I am a knife guy - I have Chris Reeve, DPX, Hinderer, Benchmade, Spyderco, Lionsteel, Cold Steel - you get the point! I started collecting GEC about 4 years ago and have about 100 - I just love them for what they are! Old American craftsmanship - tradition and elegance. Your review was spot on - thank you and I will be watching!

I appreciate you walking through the novice features and thoughts. I’m just beginning to get into slip joints and wanting to pick up my first GEC so I knew I was stepping into a involved world. Thanks again for your thoughts and guidance, highly appreciated

Nice looking design knife!!!😊👍💜

Beautiful knife mate, you've succumbed to there charm them. Lol atb paddy 👍🙂☘️

Nice to see you covering something “new” to you- I like it when reviewers branch out because I feel like they give honest reviews. I only have one GEC (77 single spear medium barlow in natural canvas) and I agree that it’s fit and finish is a step above the Case knives that I have. Looking forward to more “traditional” knife reviews from you JT- keep up the good work!

Thank you for this JT. I ordered my first slip joint which it's a GEC #97 and love how you explain the numbers. I'm really loving just the beauty, tradition, and culture of these knives. Just really drawls me in. Timeless pieces imo

Wow, what a video. Seriously good information, thank you. I think I watched this video 4 times to be sure I absorbed everything. I with you, I like the 1 blade designs too. I'm still learning stuff about these everyday as well, glad I'm not alone. Something I learned from Grateful Panic's channel: If you see PPP (Pattern Production Premier) on the blade, it's a new design for that year. Thanks again.

It's very good video. I enjoyed watching it. I carry #78 in my daily rotation.

Del Norte....All close to the same! Kind of fun new slips to look at. Thanks for the video JT!

I recently started carrying traditional slip more often recently as well. In today's world, a slip joint is a much less "scarier" knife in public! People dont seem to see them as threatening as most newer EDC knives. Great vid! Thanks for sharing!

After I got my first GEC, I noticed how flexible the Case blades were. The Cases look nice, but to me the GEC's are just overall more substantial, or "heavier-duty".

Beautiful knife, JT. The 78 too! They are very hard to come by, otherwise I'd have an entire collection of GEC's already :)

Those are some cool knives as no lock is fine by me as you just have to adjust....The beaver tail has some good character....Good stuff....

As far as a secondary knife slip joint , I realized the benefits of it when in public or around non knife folks and you need to pull something out real quick. And i enjoy the patina and changes that happen to them over time. I only have one GEC ( for now) but I enjoy it alot. And i was lucky on the secondary market to get mine for a steal.... after i bought it the owner kept getting messages asking if he had it. Nice change of pace.

The beavertail series typically go for close to $200 on the secondary market! Beautiful knife!

Nice perspective!

The beaver tail is beautiful!

I work at a university and I almost exclusively use a GEC there. Such a good solution for non-scary-carry. As for comparing this with the Proper: do they match up as cutters? My GECs are crazy slicers after I put my own edge on them. Can the BM hold a candle with that low saber grind?

Got my first knife from by great grand father when I was five years old. It came from the local five and dime store. (these days the dollar store) It was a yellow handled three blade stockman. He showed me how to use it. I never let the knife close on my fingers because of his instruction on how to use a knife. That was in 1968. I've carried a slip joint in one form another since that time. I own Benchmade, ZT, WE, Kizer, Coldsteel ect..... But the joy of a good slip joint is hard to describe.

I started with my dad's slip joint knives. When I got old enough I bought locking knives. After I hit my mid 30s and completely understood knife usage I switched back to slip joints. The only thing you can't do safely with a slip joint is stab it into something/someone. Now I only carry a locking knife (benchmade tactical triage) when I'm on duty with the sheriff's department, but I still have a slip joint in pocket.

The GEC's are awesome pieces of cutlery for the most part. I love using them in day to day tasks, and to be honest never felt like i any of my locking blades whould 'make the cut' better than these..On another note, i think it's unethical to ask Sebenza money for some of those in the secondary market. Some prices i see on Ebay are just crazy! Great vid J!!

JT you made aware of these new products to me have an old school look i am reminded of my cub scout and boy scout knives they too have inlays in the scales those were some tough knives we put them through some hell and they held up nice lm guessing these new guys would hold up just by design very nice great video also did i see a CAT key on your key ring could you be into heavy equipment just being nosey👃🏻 thanks

I'm with you there. Not a lot of experience with traditional myself.

It’s all about GEC!!

I recently got a GP Knives exclusive GEC that sold 103 pieces in under 4 minutes. I’m just going to use and enjoy it. I’d get way more out of that than the extra cash.

Spoiler Alert... i’m old. When growing up, the only locking knife that I knew of was the buck 110. If I needed more knife than what a slip joint could provide, I used a fixed blade knife. 15 years in the army and all I ever used was a Leatherman, a slip joint pocket knife, and a fixed blade. Not being a “knife person” I didn’t even know that one-handed opening knives were a thing until 2015....which is 15 years after I left the military. Consider me completely out of the loop. I have four GEC knives and carry one every day. I’ve never used a pocket slip for my pocket knife and I don’t use the phrase “EDC”. Every time I hear someone say “EDC” I age one month. Ugh.

