Slip joint advice

NRA slipjoint


OK, so courtesy of the knife laws in the UK, I'm looking for a sub 3" bladed non-locking folder. I already carry a SAK, but find the main blade feels a bit fragile. So I'm looking for a conventional, blade only knife. I'm not a heavy user, but I do like to have something I can cut with (and I have a scar across my knuckle that reminds me a reasonably stiff backspring would be nice)

I love the Spyderco UKPK, but it isn't cheap and it looks a bit tacticool. One hand opening and super steel is probably more than I need.

I quite like the look of the NRA one above - the price is right, and I like the choice of blade shapes.

Anybody got any experience with it, and any other recommendations - Marbles sowbelly is another that caught my eye.

I don't have any experience with that particular knife (NRA lockback), but the NRA stuff is made by Benchmade, so it should be a quality piece.

For slip joints I love Queen Cutlery, especially their Cocobolo line. Excellent D2 steel and very well made for not a lot of money. Canal Street Cutlery has some extremely nice stuff too (but expensive). Another excellent choice would be the Lone Wolf Loveless City Knife, though I think it's a bit above the price range you're looking in.

The NRA slippies don't look bad but I would suggest either a US made Buck or Case XX.
I have no experience with Queen but many like them.
If you are in the UK maybe a Sheffield or Solingen slippie might be a good choice. I hear that Hen & Roosters and Boker slipjoints from Germany are quite good.
If you want to do some research check out www.bladeforums.com
and visit the Traditional folder and fixed blade sub forum.
I just bought a Case Moose in CV blades (carbon steel) and I am very pleased. The Moose is a 2 bladed 4 1/4 inch stockman.
http://www.wrcase.com/knives/view_all/firstlook.php?Family=%22Red%20CV%22&View=1&Item=
Even though locking knives are OK here I still usually carry a slipjoint for smaller tasks.
Bill

On second thought why not something like an SAK Farmer? That is a great knife that would be legal in the UK.

I don't think the NRA slippies are made by Benchmade I think they are Bear & Sons.

billym beat me to it ...

... the SAK Soldier, Farmer, Electrician have double the blade strength of the usual SAK, and decently stiff springs too ...

... now if they would only build one with high-end steel ...

Thanks for the input

I've got SAKs, but just itch for something different (it's more likely to be about personal pref than function)

The Queen ones look nice, but they seem a lot more expensive (probably worth it, but I'm sneaking this one SWMBO as it is)

One of the things you have to remember about SAKs is they're probably the best quality folding knives out there in their price range. In order to get the same or better quality you usually end up paying at least double from any other maker.

With the Queen knives you not only get about the same quality, but you get the awesome D2 steel. The same knife from Case, Canal Street (Schrade), Boker, Hen and Rooster, ect will cost you just as much (if not more), and you don't usually get as great of steel.

I just think if you're looking for something equal to, or better than, a SAK you're probably going to have to spend a little more than what you would on a SAK. That's just my experience.

I would suggest a pre-bankruptcy (pre-Taylor) Schrade Old Timer 8OT or a similar folder. The steel is 1095 carbon and you get 3 blades that take a fantastic edge. You can find them on Ebay on a regular basis, and probably plenty right there in the UK, which will save you shipping. It was my first fishing knife and, if I hadn't been stupid and lost it, I'd still have it. I bought another 5 years ago and it's now in my tackle box.

Norad beat me to it.
I have been carring a Schrade Walden Old Timer 80T in my pocket for more years than I want to admit to. It a darn good knife, takes and keeps a good edge.

Just a quick note, just because a Schrade is pre-taylor does not mean it will be carbon. Schrade switched to stainless steel long before then. Most stainless will be marked "Schrade+", but not all of them will.

I've had that one for awhile now, it may be Chinese made, but the quality is above average.



Fit and finish are flawless and the steel has done very well at holding an edge.

I am in the same boat.
I E.D.C any combination of the following:
A Spyderco UKPEN.
A Swiss Army Farmer.
A Buck Model 301.
A Camillus Demo Knife.

