Anyone know what steel is used and tempered hardness?

Was that the early knives made from the Ford model t leaf springs?

Maybe another maker I’m thinking of.

I thought they was Studebaker springs?..... Whatever, they are clunky, ugly dam things......

I don't think mine is ugly or clunky. Has worked quite well on elk and black bear. Also works efficiently around camp, too. Sharp as a razor and stays that way. Might be made from Studebaker springs? Don't know. I bought it from Ruana in 1984. I think I'll keep it.



L.W.

Yes. Studs baker sounds correct.

I think mine is early 90s skinner. On the heavy side, “some” might call it clunky, but not ugly to my eye. A gift from my wife when we was dating or just married.

Don, ya done hurt my feelers! 😁

I have the 21A bought 25 years ago. Still going strong and sharp. Gutted lots of deer and antelope and a few elk with it. I don't consider it heavy or too light. I don't want something I have to worry about breaking if used rough. It has at times and hasn't been a problem.

"Used rough"... What does that mean?

If you guys think that a too-thick blade with a big wad of aluminum up front, and on the ass-end of the handle, with a tiny little sliver of bone/horn in between those clunky blocks of silver chit isn't ugly........ Well then, enjoy the holy hell outta them, uhh, 'beauties'.....

breaking down split-rim tires.... who needs a prybar when you have one of these?

Agreed Don. Appreciate the craftsmanship but can’t like em

More power to anyone who likes them but I'm with Don on these

Driving one into a tree, as step to get into a hunting stand ?

LOL

🦫

almost like a wannabe Randall, but not nearly as classy

Sorry I dont know either. I had one and the steel seemed soft to me. Easy to dull, easy to sharpen.

To my tastes it was crude, because like Mannlicher..I'm kinda used to Randalls.

First sheath I ever made, for a friend' Ruana



Later on I purchased this one as it had been signed by Vic Hangis ( Son of Rudy Ruana)






Biggest negative to me was the length of the grip between the bolster and the butt cap.
In due time it followed someone else home.

ya!


GWB

Rudy began making knives as a blacksmith/farrier in the Army in the early 1920's. Ruana Knife Works dates from 1938. The R.H. Ruana Stamp dates from 1943 to 1984 when Rudy retired. He passed in 1986. Vic Hangas was Rudy's son-in law. He worked with Rudy from 1964 until Rudy's death, then himself passed in 2019. Vic's sons - Rudy's grandsons, have owned/run the business since.

The idea that Ruana's are copies of, or wanabee Randall's doesn't pan out since Rudy was making knives a decade before Bo, and both companies are officially dated from 1938. In my world of remote Idaho as I grew up in the 1960's-1970's there were Ruana guys and Randall Guys at the high end, and pretty much Western factory knives under that. My own take is that it is a well known fact that Bo was a Bill Scagel apprentice, though that is never printed of Rudy. I think Scagel is the father of ALL of these guys.... take that for whatever my musings are worth!

Anyway:

Ruana used the Ford vanadium spring steel from 1938 to 1941, and Studebaker SManganese steel from then to 1962.

In 1962 they switched to 1095 for hunters/skinners and 5160 for the Bowies, and that remains through today.

As to hardness...Ruana's have differential hardness through zone tempering that yields the spine a couple points lower than the edge.

The 1095 hunters/skinners are nominally 56-58 HRC.

The Bowies are nominally 57-59+

Great info and write up, thank ya sir. 👍

Thanks, journeyman!

Do you recall from where that info came?

My example of one via the skinner pictured above.


Just been pulling knives out of different storage locations and wondered about this Ruana. M

Yeah, when I got really into knives I started buying examples from the "hall of fame" type makers, roughly in order of their rise, to personally experience the changes as the American knife industry matured. In my Ruana phase I bought several knives and the book "Hear the Hammer", the history of the company and Rudy's autobiography, if you will. I don't know if it is still in print, that was in the 90's.

Just did a search. It looks like there was a reprint in 2012 and they have it on their website ---------> Ruana Book

Thanks!

I'm always a little bemused by folks that judge tools by their looks.... If "ugly" works better, it's beautiful. That goes for guns, too, but really, really goes for knives.

Thick stock and thick ground 1095 blade steel @ 56-58 HRc doesn't "work better" than much of anything in the knife world in a very long while.

I gotta say I am surprised at the vitriol towards the Ruana knives.

I don't see any 'vitriol', but I do see some reasonable practicality with regards to opinions about the Ruana blade.

We've been living in the most meteoric era of knifemaking the last couple of decades with the plethora of great builders, new materials every time we turn around, waterjets, lasers, CNC, digital process controlled neutral atmosphere ovens, etc and so forth that we sometimes forget what a knife was and was used for decades ago.

I wrote earlier that growing up there were Ruana guys and Randall guys in my little circle of the world. We were Randall guys and I'm really glad that I had a tool like that. One of my today's preferred .090" or thinner 60+ RC powder metallurgy blades wouldn't have lasted a day the way we used them on the ranch and in daily life back then. I prefer today, where we have the appropriate tools to do so many of the things we used a knife for back then, but it was what it was, and I was damned blissful in my ignorance.

I do think it's cool though to know there are still guys like the Hangas brothers making traditional knives one at a time on 70+ year old equipment their granddad designed and made. And, like Randall, they are years behind on orders so others must think it pretty cool too...

Video from a Montana PBS documentary series from 2014:

Enjoyed that video. Thanks.

I found it rather funny that anyone who uses plastic rifles, finds the knives ugly.. There is no beauty in plastic guns...

No Vitriol here.

I probably ruin the collector value of most all my knives, as I tend to try them out to see if I like the fit and function.

I sold mine because it did not like the way it fit in my hand.

ya!

GWB

Fair enough guys, vitriol was probably worded a little too strong a word.

I think they're kinda neat and appreciate the history etc with them. Not personally a fan of all the aluminum, but they're still cool.

FWIW,
IIRC I've sold all my Winstons' as with the Ruana, the length of handles typically were shorter than I like.

ya!

GWB

Knock the hell off with the vitriolic comments there, big fella......grin

As I said, I appreciate the craftsmanship, but there’s really not 1 thing “I” like about em.especially at the price point. Carry on..

Lots of better options. Life’s too short to own inaccurate rifles and chunky retard knives.

Haha 😂

Go split some kindling with your havalon.

I look at their website, and think of a Rambo knife I begged for in 1985 when I was 10 years old. 😂😂

Inaccurate and chunky retards are not definitions set in stone.

Your chunky retard may be the apple of my eye.

or the window of your lick.....

That’s fine, I’ve enough experience to know what I like, and what works, which is a hellava lot more than 99.9% more than the “hunters” on the 24 hrcf…

Yup!

Play with enough.......









a few from Rocky



A few from Rick




Some from VinceM



From the local Butcher Supply



add in a Hodge-Podge



or two



perhaps a few from Gene



or even some Ram's Horn from Ricky Bob, TK Steingass or Brett Dowell,


Sooner or later you'll find something that fits/works

ya!

GWB

I almost feel bad admitting that I own one, ya dirty rotten bastids!

I’m guessing you’re probably sand bagging and holding more than a few back?