All About Pocket Knives

Grew up near Quincy Il Jerry.

Have lived in suburbia since 1980, currently 43 miles west of Peoples Republic of Chicago.

Ahh, Central Illinois. I've been out in Rockford for the past 51 years, 80 miles from the loop as the crow flies. There are two knife shows (spring & fall) in Beloit WI. Ever been?

Jerry, I'm a bit familiar with Rockford, my oldest daughter, her husband and the kids lived there for a few years before moving a little south down the Rock River near Oregon, IL. I've never been to a knife show before but would love to get to one to see and handle some knives. It would sure take the uncertainty out of the equation versus buying knives mail order. I'll keep my eye open for that show, give me a heads up before the next one
and I'll be sure to buy ya a cup of coffee there.

Way back in my NCR days (early '70s), I serviced a computer we had in E.D.Etnyre Co. in Oregon. Not the friendliest town on the Rock River.

The next show will be next spring in Janesville, WI. It's put on by the Badger Knife Club. Good show. Not huge but well attended. Maybe then.

Knice pics sunknife!

Looks like a great hunting area Sun knife gut me two more tree rats

Dogg, do you use a shotgun or a .22?

Thanks Scott. I do love the deer woods here in our part of the midwest, hate to be anywhere else during the season unless it's out west chasing elk.

Thanks garddogg, looks like your doing well on those pesky squirrels.

Jerry, sorry to hear you've had a bad experience with the people there. My daughter and her family live on 14 beautiful acres a mile from town so I haven't had much contact with the town folk except for attending a few of my grandsons pee wee football games. The people I've had contact with there have been mostly pleasant to me so I know they are not all bad. Not all of them are good either I'm sure.

A one shot .17 pellet gun,1250FPS ACCURATE TO 50 YARDS

Welcome to the forum, sunknife.
I had to enlarge the picture of your beautiful bow.
Can you talk more about your bow and how you made it and others? Do you make your arrows?
Thank you.

Dogg, I used to love hunting squirrels with a .22. I bet that .17 is a lot of fun. A single shot makes for a disciplined style of shooting.

Sunknife, nice looking woods. I also am a bit curious about your bow.


Believe it or not, I am still waiting for some cool weather. Autumn has been on hold in my area. I have taken advantage of that do more fishing.

Thanks for the comments and interest FRJ & Dinadan.

Yes I craft my own arrows too, usually from shoots of arrow wood viburnum, wild rose, dogwood, honeysuckle and sometimes from commercial dowels. I fletch them with turkey feathers I collect or trade for, the points being the one part I don't make.

As for making self bows I could go on for some time talking about them but I'll refrain and give you the short version of how I approach building one.
Basically a tree is cut, staves are split with mall and wedges and allowed to dry/season. With osage I allow 1-2 years for stave to season before starting to work it into a bow, whitewoods can be worked as soon as dried. The stave is reduced with hatchet and draw knife to rough dimensions and then further worked with rasp, files, cabinet scrapers or knife. It would take chapters of writing to lay out all the steps involved but like any hobby or interest all that info can by obtained on the inter-web. There are also several books on the subject which is where I started learning the craft pre-internet. Thanks again for the comments fellas, heres a few pics of the afore mentioned osage bow along with a buckthorn bow and a snakeskin backed ironwood bow.

Beautiful bows!

These were waiting down at the barn today. This was momma’s first litter, and here’s a pic of the proud papa. There’s 8 all told, 5 girls and 3 boys. And we have another litter due in the next week or so.

We love our English Shepherd dogs. They’re good medicine for little boys, and big boys too. Not to mention they’re awful useful here on the farm. They herd, tree squirrels, baby sit the kids, kill varmints, and guard the homestead.

Dinadan wrote:Dogg, I used to love hunting squirrels with a .22. I bet that .17 is a lot of fun. A single shot makes for a disciplined style of shooting.

Sunknife, nice looking woods. I also am a bit curious about your bow.


Believe it or not, I am still waiting for some cool weather. Autumn has been on hold in my area. I have taken advantage of that do more fishing.

The beauty of a .17 pellet gun vs a rimfire .22 you don't have to worry so much about the back-drop,as any single shot make the shot count

Colonel26 wrote:Beautiful bows!

These were waiting down at the barn today. This was momma’s first litter, and here’s a pic of the proud papa. There’s 8 all told, 5 girls and 3 boys. And we have another litter due in the next week or so.

