What "Traditional Knife" are ya totin' today?

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Amir Fleschwund said:
I grew up across the river from a major dragstrip. I still remember the radio ads ~ "Sunday! Sunday! Sunday! Oswego Drag Raceway!" Dad took me once in awhile ~ saw some famous heros like The Little Red Wagon and Hemi Under Glass. But even when we were heading to church on Sunday mornings, we could hear them making their runs.
When you stand there quietly, you'll hear the race cars.

He got us back up and running🤙
Had him put in his best choice of pumps, but learned that it's not the run time that wears them out, it's the on/off cycling. Which is why we're going to get a bigger pressure tank.
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I will try to hear them Jeff.
I drag raced at Englishtown NJ for many years. I still smell the smoke and fuel, when I think back on those times.😃
 
Western (Pre-Coleman Era) 062 Folding Hunter and 742 Stockman.
My number 1 and 2 knives of the year for 2024.
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probably my July carry ... tho I mite swap to the Imperial Bicentenial stockman for the 07/03 and 07/04 Holly Daye.
The Western 062 replaced the LM on my belt, however, it remains with-in reach clipped to my rollator.

No other changes
 
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afishhunter said:
Western (Pre-Coleman Era) 062 Folding Hunter and 742 Stockman.
My number 1 and 2 knives of the year for 2024.
View attachment 2914801
probably my July carry ... tho I mite swap to the Imperial Bicentenial stockman for the 07/03 and 07/04 Holly Daye.
The Western 062 replaced the LM on my belt, however, it remains with-in reach clipped to my rollator.

No other changes
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Well chosen Steve. They have stood the test of time for many.👍🏻
 
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Rufus1949 said:
Well chosen Steve. They have stood the test of time for many.👍🏻
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Thanks. 😁👍
They may not be as popular or well known as say "Case and Schrade Old Timer" but they get the job done.
Also, tho it may be blasphemy for some, to me the 742 feels better in hand than the same size and class Schrade Old Timer 8OT and the various Imperial and Frontier versions of the 8OT.
 
afishhunter said:
Thanks. 😁👍
They may not be as popular or well known as say "Case and Schrade Old Timer" but they get the job done.
Also, tho it may be blasphemy for some, to me the 742 feels better in hand than the same size and class Schrade Old Timer 8OT and the various Imperial and Frontier versions of the 8OT.
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And that is all that matters.
 
Rufus1949 said:
Harry, very nice combination. I wish they could talk and let us know where they have been.😍
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Thank you very much Bob !!!!! I too would like to know where all they have been to . I can only tell you that they have been in Wisconsin with me since I got them . They also have been with me in Indiana and Tennessee . The Lambfoot was made in Sheffield by Taylors Eye Witness and I got it I think in 2017 from a knife shop in Minn. The old $28 Pruner has Integral Bolsters and most likely was made in Sheffield , but has no Bolster Stamp , and I got it I think in 2020 off of the Net . My very good friend and I sat on a lake house balcony in Tenn . discussing that knife for a couple of hours one day back in 2020 . When I got it , the Stag looked all dried up and I just coated it heavy with Mineral Oil and then I hand buffed it off a day later and started carrying it . I am not a young man anymore but I am pretty sure that each one of them is older than I am . I feel good carrying and using good knives that are older than me .

Harry
 
Metal Monday ...

The year was 1991. The Gulf War had just simmered down, and tensions still lingered across the seas. I was near the end of a four year tour, stationed aboard the USS Bainbridge (CGN-25), a sleek, nuclear-powered guided missile cruiser, slicing through the Atlantic with the precision only the U.S. Navy could command. The Navy never slept. We were always moving, always ready.

The Bainbridge was the first of four ships that I would serve aboard during my twenty year career.

It was there, on that steel-decked fortress, where I was issued a military pocket knife that would follow me through the rest of my career. The Camillus Demo knife, stamped with “U.S.” and the year, was issued with the same no-nonsense utility as the ship I served on. Nothing fancy, stainless steel, simple design. The kind of tool that didn’t need explaining. It wasn’t a gift. It was gear. And it earned its keep.

To some, it was just a pocketknife tossed in a toolbag. But the rugged steel pocket knife became as much a part of my uniform as my dog tags. I carried it everywhere, clipped to my coveralls in work spaces, tucked in my pocket on liberty, and always within reach when something needed fixing, cutting, or prying.

At the time, I didn’t know just how far I’d go in the Navy. But that knife did. It saw the long nights, the hard watches, the drills, workups and deployments. It saw me grow.

A few years later, after blood, sweat, and more salt than most could stomach, I stood tall in khakis. A metal card and challenge coin were handed to me following my Chief Petty Officer initiation. The etched words “Welcome Aboard” rang louder than the ship’s 1MC. I wasn’t just another sailor anymore, I was part of a brotherhood, a guide to the next generation. I had become part of a legacy. One earned, never given.

That Camillus knife had always been at my side on watch, in shipboard work spaces, during inspections, and over countless cups of coffee in the Goat Locker. It opened boxes, freed jammed latches, aided maintenance, and helped recover from equipment casualties. That same Camillus knife came with me into the Goat Locker, still sharp enough to remind me exactly where I started.

Sure, I had a different collar device, different expectations, but more than once, it reminded me where I came from as a sailor forged in saltwater and tradition, supported by shipmates, with steel in my hand and pride in my heart.

Even now, in retirement, I keep it close, a token of service, sacrifice, and a career lived underway. It’s a bit more than a knife to me. It’s not shiny. But it served. Just like the ship. Just like the crew. Just like me. It’s a story. It’s a journey. And for this Chief, it’s a memory forged in steel, still sailing with these fair winds and following seas.


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