Classic Italian Switchblades

 Follow me and we’ll jump down the rabbit hole of Italian switchblades, specifically Frank Beltrame.

Of interest is the oval locking hole

First, the disclaimer.  Knife companies change names and tang stamps like crazy.    It can be fun for active collectors trying to get all the variations, but it's hell for someone with a single knife wondering who, what, when, and the big F.  Yeah, is it a fake?

I'm trying to just give you a family rundown of who is involved with Beltrame switchblades.    The best source I've found is http://stiletto-italiano.com/eng/beltramefamily.htm.    In fact, everyone seems to be copying from this.

I prefer the term switchblade for the classic Italian automatic knife.  Other people may make autos, but for me, switchblades come from Italy, probably Maniago, Italy.

It starts following World War II.  Vittorio Beltrame starts a knife company called Beltrame Vittorio & Figli Company.  Vittorio has four boys and three daughters.  The boys are Carlo, Danilo, Luciano and Ivano and they come to work for Vittori.  The daughters, I assume, are married off.  They used several different tang stamps, but only the switchblades were stamped BV&F.

Ivano is blessed with the birth of a son, Francesco (Frank) in 1941 and later with a second son, Armando in 1947.

All I could find out about other cousins was Danilo's son Renzo started a knife company in 1970 and went bankrupt in 1990.  But we are ahead of ourselves.

BV&F starts making switchblades in 1958.  In 1961, Armando Beltrame started his knifemaking job under his father Ivano’s direction at Beltrame Vittorio & Figli Company.

In 1969, Ivano dies.  I can't find out anything about the founder, Vittorio at this time.  The death of Ivano seems to trigger a crisis in BV&F.  They go out of business.  In 1970, Frank forms a new company making knives.  He names it F.lli Beltrame F&A and used the tang stamp ‘b Rostrie’.    The family insist that knives marked B Rostrie are fakes. 

Frank brings in new machinery and improves quality and production.  This forces the rest of the Maniago cutlery community to address quality issues.  Later, when the market is flooded with cheap knockoffs and phony tang stamps, quality becomes the touchstone buyers use to identify genuine Italian switchblades.

Starting in 1975 Armando comes to work for his brother, Frank.  This continues until 1996.

The world market is expanding and opportunities are ripe for the taking.    Frank develops the Atlas Kit, which is a switchblade without the spring.  The kit also includes a spring so the user can install it themselves.  This gets them around US import laws.  1990 finds Frank starting to import small switchblades to Germany to comply with their knife laws.

My newest Frank Beltrame found at the Lehigh Show

While all this is happening, two of Frank’s children, Ivano (named for his grandfather) and Sara become part of the company in 1994.

You’re wondering why I thought it was complicated?    Well, it's about to. 

In 1996, Frank divides the company into two separate companies.    One is mABer Coltellerie (sounds familiar?  See Frank’s brother Armando).    They use, it's reported several tang stamps, ‘AB ITALY’, ‘AB ITALY INOX’, ‘AB STILETTO ITALY’.  Armando is in control of this company.

The other company is Fratelli Beltrame F&C.  Fratelli can be translated as Brothers.    They use the tang stamp, ‘Frank b Italy’.  Ivano and sister Sara still work for Frank at Fratelli Beltrame F&C. 

So, here's one plot complication.  Both mABer Coltellerie and Fratelli Beltrame F&C work in the same building.  One must wonder how separate the knife lines are.  Do they share machinery?  Parts?  Workers?  How different are the knives?    Could a stamped blade end up on the wrong handle?

Found at the WRCA MAPS Museum Show

I have no idea.

And what happened to Frank’s cousin, Renzo whose knife company went bankrupt in 1990?  I couldn't find evidence of a tang stamp, but it is out there.    I have found images of what people report to be Renzo Switchblades, but the tang stamp simply says 'Made in Italy.'  I don't know how valid that claim is.

Uncles Luciano, Danilo and Carlo also worked for their father and founder, Vittorio, but they seem to have disappeared into the mist. 

Thanks to the Internet, I can find numerous postings assuring me that the Italian switchblade they bought is authentic with a wide and wooly range of tang stamps.  While there are a few grainy photos of stamps, most are unsupported claims that ‘Frank B Rostrie’, ‘b’, ‘B’ and ‘Beltrame’ are all legit tang stamps.  Perhaps, in one sense they are.  They are stamps and they are on tangs.

Clearly the market popularity is driving fakes, clones and frauds into the market.    Buyer beware!

