All About Pocket Knives

Hi all,

Pat's post re: Melon Testers got me thinking of other knife attributes that may have been "grandfathered" into our hobby over the years.

The most striking to me is spey blades on stockman knives. I know that there are still some people who need and use spey blades, but I would guess that most (like me) have never even entertained the idea of speying an animal. I guess it has other functional uses, but I can't ever remember using a spey blade for anything. This isn't a complaint, just an observation.

A pocket knife and a corkscrew seem to be an odd combination to me, but the Swiss insist on it.

I know major design changes cost money, and everyone (businesses and consumers) have been squeezed, but I would like to see different patterns from manufacturers. For example, I had never seen an Eye Brand pen knife and my local knife shop told me that they don't make one. Olbertz makes Bulldog pen knives, so why not an Eye Brand?

Just a thought,
Keith

Keith,
I think a lot of guys still use the spey blade if they use their pocket knife to skin a deer.
If I go hunting I usually take a knife larger than a pocket knife to skin with.

As far as I am concerned, a Wharncliffe blade in place of the spey blade would be far more useful to me personally.

Dale

i use the spey blade when ever i cut food. i use the clip blade for general cutting and the spey blade for eating

I think the usefulness of certain blades depend somewhat on where you live, and what you do for a living.

I live in Texas, and have used a spey blade for it's intended purpose. When I was younger and worked around cattle, I carried a stockman and used the spey blade quite a bit.

In my old age (or middle age), I am now a candy-ass office worker , and don't have much use for the spey blade (I work at home in the 'burbs, no cattle). As a result, I now carry a whittler or a half-congress most of the time. In short, I tend to carry the blade configuration that I find most useful thoughout the day, which is dependant on my occupation.

Unk

I'm keepin' a spey blade handy just in case I ever get my daughter's boyfriend caught in the cattle chute.

Then again, a good ole butcher knife might do a more thorough job.

Phil

I love the opportunity to show off some Eye Brand pen patterns. I'll put up a photo of a senator pen, an office knife and a gent's knife.
Ray

What is a spey blade?

To call a blade a "spey" blade implies that it was originally designed to excise the ovaries of young female mammals, usually heifer calves. This has never been common practice among stockmen, however. Most stockmen think of the blade as being used to castrate bull calves. In any case, the design is sort of a bull-nose skinner. When performing sterilization on animals, the lack of a sharp point makes it less likely to do unwanted injury while the animal struggles. The design has become somewhat of an anachronism among modern knife users, and even most stockmen, but it lingers, mostly because of tradition, but it does have sort of a visual allure, I think. I would like to see it replaced by another sheepfoot (to total 2 of them) on a stockman. Now we are getting into the realm of a Congress knife. So let's go ahead and add a pen blade and have a 4 blade Congress and now we have a really practical knife. Meanwhile, I collect and carry stockman and cattle knives because.... well... because I like them. (also about 32 other types, if the truth be known)

The spey blade is the short, rounded-end blade (not the sheepsfoot blade) found commonly on a stockman knife, and also on the trapper knife.

Spey Blade - This was used by farmers and designed for the use in cattle castration. The specially curved tip design allows for it to cut easily and not puncture the animal. Today this is a common all-purpose utility blade and is featured in most Trapper pattern designs.

Unk

Hello,
I am an electrician and i use spey blade all the time, just for stripping wire, not on animals.
Have found several other uses also.

When I go to the BBQ joint down the road and they give me one of the wimpy plastic forks, I whoop out my trapper or stockman and use the spey blade to cut my brisket or sausage. The clip blade can puncture the paper plates they use, and I don't want BBQ sauce, brisket grease, and bean juice dripping off the table and into my lap! The sharp edged but blunt-fronted spey blade works great! Of course, I can still cut through the plate with my sharp spey blade, but it is not a puncture ...

And yes, I make sure I don't use the business end of my work knife as a dinner knife ...

Cowboy7130 wrote:And yes, I make sure I don't use the business end of my work knife as a dinner knife ...

