How did my father ever survive with just a yellow handled Case trapper. And my grandfather, with his Old-Timer... how did they do it?
Well, I'll tell you how.
Old Timers weren't made in China like they are today. Yes, Schrade bought Old Timer and moved all production to China.
And Case hadn't yet decided that only collectors buy their knives now so "Hey, let's coat the blades with the crappiest chrome vanadium that we can find!".
It breaks my heart to say this, because I am an Old Timer fan first and foremost, but, both brands as they are produced today are garbage.
And that is why your grandfather could do then what we can't do now.
If an Old Timer were to be manufactured in the US today, it would probably run you between $75 and $125.
That's why folks like me have to chase down and pay for stuff like this:
https://www.knifecenter.com/kc_new/store_store.html?ttl=Queen Folding Knives&eqWWWCAT_1datarq=folder&eqFIELD169Rdatarq=25&series=1250
Or, we hit yard sales and try to find US made Old Timers.
That whole China thing really turned my stomach.
I bought one of the Chinese made Old Timers anyway a while back. Had it two days before I broke it. Dropped it on the floor of my shop with the blade open. It snapped the bar on the "spine" that "locks" the blade in when it is deployed. Snapped it right in half. Two days old. And my floor is not concrete. It's 3/4 inch plywood.
That is sorry stuff.
I still have that one, maybe I'll take a pic when I get home. I think it is still in my junk drawer.
But, yeah, no offense, but times have changed. Quality has changed. And not for the better in certain circles.