James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
Case Humpback Whittler Pocket Knife, Slip Joint | New Black G-10 Handle w/ Spear Point, Spey & Pen Blade
55 sec read
First produced by Case in the early part of the 20th century, the Humpback Whittler was reintroduced to the Case lineup in 2009. The Humpback Whittler pattern is one of Case’s oldest, but the new version includes several important improvements.
Overall, the handle shape and blade pattern are much the same as the original knife, but steel and handle materials have both seen major upgrades. In all Humpback Whittler knives today, the blades are Case’s Tru-Sharp alloy of high carbon stainless steel. Case makes today’s Humpback Whittler with several types of handle slabs, but the black G-10 used here ranks as one of the best. G-10 resembles micarta, but the “wood-grain” pattern of G-10 comes from layers of tough fiberglass instead of paper or cotton. That makes an already good handle even more resistant to temperature changes, abrasion, and chemical damage.
Only 3-5/8 inches long when closed, the Humpback fits in the pocket without unusual wear and tear, largely due to the rounded shape of the nickel silver bolsters. Improved thumbnail notches in the slip joint blades make blade access even simpler. Each blade is controlled by its own carbon steel spring bar but is only held, not locked, in the open position. The main spear point blade was designed for removing accurate shavings from wood, while the two smaller spey and pen blades originally had stranger purposes. Spey blades were often used for castrating farm animals, and pen blades transformed castoff turkey feathers into writing pens.
James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.
A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.
Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.
His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.
Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.
Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.
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First produced by Case in the early part of the 20th century, the Humpback Whittler was reintroduced to the Case lineup in 2009. The Humpback Whittler pattern is one of Case’s oldest, but the new version includes several important improvements.
