Queen Cutlery knives: got any?

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I've been told that Queen now makes the best pocketknives in America. Although the speaker is knowledgeable, I'd value feedback from any of you who have seen some or own them.

I don't see them in stores here.

Also, have any of you got any knives from Canal Street or Great Eastern?

Thanks,

T-Star
 
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I didn't even think they were still made. I have a nice little Barlow that I bought from a hardware store in the 1980's but I no longer carry it.
They were decent knives. I haven't seen any in stores in years.
 
Queen Cutlery


Here's their site. The repro of the Remington No. 1306 looks good. But I'm not sure what their Honey Amber Bone Stag really is. Probably stained bone. ??

I hope it's okay to post a link to a MANUFACTURER's site?

They use D-2 steel, uncommon among large companies.

The only Queen knives that I've seen were cheapies sold in convenience stores back in the 1960's. I'm told that their current stuff is really high end, better than Case. :eek: But I have read only one opinion.

T-Star
 
Nice knives. It seems some are stag and some are bone scales, per the link to one of their retailers.

Hmm. Maybe I need another pocketknife...;)
 
I'd like to have one of the Queens, the ones I've had my hands on sure look like nice knives. You can actually get pretty good deals on some of the older ones on ebay. The older Case knives command a lot more money than a Queen from the same period. Queen has made a lot of knives for other companies, including many of the Case Classic series knives. Some of the older ones may have been cheapies, but they also made some higher end, great stuff back then.

A while back I got the wants for a new daily carry--I've had a Hen & Rooster stockman for years. A really nice knife that has served well but I wanted something new. I was wanting another German knife.

I did some research and talked to a dealer that carries the German brands as well as Case, Queen, and GEC. He said that right now GEC was the best of the lot, including the Germans.

I've now got three GECs, and couldn't be happier. Two are Northfield and one is the Tidioute brand. Top rate fit and finish, the springs are flat and flush at closed, open and half stop, and I like the 1095 steel. The springs are stout. I carry all of them--not quite, gave one as a gift, but I carried it for a while.

I've had a few Pumas and the H&R, and the GEC knives nicer in overall quality than those. In real dollars I paid more for the H&R and a couple of the Pumas when I bought them years ago than I did for the GEC.

I've also got some Case knives from the '70s, and I hate to say it but the GECs are nicer than those too.

Expensive but good tools always are.

There's a forum called "All About Pocket Knives" that has a bunch of good guys and info--it's sort of the pocket knife version of this place. They have subforums on Case, GEC, Queen and others.
 
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I have my dads Queen fixed blade knife he got in 1956. It has field dressed and skinned more deer than I could imagine. and a bunch of elk. It holds an edge real well. You can dress 3 or 4 deer between sharpenings. I havn't used it in a few years, but now that I thought about it I think I will get it out and give it to my daughter. She is my new hunting partner and she needs something passed to her.

Wingmaster
 
I have a few Queen knives. They are of good quality. I particularly like the line of reproduction Schatt and Morgan knives they made a few years back.
 
I've had a few Pumas and the H&R, and the GEC knives nicer in overall quality than those. In real dollars I paid more for the H&R and a couple of the Pumas when I bought them years ago than I did for the GEC.


Cooter-

BY GEC, do you mean Great Eastern Cutlery?



I checked their site, but they have few patterns that ring my chimes and don't seem to offer modern high carbon stainless blades. I used to use Case knives with 1095 blades and no matter how well I maintained them, blades and springs rusted.

But we used Three-In-One oil back then. I may try Break-Free and see if it protects better.

Thanks for the quality summary. Much appreciated. I can't find GEC knives here, either. In fact, most of the stores that sold Swiss Army knives have closed or quit selling knives. The one good shop left that I know of said that the airline regs after 9-11-01 tore the heart out of their sales.
And people are afraid to carry a knife into the post office!

T-Star
 
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Yes, By GEC I mean Great Eastern.

The Northfield and Tidioute brands by them are 1095. The knives labeled simply "Great Eastern" are stainless. The 1095 knives will be marked "Titusville Iron Works" on the tang and the stainless knives will be marked "Cyclops Iron Works".

The Northfield brand has more polishing on the blades and more expensive handle materials like stag. Right now I've got a Tidioute Trapper patterned like the old Remington--it's a big working knife. I've got a small Northfield on the muskrat pattern.

The owners of GEC used to work at Queen.

If you go to the GEC site they have dealers listed.

I don't think you would be disappointed with a Great Eastern knife, and if there is a problem they apparently do a great job taking care of things. I like patronizing a small American company.
 
Queen knives are still being made. A few years back, I bought several. Look at some of the knife stores on line. They are easy to find.
 
Hey, Cooter, thanks for the tip on GEC. I'll check 'em out.

Added later: Went with the #54 Moose Northfield "Red Hangman's Bone" at $89.
 
