Thanks, Stephen.  Do you collect any Kentucky makers?

no, I'm not a maker, but I know there are some real good Kentucky makers.  I have a really nice John Greco--he "finished" a Jimmy Lile folder.  Does excellent work.

Hey, I did that backwards pocket knife experiment a couple of times. You learn faster than me.

no, only ordered an iPad 2 :)

Hi Stephen,

I think it depends on your long term strategy. For long term collectable value, I'd look first for USA made Bokers. They stopped US production in 1983, but some mint examples can still be found. Next, would be the Solingen made Bokers.

I consider the Asian made knives to have little collector value, but for an EDC or user knife I love the Boker PLUS and Boker MAGNUM brands. Boker PLUS knives are being designed by many of the top knife designers nowadays (Chad Los Banos, Jesper Voxnaes, Todd Begg, Mike Skellern, & Jerry Fisk just to name a few). They tend to focus on the "tactical" styles.

MAGNUM has the least collector value, but are great for a knife you don't have to worry about abusing. You can get them for less than $10 and abuse them guilt-free!

I watched the game and have to say Kentucky did not play up to par. If they play the same way against West Virginia they could lose. Needless to say, I like to watch them best when they win by a 15 + points. How about Morehead beating Louisville? I expected them to play a good game but would not have wagered that they would win.

Hey Stephen,

Yes, I think the cost difference is more a matter of labor costs than anything else. Boker keeps a tight grip on the quality of their knives no matter where they are made. I have some of the PLUS knives and the MAGNUMS.

Ricky

Hi Steve...No I have not added anything since the reverse gunstock in pearl. I have flagged & watched a few on eBay but they went higher than what I was willing to pay. The Wildcats will be in another tough one today. Cal does not have a good record coaching against their coach, only 1 win & 8 losses. If the Wildcats are hot shooting from outside the circle they I believe they could win big, if not it will be tough.

HI,STEVE did that info help any on imperial schrade,hope it did.I collect strictly factory made knives do not have any custom made knives.Been trying to get setup to start repairing some old ones i collected over the years.If there is any info that you might need to know on factory made knives ,i try to keep up on them pretty good. I read every bit i can get my hands on about all the old makers an the new ones to. have a good day

Stephen, thanks for adding me as a friend. Nice collection you have.

 

Johnny

The damascus in the top knife looks like it is made by Devin Thomas or Mike Norris The are both US makers and the knife was probably make in the US.  The bottom knife appears to have quality damascus in it. But there are more makers that make damascus with a random pattern to it, some out of the US.  So the origin of the bottom knife is a little more vague.

 

Dave

You habe some really cool knives. It is a lot of fun building a collection. Thanks for sharing them and the other pictures.

Thanks for checking them out. I  love knives and it is a thrill to add to the collection from time to time. I know what you are saying about waiting by the door for a new one to come... HA HA. I agree you can collect, make friends around the hobby, and stay very safe. Thats a winner for me!

thanks alot steve!

 

tim

Thank you, I am excited to be here. I was looking at some of the pics of knives owned by IKC members, I noticed yours also. I looked at only (800) photos so my mind is a blur at the moment. Nice to be here.

Thanks Stephen. It is a great knife and was a decent value as well. I got it last year for around 90-100 bucks. I think I found that one at New Graham knives. It is very comfortable to use and I do not see me breaking or damaging it very easy. Hard use knife for sure.

Hello

Thanks for your birthday wishes.

Much appreciated.

 

Gerry

Howdy Stephen,

Welcome to the diner.  Our staff is ready to assist you...

Steve, Thank you for the comments on my knives. I guess it just was not in the cards for the Wildcats to take it all this year. We had a great run. The title game last night was pretty bad.

Thank you, I guess you don't get forgotten around here... I've gotten like 5 or 6 Birthday wishes.

thx, JD

The Bear Grylls knife in the pic on these pages is really a controversial knife. I have one that looks just like it all the way down to the Bear Grylls autograph. I believe the one I have is an un-authorized copy, I won it at an ebay auction and it came without the sheath. I have less than $50.00 in it. I also have the Bear Grylls survival knife made by Gerber Knife, I think it is great stuff. It comes right from the Gerber line up, it appears to be the LMF series knife. It was adapted to Bear Grylls and is being advertised as his survival knife, sheath, stone, and fire starter. I did also pick up the mid-size folder. Amazon.com has the survival knife for ($50.00), and $22.00 for the folder.

Thanks Steve,  I lived near Frankfort, Kentucky from 1981 to 1983 beautiful state and great people.  All the best.

Stephen, Thanks for the comlipment! Now you know that you and I are not the only two who cut ourselves down to the bone as young kids!

Stephen, I am sorry if I did not respond in a timely way, or maybe I did respond to you. I am getting old. I like the Bear Grylls equipment, I was Gerber fan before Bear Grylls came along. I like his stuff and I think he is a good and valid person to learn from. I feel the same way about Les Stroud, he is entirely different than Bear Grylls. I am not sure what the people who criticize these guys for the price of their knives. They are not alone, I will surf the internet just looking for pricey equipment. I by no means can afford to do business with most of the knifemakers out there. I admire their stuff and keep an eye out for good buys; I picked up Gerber's Bear Grylls Ultimate Survival knife for less than $50.00 on Amazon. I got the mid-size folder for $24.00 at the Knifecenter.com.

steve huskys are good dogs my brother had 2 for the longest time till they passed him and his wife used toget there christmas pics with them and send out every year.

