I am often asked about the different types and brand names of pocket knives. There are so many companies producing pocket knives and with the different styles, shopping for the perfect pocket knife is an adventure in itself.
This is the first part in a series of articles to be written about the different types of pocket knives available. I thought a very traditional way to begin the series was with the Stockman Pocket Knife. The Stockman has three different types of blades and usually is in the middle when it comes to the length of pocket knives. The Stockman is sold by various knife makers; the most prevalent being Case XX Knives and Rough Rider Knives.
Stockman’s are special because of the three different types of blades that make up this style of pocket knife. The blades include a clip point blade, a sheep’s foot and a spey blade.
Clip point blades are the longest blade of the three and are the one that does the most work of the three. It can be used in the field to slice meat, peel fruit, filet fresh fish or even skin small game. This blade makes the Stockman an ideal medium sized pocket knife for hunting, fishing, camping or outdoor adventures.
The sheep’s foot blade is a short, straight blade that is used for cuts that require extra control. The strong, blunt point is good for cutting open boxes or delicate jobs like cutting an article out of a newspaper.
Spey blades were used by farmers and ranchers long ago to spay however I believe that spaying animals with a pocket knife has died out. The spey blade is used to carefully slice meat. The blade offers a ninety degree point that helps prevent puncturing struggling animal’s vital organs. The keen edge makes it the most practical for cutting through flesh.
The Stockman pocket knives medium size makes it incredibly convenient to be carried. They generally come with two different types of handles including a straight handled version and a sowbelly version.
As with most folding knives the Stockman style uses nail nicks to open the blade. A nail nick is a slot on the top of the blade that is used to allow your fingernails to pull the blade out of the knife handle. The three blades make this pocket knife a good choice for handling a variety of tasks and are practical for many different knife carriers.
Choose the Stockman, three blade pocket knife if you are looking for a traditional style pocket knife that is small enough to be carried conveniently but large enough to be held comfortably in larger hands. It is a style that has continued to stand the test of time and remains a popular option in folding knife options.
When looking for a Case XX Stockman Pocket Knife or a Stockman Rough Rider Pocket Knife check out the variety of knife suppliers online. You can often find a great deal purchasing online paying up to forty percent off of the prices charged by sporting good stores.