Recommendation? GEC Fit and finish? One of my Barlow pins is sticking way up.

[afishhunter]

Do you really have a tight grasp on what the governmental structure, human rights, and overall components of your argument entails?

Sorry, I have to respond.

And what, pray tell, does the government structure of any country have to do with anything?

This isn't the 1950's.
The Chinese government is Communist. Actually, "Capitalist Communist" or "Capitalist Socialist" comes closest to reality, beginning when China got Singapore back from the British, in the early or mid 1980's.
The Chinese government does not own or run/control every business and farm any more than the Federal or state governments do here in the good old USA.
Chinese Industry and Agriculture were both privatized in the 1970's and 80's

Are there "Human Rights Violations" in China? Of course. Name one country that doesn't have Human Rights violations.
By the way, there are sweat shops in pretty much every country, including this one, too. Always have been, always will be.

My circa 1907 to 1911 Robeson pen knife was hand made. All the pins are flush, ad no noticeable to the nude eye gaps anywhere.
"Hand made" does not mean it has to have minor defects.

Oh, I've been raked over the coals and accused of "bad mouthing" GEC every time I "say" (type) anything other than glowing praise concerning them.

Anyway, I'm out of this. Have fun y'all.

 

[Tyson A Wright]

I own two GEC knives, and I love them, but neither one is perfect. I've tried to buy a Case on several occasions over the last few years (I would really like to have a tiny toothpick in blue bone), but every one I've picked up has had too many flaws for me - I just wouldn't enjoy the knife.

This seems to be confusing for some people, but when I say that I think GEC is higher quality than Case, that doesn't mean I think GEC is perfect and that Case is garbage. It just means that I can happily accept the flaws I see in the GECs I own, and I haven't come across a Case (yet) that quite makes it for me. Obviously your mileage may vary.

GEC pins seem to be either slightly proud and domed or sunken. (On my daily carry GEC Toothpick, the flush center pin has actually rotated about 90 degrees, so now it's slightly sunken on one edge, and slightly proud on the other.)

I don't particularly remember pins being a problem on any of the Cases I looked at. On the other hand, the Case knives had terribly uneven grinds, poorly centered blades, backsprings that were not flush in one or more positions, and fairly visible gaps in the handle / liner / backspring setup. If the pins bug you but those other things don't, then Case will probably seem like a better knife to you. I don't mind the GEC pins, but all those other things do bug me, so I prefer GEC to Case.

-Tyson

 

[Pàdruig]

Oh, I've been raked over the coals and accused of "bad mouthing" GEC every time I "say" (type) anything other than glowing praise concerning them.

With respect, it is not your criticism of GEC that raises the hackles of some folks, it is the manner in which you deliver it. It is fairly easy to be dismissive of one's criticism when one has had little to no practical experience with a product.

For what it's worth, criticism should always be welcomed and addressed accordingly. That said, I cannot figure out why folks who are not interested in GEC's product still feel inclined to engage in GEC-related discussions. If a brand holds no interest to me, I leave it to the folks who have said interest.

 

[Peregrin]

Let's please stick to the pin finish, that was the OP's reason for posting. All the other crap belongs somewhere else. Thanks.

 

[Astr0boy]

Thank you all for the warm welcome and input. I realize that some of you were probably right and I was being a touch persnickety.

I love the knife otherwise and will live with it even if it did pay a tad much for it.

Thank you again and I apologize for any trouble or controversy I may have stirred up. That was not at all my intention.

 

[Leslie Tomville]

View attachment 1525377 View attachment 1525375 View attachment 1525376

AstroBoy has a beautiful knife with a nicely domed spun pin. As Eric Albers described, certain handle materials call for spun pins to protect the material. I love a nicely domed spun pin. I guess Tony Bose did as well. Or maybe he didn’t know what he was doing according to some of the experts on here. To me, a spun pin that is spun too much to the point where it looks deformed is a flaw. As are ugly spinner burn marks. That Osage TC looks very nicely done to me as does this saddle horn made by Tony. It is probably much harder to keep the pin looking pristine with no marks on the handle material.

Thanks Matt_WY ! Much appreciated. So I guess you would be okay with this knife even with that domed pin sticking up there!

 

[Astr0boy]

That's a spun pin, they're not flush by design. They're spun into a "head" and that head holds the knife handles tightly to the spring just like a round head screw does to a piece of wood. When you're spinning a pin you keep an eye on the parts and when you see them come together and the gaps disappear you stop immediately. Any more and you'll very likely crack the covers. If there are no gaps under the "head" of that pin it's as tight as it's going to get and is totally normal for a spun pin. It's absolutely not a warranty issue. Some folks are suggesting that you file the pin down or that it should be flush with the handle, and that's dead wrong for a pin like that.

Eric

Holy $h!t. Eric Albers replied to my thread. Huge fan of your work. Hoping I have enough luck left in the tank to nab one of your amazing pieces.

 

[Misplaced Hillbilly]

Stick around... Chevy vs Ford starts in an hour.

No need for "versus" imho, right now in my pocket is a Rough Rider and a Case thats probably 10 times the "worth" of the RR.

