Kissing Crane Pocket Knife

He was a real sodbuster in Montana "a honyocker" who made good by farming next to the Yellowstone so he could irrigate. His had a yellow handle. Otherwise he made his own knives from files and saw blades.

Your grandfather's knife was probably made in Germany. They still make the yellow ones.

Kissing Crane used to be made by Robert Klaas. One of the well-known Solingen companies. I'm not sure about the new knives, however. I saw one mention that the Kissing Crane brand has been discontinued (true?) or severed from Klaas, and that Klaas is now selling under the name "Genuine Klaas Original." Elsewhere I saw that a company named "Hallmark Cutlery" is now selling the Kissing Crane brand. Did you imply that your knife is *not* made in Germany?

I don't own a Sodbuster but I hear they are hell for stout.I'll admit I'm a lockback fan for hard use knives, but why wouldn't a slip joint work just as well for backpacking?

Like the weight…but…the Baladeo has 420 stainless for the blade. So factor in the weight of a sharpening stone, because 420 dulls quickly. It's probably the fastest dulling, widely-used blade steel. Manufacturers like 420 because it's so soft you can easily stamp the blanks. On the upside, it's very rust resistant.

The Kissing Crane knives are made in China now. I'm not up on the history of the company and distribution.

As far as slip joints being used for hiking, there are millions of Swiss Army Knives out there with slip joints. I do prefer a locking blade, but the only way you can get in trouble with a slip joint is to try to push with the point; as long as you are slicing and pulling back against the blade, you'll never know the difference. You just need to pay attention, which is a good habit with any tool.

I don't like the look or feel of the Baledo designs.

Good looking knife. I've been interested in the Case Sodbuster Jr. for a while now, I wonder how the weight compares. For a folding knife while backpacking I usually carry an Opinel #6 which weighs 1oz.

I see that Kissing Crane has a Jr version too. I imagine it is about 30% lighter. There are several of the sodbuster versions that vary in size and handle material. The one in my example feels like dense stuff, far more so than a Swiss Army knife.