Utica Kutmaster review

r8shell

r8shell

Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Jan 16, 2010
Messages
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I just got a Utica KutMaster Catskill Serpentine 3-1/4 the other day. I thought I'd give a quick review. This line of pocketknives are made in Utica, New York, and have 1095 carbon blades, so I was curious why I hadn't read much about them on these boards. So for around $30, I thought 'what the heck? I'll check one out'

If you want a beautiful knife to look at, this is not the knife for you. There are gaps between the liners and springs that wouldn't pass inspection at Rough Rider. The brown bone scales are the color of mud. I have finally flushed out the tiny shavings of brass from the liners.

All that being said, I kind of love this knife. It has a heavy,solid feeling. There is no blade play at all. Flat ground blades are not hard to put a 30 degree edge on and man, are they sharp now. This is the definition of a user knife.

I decided this would be a great knife for me to force a patina on. I've never tried that before, but I figured I had nothing to lose. I applied warm vinegar, and it looks great, a subtle grey. I learned the backsprings are also carbon steel as they darkened, too. And the muddy brown bone scales are starting to grow on me. They do have a nice deep jigging.

One other thing: Some of you guys might think the springs have a weak pull, but for me, that's a plus. I have weak nails (that's one reason I started carrying a pocketknife as a kid) and I hate fighting to open a knife. But once open, there is no wobble or flimsy feeling- just solid.
 
Same sentiment as dogstar, thanks for the review. I for one have been eyeing the line for a bit, but after some negative reviews on here I was left with doubt. However ugly these knives may be though, I'd definitely grab one up if I knew it was solidly constructed.

Edit: This is where Bear & Sons failed me, I could get over a somewhat ugly knife; but the soddie I received had a bent blade and the handle scales started falling off within a week's regular use.
 
I'm rather partial to my Utica stockman. I agree about the solid feel and no wobble at all to the blades.

I have no complaints about the springs. The springs on mine are not especially strong, but with a bit of a cleaning of the joints and application of some lubricant, they have a nice bit of snap to them. There are a couple of minor gaps between the springs, but they are exactly flat in both open and closed position, something that I enjoy and don't always get in a budget knife.

No gaps around the scales on mine. The jigging isn't a fancy pattern, but it isn't ugly, either.

For those who are collectors and want everything just so, I probably wouldn't recommend it. For those who want a good 1095 bladed working knife, I would.

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This is a great thread for me. I am always on the hunt for a new knife to try out.
1095, made in the USA, I can't resist.

I heard bad things about them before, but I think I'll give a try here shortly.
 
Thank you for the review :thumbup:

I have the "Big Pine" Premium Stockman in green, it isn't a bad knife at all. Yeah, it isn't perfect but they can be had pretty cheap at some places on the web, and as soon as I find out that the stockman like Frank's is back in stock I'm going to grab one. Plus I love green :D

I'm also curious about their wooden handled Adirondack series in stainless. I thought I read somewhere that it is 420HC but that could be completely wrong. There isn't a lot of information on these knives, I don't know why. They're a bit of an enigma.

These would be decent knives to give to my Scouts to introduce them to American made carbon steel traditionals.
 
The spey blade on Frank's green knife looks good. It looks like the 'double-hipped' (?) type if I am seeing it correctly, similar to the ones found on some GECs. I like this variety better than the standard spey blade.
 
I have a Utica Catskill (brown handled) Serpentine on the way. I figure for the price it's worth a try, my Big Pine Premium is a decent knife.
 
I am new to this thread, but I recently acquired a Utica Muskrat. Perhaps with the exception of some minor abrasions it would almost be called sexy in the world of knives surrounding us with such slender blades that initially made me think the pictures were distorted. It is the only Utica I have, but a sound impression. Not wanting sound redundant, but the snap, fit up, and such are what I would expect any of us would want and no wobble. The stockman knives here are something I am presently looking at. One interesting thing I noted was how they used a double liner on each side instead of chanting the blades to prevent rub even though it made the knife wider. All in all I found the only knife in my collection from them quite attractive.
 
The only experience I have with kutmaster is a couple of factory seconds little lockbacks that I got for 5$ and because they were stated as being cosmetic seconds I expected more than I got ( horrible fit and finish , major blade play, and zero edge )
 
I have a Catskill Coffin for about a year and use it regularly. I got it on the bay for a very reasonnable price, probably because it had two spots of rust on the spey blade. While the clip has no play, there a little amount on the spey, but not a too big issue for me.
I dig the color and jigging of the bone. The clip since has developped a nice patina. On my shortlist are the barlows, in green pine bone and wooden Adirondack versions.
Here pictured when new
Coffin-2.jpg
 
I picked this one up off the exchange a year or two ago. After reading the above posts, I am feeling pretty lucky. The fit and finish on this one is pretty good. I have only used it very lightly so I can't speak for the edge holding abilities. Over all, I am pretty pleased with the quality. Enough to take a chance on picking up another Utica some day.
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Wow, this is an old thread. I've since learned how to post pictures :D , so since it got brought up, I'll give a little follow up.

I haven't used this knife very much, but what light use it's had, it has held up well. It actually looks nicer than I remember as far as the color of the bone. (please try to ignore the dust) I need new reading glasses, and don't seem to see it until it's magnified on my monitor. :rolleyes:






The carbon steel doesn't hold an edge as well as a GEC, but is not nearly as soft as Bear & Son's.

I've since bought a Barlow. It was advertised as being carbon steel. The pen blade is, but the clip is stainless. I don't know if they've fixed the issue, but there were reports a few years ago of folks receiving random blades like this. My guess was that the blades are piled up on the assembly table, and if the worker grabs a blade at the edge of the pile, you have a chance of getting the wrong one.



It's a solid working knife, but I had a lot of trouble opening the pen blade. Not so much because the spring is too strong, but because of poor placement of the nail nick. I did a modification to extend a pull farther from the pivot for leverage.



So if you want a relatively inexpensive USA made knife to use and modify without worry, I'd still recommend them, Though it's a shame it's so difficult to find knives in stores where you can inspect them in person before buying.
 
I believe I currently own six modern day Utica Cutlery knives in my collection. Five are traditional folders, and one is a fixed blade. None of the folders are exceptionally made, but they were hand picked by me from a local store, so they are about as good as I could find them to be. The only one I was not able to pick out by first handling it, was my fixed blade specimen... And I believe it's my best Utica Cutlery specimen overall. I don't believe I will likely add more Utica Cutlery specimens to the collection (unless I am enticed someday while handling one in person), but I am glad to have some representedd within my collection ☺

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I also have a set of these Utica Cutlery Trappers. They are their 100th Anniv. set. Kinda cool, but nothing really special in their construction. Still, it does mark a major milestone for the company, it being one of the last remaining USA manufacturers of traditional folders.

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I also hope they've fixed the random steel issue.
My theory is it has to be sabotage. People have told them it was happening; how could they not put the different blades in labelled bins, or even on separate tables?
 
I have a penchant for Barlows and have wanted to like the Utica. But, every time I get my hands on one I just can't bring myself to drop the cash on it when it's usually sitting in a display case next to knives that seem to have had more effort put into them at a fraction of the cost. I really want to like Utica especially since it's an older American company, but the gaps, grit, and bad grinds is making it difficult.
 
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