Spooky!

             I’m not sure why I bought this Texas Toothpick.  For some enigmatic and unexplainable reason, I bought it.  I’m not a huge fan of slip joints.  The blade is… calling it a patina would be kind.  The tip is broken off, and the front third of the blade is bent to the left. 

Would it have killed someone to put a little oil on the blade occasionally?

I kept it on a shelf in the garage, and one night, I turned off the light, looked around to make sure I had closed the pedestrian side door and noticed something worthy of the Ghost Busters.  Something was glowing on my bench.  Thinking I had left a tool plugged in, I turned on the light. 

What is that glow? Protoplasm?  Better call Ghost Busters!

Nope, nothing left on.  I turned off the light, and the glow was still there.  What?

After playing games with lights, I discovered my Texas Toothpick had glow-in-the-dark scales.  I should have guessed, in faint letters hot pressed into the handle were letters that read, SPOOK Knife.  The "O’s” were made to look like cartoon eyes.

Oh! It's Spook the knife.

The tang stamp reads Camo – USA.  The tang reverse is blank.

Camo was a cheaper line made by Camillus.  It's impossible to date accurately since the tang stamp was never changed during its manufacturing history.  I understand that in 1980, some Camo Knives were made in Ireland, and currently, the brand is made in China.

You can just barely read the word SPOOK heat stamped into the handle.

Camillus follows a pattern familiar to many knife companies.  Following its failure in 1873, the hardware company Bodenheim, Meyer & Company was restructured as Meyer & Kastor.  Meyer & Kastor had to close its doors in September 1876.  Only a few weeks later, Adolph Kastor started his own company, Adolph Kastor & Bros., on Canal Street in New York City, where he imported and distributed German-made knives.

But times were changing.

Following the Dingley Tariff of 1897, knives became too expensive to import.  The only solution Kastor saw was to manufacture knives domestically.  That led to the formation of Camillus Knife.  Kastor and his partner, Charles Sherwood, bought new machinery, such as steam-driven drop forge hammers and fly presses, and utilized new techniques, like alumina grinding wheels.

They were successful.  Eventually, they had to build a dormitory to house its German immigrant workers.

While not shown, the handle material on both sides absorb light and glow.

Camillus had in-house brands like Camo, Sword Brand, and Mumby Peg.  They also made blades for brands like Case, Remington, Schrade, Keen Kutter, and Sears and Sons.

Camo was a lower-end introduction to the market brand established in 1948.  These knives were sold as souvenir knives and could be hot-stamped and used as promotional giveaways and gifts.

Like many knife companies, Camillus filed for bankruptcy in 2007.  It was bought by Acme United Corporation. 

I've owned this knife for years and just discovered this glow in the dark property.  Some day, I'll sharpen Spook and put it up for sale.  Maybe it will find a new owner.

WRCA's Hubertus

         Most of us are familiar with the Hubertus lever lock automatic knife.  I own several, and I think they have great quality and style.

Hubertus Lever Lock   Total icey!

It’s a company with a complicated history.  Why complicated?  WWII in Germany threw a lot of companies into the dumpster of history.  Some survived and had Nazi associations which still haunts them to this day.  Ask Degussa, now Evonik, about that.

On March 1, 1932, Kuno Ritter started a knife company in Solingen, Germany, and concentrated on fixed blades called hiking knives.  We might call them camping or bush craft knives.

Due to the Second World War, business operations were discontinued in 1941 but resumed in 1946.  I found a report claiming Kino Ritter Co. made Boy Scout knives during the war.  I also saw reports that German Boy Scouting was closed and their members had to join the Hitler Youth organizations.  Draw your own conclusion.

Following the war, Kuno Ritter Co acquired several trademarks, including Hubertus, a brand registered for cutlery since 1899.  For those wondering, Hubertus is the patron saint of hunters.

An unknown Solinger cutler received a utility pattern in 1897 for a folding lever release, making the knife safer to carry in your pocket.  We call it a lever lock.

Around 1950, the company was renamed Hubertus Schneidwarenfabrik Kuno Ritter KG and is now run by the third-generation Ritter.

