Ethnographic folding knives

kronckew · 25th September 2013, 07:23 PM

shukran, ibrahim.

i see pooley has a UK website. no prices listed - i generally work on the principle that if they do not list a price, i cannot afford it.

...maybe i amend that if i'm haggling in a souk

edited: wkc also has a site - with prices. still can't afford them

especially as they all seem to be stainless. i hate stainless swords.

stems from a mis-spent youth. as a cadet 1st classman, i was a asst. platoon leader for our cadet regiment (i went to a military university). i carried an issue stainless naval pattern officers sword. they fitted us individually, the length of the sword was chosen so that you did not hit the ground with the point when flourishing it in parades.

i found out why.

one of the other platoon leaders was running late one weekend for the muster before our weekly pass in review parade for the admiral and hordes of the public, including family & girlfriends, and he borrowed a sword from one of the other cadets who was ill and not attending, but was closer to the parade ground (i think he'd left his somewhere off the campus & couldn't immediately find it). the sick loaner was a good 6 in. taller than the borrower.

anyhow during the parade, as we passed the admiral & did a sword salute, his blade tip, longer than he was used to, hit the ground.

we heard a 'tink' (so did the admiral) and half the blade hit the ground in front of him. he completed the parade with a short sword, red with embarrassment and the laughter of many.

edited again:

i did order a USCG 'sword' letter opener from WKC tonight (my family has/had my full sized sword i bought when i was commissioned back in the USA) i'll hang it on a hook under my commission for remembrance.

A. G. Maisey · 25th September 2013, 11:12 PM

This thread looks as if it has taken a turn to the left and is moving along a slightly different road.
I mostly limit my comments in this Forum to keris and related matters, but I also have an interest in modern knives, both fixed blade and folders. In another lifetime I was a member of the Australian Knife Makers guild, and although I did not make very many complete knives, I did make quite a lot of damascus blades that I sold to other makers.

I've accumulated folders since I was very young, and like Billman I invariably carried a folder with me everywhere, including school. In primary school (sub-12 years od age) it was Richards Lamp Post, in high school it was an IXL three blade stock knife. Still carry a pocket knife everywhere. It goes on with my trousers. I use several folders, depending on what the day holds. In a suit it’s a mini Swiss Army, around the yard its one of several Boker three blade stockman's knives. My traveling companion for around 40 years has been a big, multi-blade Swiss Army.

I don't think of myself as a pocket knife collector, but I have managed to accumulate a couple of hundred folders over the years.

Anyway, on the subject of modern manufacture.

Yes, there's not much left of Sheffield, and some other traditional centres have pretty much disappeared, but to a large extent the gap has been filled by custom makers, many of whom are very reasonable in what they charge for their work.

In Sheffield Trevor Ablett and Reg Cooper are two gentlemen who still hand-make knives --- or at least they were still doing so last time I checked, but both would now be around 70 or so I guess, so they may have decided to take a break.

In the town of Scarperia near Florence in Italy there are still at least three knife factories in production, as well as a few individual makers. The oldest of the factories is the Berti concern, I think it was established in 1895. At Berti a single craftsman still makes the knife from start to finish and signs it with his initials. These are individual bench-made knives produced under the banner of a merchant.

The prices charged for the Scarperia knives, and for the work of Ablett and Cooper are extremely reasonable, considering what you are paying for. Of course, they cannot compete on price with the $25.50 that you will pay for something out of Shanghai.

Kronckew, I understand your aversion to stainless steel. Don't like it much myself, but realistically, good quality stainless, properly heat treated will perform at least as well as high carbon steel of the same quality. Both will fail if they are not properly heat treated. The reason that sword broke was not the fault of the material, it was the fault of the manufacturer because he failed to either use good quality material, or more likely, failed to correctly heat treat that material. It was a quality control issue, not a material issue.

I suppose we need to get used to the idea that most of everything we now use is made in either China or India, but who can we blame for this? Are any of us prepared to pay our own countrymen a living wage to work for us, or would we prefer to buy the product of other countries where wages and living standards are only a fraction of those which apply in developed countries?

It is the obligation under law for any corporation to maximise profit for its shareholders. This is done by paying the lowest wage possible, which results in the export of jobs --- think "call centres in Manilla", the export of manufacturing, or the creation of an underclass in our own societies.

History tells us that nothing really changes.

Congoblades · 28th September 2013, 05:03 PM

A large ringlock folding knive from Belgium, made in Brussels about 1900.
Size is 52 cm, a monster ...

kronckew · 28th September 2013, 05:26 PM

i like that big bad boy! is the pattern 'damascus' or etching?

i have a very similar tho newer one. it looks smaller than yours tho.

'only' a 6 in. (15.25 cm.) blade, 6 ratchet notches on the lever operated lock.

Congoblades · 28th September 2013, 06:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kronckew

i like that big bad boy! is the pattern 'damascus' or etching?

Looks like etching?

Ibrahiim al Balooshi · 28th September 2013, 07:05 PM

Salaams All~ I have a nice little project to bring on a small Jacknife . The other has a minute oriental stamp? ... The Knife itself came from a trader on the Persian coast.

Regards,
Ibrahiim al Balooshi.

A. G. Maisey · 29th September 2013, 01:24 PM

EDIT

My apologies for the repetition.

I did not realise I'd put this up previously.

I request the moderators to remove this post with images.

Thank you.

My scribe's knife.

I rather like the idea that it is not used for the manufacture of carpets:- pens and swords are natural running mates.