Horn Handled 11 inch switchblade from Frank Beltrame

All of this leads me to my new Italian switchblade with an almost translucent blond horn handle made by Fratelli Beltrame F&C.  The tang stamp reads ‘Frank B Italy’, which is reported to be the current tang stamp for Fratelli Beltrame F&C.  It's a quality knife and I really enjoy it. 

This entire rabbit hole expedition was the result of several conversations I had with my friend Bob about Italian switchblades.  As I like to say, it's a dull boy who can't learn something new!

Gerber Strongarm

 

Gerber Strongarm— that's a hell of a name, isn't it?  But yet I remember strongarm inspection.  Maybe it's not such a great name.

Despite the name, the Strongarm is a combat knife.  First, let me get this out of the way.  According to the Gerber website, they have made 'survival' knives since 1968.  Gerber released the Mark 1 and 2 back around '66 as combat knives, and they were a hit with the military.  That is to say, with the boots on the ground.  For reasons never explained, Gerber was stopped from selling these knives in PXs.  Gerber relabeled them as survival knives and PX's welcomed them with open arms.

The Gerber Strongarm

Since a survival knife can be defined as the knife you survive with, the Strongarm certainly qualifies.  But it is a combat knife.

The blade is ground from 420GHC steel, a hard martensitic steel.  With 12% chromium content, it qualifies as stainless.  Gerber gives the blade what it calls a ceramic coating for additional protection.  Washing off corrosive chemicals and wiping a blade down with oil never hurts.  The partially serrated blade at 4.8 inches long, is a useful length for many knife chores. 

Gerber describes the blade as a drop point; it is really a clip point with a false edge.  The Strongarm reminds me of a Bowie knife blade.

I see this as more of a clip point with a false edge

The full tang blade is 0.19 inches or 3/16 of an inch thick.  Gerber doesn’t say what the hardness is, but it has been suggested 420HC steel has a sweet spot for hardness around 56 to 57 RHC. 

The handle is shaped to help retain the knife in your hand.  The diamond texturing helps

I know.  Some of you are only satisfied once a blade reaches such hardness that only a monocrystalline diamond in a tungsten carbide matrix will sharpen it.  A general rule is that hard knives are brittle knives, which leads to the truism that a broken knife is junk, while a bent knife is still a knife.

The handle is a rubberized polymer with a diamond texture and striking pommel.  It also sports a guard to keep your fingers off the blade, a handy feature in working knives.

Get a grip, bunkie!  The pommel can be attached to a lanyard. 

The knife is 9.75 inches long and weighs just over 7 ounces.  The sheath is customizable, and Gerber provides adaptors so you can wear the Strongarm on your belt, as a drop leg, on a MOLLE rig, sideways, upside down, or horizontally.  The sheath can also be lashed to other items.

The sheath is very adaptable.

I like this knife a lot.  If I was heading out to hunt Dal sheep, raft the Amazon, or shipping out to active duty overseas, I'd take at least one of these with me.  Remember, one is none and a knife-less man is a life-less man.

The knife’s balance was in the handle behind the guards, where I like it, and the grip felt good in my hand.  The Strongarm clips in very securely in the sheath.  I welcome the little extra force needed to draw this knife.  I want to know my knife isn’t going to fall out if I take a spill.  The polymeric sheath looks tough enough to prevent the blade from penetrating the sheath and injuring me, another feature I’m crazy about.

The Gerber Strongarm

Does it cut?  Well, here’s where I must assume so.  It isn't my knife, but it belongs to a retired military man who wants to set up his daypack the way he carried it back in the day. 

Don't be a foolish.  Consider Gerber's Strongarm if you need a hard-working, EDC fixed blade for harsh environments.

You can find one at https://www.gerbergear.com/en-us/shop/knives/all-knives/strongarm-coyote-brown-serrated-30-001059 for $90.00.  It's a good deal for what you get.

A Retail Find

  Every once in a while, I impulse buy.  The other day, I saw a blister pack for True Utility Knives made by/sold by Alliance Consumer Group.  The knife kit donates a dollar to DAV for every kit sold.  DAV stands for Disabled American Veterans; more on them later.  The kit has a waterproof case, a dog tag bottle opener, a knife, and mini-tool.  You might be able to sell me an empty box to help veterans so it came home with me.

The dog tag is a bottle opener with a short ball chain.  Since I can be a sissy even with twist-off caps, that's welcome. 