The Hubertus I recently ran across was a Western Reserve Cutlery Association (WRCA) club knife.  The date etched into the blade is 1985.  This appears to be part of the Golden Era of WRCA club knives when style and uniqueness trumped price.

WRCA's 1985 Club Knife

The bolster has tiny numbers stamped into it, indicating it was 7 of 65 knives ordered.  The top edge of the blade has some simple but nice file work, and the blade is etched.  WRCA can be seen in the middle of the blade.  The knife shows minor wear, but it is almost 40 years old.

I’m told this knife was offered to WRCA club members in three different styles.  One was gold-filled, and the other was silver-filled, but my source couldn’t recall the third option.  I suspect it was just the plain etched.

The stag looks a little worn  and I like the file work on the blade spine

To my surprise, the knife was ordered from Hubertus factory and then etched.  The etching was done by Shaw Leibowitz.  I dug into the name and found out our master etcher was really a husband-and-wife team composed of Sherill Shaw and Leonard Leibowitz.  You can find an interesting article about them by Bill Karsten in the December 1981 issue of Knife World and a better article by Sherrill Shaw in its Sept 2011 issue.  Knife World is now known as Knife Magazine, an excellent publication for any knife fancier.

Hubertus from 1985 direct to WRCA

I discussed the price with the owner but decided not to purchase it.  I'm not terribly interested in club knives  https://knifesearch.blogspot.com/2023/03/not-huge-fan-of-club-knives.html It has to be really special.  Plus, it is my opinion, shared by several dealers, that club knives don't hold their value.  That's sad, but it is the way it is.

My Thanks to Ian for lending me the knife for some quick photos!

 

Gerber Pixie and Sportsman II

Most of us know the story of Gerber Legendary Blades.  Let me add to what I wrote at https://knifesearch.blogspot.com/2021/09/gerber-parabellum.html.

Gerber Legendary Blades is an American maker of knives, multi-tools, and other outdoor and military tools headquartered in Portland, Oregon.  Gerber was established in 1939 by Pete Gerber and is owned by the Finnish outdoors products company, Fiskars.

Gerber is claimed to be the largest maker of knives and multi-tools for the United States armed forces.  Backing up that claim is a wide variety of combat-style knives, Many of which are highly collectable.  Susan J Dorey states in her publication (1) that Gerber switched on December 8, 1941, from making kitchen knives to military knives.  That was the day after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. 

Gerber's Folding Sportsman II -  From around 2000

Slightly off topic, but I found it interesting that Gerber and Emerson Knife formed an alliance to produce an automatic knife, AKA switchblade.  Interestingly, it was the first automatic knife made by either company.  The knife was based on Emerson Knives’ Raven knife design.  The auto was an issued item to specific military units.  You can look it up if you want to go down that rabbit hole!

NSN (NATO Stock Numbers): 5110-01-516-3243

A couple Folding Sportsman from "100 Legendary Knives"  by Pacella

I recently got hold of a Gerber Folding Sportsman II.  They were released in 1972.  The FS II was later discontinued in about 1995.  It’s a nice knife.  Many people found it a convenient substitution for the larger, clunkier Buck 110 Hunter.

The blade is just over 3.5 inches long and can be described as a flat grind, straight-back blade.  I couldn’t find anything listed but I suspect the steel is 440C, a common, but still used knife steel.  The handle is an attractive blend of brass and wood.  Of course, the blade locks open.

Gerber Folding Sportsman II

          The tang stamp doesn't appear to be anything unique.  The tang marking system developed by Case Knife is, without a doubt, genius!

It simply says 'Gerber' on the other side

It's an icey cool knife, and I'm lucky to find one this nice.

The other Gerber under discussion is the Gerber Pixie.  The Pixie could be best described as a bird and trout knife or a lightweight kitchen fruit knife.  

A Gerber Pixie

        There is an elegant simplicity to this knife.  It seems too nice to be used for kitchen work or field dressing.