I own both of these as well
As to the OP's knife my feeling is "if it bothers you have it fixed,if it doesn't bother you all is well"

 

[cudgee]

Thank you again and I apologize for any trouble or controversy I may have stirred up. That was not at all my intention.

No need for you to apologize mate, you stirred up nothing, all you did was ask a question about a new knife you purchased, about a brand you wanted.

Hoping I have enough luck left in the tank to nab one of your amazing pieces.

Now you are pushing your luck..

 

[JoKr]

It takes a lot of skill to dome them and not marr the handle surface. Nice knife!

(pictures stolen from the web)

 

[ea42]

(pictures stolen from the web)

View attachment 1525403 View attachment 1525404

JoKr those are not examples of domed or spun pins. They were intentionally hammered that way on the ancient barlows to mimic the way pins were hammered on old knives of the 1800's to very early 1900's before spinning was developed.

Eric

 

[cudgee]

Eric, thank you for your input into this thread. Has been very interesting and educational. We never stop learning..

 

[dsutton24]

JoKr those are not examples of domed or spun pins. They were intentionally hammered that way on the ancient barlows to mimic the way pins were hammered on old knives of the 1800's to very early 1900's before spinning was developed.

Eric

While the pins pictured above may have been deliberately finished that way for some reason, that wasn't typical of knives from the turn of the last century. Riveting has existed for centuries, and well formed rivet heads was the norm, not that kind of ham fisted butchery. It's very common for reproducions to have exaggerated features. Many people equate details like that with Olde Tyme hand craftsmanship. That's a sales gimmic, not a history lesson.

 

[Pàdruig]

While the pins pictured above may have been deliberately finished that way for some reason, that wasn't typical of knives from the turn of the last century. Riveting has existed for centuries, and well formed rivet heads was the norm, not that kind of ham fisted butchery. It's very common for reproducions to have exaggerated features. Many people equate details like that with Olde Tyme hand craftsmanship. That's a sales gimmic, not a history lesson.

I have some pretty old knives (Sheffield-made) that most certainly have hammered pins but I also have knives that are as old or older that do not. The point being that I don't think it is fair to say that it wasn't typical - I think it depended on the craftsman as well as what materials were used.

 

[dsutton24]

I have some pretty old knives (Sheffield-made) that most certainly have hammered pins but I also have knives that are as old or older that do not. The point being that I don't think it is fair to say that it wasn't typical - I think it depended on the craftsman as well as what materials were used.

I understand your point, but I don't think it is fair to say that it is typical of knives from that era.

 

[ea42]

No that's definitely not ham fisted, nor is it exaggerated dsutton24 as you can see by Dylan's pics. That was the way it was done back then. They used a textured face on the hammer to help spread a head on the pin more quickly. This resulted in less cracked covers as a) you didn't have to strike the pin as many times and b) the face of the pin was quickly spread which prevented the shaft of the pin from expanding, again helping to prevent cracked covers. Sometimes they used a headed pin on the covers but more often than not they just hammered those as well since it was quicker and they had the knack for it. It took a LOT of talent to hit the pin and not the bone when you were so close! You obviously can't use a headed pin on the center or butt end pins.

I still use a similar method when I hammer the pins on my smooth covered knives since I sand the pins smooth in the end:



Eric

 

[Matt_WY]

View attachment 1525377 View attachment 1525375 View attachment 1525376

AstroBoy has a beautiful knife with a nicely domed spun pin. As Eric Albers described, certain handle materials call for spun pins to protect the material. I love a nicely domed spun pin. I guess Tony Bose did as well. Or maybe he didn’t know what he was doing according to some of the experts on here. To me, a spun pin that is spun too much to the point where it looks deformed is a flaw. As are ugly spinner burn marks. That Osage TC looks very nicely done to me as does this saddle horn made by Tony. It is probably much harder to keep the pin looking pristine with no marks on the handle material.

Hot damn, that’s a beauty! Just incredible jigging.

 

[Sacto]

Uh oh....the controversial hammered pins on a Chevy!

 

[Pomsbz]

deleted

 

[Ice Tigre]

afishhunter is right, if this was about a Case pin you'd think the sky was falling right now... With Case the argument is always that "its hand made, they can't be expected to do it right". With GEC they say "its hand made, that flaw is part of the charm" of that.

Ironic as hell.

As has been said, GEC is verry fond of doing domed pins, this is one, and is supposed to be that way. If its too rough, file and polish it a little lower. Or put it in yer pocket and use the knife, I can almost guarantee it'll smoot out a bit after the first decade of use.


Personally I find domed pins unacceptable on any knife, they are IMNSHO the easy way out, for people who can't fit a flush pin. But thats concept of execution, not the execution itself. Thus one looks to be executed just fine.

Back in the day, maybe still today, the ford ‘rodders would use chev engines. I even remember the chev crowd using ford suspensions.
Always a blast!

Still holds true... most popular performance motor on the planet right now is the GM LS, I've seen it in anything from a Austin to a VW. Strongest rear axle that everyone uses is still the Ford 9". Have seen it in the same places...