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bamacisa said:
Queen knives are still being made. A few years back, I bought several. Look at some of the knife stores on line. They are easy to find.
Click to expand...


I can find them, but don't want to buy a pig in a poke. I like to examine everything that i buy.

At the least, I want feedback from those who own and use the knives.
 
I don't have any experience with the newer Queen knives, but I have heard good things about them.

I will add another vote for Great Eastern knives.
I have a trapper and barlow from their Tidioute line.
Both of them are great and get carried a lot.
 
I was lucky enough to be in the market for a nice high quality folding pocket knife about the time when Marbles Safety Axe Company was offering real quality carbon steel bladed set of unique knives that were actually made by Queen Cutlery. I bought a large Stockman with Sambar Stag sides and I paid about $125.00 at the time which I believe was about 12 years ago. Don't confuse this with the rubbish that bears the Marbles name today. The new stainless steel knives come from China and don't even hold a candle to what I am referring to. The model that I bought was limited to 25 knives and made in the Marbles Custom Shop after they received the blades that were custom made by Queen. Most of these knives were purchased and put in a display case in someones collection, however this has been my daily carry pocket knife since the day I received it. It has a few stains on the blade (as carbon steel blades will discolor over time if used) but it is still razor sharp!

Queen Cutlery probably makes the finest pocket knife in America, and if I did not have the Marbles knife, I would not hesitate to purchase one. By the way, the Queen line is much more reasonable than the Marbles series was 12 years ago. From what I have seen, you can purchase any model for well under 100 bucks.........

Chief38
 
chief38 said:
I was lucky enough to be in the market for a nice high quality folding pocket knife about the time when Marbles Safety Axe Company was offering real quality carbon steel bladed set of unique knives that were actually made by Queen Cutlery. I bought a large Stockman with Sambar Stag sides and I paid about $125.00 at the time which I believe was about 12 years ago. Don't confuse this with the rubbish that bears the Marbles name today. The new stainless steel knives come from China and don't even hold a candle to what I am referring to. The model that I bought was limited to 25 knives and made in the Marbles Custom Shop after they received the blades that were custom made by Queen. Most of these knives were purchased and put in a display case in someones collection, however this has been my daily carry pocket knife since the day I received it. It has a few stains on the blade (as carbon steel blades will discolor over time if used) but it is still razor sharp!

Queen Cutlery probably makes the finest pocket knife in America, and if I did not have the Marbles knife, I would not hesitate to purchase one. By the way, the Queen line is much more reasonable than the Marbles series was 12 years ago. From what I have seen, you can purchase any model for well under 100 bucks.........

Chief38
Click to expand...


I hit some Online sites and found their (Queen) copy of the Remington 1306 at prices ranging from about $82-$97.

I'd consider paying that, if the knife is nice enough.
 
Onomea said:
Hey, Cooter, thanks for the tip on GEC. I'll check 'em out.

Added later: Went with the #54 Moose Northfield "Red Hangman's Bone" at $89.
Click to expand...



I think you'll like it. I don't know where they're getting it, but GEC has some of the most stunning stag I've ever seen. Pretty expensive though.
 
For the stag knives you're looking at 100 dollars and more, depending on the pattern.

The problem with the GEC stag knives is that a lot of them get snapped up by collectors. This is something I don't really understand as the value of an old Case knife is in condition--a lot of these GEC knives are just stored and there will be a lot of them in new condition. I guess I can see that they are nice things to have, but when I get a knife I get it to use. You have to poke around at the distributor's websites to find them--most of them show both sides of the stag handled knives.

The forum I sent you a link to has a GEC section, and if you poke around there you'll see what I mean about the stag. There's a thread about GEC stag knives active right now. Unless you really want one don't look at that thread. There's no comparison between what GEC is using and what anybody else has. The knarliest, thickest, prettiest stuff you'll ever see on a knife. They've done some in elk as well.

My Hen & Rooster is a stag knife, and if I had more expendable funds I'd have a GEC stag in my pocket right now. They just came out with a 3 1/2 inch stockman that is beaut, and they are offering it in stag. Seriously nice little knife.

I have not seen a lot of stag knives from them in stainless. The stainless knives they make are usually bone or some exotic wood, or casein.
 
I carry a single-blade Queen Cutlery folder everyday. Bought it at A.G. Russels show room in Lowel Arkansas about 3 years ago. It's very well made and the D2 blade stays sharp and cuts very well. The knife has maple grip scales and cost about $40. Made in the USA.
 
I have a Queen jigged bone liner lock - a "gentleman's" size knife.
Smooth opening, very nicely finished and the 1095 steel really takes and keeps an edge. Also own a big red bone Tidioute from GEC which reminds me of turn of the century knives. The Tidioute is at the center of the photo with a Boker green bone below, then the Queen. Others are Case, K-Bar, A US made Schrade Uncle Henry and a long discontinued Spyderco mini. The Queen gets the most carry out of this group.
casekabartidqueen.jpg
 
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