All About Pocket Knives

my daughter bought me a #53 cuban stockman for christmas last year and had been itching to use it,i have about 20 other gecs that are safe queens and have based my first use of them as we are only collecting them because of there looks,i am really at a lose as to why the blades dulled as fast as they did within an hour and a half 2 of the 3 blades were unuseable and went and got my normal edc,its almost as the blades had no heat treatment at all,i only was cutting some nylon rope bailing twine opening up feed bags and whittling points on some small sticks for the garden,i was thinking as i was useing it how i have never heard anyone say how well they worked when actually useing it for its intended purpose,only that they have strong backsprings and no gaps and nice fit and finnish maybe there only purpose is to look at and admirer,i guess from now on i will be able to overlook a minor gap in the back as long as the blade holds an edge anyone else actually used one,

i use a 73 stag 2 blade as an edc. i have used it many times in the 2 yrs i have owned it. only difference is the patina that comes from hi-carbon, and the blade etching, un-ex-ld is almost all gone.. never sharpened it yet, and still has a razor edge

chet

I've carried my 73 tidioute all one winter cutting sisal hay strings, scraping battery post,cutting boxes, opening all types of stuff, and generally abusing the knife. The 1 0f 50 is gone and it's starting to get a little patina going. Only sharpened it once or twice which is saying a lot for the abuse I put a knife through.

Sorry you've had a bad experience with yours but I don't believe it's the norm....at least from my experience.

Check to make sure your wire edge is gone, esp. if you sharpened it. If you don't strop the wire edge off it will bend over and you will think your knife is dull when in reality it just needs the wire edge stropped or buffed off.

I have 7 GEC EDCs, only one of them is stainless. One of the reasons I EDC my GECs is because of the great 1095 steel, I've had excellent experiences with their carbon steel edge retention. I work on a produce farm and I use a #73 there a lot, I've had a great time testing the edge retention on my GECs, and I've very happy with them. Sorry to hear that your experience hasn't been as good, hopefully you can get everything sharpened up.

Yep, I carry and use my 48 every day. Its a 1095 Carbon.

I had to sharpen it a bit straight out of the box but it holds a great edge. It is a perfect EDC for me. I have had no problems with edge retention.

Gino, that things looks awesome with a beautiful patina going.
Really lookin' good there.

Beautiful knife, Gino!!

chautauqua wrote:my daughter bought me a #53 cuban stockman for christmas last year and had been itching to use it,i have about 20 other gecs that are safe queens and have based my first use of them as we are only collecting them because of there looks,i am really at a lose as to why the blades dulled as fast as they did within an hour and a half 2 of the 3 blades were unuseable and went and got my normal edc,its almost as the blades had no heat treatment at all,i only was cutting some nylon rope bailing twine opening up feed bags and whittling points on some small sticks for the garden,i was thinking as i was useing it how i have never heard anyone say how well they worked when actually useing it for its intended purpose,only that they have strong backsprings and no gaps and nice fit and finnish maybe there only purpose is to look at and admirer,i guess from now on i will be able to overlook a minor gap in the back as long as the blade holds an edge anyone else actually used one,

I have had great use of the four,that I,EDC (below )___ I mostly,cut tape,cardboard,& string,at work,with an ocassional apple or other foods,with em' and they all seem to be great working knives___ I will hit them a few licks on a diamond hone,and the edge is razor like again___put a good edge on your stockman,and give it another chance hopefully,it will do better the second round

Caleb & Ray, thanks guys! I have become quite fond of it. My garden is getting close to producing and its the perfect size blade for cutting tomatoes and cucumbers.

Sweet looking knives Monk ::envy::

chautauqua wrote:my daughter bought me a #53 cuban stockman for christmas last year and had been itching to use it,i have about 20 other gecs that are safe queens and have based my first use of them as we are only collecting them because of there looks,i am really at a lose as to why the blades dulled as fast as they did within an hour and a half 2 of the 3 blades were unuseable and went and got my normal edc,its almost as the blades had no heat treatment at all,i only was cutting some nylon rope bailing twine opening up feed bags and whittling points on some small sticks for the garden,i was thinking as i was useing it how i have never heard anyone say how well they worked when actually useing it for its intended purpose,only that they have strong backsprings and no gaps and nice fit and finnish maybe there only purpose is to look at and admirer,i guess from now on i will be able to overlook a minor gap in the back as long as the blade holds an edge anyone else actually used one,

Didn't anyone think of suggesting sending it back to GEC?
If you are sharpening it correctly and it loses it's edge that fast then there is something wrong with the steel. This had happened to me with another brand of knife.
I sent it back and they replaced the knife with a new one.
Send it to the company if your not satisfied.

J W

within an hour and a half 2 of the 3 blades were unuseable

What were you cutting?...........I can sharpen a piece of tin and it will last longer than that.

you are so right mr. k-a-q,,,gec is a great company, they will replace it for you without questions...thats what i would do.

I've had them come pretty dull before, but once sharp, the edge on my #73 northfield is very long lasting.I use it every day.

If you began using your new GEC knife with it's factory edge, I can understand it being dull. I've gotten them new in their box that were as dull as butter knives. I seem to remember that GEC's dull factory edge on the blades of their knives was a point of conversation to people at one time. Once I put an edge on the blades of my EDC Northfield, it's edge sharpness and holding ability has surpassed what I've gotten from Case and a few more quality brand name knives. I cut everything that I need to cut with my GEC and I can't say a bad word about it's holding up to what I put it through. If it will not get sharp and hold it's edge, it won't be carried in my pocket. If it were me, I'd put a good edge on the knife's blades and give it another try before I sent it back to GEC.

Aimus

Aimus, .

johnny twoshoes wrote:Aimus, .

Howdy my little brother. Good to see you again. Hope all is well.

Aimus

I've got four that I carry--had two more but traded them off new--I've sharpened all of them at 20 degrees and the edge retention is fine.

Use them a lot for everything from opening packages and mail to cutting rope and sharpening pencils to just plain old whittlin';

I also use them to trim my fingernails.

I would second what Mr. Moses said.

I've got a #23 that I carry when I decide to give my old 110 a break. No complaints so far.