Thanks very much.

 

No I don't do my own engraving, all of the engraved knives pictured were done by Bruce Shaw.  He does great work and has been very good to deal with.

 

Sean

 

Stephen ....Thanks for the kind words about my knives.  As for the birthday also thank you but they are not as much fun as they use to be.  LOL But they beat the alternative.

Bill Luckett

Thanks, Stephen. Thanks for the friend invite. I do have a few Schrades also. Most of them are newer imports by Taylor. I think I have a couple that are USA made.I like to buy knives that look good. preferably made in USA, but there are some imports that are ok> I also like the German made knives, they are usually well made. I tried to leave a comment earlier, but I have been having trouble leaving comments to anyone without commenting on a thread. I don't know if it is me or Ikc.

Thanks Stephen for the comments on my knives. I do my best, it is just a hobby for me now. Thanks again, MIKE

Thanks Stephen, I am checking to see if this is what you are telling me.

For those times when you just can't get to the diner...

sure do she puts up with me you would think that was enough. thanks for the comment

Hi Stephen,   I was wondering if you knew of a custom knife maker by the name of Clifton from Frankfort, KY who retired from the Kentucky Fish and Game.  I received a knife he made in 1983 as a gift from friends.  Thanks, Bill

Stephen I have no first hand knowledge on Bear and Son knives, but they do seem to be well made and they are USA made.

Thank you!

Thomas

Stephen, I have a SOG knife made in Japan and it is very well made with good materials. I.ll post some pictures soon.

Howdy Stephen!

 

Glad that you are enjoying my collection. An awful lot of time and hard earned money in it, that's for sure. I do have 3 SOG Flash II's (one plain drop point, one drop point combo and one tanto). Here's what I think of them:

 

* I like the plain drop point best of the three, though I've probably used my drop point combo the most of the 3.

 

* I really like how light weight these are. You barely feel them on you.

 

* I love the blade shape of the plain drop point. Perfect utility blade. And the steel is thick enough that the tip isn't fragile. Wish that they'd make it in a little better steel than the Aus8a.

 

* I like the feel of the handle.

 

* I don't care for the "safety" on them and would be just fine if they were 100% manual knives without the assist.

 

All in all, they are very good value blades.

 

Be well!

 

Chris

Stephen, I bought a Flash II about 2 weeks ago. I am looking for taht same knife in a camo handle with a tigerstripe tanto blade. I have a Trident with the tigerstripe blade and regular black zytel handle. I also have a sogzilla and a Twitch II. The Twitch II has a metal frame and is a good size pocket carry without having to use the clip. I carry a Benchmade PikaII for my everyday carry right now. I have tryed to abuse this one on purpose to see how tuff it was and I haven't been able to tear it up yet. I have had to touch the blade up a couple of times, but that will happen when you cut wire . The only complaint I have about the Benchmade ,was the pocket clip is not the best. The blade on it was stamped Taiwan. There are some products made in China that are good products, but there is also a ton of cheap junk. The companies that I mentioned earlier in the discussion make the overseas factory manufacture the knives to their standards.

I am not sure, but I think SOG moved a lot of their production overseas. They are using good steel for the most part: 8Cr13MoV, 6Cr12MoV, AUS-8. But they have a new steel I'm not familiar with also.

The flash II is probably a good knife. All these knives with the lightweight GRN handles feel cheap to me. Probably because I'm so accustomed to the old heavy "brass and bone" handles of the classic pocketknives.

The "assembled in USA" is usually code for "purchased components from Southeast Asia and put together in USA". Seems to be pretty common nowadays, but I understand they have to try and be competitive somehow!

How do you like the flash? Does it hold an edge pretty good?

Certainly was...http://www.tsaknives.com/

 

Greg is a straight up guy.  Real good to deal with.  His inventory page is interesting also Stephen

Stephen, I am on a wireless system that comes from a water tower about 2 miles away. It is broadband and I use Mcafee for my protection.

I can't even send a message from my inbox section. When I compose and hit send, it just doesn't do anything.

I'm no expert on SOG knives. I thought some blades were made in Seki Japan but, I know nothing about the China thing. My favorite SOG s are my Trident and Vulcan tanto. Sorry I haven't shed any light on the matter.

I have a lot of knives but, I carry mostly Emersons and Striders...JT

No. I don't mind. I just want to figure this thing out. Thanks for seeking help for me. I'm a little brain dead when it comes to computers sometimes. Any way I have bought a Benchmade niteous stryker for $73.00 on ebay. I'm glad about that. Usually when I think I'm going to win, someone will beat me by a couple of dollars or run the bids up. I also recieved my CCC Cheetah's today. I will mpost pics when I get around to taking them. Gerald has some he posted on the Case site.

Stephen,

 

I checked the videos and seem to be working fine. I will monitor them from time to time.  

 

The lockback with slipjoint pen knife was a tough one to make, but very happy with the results.

 

Thanks for the kind comments.

Nope .. i cannot view Ken's video through iKC .. it didn't error out .. it simply took ....

 

 f o r e v e r  .  t o  .   l o a d 

 

.. I went to youtube .. still didn't have the patience for it all .. my connection is real slow @ the moment .. but I can see where he's going with it. 

.

I'd like to see more info like this !!!

Rob and Robert are both me, we had system problems. Thanks for the wishes.

Hey there Stephen! Glad you like my Tops reviews. You'll be hapy with the Anaconda for sure! The Steel Eagle 107E is also one of my faves (haven't done the review on that yet, but it's coming up).