We love our English Shepherd dogs. They’re good medicine for little boys, and big boys too. Not to mention they’re awful useful here on the farm. They herd, tree squirrels, baby sit the kids, kill varmints, and guard the homestead.

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DE89C482-B5FF-420C-8036-5B659D051DC6.jpeg

Nice litter, Colonel! Just curious but did the dogs adjust well to your recent move?

Ray

Those are some good looking dogs Colonel. I'm not familiar with the breed but they just have that look of a first class companion dog. My wife and I have always thought that the herding breeds make some of the best and most loyal pets you could ask for, usually very obedient and always eager for some activity. We have a great dog now that's 10 yrs. old and have been thinking of a border collie for our next dog. Will have to look into those
English Shepherds though, sure look like fine dogs.

sunknife wrote:Those are some good looking dogs Colonel. I'm not familiar with the breed but they just have that look of a first class companion dog. My wife and I have always thought that the herding breeds make some of the best and most loyal pets you could ask for, usually very obedient and always eager for some activity. We have a great dog now that's 10 yrs. old and have been thinking of a border collie for our next dog. Will have to look into those
English Shepherds though, sure look like fine dogs.

English Shepherds, Border Collies (aka old farm collies or farm shepherds), Collies, and Australian Shepherds all have the same ancestors. They we just selectively bread in different areas over time for different uses with some different outcrosses ocassionally.

English Shepherds vs. Border Collies? The BC is a herding specialist and tends to be high strung and NEEDS a job. English Shepherds are more jack of all trades dogs. They herd, less aggressively usually, but when the work is done an English Shepherd will lay down and quit. Not all BC dogs will. ES dogs tend to be a little stockier too.

One of the biggest pluses is that ES dogs aren’t AKC registered. So we don’t have all that show ring breeding mess tinkering with the breed.

I love old fashioned border collies and Australian Shepherds too. But the English Shepherd suits our needs best.

Paladin wrote:

Colonel26 wrote:Beautiful bows!

These were waiting down at the barn today. This was momma’s first litter, and here’s a pic of the proud papa. There’s 8 all told, 5 girls and 3 boys. And we have another litter due in the next week or so.

We love our English Shepherd dogs. They’re good medicine for little boys, and big boys too. Not to mention they’re awful useful here on the farm. They herd, tree squirrels, baby sit the kids, kill varmints, and guard the homestead.

ADE9C308-A2A8-4A6A-BB66-34708DA3AE70.jpeg3BE37D83-A4A5-4413-8218-01EE9DFB0524.jpegBA953E61-EBF7-4063-9337-4B4B0887A723.jpeg
DE89C482-B5FF-420C-8036-5B659D051DC6.jpeg

Nice litter, Colonel! Just curious but did the dogs adjust well to your recent move?

Ray

Thanks Ray. They did well. More land, lots of trees and squirrels (they love to tree squirrels), hanging out at the barn or swimming in the pond, they think they’re in heaven. Lol.

Thanks you, sunknife, for your response and pictures. Your bows are quite beautiful.
You obviously have a finely tuned skill to create those.

No pics, but I shot one squirrel and two chipmunks in my back yard yesterday evening. Shot from the bathroom window with a .17 Ruger single pump spring gun.

We are overrun with the chipmunks and grey squirrels have just recently invaded my attic.

Time to reduce the population.

Charlie

Today the power company contractors were out trimming trees and Valerie stopped them and asked them if they’d dump us a load of wood chips. They did too, a great big ol load and promised more. The boys (12,10, and 7) filled the back end of the Tacoma up with chips and we drove them down to the chicken coop. In the spring this will be some of the best compost ever you did see.

I’m gonna get the dog an application for the state road crew.

Wade the dog's a natural for sure. Looks to me like a couple of those boys have the shovel lean down pat as well.

I saw this on the big rock I use for a stoop in front of my shop porch. I’ve never seen this in my life. Yellowjackets eating a snail!

Today was my Grandsons first Jr deer hunt NO deer but a great day.

I have never seen yellowjackets eating a snail either, Colonel. Seems like they are worst in the autumn - I just put a trap by my back porch this week: had not seen one for months until now.

Dogg - those are some cool photos - I especially liked the last one. Is that a 20 gauge he is carrying? A 20 gauge was the first gun that I hunted with.