A while back, the news came out that Great Eastern Cutlery would not be manufacturing any more SFOs (special factory orders) in the future. While I knew that they weren’t taking new dealers for a while, I was surprised to hear that there wouldn’t be Special Factory Orders for the typical dealers and producers. In particular, I was concerned that Charlie Campagna wouldn’t be able to continue his new Waynorth Cutlery brand.
Waynorth Cutlery #93 Lambfoot for Charlie Campagna, 1 of 27
Charlie has produced many of the most popular GEC knives. From TC barlows to Harness Jacks, Charlie’s designs have helped propel GEC to its current stratosphere of popularity. Recently Charlie created his own brand in Waynorth Cutlery. “Waynorth” is what Charlie uses as his online screen name, particularly on BladeForums. A few knives were made under Waynorth Cutlery, with only the #93 Lambfoot and #86 Black Jack having the Waynorth tang stamps.
I’m sorry, but I can’t guarantee you’ll look this stylish in your Waynorth Cutlery shirt.
I personally have been a fan of Charlie and his designs throughout my time as a GEC enthusiast. My first GEC was a TC barlow, and getting to talk with Charlie and see his collection was always a highlight of the yearly Great Eastern Cutlery Rendezvous. So one of my first thoughts when I realized GEC might not make any more SFOs for Charlie was wondering how I could help keep Waynorth Cutlery active.
Framed “OIL THE JOINTS”
The idea came to me to create some non-knife gear related to Waynorth Cutlery. I contacted Charlie to see if he would be alright with me producing some shirts with his Waynorth branding. We had a great conversation wherein he let me know that I had his blessing to go forward with the idea. Fast forward through several months of trying different ideas and designs, till a fellow GEC enthusiast offered to create digital illustration facsimiles of the Waynorth tang stamps. They turned out incredibly great, in my opinion, and I went ahead and set them up for purchase. I had used print on demand services previously both for Knife Thoughts and my normal job, and I am happy with the quality and service provided by Printful.
Mockup of the dark version front
So, I’m happy to say that Waynorth Cutlery shirts are available now on Knife Thoughts! There are two versions; one in black heather with “OIL THE JOINTS” unframed as on the tangs, and the other in heather dust with “OIL THE JOINTS” framed with an outline. I think both options look great. The Bella + Canvas shirt is soft, comfortable, and fits well to my preferences.
Mockup of the dark version back, with unframed “OIL THE JOINTS”
These are not priced to make a huge profit on each shirt, but a portion of the profit from each will go directly to Charlie. I think these offer a great way to show your enthusiasm for Waynorth Cutlery, Charlie, and GEC. So, if you’d like to pick up a Waynorth Cutlery shirt for yourself, go to this link or to the Shop tab in the top menu. I hope you enjoy the shirts and I’d love to hear your thoughts on them!
I sincerely thank you for your time, support, and interest! Don’t forget to tell your friends about KnifeThoughts.com, subscribe via email, and share this article on social media. You can find Knife Thoughts on YouTube where I have hundreds of knife videos, as well as on Instagram and Facebook! You can find all my latest links at LinkTr.ee/KnifeThoughts
There has been a Great Eastern Cutlery knife that I’ve always wished I could get, but never thought I would. It was a particular #23 Pioneer Trapper from the first run of knives GEC made in 2006 with smooth white bone covers laser etched with “GEC” and oak leaves (the oak leaves to match the Great Eastern Cutlery brand’s acorn shield). I always understood these to be a small run within the overall first run made at GEC’s inception, and the first knives that went to consumers. A picture of a paper had been circulated online that designated the knife as being a small run of 25 knives given to friends and family. It also is the first knife that had laser etching on the handle, which GEC has done a few times since. On top of all of those things that made it special from a collector’s standpoint, I also just like the smooth white bone and laser etch from an aesthetic standpoint.
These knives never seemed to become available until, for some inexplicable reason (cough the insane secondary market??? cough) the last month of 2020. In less than a week I missed two: one on eBay because it sold for more than I could bid, and one on AAPK because it sold before the buyer got back to me with pictures showing the condition. So I posted in search of it, and within another week had multiple offers to my great shock and excitement.
