joe wrote:Ray, that is a big knife, the Buffalo Hunter. Looks like a Gutmann marking so a good quality knife. $55 for a knife with a 10" blade in that good condition is almost a steal.
kj

Thanks Roland.The stag handled hunter I got last week I like even better.Pics on page 180

Quick Steel wrote:Congratulations Greg. Very handsome. And with your personalization this knife is going to "speak" to you more fully with the passage of time.
I'm expressing that awkwardly but you know what I mean. Well done.

Gotcha QS, I know what you mean. I'll take it camping in a few weeks and hopefully after I get some honest use out of it the knife and I will bond.

Yes, bond is precisely the word.

anyone recognize this one? Sheath say's BOWDEAN HIDE WORKS, MONTANA. NOT SURE WHAT THE HANDLE IS AND on The sheath is a tooth, not hollow for a root. blade is 4 1/8th and 8 7/8th overall. snake over hand made and possibly a ram or big horn sheep.
Thanks, Bob

Hey Bob, need a picture, eh !
And Ray, Wow ! i just saw your large British Hoffritz Bowie. Need to be a strong younger man to pack this one around.
You find Great knives, almost every week !
kj

mrwatch wrote:anyone recognize this one? Sheath say's BOWDEAN HIDE WORKS, MONTANA. NOT SURE WHAT THE HANDLE IS AND on The sheath is a tooth, not hollow for a root. blade is 4 1/8th and 8 7/8th overall. snake over hand made and possibly a ram or big horn sheep.
Thanks, Bob

just found this, online auction. June 2014. Group - Category
Miscellaneous
Lead Bob Schopp Knife and Bodean Sheath Helena, MT This
Description
This lot shows two knives made by Bob Schopp of Helena, Montana. The knives are in a Bodean Hide Works Hand Crafted in Montana leather sheath that is hand made and tooled. The knives both have stag horn handles and brass hilts. This is marked with the coiled rattle snake logo.
blade forums, The late Bob Schopp and Jay Dean of Bodean hide woks.

Mr W. that is an exceptional knife. What great looks. Very well done. Glad you have it.

This is my DR. Ray Rantanen railroad spike knife. Amboyna burl wood dyed blue Dr. Ray told me that there are 30 different kinds of railroad spikes. This spike knife came from the curve with higher carbon.

Good looking Railroad Spike knife. You should share it here:
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=62751

I got this Imperial at a gun show yesterday. A guy had it on his table for $20 so I offered him $10...and got it. It's in pretty decent shape.

That is a good deal in anyone's book! Nice shape too.

tongueriver wrote:This thread needs a bump. This Vic Hangas (Ruana, 1990ish) bowie is in the mail, I hope.
vic6.jpg

I have been gone over a year. A tale of woe and sadness to be related on a bleeding heart forum.

I sold off most of my knives, including two out of three of my Ruana's. I always thought my camping knife was a one off of some other design. Notice the similarity Now I am curious about the knife but do not have the experience to search out the information. This is a two year old thread I found the picture in but it is the only mention of this knife I have ever found. I may have to sell a another sword or knife and more knowledge can only help.

I acquired the knife in 1982. The two skinning knives I sold were from the '40's, I had skinned moose with them as a youngster.
Anyway, the knife is pretty beater, ten full seasons of camping with children. Yeah, I let them play with knives.

Another of the reasons I considered it a one off, it has a slight bend from quenching. At least that is my guess, there is a twist, small but discernible when sighting down the blade. 36 years of use, it has no cracks and holds an edge evenly along its full length, but the twist is there.
At least the signature puts a date on it. But why would a production knife be signed?