25th September 2013, 07:23 PM	#1
kronckew Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Room 101, Glos. UK Posts: 4,215	shukran, ibrahim. i see pooley has a UK website. no prices listed - i generally work on the principle that if they do not list a price, i cannot afford it. ...maybe i amend that if i'm haggling in a souk edited: wkc also has a site - with prices. still can't afford them especially as they all seem to be stainless. i hate stainless swords. stems from a mis-spent youth. as a cadet 1st classman, i was a asst. platoon leader for our cadet regiment (i went to a military university). i carried an issue stainless naval pattern officers sword. they fitted us individually, the length of the sword was chosen so that you did not hit the ground with the point when flourishing it in parades. i found out why. one of the other platoon leaders was running late one weekend for the muster before our weekly pass in review parade for the admiral and hordes of the public, including family & girlfriends, and he borrowed a sword from one of the other cadets who was ill and not attending, but was closer to the parade ground (i think he'd left his somewhere off the campus & couldn't immediately find it). the sick loaner was a good 6 in. taller than the borrower. anyhow during the parade, as we passed the admiral & did a sword salute, his blade tip, longer than he was used to, hit the ground. we heard a 'tink' (so did the admiral) and half the blade hit the ground in front of him. he completed the parade with a short sword, red with embarrassment and the laughter of many. edited again: i did order a USCG 'sword' letter opener from WKC tonight (my family has/had my full sized sword i bought when i was commissioned back in the USA) i'll hang it on a hook under my commission for remembrance. Last edited by kronckew; 25th September 2013 at 08:41 PM.

28th September 2013, 05:03 PM	#3
Congoblades Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Belgium Posts: 171	A large ringlock folding knive from Belgium, made in Brussels about 1900. Size is 52 cm, a monster ... Attached Images

28th September 2013, 05:26 PM	#4
kronckew Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Room 101, Glos. UK Posts: 4,215	i like that big bad boy! is the pattern 'damascus' or etching? i have a very similar tho newer one. it looks smaller than yours tho. 'only' a 6 in. (15.25 cm.) blade, 6 ratchet notches on the lever operated lock. Attached Images

28th September 2013, 07:05 PM	#6
Ibrahiim al Balooshi Member Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Buraimi Oman, on the border with the UAE Posts: 4,408	Salaams All~ I have a nice little project to bring on a small Jacknife . The other has a minute oriental stamp? ... The Knife itself came from a trader on the Persian coast. Regards, Ibrahiim al Balooshi. Attached Images

29th September 2013, 01:24 PM	#7
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 6,992	EDIT My apologies for the repetition. I did not realise I'd put this up previously. I request the moderators to remove this post with images. Thank you. My scribe's knife. I rather like the idea that it is not used for the manufacture of carpets:- pens and swords are natural running mates. Attached Images Last edited by A. G. Maisey; 29th September 2013 at 01:31 PM. Reason: error

25th September 2013, 11:12 PM	#2
A. G. Maisey Member Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 6,992	This thread looks as if it has taken a turn to the left and is moving along a slightly different road. I mostly limit my comments in this Forum to keris and related matters, but I also have an interest in modern knives, both fixed blade and folders. In another lifetime I was a member of the Australian Knife Makers guild, and although I did not make very many complete knives, I did make quite a lot of damascus blades that I sold to other makers. I've accumulated folders since I was very young, and like Billman I invariably carried a folder with me everywhere, including school. In primary school (sub-12 years od age) it was Richards Lamp Post, in high school it was an IXL three blade stock knife. Still carry a pocket knife everywhere. It goes on with my trousers. I use several folders, depending on what the day holds. In a suit it’s a mini Swiss Army, around the yard its one of several Boker three blade stockman's knives. My traveling companion for around 40 years has been a big, multi-blade Swiss Army. I don't think of myself as a pocket knife collector, but I have managed to accumulate a couple of hundred folders over the years. Anyway, on the subject of modern manufacture. Yes, there's not much left of Sheffield, and some other traditional centres have pretty much disappeared, but to a large extent the gap has been filled by custom makers, many of whom are very reasonable in what they charge for their work. In Sheffield Trevor Ablett and Reg Cooper are two gentlemen who still hand-make knives --- or at least they were still doing so last time I checked, but both would now be around 70 or so I guess, so they may have decided to take a break. In the town of Scarperia near Florence in Italy there are still at least three knife factories in production, as well as a few individual makers. The oldest of the factories is the Berti concern, I think it was established in 1895. At Berti a single craftsman still makes the knife from start to finish and signs it with his initials. These are individual bench-made knives produced under the banner of a merchant. The prices charged for the Scarperia knives, and for the work of Ablett and Cooper are extremely reasonable, considering what you are paying for. Of course, they cannot compete on price with the $25.50 that you will pay for something out of Shanghai. Kronckew, I understand your aversion to stainless steel. Don't like it much myself, but realistically, good quality stainless, properly heat treated will perform at least as well as high carbon steel of the same quality. Both will fail if they are not properly heat treated. The reason that sword broke was not the fault of the material, it was the fault of the manufacturer because he failed to either use good quality material, or more likely, failed to correctly heat treat that material. It was a quality control issue, not a material issue. I suppose we need to get used to the idea that most of everything we now use is made in either China or India, but who can we blame for this? Are any of us prepared to pay our own countrymen a living wage to work for us, or would we prefer to buy the product of other countries where wages and living standards are only a fraction of those which apply in developed countries? It is the obligation under law for any corporation to maximise profit for its shareholders. This is done by paying the lowest wage possible, which results in the export of jobs --- think "call centres in Manilla", the export of manufacturing, or the creation of an underclass in our own societies. History tells us that nothing really changes.