Cheap and Cheerful Traditionals.

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Apr 24, 2019
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New member here. Sorry if I’m butting in, but I was hoping to create a new place for people to discuss and show off their favorite inexpensive traditionals. This is intended for new or old knives which were made to be inexpensive when new, not bargain finds of expensive models. The knives should not be cheap junk, rather knives which are a good value for the low price, useful, and have some (perhaps unexplainable) endearing quality. I will start with this picture of some of my own (and yes, I like lanyards):
https://imgur.com/3hpB6au
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The Imperial “hammer forged” jack in my picture is the exact twin of one My dad gave me in the 1970’s. I carried it for years until it decomposed into its component parts and like a big dummy I threw it away. Happily I found its twin on the big auction site and guess what - still cheap!
 
Colonial Barlows are a very good value. Solid knife with good steel. I don't think I paid more than $12 for any of them and probably half that for a couple...

And by the way, welcome to Blade Forums!

Thanks! For a while I have been admiring the easygoing atmosphere here in the Traditionals sub-forum, so I finally decided to join in. I have no experience posting on forums or social media of any kind, so if commit any gaffes, forgive me.
 
Not butting in at all. Looking at your array of knives, at first I thought I was looking at my own shelf. Pallares, Okapi, Higo No Kami, Opinel, Svord, Douk-Douk, Otter. Salted throughout the archives here, you will also run across MAM, Mora, Marttiini, Antonini, Mercator, Condor, Aitor. There is a lot of enthusiasm for these knives here.

Possibly the first thread I started here several years ago was an inquiry about what to call these knives. Working knives, ethnic blue-collar knives, value knives, hipster knives. A lot of expressions will work, but none seems to capture the essence entirely. “Cheap and cheerful traditionals” is as good as any and better than quite a few.

A dedicated thread is a fine idea. We have had a lot of discussion of these knives, but I can’t say that we have had a dedicated thread. You will find plenty of congenial company here. Welcome to the Porch.
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Colonial Barlows are a very good value. Solid knife with good steel. I don't think I paid more than $12 for any of them and probably half that for a couple...
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The colonial ranger stockmans are good too. Nice thin blades that cut better than a lot of other knives out there, and sharpen with extreme ease. 1075 steel I think. The blades and frame on these have nice husky looking proportions that I like. It is also a three spring which is a little different from most stockmans. Around five bucks or so for this one. Hard to beat that value.

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Thanks everybody for the warm welcome and the awesome pictures. My own interest in this type knife started a few years ago when I somehow got the idea to re-acquire examples of knives I had owned in the past. I started with the Okapi ratchet knife. I had bought one in East Africa in 1990 or 1991 and lost it about a decade later when the briefcase I kept it in was stolen. It had no country of origin stamped on the blade and I had always wondered about it. After that I got an Opinel to replace the one I got in 1988 (and promptly broke the tip off of). I considered it a disposable item at the time and can’t remember what became of it.


By this time my interest was piqued and I started buying more Okapi models. Some of them had defective handles, so I made my own handle replacements which led me to purchasing the plastic-handled versions for the express purpose of making custom handles and occasionally modifying the blades. Here are the ones I didn’t give away yet:

https://imgur.com/9LuwQ5m
 
Just posted this in 'small knives' but think it belongs here too. I'm a big fan of 'cheap and cheerfuls' and will, no doubt, have more to contribute. Great idea for a thread Tom, and welcome.

Really like the MOP lobster knife I picked up recently, a great quality antique knife with hand forged blades by Joseph Westby of Sheffield. As part of the same lot came another horn scaled knife which, though much later in date and with no mark other than 'Foreign' on the tang, I really like. I'm guessing it's from the 50's at best and although a relatively cheap Item when produced is of good quality with a useful sized, sharp main blade and really good snap. I particularly like the fact that the loose tweezers have their own compartment and that the scales, which I have had patched in by a friend, have been done in horn. Just goes to show that the cheaper knives can give just as much pleasure as the better quality, more expensive ones. ;)

Untitled by Blake Blade, on FlickrUntitled by Blake Blade, on Flickr


- Mark

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The shell construction imperials of course...

I agree.

I have a soft spot in my heart for these knives. They were clearly built to a price point, but the features Imperial sacrificed to make them universally affordable have no impact on performance. I’d put their slicing ability up against just about anything. They’re ugly, but they work.

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I’d also like to throw a vote in for knives that weren’t *designed* to be cheap but now sell for rock-bottom prices because they are out of favor in the collecting community. I have a Frontier stockman inbound to me right now. It’s a quality, US-made knife that cost me a whopping $10, NIB.
 
These are usually more expensive that your typical shell imperial/hammer brand but for a vintage switchblade they are cheap. They were definitely a cheap switch of the day. Made under schrade patents. This one is a little loose but still works just fine.

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