Bottle Opener/ Dog Tag

The mini-tool is, well, let’s just say having a tool is better than having no tool.  The mini-blade is sharp enough to casually cut me. 

Didn't even know I cut myself

The scissors are spring-loaded to open and cut paper and the occasional thread.  I'm trying to figure out what to make of the curved hook blade.  Is it for cutting line?  Opening seams?  I'm sure I'll find a use sooner or later.

Mini-tool

A bottle opener is built into the handle, and I've already given it a test spin around the bar.  It opens beer bottles just fine!

Closed, the knife is 4.25 inches long.  The 2.9-inch blade is flipper-activated and made from 7CR17MOV stainless steel.  This is a fortified version of 440A.  The fortification?  Vanadium.  Here's the meat of the steel analysis:

Carbon 0.6-0.7%,  Chromium 16-17%,  Molybdenum  0.5-0.6%, Vanadium 0.1% or less.  There’s a smattering of trace elements.

Not a bad little knife for what it is

7CR17MOV has been described as good steel with acceptable edge retention for the price.  Not exactly a ringing endorsement, but isn’t that what most good products give us?  Acceptable performance for the money.

The blade is a straight-back pattern with a high saber grind.  A slight false edge gives the blade a finished look.  There's no opening stud or nail nick.  While you can pinch the blade out, you'll find the flipper works very well.  I didn’t find any burs, misalignments, or other quality issues.

The blade is as sharp as I want right out of the box.  I thought about trying to touch it up, but it's a good edge just as it comes.

The blade rides between two brass spacers, and I'm adding a drop of oil on each.  The clip isn't reversible but is set up for tip-up right-hand carry.  Impressively, the knife uses two steel liners to give the knife strength.  The metal lanyard hole is well done as well.

Brown polymer grips complete the knife.

The Kit

I see this knife as a working man's friend.  You could use it to score sheetrock, but there are much better products for that.  It will sharpen a pencil, cut open a blister pack open packing boxes and, most importantly, it is a great knife to lend that moocher who either fails to return anything or breaks it.

I may trim a little of the foam out of the water-tight box and store the knife and mini-tool with a flashlight in the back of my truck.  You never know.

But you can know about DAV.  According to Charity Navigator, they are a 501(c)(4) charity with a four-star rating.  They report DAV uses 85% of their income to help veterans. 

It's one thing to help with hospitalization, rehab, or prosthesis fitting, but they still have to reenter the world.  But when some vets walk out the door, they walk the wire alone.  All too often, they need help getting to the doctors, filing paperwork, and rejoining society.

DAV has provided 19 million rides to medical appointments, submitted 12 million claims for assistance for vets, and has helped over 168,000 vets find jobs. 

Knife, mini-pliers and a bottle opener What more do you want?

Oh, hell, it seems my computer screen is blowing dust in my eyes again.

 

Launch 13

I just got my hands on Kershaw’s Launch 13.  It’s a very icey knife.  But then, I’ve always liked Kershaw knives.

Kershaw Launch 13

Pete Kershaw started the company in 1979 when he left Gerber Blades.  At the time, Ichiro Hattori made most of Kershaw’s knives in Japan.  Constantly evolving, Kershaw has introduced many innovative knives designed by people like Ken Onion, Ernest Emerson, Frank Centofante, and Rick Hinderer, to name a few.

The internet claims Kershaw makes over a million knives a year.  Impressive.

Pete retired from Kershaw on June 1, 1998, and by that time, Kershaw was connected with KAI and is now wholly owned by the KAI Group. 

I really like the blade and dark green handle.  CMP 154 is a nice knife steel.

The Launch series was introduced in the 2015 catalog with the Launch 1, 2, and 3 knives.  It was a bold move.  It was at a time when many states still had restrictions on automatic knives.  More of these interesting automatic knives were released over the years, constantly exciting knife fanciers.  In 2019, the Launch 13 Auto was released.

Here are some Launch 13 stats:

The blade is made from CPM 154 powdered metal and hardened to HRc of 58-60.  This is hard enough to retain an edge and not be brittle. The blade is a little over 0.1 inches thick and has a tapered false edge, giving the blade a jazzy look.

If a knife doesn't feel good in your hand, it's the wrong knife for you.  This one feels great!

Crucible 154CM is a martensitic stainless steel similar to type 440C but fortified with molybdenum.  Like many knife steels, it was initially developed for challenging industrial applications.  Those properties made it a desirable material for knife makers.  