I took one of the offers and was really happy to finally have a true grail in my collection. That said, I did sell a couple knives to help with the transaction including the 2006 #23 from the below video. Also, the knife has some gaps between the backsprings and center liner, but I’m happy with the deal because it’s still a great knife and I knew about the gaps because the seller was upfront about them. After getting the knife, I decided I wanted to get the full scoop on its history and reached out to Great Eastern Cutlery.
Unfortunately, their reply wasn’t what I had hoped. They said “there really is no story to it”, it wasn’t made for friends and family, and he doesn’t recall a paper going with the knife. I was relatively deflated by this news, and decided to do some digging to find the paper I had seen posted in relation to the knife. As you can see below, the actual paper is not related to this specific knife but looks to be a general advertising flyer from the early days of GEC. It does have a handwritten note from Ken Daniels, once co-owner, that claims it is part of a 25 knife run given to friends and family. Unfortunately, since it’s not anywhere close to an official document and from someone who left GEC early, I don’t think it can be taken as reliable information. So it seems that the history of this knife was not what I had believed, and it provides a good lesson to not always believe what you hear on the internet.
Screenshots from Bill McGuire
This knife was a grail for me for a long time, and I won’t deny that I’m disappointed it doesn’t hold the history and significance I had thought. I also am disappointed that the 2006 #23 I sold to buy it was actually, presumably, an earlier made knife (due to its serial number and how they did serialization in the first run). They also said that they would prefer not to fix the gaps because they would have to mark it as repaired and “it is worth more the way it is”. While I understand that that’s true, I am not sure I wouldn’t rather it be made perfect for my own enjoyment even if it had to be marked as repaired and lose value. That said, the knife is still a great piece. I enjoy the laser etch, and have always loved GEC’s smooth white bone. It will also go better with my 2007 #73 in Casein than my previous 2006 #23 did. So although it’s not what I had hoped, it’s still a knife I’m happy to have in my collection.
I sincerely thank you for your time, support, and interest! Don’t forget to tell your friends about KnifeThoughts.com, subscribe via email, and share this article on social media. You can find Knife Thoughts on YouTube where I have hundreds of knife videos, as well as on Instagram and Facebook! You can find all my latest links at LinkTr.ee/KnifeThoughts
Special Factory Assembly #93 Lambfoot for Charlie Campagna under his Waynorth Cutlery brand
Foreword
Great Eastern Cutlery manufactured the Waynorth Cutlery #93 Lambfoot in 2019, and since then I have planned to write an article on the history of this unusual slipjoint pattern. In this article I will describe the pattern, its possible history, and why the Waynorth version is special. I hope it’s an enjoyable and interesting read, but I want to stress and make clear that the content of this article should NOT be taken as absolute historical fact but rather as educated conjectures. Most of the points in this article are based on posts in the Guardians of the Lambfoot thread on BladeForums, and you can find links to specific posts I’ve referenced at the following links: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. If you would just like to see the knife in question check out the video below.
What is a Lambfoot knife?
The Lambfoot is a knife that not many in America are familiar with, and that can seem a little vague in its definition; so what is it? The Lambfoot is defined primarily by its blade shape. It has a straight edge, with no belly (before sharpening / wear). The spine is straight, but angled slightly downward from the handle toward the tip. The main spine section comes to a rounded angle that connects a smaller, also straight, spine section to the tip. Aside from the blade, a Lambfoot knife usually (but not always) has a swayback type handle. That means that the butt of the knife sets out of center with the pivot to the spring side. The Lambfoot also seems to most often be a single bladed knife, though there are multi bladed examples that can be found. So considering all that, the Lambfoot is similar to a harvester, pruning, or cotton sampler knife with a more slender blade and (typically) more slender handle.
A comparison of sheepfoot adjacent blade shapes. Click on the image to learn more about the different shapes.
What are the origins of the Lambfoot knife’s name and design?