The only identification is stamped into the handle "Gerber-Pixie"

The story here is a little more complicated, and I must find some reference books.  I thought I could fall back on my old trick of looking up Gerber's catalogs online, but they don't seem to have any.  Damn shame about that!

My limited research shows that the Pixie is a member of a family of Gerber aluminum-handled knives.  Some handles were given a coating to increase friction and improve grip.  I've found examples of Pixies with leather sheaths, the knife sans sheath, and at least one with a wooden sheath.  It is just an ordinary kitchen knife.

I find the smooth flow of the handle and blade attractive.  To me, it almost has a futuristic look

Here is what I consider interesting about this knife.  My friend Derrick found it at Harbor Freight in 2005.  "I don't know," he told me.  "They just had a pile of them.  Thought you'd be interested."  I was, but not enough to rush out, and by the time I did get there, they were gone.

(1)  http://www.susandoreydesigns.com/insights/GerberLegendaryBlades.pdf

 

Benchmade 730 Elishewitz

         I just came across a pristine Benchmade 730BT Ares designed by Allen Elishewitz.  It’s an amazing knife, and I'm lucky to have it pass through my hands.

Let’s walk through what we can find out about it.

Benchmade 730BT by Allen Elishewitz

The Benchmade logo has changed over time.  This logo says Benchmade across the butterfly and has two antennae.  Under the butterfly, you'll find U.S.A. printed.  This was the logo Benchmade used from 1999 to 2002.  The back side of the blade says Elishewitz next to his logo.  Above this, on the false edge, it says 154CM.

The 1999 to 2002 Benchmade Butterfly

Blade Forum claims the original release in 2000 was with ATS34 steel.  The following year, 2001, the steel was listed as 154CM.  Other variations were released, but the next important marker was in 2003.  The knives produced then did not have Elishewitz name or his logo on the blade.

This makes me think the knife was produced sometime during 2001 or 2002.  Pretty cool!

You only need to look at one of his knives and you would know Allen Elishewitz was born to design knives.  Actually, Allen was born in Texas and spent a good part of his childhood living in Southeast Asia.  Allen played a variety of martial arts and later became a Recon Marine.  This background gave him well-defined ideas of what makes a good knife for either self-defense or as a utility tool. 

The ARES is designed to allow the user to move the pocket clip to left or right carry.

The Benchmade 730BT Ares has an icy purple and black G-10 handle.  G-10 is a fiberglass/epoxy resin composite.  Fiberglass has the advantage of not absorbing most liquids, like water, beer, or blood.  G-10 has excellent dimensional stability and extreme resistance to normal environment hazards.

The blade is black coated 154CM steel.  You could describe it as a drop point, saber grind blade.  The blade is free of jimping, but the steel liners near the axis lock are jimped.  The blade has for all practical purposes a full length false edge.  The combination of grind line makes the blade interesting.

154CM steel is an interesting stainless steel.  It was developed and manufactured in the United States by Crucible Materials Corporation (now Crucible Industries).  154CM is a modification of 440C stainless.  Molybdenum was added to beef up its edge retention, corrosion resistance, and ease of sharpening properties. 

In case you’re interested, here is the formulation:

Carbon 1.05%  Chromium 14.00%  Manganese 0.50%  Molybdenum 4.00%

Silicon 0.30%  Iron 80.15%.

All this is very interesting, but you know what really matters?  It's how it feels in your hand.  And Allen’s design feels excellent.  The blade opens smoothly and locks in place with a click.  I like that.  The click tells me the knife is locked open, ready for whatever task I assign it.  The G-10 handle has two steel liners, so the weight of the open knife is kept in the hand.  The balance point is about an inch behind the axis lock.  This makes for a lively, controllable blade.

I like it a lot.  As I said earlier, it's just passing through my hands.  But then, it may stick around for a while.  Who knows?

 

Village of Knives

The world has many great knife communities. But in America, one of the more interesting must be the village of Little Valley, NY. It is an area filled with the corpses of dead and still-borne knife companies. The knife companies have been gone for quite awhile, but it is a rich area for historians and enthusiasts.

The Tee-shirt to prove I was there!