The blade is a high saber grind Wharncliffe mounted in a strikingly attractive sculpted aluminum handle.  The low-profile button helps prevent accidental opening, and the deep carry pocket clip is reversible. 

The knife arrived set up for right-hand and tip-up carry, which is perfect, as I carry folding blades against the back edge of my pant's right pocket.

The knife weighs in at 2.4 oz.  Surprisingly, the balance point puts the weight chiefly on the handle.  I like this as it makes the blade feel lively.

The clip can be reversed for left or right pocket carry

This one is a special edition in a dark olive green that I find attractive.  The Launch 13 has been out for a while, but this is the first dark green one I’ve seen.

SMOCK!

 

“Hey, you got my knife!”

That's different from what I hear very often at my sales table.  Often, I hear, "You got the knife I’m looking for!’ or the slightly different version, ‘You got the knife I lost!’  Neither of these states assures you of a sale.

“You’re Mr. Smock?” I ask.  He was pointing at Spyderco’s Smock in carbon fiber.

You must understand I grew up with Steve Allen's late-night TV show, Tonight.   Allan launched the careers of people like Don Knotts, Lewis Nye, Bill Dana, and many more.  But it was his catch phrase that always fascinated me:  'Smock, Smock."

So, when Mr. Smock walked up to my table and introduced himself, I was, without a doubt, at a loss for words and very confused.

Kevin Smock 
He's holding a flier for the WRCA Knife show in April 6 and 7th at MAPS

                                                           near the Akron-Canton Airport

“Yes, I am, and you," he said, pointing at the Smock on my table, "have the new pivot.  I didn’t like the old one.”  It turns out he is Kevin Smock, the designer of Spyderco’s Smock.  The previous one was a simple screw head inset in the carbon fiber handle.  The new one is a polished metal head with an aerospace look. 

I like the look, that button release is totally icey

I've met other famous knife designers, but usually at the SHOT Show or Blade.  But never at the Medina Community Center until today. 

Kevin started as a knife modifier.  He would take other factory knives and modify them, creating unique, one-of-a-kind knives.  This is a bigger knife hobby than you might think.  Facebook is filled with postings of 'patina-ized’ blades, replaced grips, and altered grinds.  I met a fellow who shortened the blades and sometimes the grip of factory knives.  Finally, Kevin’s friends told him, ‘Look, you got the skill and the knowledge; you should be making your own knives.'

That did it.  Kevin wanted to use Spyderco's top compression lock, so he approached them and got permission.  The result is the SK23.

 

Notice the flipper, it's very easy to use and doesn't distract from the streamline profile.  

Later, Kevin showed Eric Glesser his creation and Eric was impressed.  He gave Kevin his card and told him we should talk.  The rest is history.

You can look up Spyderco’s Smock for yourself.  It’s a very cool knife.  The flipper is uniquely positioned and utilizes a button to disengage the compression lock.  The button lets you close the knife without your fingers coming near the closing blade.  That’s a nice touch.

If you don’t think this is significant, you’re wrong.  I constantly deal with people who want a knife, in some cases need a knife, but worry about cutting themselves while closing the knife.  A lot of effort and time goes into finding a knife they feel comfortable with.  This apprehension is especially common with frame and liner locks.

The Smock weighs in at 3.7 oz, and the blade, incompletely described as a modified Wharncliffe, is ground from CPMS30V steel. 

Kevin still makes his SK23 but also makes custom scales for the Spyderco Smock.  You can check out these and other items at https://www.smockknives.com/

Meeting him made my day.  Here's an entrepreneur creating industry and generating profits.  There's a lot to be said for that.

Two to Show

As luck would have it, I had a chance to pick up two new knives. 

The first is the OSS Dagger by WE K’nife.  I've always been interested in the small ‘James Bond secret agent’ knives.   I have heard about a replicate kit of special knives made for the OSS, but I have never seen one.  Perhaps it is just urban legend.  In any case, a small concealable dagger would be part of that kit.

Whenever I think of the OSS, I remember "You're Stepping on My Cloak and Dagger" by Roger Hall

The WE OSS dagger is a tribute to those days.  The knife is made from CPM 20CV steel.  CPM20CV is considered one of the super steels with amazing edge retention.  The formula is 1.9% carbon, 20% chromium, 4% vanadium, 1% molybdenum, and 0.6% tungsten.  But this only tells part of the story.  Heat treatment and edge geometry can make or break any steel.  In this case, vanadium and chromium help create fine-grain carbides and allow for sufficient chromium for stain resistance.  The downside is that 20CV can be extremely challenging to properly sharpen.