The origin of the Lambfoot’s name and design is murky and difficult to nail down definitively, but there are a few things that can be guessed at with some research. First, the pattern seems to have emerged in the mid to lade 19th century. There are no obvious examples of the Lambfoot in Smith’s Key 1816, an industry pattern catalogue. That said, there are some knives that seem to be Lambfoot predecessors that blur the line between Sheepfoot, Wharncliffe, and Lambfoot. Another indicator that the pattern didn’t develop until the late 19th century is that it didn’t show up in America after many Sheffield cutlers immigrated to New England in the 1840s-1860s, which I’ll discuss further later in the article. Manufacturer catalogues from the late 19th century begin to show Lambfoot knives, and their representation in catalogues becomes widespread in the early 20th century. Around this time the cutlery industry in the UK saw many trademark infringement lawsuits and both the design, as a possible modification of the sheepfoot shape, and the name could have been an attempt at marketing and product differentiation. Some evidence for this is the commonness of Lambfoot knives having a stamp or etch on the blade announcing it as a “Real Lambfoot Knife”. Specifically, it might have been called the Lambfoot because it can be seen as a more slender Sheepfoot, therefore playing on the fact that a lamb is a juvenile sheep. While these are some of the possible reasons for the development of the Lambfoot name and design, it seems the specific origin of the name and pattern have been lost to history.
Taylor’s Eye Witness 1897
Thomas Turner 1902
Australian Lambfoot
2 bladed Lambfoot with usage description
Why is the Waynorth Lambfoot from GEC so special?
So, why did Great Eastern Cutlery’s version of the Lambfoot knife make such a splash? It was one of the most anticipated and sought after knives in GEC’s history, which is full of highly anticipated and sought after knives. It was produced alongside a normal run of a new pattern for GEC, the #93 Ramfoot, as a Special Factory Order for Waynorth Cutlery. Waynorth Cutlery is the new brand created by Charlie Campagna. Mr. Campagna is the mastermind behind the TC Barlows, Harness Jacks, and other great SFOs that have helped to skyrocket Great Eastern Cutlery’s popularity. Considering its popularity in the UK, it might come as a surprise that the Waynorth Lambfoot seems to be the very first factory produced Lambfoot knife made in America. Although I’ve heard there might have been some knives made in America that had blades that toed the line toward being a legitimate Lambfoot, I can’t find an image showing an actual definitive example. So after around 100 years of existence the Lambfoot pattern finally made its debut, American style.
GEC’s reproductions on top and bottom, with the Sheffield J. Rogers & Sons Lambfoot. Thanks to Randy Bell for the picture!
Why didn’t the Lambfoot show up in America till now?
So, why did it take so long for an American company to make their version of the Lambfoot knife? As I mentioned earlier, one reason may be that many of the cutlers who founded the early American knife manufacturers immigrated to the United States in the mid 19th century, and the Lambfoot wouldn’t be “invented” or come to prominence till the late 19th and early 20th century. Meanwhile, the many blade shapes that became popular in America (Spear Point, Clip Point, Pen, Pruner, and Sheepfoot) had already been well established by the time the American cutlery industry was founded. Another barrier that may have kept the Lambfoot from being introduced into the U.S. market was the “McKinley” Tariff Act of 1890. This legislation brought the tax on imports to the U.S. to ~38-49% on average, and would have pushed Sheffield / U.K. manufacturers to turn away from the American market. This turn away from the U.S. market is also likely why the Lambfoot knife can be found in Australia (especially considering its high numbers of sheep and agricultural workers), and even somewhat in Canada, both once U.K. colonies. Finally, curved edges are more useful in skinning, hunting, and general outdoors / wilderness tasks. These types of tasks would have been much more common in America at the turn of the 20th century, when much of the country was still wilderness (whereas much of the U.K. was urbanized or farmland). Also, hunting was (and remains) much more common in the U.S. because there is more large game in the Americas. Additionally, hunting is illegal in many places in the U.K. because of an interesting history of the game being owned by the royal family and aristocrats. So, historical trends of industry, legislation, recreation, and immigration all seem to have likely played a part in the lack of Lambfoot knives made in America.
Case Trapper, Waynorth Lambfoot, Tidioute TC #15, Spyderco Native 5
Conclusion
The Waynorth Lambfoot has become one of my favorite knives. In fact, it was one of my most carried knives of 2020 and has become a great user. It has also inspired me to look into U.K. made Lambfoot knives and, although they seem somewhat difficult to get from U.S. sellers, I hope to add one to my collection in 2021. I have also enjoyed researching the pattern’s history, as it’s always a pleasure to see how closely the story of knives weaves into the overall current of history. I hope you’ve enjoyed this look at the Lambfoot knife.