I just paid for my GEC#97 beaver tail --- Brazilian Cherry-wood ----- beaver shield --- The GEC#97 maroon micarta Coke bottle Hunter is the smoothest big knife that I own , no nail breaking !

Hey JT. How did you get your hands on one of them I'm tryin to get one help!!!!!!

hopefully i can get a hold of one this brand is hard to come by...

I am so on the fence here. While I am a collector, slipjoints aren’t really my thing so I’d go with the proper all the way. However, I’m thinking I should go back to the roots. Of course my very first knife as a kid was a slipjoint

Just a quick FYI...If you purchase any rare GEC's or collector class GEC knives, you never want to remove the original blade etching. User's of course, are a different consideration. Regarding metal polish...Flitz is a beginner class product, consider Maas polish products, if you want a higher quality product and higher level of finish.

thanks for cracking the code

If you search KZfaq for "GEC knife tour" you'll find an interview with Bill Howard and a tour of the factory. Courtesy of Crawford County Outdoors.

I love slippers and have a ton but no GEC to many games involved in purchasing one. I love my Swiss Army and Bear and Son and Case but to get into a lottery to spend $120 is ridiculous to me. Nice review. 👍

Still have this knife? Would you like to sell it?

Tidioute, Northfield and Farm & Field is just categories of refinement similar to buying a car. Farm & Field is your base model. Tidioute is your step up. Northfield is all the bells and whistles.

The handle looks like a beaver tail so I don't know why they also shaped the blade like a beaver tail.

GEC will be making the #97 Coke bottle hunter (4 3/4" closed) sabre clip blade ebony wood & Cherrywood/beaver knives real soon. Pre-order your knife at www.collectorknives.net

I wish you had a little better quality control. I have purchased two knives I fix played in a 23 bullet and the fix blade is so doll on the front half and sharp on the back half. And the 23 has a gap in between the handle and the inside flat piece of metal next to the blade for about a half inch on one side that a piece of paper can fit through. So sad to see quality like this. I have heard nothing but praise but from several years ago. I have a third knife on the way from a vendor off your website authorized dealer for a 97 Coke bottle Beavertail, I hope this one is better. I really wish your model 85 Beavertail would be available for purchase soon however if this third one doesn’t take the cake I’m done. Thank you for making it in America at least, now just make us proud of the quality...

Love GEC as art pieces. Yeah there are better modern knives with better steel but for sheer pieces art GEC rules the roost.

Traditional slipjoints are like classic cars. They're not the latest and greatest, but they hold tradition, history, and Americana that modern folders will never have, and for those who like them those qualities are far more enjoyable and valuable than anything tangible.

I had my Gabon ebony 78 close on my middle right finger and it cut me to the bone, I wish I would have shown some pictures when it happened A while back! it took a couple months to heal. the thing about it is, it was totally my fault and I prefer no half stops because to be honest with you half stop will never prevent the blade from closing on your finger it’s just going to make it worse I don’t know why everybody says how stops are going to protect you from a cut that’s not the truth whatsoever. I do prefer a strong snap on some knives and some I prefer a nice smooth opening

Best traditional knives. Get a viper 47 and o a tc barlow 15

I would take the proper over the gec anyday. That's just my preference both have desirable characteristics.

You want to avoid secondary market "price gouging" keep up with the company, their website and their best online retailers, like Collector Knives, so you can get in on limited runs. CK has an alert program for special runs of specific models and variants. It's not that hard if you're serious about it. You snooze, you lose.

The gec rabbit hole goes very very very deep. I thought traditionals were stupid and now I have 60

Zulu spear blade

People have been carrying slip joint knives for decades or maybe centuries. Use them safely and they will work for you.

Pattern not model and they're covers not scales on traditional knives. I know I'm 5 years late but just an FYI for everyone.

But JT those gec don't have any gimping, finger choils, finger guards or heavy grip texture, how on earth are you ever going to keep control of one of those? A safety hazard I says. Yeah I'm joking, just poking a big fun at the modern folder crowd as we sometimes put way too much emphasis on a folder "needing" these things. Seems the traditional guys get along just fine without them.

Ill pass on GEC; to annoying to replace if somone steals it from you. Also I love modable knives.

Just like "nice boxes", I just don't get it especially when you take into consideration the blade steel.

I signed up three times for the #85 GEC knives. Nothing ! I bought 10 Case XX knives this month. Piss on GEC. Great Eastern Cutlery is the "Dick Tease" of American knife makers.

Nice video except for throwing the one potty mouth in. My preference not everybody's. Thanks for your time and perspective.

Stop buying knives on EBAY , the prices will go down.

I'm 51 and have only used traditional slipjoint pocket knives my entire life. I've never had a knife close back down on my fingers ever. That's just a stupid thought to be worried about. You'd have to be a complete moron for that to ever happen.

You knife knuts take shit wayyyyyy tooo seriously lol I’ve had 100s of GECs and ya there all hand made so of course there will be subtle difference and also they make lock backs. You whined about that for 5 min jeezus