Authors have spent untold miles of paper explaining the history and complexity of the knife industry in Little Valley. Collectors have memorized family trees and connections to the families, cousins and in-laws involved. I can only imagine the scene as a bored wife holding up a flashcard with a name or date and the collector rattles off the family tree or the significance of the date late into the night.

Just to mention a few companies, Case Knife has its roots there, as does Ka-Bar and now Cutco. Kinfolks started and died there. Here's a meager and incomplete storyline.

J.B.F. Champlin started Cattaraugus Cutlery in Little Valley in 1882. He hired his brothers-in-law, the Cases. I wonder what he later thought of that because, in 1900, the Case Family started their own knife company. Little did Case realize their future product would be collectible knives.

Some of the Case presence

But not everything was peaceful in Little Valley. Family disagreements resulted in the formation of Standard Knife Co. in 1901. Standard didn't last long; it was gone by 1903. 

In 1905, Case moved production from Little Valley, NY, to Bradford, PA. Whenever I think about the move's impact on the area, a scene from 'Hitchhikers Guide to the Universe' comes to mind. All the dolphins are teleported to a ship as they migrate from Earth to a new and better location. Their last words to humanity were, as I recall them, "So long, and thanks for all the fish!"

In 1920, using blades made by Ka-Bar and Kinfolk, Case Knife reestablished a new Standard Knife Co. This created a low-end introduction product for the knife market. Twenty-eight years later, in 1948, they were gone.

1920 was also the start of the Kinfolks Company, which was connected to Case Knife.

In this rolling pot of knife history, let us remember that construction was chiefly wood, fire suppression wasn't what it is today. Fire companies were slow to respond, bad weather, accidents, fires, and God alone knows what else affected the factories, stores, and the small communities in Little Valley. All of this has created a rich heritage of knife-making.

Kinfolks ran until 1958. Rather than unionize they closed their doors, took their ball home and that was the end. Cattaraugus Company closed down in 1963.

In 1993, Zippo bought Case Knife.

Is that the end of knife-making in Little Valley?

John Burrell grinding, the last Case family member who makes knives

No.  John A. Burrell claims to be the last knife-making Case family member in nearby Ellicottville, NY. John told me he closed one company in 2006 and, after a few years, decided he wanted to start making knives again.

Case Family still has people in the area. I ran into a woman looking for a small pearl-handled knife. I showed her a very nice Rough Ryder with mother of pearl and an abalone shell insert. "It's nice, but I'm a Case so…"  I understood perfectly.

Case informational displays

Little Valley, rich with its tradition, in the county of Cattaraugus, was the perfect location for a knife show.

We were at the Cattaraugus County Fairgrounds and for a first-time effort, it was a qualified success. We occupied two buildings, but not to capacity. If you were in the second building, you may have missed out a bit. The show needed to have signs up indicating there was a second building. The second building had a few knife collectors, John Burrell, and a lot of flea market and high school booster tables.

Some of John Burrell's fixed blades

The show was scheduled for Friday from noon to six and Saturday 9-6:00 and Sunday 9-3:00. Since the admission was free, they started letting people in on set-up Friday morning at 9:00. 

Running to six o’clock proved to be a little too long. By three o’clock, we were down to trading between vendors and had run out of customers.

The second room

The organizers worked very hard to make it a success; they even bought radio coverage. I learned about the show from John Burrell, who attended a show sponsored by the Western Reserve Cutlery Association. He walked around and gave a flier to every table at the show.

Radio station mascot

You should understand that Little Valley and the surrounding communities have low population density. It is a beautiful rural area known for ski resorts and golf courses. But low population density makes it hard to draw people out. It's reported that over a thousand people were in attendance, but I doubt it. 

First Room

The vendors? We had tables of Randall knives, scores of WWII theater knives, Case knives, and edged collectibles. There was one table of new factory folders.

One wag exclaimed, "It's an old man's knife show!"  I don't know about that, but I could see his point.

There were a lot of oddball characters, and I felt at home. An employee of the National Knife Museum told me she was "not into knives" when I told her she was welcome to pick up the knives.  