A lot of bulky Kydex for a secret concealed tool

The OSS Dagger has a flat back, making the knife less than 1/8 inch thick.  This allows the knife to sit snuggly in tight places.  The two-inch blade is sharpened on both sides, as fitting a dagger.  The flat grind slopes upward to a groove in the knife's spine.  The edges flow to a thin, sharp point. 

Face it, it's a weapon

A depression for the thumb has ridges of G10 to improve grip.  There isn’t a guard on this knife.  I have to remind myself this is a soft target weapon.  The handle has a lanyard hole, and if it is in use, I'd suggest a short lanyard.  The cord, or leather ribbon, can then be threaded between your fingers for additional grip.  A flexible cord could aid you in drawing the knife, depending on your hiding place.

The OSS Dagger comes with a Kydex sheath.  The sheath has a very nice spring-loaded clip to secure your weapon.  It is removable, and WE provides a ball chain to convert it to a neck knife.  You could also sew the sheath in to a pocket or jacket sleeve.  The knife weighs less than ¾ of an ounce.  The sheath, unfortunately, weighs more.

Let's stop kidding each other.  This isn't wartime.  This knife isn’t being issued to people dropping behind enemy lines.  It’s just a paean to one specific tool used by the OSS during WWII.

But I’d find some thinner Kydex and make a smaller, lighter sheath if I needed this last-resort weapon.

Olight is best known for their flash and weapon lights.  They are a relatively new company, founded in China in 2007.  They are not without their fans and critics, with some justification.  In November 2017, a man was killed by an Olight flashlight that exploded due to improper use after placing it in his mouth.  Late in March 2022, Olight recalled 215,000 flashlights because of a defect that caused the lights to accidentally turn on and sometimes burn the owners.

Not my first zombie knife
https://knifesearch.blogspot.com/2023/12/zombies.html 

Despite this, I snatched up one of their Nettle 2 Zombie knives.  The blood-splattered (really, just red coloration) green handle speaks to me.

The 2.8-inch blackened blade is a high-shoulder flat grind.  It is fashioned from  154CM  steel.  Crucible Industries 154CM is a modification of 440C, a martensitic-type stainless steel to which molybdenum has been added to improve its physical properties.  However, this is not the powder metal form. 

The challenge coin was a suprise!

The handle is an aluminum alloy, which lets the knife weigh in at 2.5 ounces.  The handle is set up with a reversible clip and comes out of the box, right-hand tip-up, my favorite way of carrying a knife.

The knife has a button lock, which allows two ways of opening the knife, actually three.  The first is the blade flipper, which rotates to become part of a finger guard when the blade locks open.  The second is using the lock button and allowing gravity to open the blade.  You can also flick your wrist if you want that tactical click.  The last way is using the tiny opening depression in the blade to pinch the blade open.  That’s the polite society way; it doesn't alarm anyone.  Ask me how I discovered the need to open a knife this way, and I'll tell you about a pizza party at work.

Mettle 2 Zombie

 

I don't think I'll be carrying either knife.  Both knives will become part of my collection.

 

Magnificent MagnaCut

 

Crucible Powdered Metal’s MagnaCut steel is, perhaps the best performance steel on the market.  It is certainly the hottest!

Dr. Larrin Thomas, its inventor, thought there should be a steel that could be optimized to give small grain steel with tiny, supper hard carbides capable of reaching Rockwell 60+ hardness without brittleness and still be rust resistant.

I’ve taken a very short step in to metallurgy and perhaps the first thing you learn is you simply can’t throw elements into a pot and get a great outcome.  Metallurgy is complicated, heat treatment is a specialty, and you just don’t plunge a red-hot knife from the forge into oil and get a great outcome.

MagnaCut was the result of serious study and testing which culminated with a single hit or miss lot of steel.  Larrin got one bite at the apple and he was successful.  The story of its development is here: https://knifesteelnerds.com/2021/03/25/cpm-magnacut

One of Spyderco's MagnaCut folders: 

Let me be honest with you.  The article is written for steel nerds, people who enjoy technical data, like hard science fiction and enjoy reading about science.  I’m one of them.

The upshot is MagnaCut, due to its properties, when processed properly is an amazing steel.  The high-end knife makers jumped on it like white on rice.  This quickly worked its way down to EDC knives.

You can Google MagnaCut and any knife company and get a hit.

Here’s the formulation: Carbon 1.15%, Chromium 10.7%, Vanadium 4.00%, Molybdenum 2.00%, Niobium 2.00%, Nitrogen 0.20%.

