I've been wanting to put a few thoughts out there to see if anyone else has actually used one of the new GEC Congress'.  As most of you know, I'm a user more so then a collector and the Congress was one I particularly wanted to try out. 

Till recently, the 73L and 25 EzOpens had been my knives of choice both for size and ease of carry.  I've gotta say the Congress beats them both.



With the 73L weighing in at  3.5 oz and the EzOpen at 1.8 oz, the Congress' 2.8 ounces is just right!  AND I'm carrying 4 blades instead of 1.  It's a little longer then the EZ but a lot trimmer then the 73L so again....just right.

The very first thing I did was go to work on it with a set of DMT stones to bring the edges up to my personal preference.  I don't know about the rest of you, but I've never been overly thrilled with the edge GEC puts on their blades.  It seems like the edge likes to roll on me with a minimal amount of use so I just accept the fact I'm gonna spend the first 10 or 15 minutes of ownership doing a little touch up.  Not a big deal.



Now, I've got to admit that one of the next things I did with it was less then brilliant.  I don't think I had it in my pocket more then a couple of days when I put it to use breaking the foil seal on a new bottle of Gun Bluing Creme.  Got the bottle opened, put the knife aside on the bench and went to touching up a couple of spots on a new acquisition.  About 5 minutes later, I picked up the knife to wipe it off and put it back in my pocket and noticed that I had just "blued" the first half inch of the blade.



Gotta say, I was not happy with myself.  BUT, the law of unintended consequences kicked in as I went ahead and 'blued' all four blades.



While I don't know as it's a look for everyone,  I kinda like it!  The blades now have a nice, soft patina look about them and the blueing should actually afford a certain amount of protection against rust.  Might have to think about trying this process on a couple of my other carbon steel blades.  What I know for sure is that it's pretty easy to do if you want to try it!

That same weekend, I did some woodwork repair and (I don't recommend it) used the tip of one of the pen blades to dig out some old wood filler covering a screw head.  I really had to torque on the blade to get the filler out and more then once figured I'd be reprofiling the tip when I was done.  NO PROBLEM!  Tough steel.  That was followed up with a little scraping and scratching to get things back together.

Don't want to bore you with the other details, but I've used it for every imaginable task and probably a few unimaginable.



I like it a lot!  The handle fits my hand to a tee with the slight arch of the Congress falling perfectly in place for maximum control.  The Sheepsfoot blades have always been a favorite of mine as they're pretty much idiot proof when it comes to sharpening!!  The pens are a bit trickier to sharpen but are perfect for smaller digging, prying, tasks.

The quality of steel is on a par with all of the other GEC 1095 blades I've used.  The steel seems consistent and does a superb job of taking and holding an edge.  Too, the fit and finish were excellent.  I have to say, I use my knives relatively hard and have yet to chip a 1095 blade.  I've put a ding or two in the linerlock but it was an easy task to smooth it out. 

The springs on the Congress are absolutely a perfect match to the knife.  I've never been a great fan of the heavy weights in the 23's and broke more then one thumbnail before I got hooked on the 73L.  The Congress is firm without being stiff and are smooth as glass on opening and closing. 

I understand most of you are collectors and that's fine, but let me tell you, GEC makes one helluva fine pocket knife.  I'd really like to hear from any of you that actually use your knives and lets hear what you think!!!

Greg