An old man stopped by and asked me, out of the blue, "What’s the history of Kershaw?"  I was at a complete loss for words, but I managed a few coherent sounds about who owned Kershaw and how they made very nice knives. Of course, he didn't buy anything. Remember what I said about memorizing family trees? If that's your norm, then you expect that of everyone.

John's Table.  John is in the black Tee-shirt.

I struck up a conversation with a vendor who bemoaned his low sales due to the "youngsters who only care for 'black' knives.”  It turned out he was referring to modern locking blades, like Spyderco, Benchmade, CobraTec, and so forth. He never noticed that's what I was selling. He specialized in dirty stag and horn-handled friction folders with patinaed blades at high prices. He had a lot of competitors.

We stayed down the road a bit, and over breakfast I got into a conversation about Case Knife and their designs. I was told Ken Steigerwalt has been trying to meet with Case to discuss new knife designs, but Case is a hard company to talk to. I didn't ask him his connection to Ken.

Case Knife was a sponsor but had almost no presence besides a few door prizes and posters. During my setup, I was asked if I minded being next to Case Knife. Case had three tables reserved, including the endcap of my row. Of course I'm fine with anyone set up next to me. Case marketing showed up late Friday night, dropped off a couple boxes of Tee-shirts and departed, never to be seen again. 

Mark Zalesky, owner of Knife Magazine was on hand to evaluate older knives

        Later, Mark Zalesky, owner and publisher of 'Knife Magazine' occupied one of the tables reserved for Case Knife, and the show promoter took the end cap table away. That was a better result than I could have hoped for!

The best quote I got about Case Knife was, "Case never jumps into anything with two feet."  That may explain their stuttering presence.

Perhaps because the show was free, maybe it was the demographic, but I saw two types of folks at my table. Well, actually three. The third type were the ones who cheerfully admitted they had no money, but if they did, they would buy a knife and they’ll start saving to ensure they will have the bucks for the next show. They were amusing and a tiny minority. 

The other types consisted of folks who were there just to kick the tires and play with your knives. They are not a problem. After a few moments you tell them it looks like they like that knife and ask “Can I wrap it up for you?”  That usually moves them to another table.

You also get the ones who only want to tell you how they just bought the same knife as on your table. A slightly different variation is "I bought this in 1968, and I always carry it,"  This usually is accompanied by flashing me with an old pocket knife with a third of the blade missing from years of sharpening.

Okay, I’m a little mischievous about the show.

It was a great first effort. The show chairman, Brad Lockwood, worked very hard to promote the Village of Knives Show. There were many activities, tours, and interesting people to talk to. Forged in Fire champion Walter Baranowski foraged three special knives for the celebration and John Burrell handled them. They were amazing.

One of three made by John and Walter

We had customers, there were treasures to find, and everyone had an excellent time. It's lovely country, and Ellicottville Brewing Company has excellent beers and food. I wouldn't eat anywhere else if I was in town.

Put it on your calendar for 2025. You'll have fun.

 

Sunday Blade at Spyderco

         Sunday, the last day of the Blade Show, is always a day of mixed emotions. Everyone must leave and for many dealers that means packing up and making flight connections. Some, like Pro-Tech, are completely sold out. For knife fanciers, like myself, it's a sad day. My wife and I are leaving a community, even as temporary as the Blade show, and reentering a world of people who don't carry a knife, don't understand about knives, and if they own one, they have owned it for thirty years. It is as if an invisible wall is erected between me and them. We don't speak the same language,

The upside is my visit with Spyderco. I really want to thank Kelly Towers, the Director of Sales and Marketing, for taking the time to talk with me.

Spyderco is still in the final stages of building and enlarging manufacturing facilities in Golden, Colorado. They have been at it for some time. The COVID epidemic and the shortages that followed put a damper on their progress. The exciting thing about their expansion is that they are expanding the manufacturing areas, not office space. The difference is that manufacturing space makes money, not office space.

To my surprise, much of Spyderco's new production space will be set aside to develop new knife lines made solely in Golden. I have always associated Spyderco with Japan. Many of their knives are still made overseas, but things change. Don't be surprised to see more knives stamped "Golden Colorado U.S.A. Earth" on their tangs.