ROFLMAO!

I grew up in ranch country (Southern Oregon).
I cannot count the number of times I have seen a rancher or ranch hand use his knife to castrate or ear mark a steer and then stick it back in his pocket. When lunchtime came we would set down with our lunches (packed in a cloth flower sack and tied to the saddle) and eat. Often lunch included an apple or sometimes an orange. They would take out their knife and use the same blade they used to castrate with to cut what ever was in their lunch that needed cuttin'. Never once did I ever see one of them wash their knife. The most cleaning a knife got was to wipe off the dripping blood off the blade on their jeans.

I guess the blood on the blade added flavor to lunch, not that you could taste anything anyway, except the horse sweat that had soaked through the flower sack and wax paper and into your sandwich. That was where I began my love of Tabasco sauce!

Dale

orvet wrote: ROFLMAO!
I grew up in ranch country (Southern Oregon).
I cannot count the number of times I have seen a rancher or ranch hand use his knife to castrate or ear mark a steer and then stick it back in his pocket. When lunchtime came we would set down with our lunches (packed in a cloth flower sack and tied to the saddle) and eat. Often lunch included an apple or sometimes an orange. They would take out their knife and use the same blade they used to castrate with to cut what ever was in their lunch that needed cuttin'. Never once did I ever see one of them wash their knife. The most cleaning a knife got was to wipe off the dripping blood off the blade on their jeans.
Dale

Guilty! Just never thought about it. I also used the same blade for grafting on pear and prune trees mostly - with a few walnut trees mixed in.

Those cloth sacks were once flour sacks, at least that's what I used. Amazing, they used those flour sacks to make all kinds of things. From dish towels to lunch sacks.

Papa used to gripe at Granny for not slicing the 'maters thin enough, so he would take out his pocket knife at the table and proceed to re-slice ...

He said once, "Well, I like rare steaks ... "

Now, another question about spey blades ... I have noticed some of those saddlehorn hunter/trapper knives have a very broad spey blade. I mean, I think some of them look almost like spatulas, or spoons at least. Are those still called spey blades, or is there another specific name for them?

I don't know about the name but I have always used a spey blade for dressing small game. The Spey blade will not puncture the intestines like a clip blade. It is a great think to have when dressing a rabbit or quail. I would say that is what makes the stockman my favorite knife as most have a spey blade. They definitely have a purpose for the hunter.
Tom

I use the spey blade a lot. I have used it to dress squirrels a lot. I cut my vegetables with the spey. It is useful for me.

useem, I find it hard to believe that you depend on your EDC to cut food. Where do you live? Most places at least provide plastic utensils for your meal, if you are eating out. Tell your wife to wash dishes more often. Jim Bush

It's part of my knife habit. When i'm in the kitchen i DO use a knife out of my pocket instead of one out of the drawer. Why would i want to use a plastic knife in a restaurant, when i have one that actually cuts in my pocket? I guess i just like using my knives more than the average "knife lover". Probably not "normal" to prepare a sandwich with a 110 in your own kitchen, but i do it all the time . I never said i use it to cut food out of necessity, just out of a love for a good knife.

Hmmm...I use my pocket knife to cut stuff in the kitchen and at restaurants too. I keep a pocket knife on the kitchen table also to cut up the food. That way , I get to use my pocket knives.

Since many restaurants have such lousy steak knives, I have been known to pull a knife from my pocket to cut prime rib or a steak. I cannot stand dull, cheap steak knives that tear the meat instead of cutting it.

Dale

The spey blade is my favorite blade in a stockman even though I've never used it for its intended use
but when your zipper gets stuck down the spey is great for getting it unstuck
with out stabbing your self.

Paladin wrote:I love the opportunity to show off some Eye Brand pen patterns. I'll put up a photo of a senator pen, an office knife and a gent's knife.
Ray

WOW! Ray, what is the length on that senator? Quite a rare piece I imagine? First one I've ever seen, gotta be on the lookout for one now!