Afterword
This article has been a long time coming. I have had several people request an article and / or video on the pattern, and I hope I’ve done the requests justice. Much of the information behind the content of this article was found in the Guardians of the Lambfoot thread on BladeForums, as well as a little on All About Pocket Knives. I greatly appreciate all the knowledge that can be found on those sites and the help I’ve received from members over the years. That said, the “Guardians” thread has over 46,000 replies and counting. It is extremely difficult to keep up with if you don’t spend significant time on the forums. There is an index post, but it also contains dozens if not hundreds of links with only headings and no descriptions. So for the vast majority of knife enthusiasts who don’t visit the forums, let alone spend significant time following and searching through threads, there are real barriers to accessing the knowledge surrounding this Lambfoot pattern. Whether that information is historical fact or educated conjecture, either way I think people are interested and have a desire to consume the info. One of the chief reasons I wanted to publish an article on this subject is because there really are few sources of information online about the Lambfoot, as well as other traditional knife subjects, other than threads on the forums. One of the chief reasons I publish articles and videos overall is to share knowledge with the people who don’t visit those sites. I personally believe that sharing knowledge, or even “conjecture” as this article contains, outside those sometimes insular groups can only be beneficial to the overall knowledge of, enthusiasm for, and interest in traditional knives. I hope this article is enlightening and helpful to you, and I appreciate you reading!
I sincerely thank you for your time, support, and interest! Don’t forget to tell your friends about KnifeThoughts.com, subscribe via email, and share this article on social media. You can find Knife Thoughts on YouTube where I have hundreds of knife videos, as well as on Instagram and Facebook! You can find all my latest links at LinkTr.ee/KnifeThoughts
Great Eastern Cutlery has exploded in popularity in the last few years, and in turn the demand for their knives has skyrocketed. This growth in demand has made it difficult for some to purchase the knives they’d like to when they’re released. In this article, as a companion to the video below, I’ll give you some tips on how to successfully purchase GEC knives in 2021 and beyond.
First off, I understand the frustration that comes with buying GEC knives. If you don’t reserve them as soon as they’re announced then you have to go the route of a “drop”. A drop is when the knives are released for sale on a dealer’s site either randomly or at a previously announced date and time. Either way, the knives often sell out within minutes of being available. Then, if you can’t get the knives on the primary market, they’re invariably significantly more expensive on the secondary market. This past year I have missed out on some of the knives I’ve wanted, which hasn’t happened much until recently. So I really understand how unpleasant it can be to feel like you don’t have access to the knives you want.
That said I don’t think GEC or the people who run it, in particular Bill Howard, are intentionally restricting supply to increase demand as some have suggested. Great Eastern Cutlery is a small company that works on a modified lean manufacturing style. That means they produce small batches of high quality products in a wide variation, with little inventory and only the raw materials necessary for upcoming batches.
A comparison of sheepfoot adjacent blade shapes. Click on the image to learn more about the different shapes.
Why do they do it this way instead of making huge drawn out batches of the most popular patterns? Well, I can’t speak for GEC’s management, but I can give you some of my guesses. I think that these small batches allow for higher attention to detail on each pattern. I also think smaller batches allow GEC to offer a much wider variety of pattern types. Even if they did focus on large batches, I’m not sure they’d be able to fill demand for the hottest patterns.
So, if they’re not likely to make enough knives in the sought after patterns to fill demand, whats the best way to ensure you get the knives you want?
First, you need to know what knives are coming out well ahead of time. If you don’t know about a knife until it’s for sale at dealers, it’s not very likely you’ll be able to get one. GEC puts out a production schedule on their website at this link. However, news of upcoming knives often comes out elsewhere before it is officially announced by Great Eastern Cutlery. For a long time the best place to hear about upcoming knives first was on BladeForums in the Traditional Knife Subforum, and specifically in the Let’s Talk GEC thread. Recently, news of upcoming releases has come out just as quickly on traditional knife Facebook groups. In particular, I help administrate the Great Eastern Cutlery Club group and I think it’s one of the best places to discuss GEC in general. News of upcoming patterns is usually the hot talk, so just follow along with one or both of these channels and you’ll be ahead of the curve.