I always carry one of these, incase I get kidnapped by aliens, at least they know where to return me

Their value folder line, which serves as their introduction line, is still made in China. If you're a knife person and you aren't aware that China is a huge player in the knife industry, well, you better get caught up. Spyderco makes many of its fabulous knives there, as well as in Italy, Taiwan, and Japan. The Tenacious is one of their better sellers, but a blue titanium-handled Tenacious will be released later this year. https://www.spyderco.com/catalog/details/C122TIBL/Tenacious-reg-R-I-L-Blue-Titanium/2554

Titanium Tenacious

The blue Tenacious is fantastic. And at an MSRP of $170, you're going to want one.

Spyderco is known for their sprint runsd, short production runs of new steels combined with unusual handle materials. One sprint run you should watch out for is the Micro-Melt PD#1 series. It's the next super steel. It contains about 7% chromium, over 1% carbon and a whopping 2.3% vanadium along with other elements. Carpenter Technology describes their steel as "…an air hardening cold work die steel possessing wear resistance superior to that of conventional grades such as AISI D2, while still maintaining excellent toughness. This steel can be considered … where a combination of excellent wear resistance and good toughness is required. Many of the benefits realized including … greater wear resistance, and increased toughness."  Carpenter Technology attributes these properties to "smaller, more uniformly distributed carbide particles and a finer grain size.”

The run will feature a black, non-reflective TiCN coating and dark burgundy grips. Look for this steel in many of your favorite knives, Delica, Eldela, Police, Stretch XL and others. Woo Hoo !

I casually mentioned to Kelly that Spyderco likes dealing with different steels and struck a nerve. Kelly told me that one fan sat down and tabulated all the different steels various knife companies use. Spyderco topped the list at 64 different steels currently in use. The next biggest user fizzled out at 9.

Speaking of steel, I fell instantly in love with their CPM Rex 121 steel line with their bright orange handles. I know black is tactical cool, but this bright orange is a cup of hot coffee on a rainy morning. You wouldn't believe me telling you about the wild mix and amounts of elements this steel has. Check it yourself!

https://www.crucible.com/eselector/prodbyapp/highspeed/cpm121.html

The initial run is limited to just the Sage with a $400 MSRP.

Still no word on expanding their lines of automatic knives. Spyderco makes a limited number of autos, chiefly the Autonomy and Autonomy 2, at the request of the US Coast Guard Rescue Swimmers. The Swimmers needed a knife that could be deployed with a single gloved hand, tolerant of salt water, and cut like the devil. Their answer was the Autonomy. But that doesn't mean Spyderco wants to make them. 

The Autonomy

What’s new? Even as you read this, knives are making their way to retailers. I'd check out the new Manix 2XL in canvas micarta. The steel is CPM Cru-wear, and I'll let Crucible Industry brag about it. "CPM CRU-WEAR is an air-hardening tool steel, heat treatable to HRC 60-65. … CPM (Crucible Powder Metal) (is an) upgrade to conventional Cru-Wear and D2, it offers better wear resistance, much greater toughness, and higher attainable hardness. Both D2 and CPM CRU-WEAR contain carbides for wear resistance, but CPM CRU-WEAR has more vanadium carbides than D2."  

Manix 2XL with canvas micarta handle.

If you're a knife guy, you know vanadium carbides are harder than chromium carbides and provide much better wear and strength. This steel has a little secret sauce (tungsten and molybdenum) contributing to a secondary hardening response. D2 doesn’t do that. While Cru-Wear steel isn't strictly classified as stainless, there may be sufficient free chromium to help you with that. I'd run a little oil over the surface and in the pivot, just to be sure. Spyderco has a little product sheet included with the knife warning you to stay away from acid food and use a little oil on the blade. Check it yourself. MSRP is under $300.

https://www.spyderco.com/catalog/details/C95MCW2/Manix-reg-2-XL-Brown-Canvas-Micarta-CPM-CRU-WEAR/2507

It’s a great time to be a Spyderco fan!