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.