Once you know of an upcoming knife you’re interested in, the best way to ensure you’ll get it is to reserve one with a dealer. I have been reserving knives by email for years through various dealers, and it usually is a relatively easy process. I’ve had positive experiences with many of GEC’s dealers but I most often reserve from Blue Creek Cutlery or CollectorKnives. Blue Creek Cutlery, like several GEC dealers (a list of which you can find at this link), does reserves by email. CollectorKnives has their own system that uses an app called Telegram to notify followers when a new knife is up for reserve. While those are the dealers I most often reserve knives through, I suggest contacting any you’ve purchased from in the past. If you haven’t purchased from any yet, just reach out to several dealers and start a correspondence with those who seem to fit your style.
If you’re not able to reserve a knife, the next best option is to try to snag one on a “drop”. As mentioned previously, these drops tend to sell out quite quickly. There are a relatively large number of dealers, so each only gets a small number of each knife. The exact number depends on the overall run, but recently it’s been between 5 and 25 (if what I hear is accurate). So you won’t be able to randomly stumble upon the knife on a dealer’s site; you’ll have to have the purchase planned. That said, there’s an argument to be made that drops are more fair than reservations because it does away with the possibility of long term or high spending customers receiving preferential treatment. If I have to go the route of a drop, I most often buy from KnivesShipFree or Tradtional Pocket Knives / C. Risner Cutlery. I am most familiar with them and have always gotten great service, but there are a lot of good dealers who use the drop system. Whichever dealer(s) you decide to give it a shot at, I highly suggest you know when the knives will drop ahead of time by subscribing to their email lists and following them on social media. Even if you know when a knife will drop and get there just when they do, the dealer sites sometimes get bogged down in the massive traffic and it can become impossible to get through the checkout process. That said, it’s better to get a knife in a drop than to have to go the secondary market route.
If you miss out on reserves and drops, the last option is to buy from an individual rather than from a dealer. No matter how you go about this, you should be prepared in most cases to pay more than the price that dealers charged. Many GEC enthusiasts have decried the secondary market and so called “flippers”, or people who purchase knives with the sole intent to resell them for profit. Certainly there are people out there who purchase knives without much interest in the knife itself and with profit as the goal. Still, I think there are more people who purchase a knife because they think they’ll like it, then for whatever reason decide to sell it and follow the market price. That said, lots of fair deals can still be found. For a long time the BladeForums Exchange was the place to find those deals, but that has changed somewhat in recent years. Now I think the best place to find reasonably priced knives on the secondary market is in Facebook groups, like the previously mentioned Great Eastern Cutlery Club or others like it. Aside from keeping an eye on the groups and BladeForums, every now and then a knife can be found on eBay or Instagram but much less frequently. The best things to increase your chances of finding a good deal on a secondary market knife are vigilance and patience.
I understand the frustration many feel when attempting to buy GEC knives, and I hope this article is helpful. In the last few years I have seen the massive growth in interest and demand for Great Eastern Cutlery made knives, and I have felt how it can sometimes dampen the enjoyment in trying to get those incredible knives. I want to help make it easier for people to get the knives they want, and to lower the learning curve for buying these sought after knives. Here’s hoping you get all the GEC’s you want in 2021 and beyond!
I sincerely thank you for your time, support, and interest! Don’t forget to tell your friends about KnifeThoughts.com, subscribe via email, and share this article on social media. You can find Knife Thoughts on YouTube where I have hundreds of knife videos, as well as on Instagram and Facebook! You can find all my latest links at LinkTr.ee/KnifeThoughts
If I’m being honest, I saw it coming; Pennsylvania has extended the state of emergency, safety measures that had been relaxed have been reinstated, and the Titusville Oil Festival (with which the GEC Rendezvous was always concurrently held) was canceled. Still, I’m sure it was a hard decision for Bill and everyone at GEC to make, and I’m very crestfallen.
I collect the Rendezvous Special knives, which you can only get at the Rendezvous. Check out this link and this link for videos on those knives. Still, worse than not having the opportunity to obtain this year’s piece of that collection is the missed discussions with other enthusiasts (and many collectors with much more knowledge than me, from whom I’ve learned a lot at past Rendezvous). However, it would have been difficult to maintain the current safety protocols and enjoy the Rendezvous as it has been in the past. Hopefully GEC has something else fun up their sleeve, and hopefully this isn’t too much of a blow to them.