Kershaw Launch 4 in MagnaCut

The amazing thing, all the chromium is available for corrosion resistance.  The  carbides are all vanadium and niobium.

We could talk about Charpy C-notch test, Edge Retention (CATRA Testing Relative to 440C), salt spray corrosion test, but you can find that yourself.  The important thing is to realize this steel helps makers use a better blade geometry for improved cutting while ensuring extended performance.  And while performance doesn’t come cheap, this steel is worth it!

Bestech's Swordfish in Magnacut

You’re going to see a lot of MagnaCut in the future.

Zombies

Zombies weren’t always so threatening.

It took a lot of work and juju to turn a person into a Zombie.  They mostly stood around until the Zombie master gave them commands.  Even then, they were primarily insistent; nothing stopped them from carrying out their instructions.  And they weren’t infectious.

In Piers Anthony's 'Castle Roogna', they were pretty nice people, had a lot of friends, fell in love, and did other ordinary things. 

The first record of zombies in literature goes to the English poet Robert Southey in 1819.  Later, Richard Matheson published  'I Am Legend' in 1954.  Sparked by that idea, George Romero directed 'Night of the Living Dead' in 1968, and zombies became insatiable, highly infectious, deadly creatures driven by a killing desire for brains.

Most of the TV shows and movies copied this idea.  It seems there is limited originality in the entertainment media.

We saw a shift in 2005.  Inspired by an old folk legend, Tim Burton produced ‘The Corpse Bride,' suitable for children and adults.  Later in 2019, 'iZombie', a comedy crime drama TV show, ran for several seasons.

MicroTech's ZombiTech

I'm not a Zombie fan, but I fell hard for Microtech's ZombieTech out-the-front auto.

Something about the blood splatter.  I've always been interested in blood splatter, and the almost florescent green handle appeals to me.

The classic way to stop a zombie was to destroy the brain

MicroTech released the ZombieTech in 2012.  I have one from 2019 celebrating Microtech’s 25th anniversary, but I don’t know how much longer they were in production.

I contacted MicroTech, but they remain closed-lipped about everything and have yet to respond.

Real blood doesn't splatter this way, unless it's a high speed splatter

The internet claims that every ZombieTech has a random and different splatter pattern.  I admit that some patterns are a lot nicer than others. 

The 3-inch blade was available as a drop point, tanto, and a double-edge dagger.  I have found images of bright blades and ones with a black finish.  While some websites claim to have a few high-end ZombieTech sets in stock, most say 'Out of  Stock,' which is seller speak for can't get it anymore.

MicroTech uses M390 steel from Böhler Edelstahl GmbH & Co KG factory in Kapfenberg, Austria.  Originally designed in the late 1980s for molds used in the injection molding industry, it has found a home in the knife community.

I like OTFs, or Out the Front, but they have their limitations too.  Blade can slip off the internal carriage.

I really shouldn’t bang on the entertainment industry too hard.  Originality is hard to come by.  In 2021, MicroTech released a version of their knife called 'Outbreak.'  https://microtechknives.com/the-outbreak-unleashing/  It sports the same blood splatter on bulbous green and a Biohazard symbol.  It, too, is out of stock.

Screw Loose

 My wife’s current favorite pocketknife, a purple SixLeaf, lost the screw holding the clip to the body.  Fortunately, the knife slipped further into her pocket, and somehow, the clip was retained.  The screw, however, vanished.

Of course, I wanted to repair it.  SixLeafs aren’t that expensive and but there are no local distributors I can contact for a replacement screw. 

Fortunately, I had a SixLeaf of my own and was able to confirm it was the same screw.  But what kind of screw?

She wanted the purple one and I opted for green

My friend Derrick speaks fluent machinist.  He was able to identify it as 2.5mm X .45 screw.  In the bonus round, he even produced the proper replacement screw.

We had the knife and the clip and when we got the screw, well, everything worked.

That greatly simplified my job.  I didn’t want to force an incorrect thread into the knife's titanium frame, so having the correct one was excellent. 

Lot of brands available, any one would work

I got out my semi-permanent (blue) threadlock and #9 Torx drivers and went to work.  I used a single drop and let the threadlocker wet the threads and drained off the excess into a paper towel.  This left me with a tiny ribbon of blue winding around the thread root.  I screwed everything back together, finger-tight.

Done!

My wife got her favorite knife back, so it’s a great outcome in my book.

Thanks, Derrick!