Multitool is a Leatherman Juice XE6.

Just to make things interesting , one of my co-workers has sworn to have me "done" (arrested) if she can. She's another one of the "Oh my god, he's a psycho with a knife" brigade. Which is a common attitude in the U.K.

hows the spyderco ukpen doing?

While it is true that not all Schrades are carbon, pretty much all Old Timers are. The stainless will be found on the Uncle Henry series, among others.

I'll have to dig mine out tomorrow and make sure the main blade is 3 inches or less though...

In later years, so were many Old Timers, especially ones sold through Wal-Marts.

Yep, it's that attitude which makes carrying something like the UKPK a pain - hence my focus on something as traditional looking as possible.

It appears that there are NRA Outdoors(Benchmade) as well as NRA knives that are made by Case and Bear & Sons; there are viewable at the NRA store.
http://www.nrastore.com/nra/Product.aspx?productid=KV%2024370-4
Bill

Here's a pair of nice looking pen knives..

Fallkniven U1 http://www.heinnie.com/Knives/Fallkniven/Fallkniven-U1-Bone/p-92-139-1902/

Moki Thuja UK http://www.heinnie.com/Knives/Moki/Moki-Thuja-UK/p-92-175-1541/

The legal slipjoint thread over on BB would be worth browsing

http://www.britishblades.com/forums/showthread.php?t=26459

Both nice, but at 3-4 times the price of the NRA one I'd really want to be very sure before I bought one

(I guess I want a slippie to be good - but ultimately if I want to do real, manly cutting I'll have to go and get a fixed blade)

I think I've decided to get an NRA - I'll report back with my verdict

Got one!

Fit and finish are very good, razor sharp out of the box, and feels more solid than my SAK (which is what I was aiming for)

Right now, it feels like a great buy. Only time will tell how it holds up to protracted use and pocket carry - however it has already sharpened a pencil and savaged the envelope it came in!

I really like the "different" blades on my Case Seahorse whittler.

It's 3 blade, but nothing at all like a stockman's pattern.

So has anybody got a regular use for a spey point blade? I get the others, and I've nothing against it per se, but I wonder if anyone has an application for it that really rocks?

(As I understand it they were originally for animal castration, but that isn't something I do much )

The spey blade is what I use for light prying. They're usually pretty stout with a somewhat thick point, compared to the main blade.

While it's not really good to pry with most knives, if I have to (on a slip joint f that style) that's the blade I use. That's one of the nice things about those style slipjoints though, if you do happen to break one blade you've got two more.

Spey blades are good for field dressing game because of the curving tip and lack of an extreme point. Many folks used to carry a Trapper pattern in the past for hunting so they had a good dressing/skinning blade as well as a clip point.
Bill

If I was you, with a threat like that, I'd watch for something she does wrong, and do it FIRST

Keep a pocket tape recorder handy & get it on tape. The authorities might just have a few words with her about it as long as you're within the law.

No, I'm going to wait. Until she opens her trap. Then I have her fired. Wonder what she would think of certain other little details. Like my bare-handed skills are, shall we say, "fair."


I had one of the local goblins try his luck with late last week. Discovered that trying to mug me comes under BCM (Bad Career Move). Wonder if he's stopped running yet?

Anyway, back to UK EDC, I have just acquired a Case XX Sodbuster sliplock. Very nice.

I have a few Schrade and CASE slip joint knives as well as a variety of SAK. These are simply excellent pocket knives. In a couple of months, I will acquire a collection of 12 CASE Cranberry knives from the Canoe size up to an Elephant Toe. Can't wait, but I will probably keep most of them for show and not EDC.

I always wanted to get a set of Case knives in a frame. Maybe you can get a display of some sort for the set.

Currently I am in the throws of a slipjoint addiction; in the past 2 months I've bought 5 Case knives plus 2 red Vic Farmers.
Bill

I have a display case for the Cranberries.