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!

Blade 2024 Day 2

 Day Two started off with a whimper.

We normally park at the Cumberland Mall across two pedestrian bridges.  This morning there were 4 mall cops standing at the bridge.  So, I walked up to the them and politely asked,  “Excuse me, officers.  But is there a problem here I should avoid?”

One said the parking lot was private property and she would hate to see my car towed.  So, we moved the truck, and got one of the last 12 spaces in the paid parking deck at Cobb Galleria.  I hated to do that. But I would have hated it more if I had my vehicle towed.

The mall has huge parking areas.  Seems to me they could sell some sort of window ticket for a few bucks and assure that those cars would not be towed.  Free money, folks.

I stopped at Mickey Yurco’s table.  He has an amazing, inventive mind about knives and I ended up buying a small hatchet.  He informed me he designed it for street fighting, but hikers and campers are buying them as a cutting tool.

Hatchet not what your......

I stopped off to talk with Stephen Fowler of Fowler Blades.  He makes very sophisticated fixed blades and I very much like his approach.  Too much bling turns an elegant knife into junk.  One of his knives has a little simple file work and Stephen told me “…file work should call attention to a feature, not be the feature.”  You can find him on the internet.https://fowlerblades.com/

Back at Vosteed I fell for a Thunderbird and discovered they couldn’t sell it until 3:00 this afternoon, but they promised they would hold it for me and they did.  I also discovered that my wife bought the only green handled one that they had with them the day before.  They proudly pointed her out to the staff at the booth.

I think the blade shape, with what could be called a fuller, is icey.

Later, quite by accident I walked by and found they were giving away knives.  It was a simple system, you took a ticket, turned it over and your prize was listed on the back.  I pulled a ticket at random and found I won a Raccoon, their bestselling knife.

I might name it Rocky Raccoon, but....

I’m seeing more and more button locks on production knives.  I like that, as typically they are an easy way to unlock the knife.  In my opinion, it sets up the manufacturer for a future modification to their production line to install a coil spring and start making autos.  It also set up the possibility of someone starting a cottage industry converting button locks into autos.  We have seen this with some Boker button locks and Buck knives, especial the Buck 110.

Just as an aside, I understand Mission Knife has moved from California to Kentucky.  Oh, my!  Talk about culture shock.

Let me show you a bunch more photos to capture the flavor of the Blade Show.

Another mystery man sighting.  Does he belong on a milk carton?  I assume the large fellow next to him is his security. but I didn't see a gun print.  I went to take a photo and he ducked behind a pillar, so I stepped around on the other side.  Passive-Aggressive secret identity complex?

Fox Knives is introducing some new knives with Damacarbon, which sounds like advertising speak to me!

Interesting idea, design your pocket tool with the functions you need.  I think this is a pitch for stores like Duluth Trading.

This is Tim Rowland.  He started as a high end chef

and honed his ideas about chef knives.  While he was doing this he made very nice handles for Japanese cooking knives. They were well received and  someone handed him a chunk of steel and told him to go make the rest of the knife.  He's been doing this for about 2.5 years and you can feel the difference in balance between a Japanese chef knife and a European chief knife. 

Doug and David from Forged in Fire.  

Blade 2024 Day 1

 It’s Friday and it’s opening day for the Blade Show and as usual, the administrative side is a complete cock-up  There are no officials outside the building where the attendees are stationed organizing them.  You have the early birds, who should be inside at 10 am but seemed to be wandering around unable to find an entrance.  There are the peasants, like myself, some of which picked up their passes and should be in a line to get in.  Then there are the poor souls who need to get to the will call desk or the purchase desk to get passes.  Lacking direction there is no organization and many lines form simply because someone stopped to check their ticket.

We picked up our wrist bands the night before and with Karen’s new knee we were not about to stand in the hot Georgia morning sun while the officials played a game of switch.  That’s one thumb in your ass the other in your mouth.  You switch thumbs on command until you get a funny taste.  Some had been playing that game for a while. 

Inside, Blade Magazine eliminated any free space where there used to be chairs to sit and packed in additional booths.  It’s all about mo’ money, buddy.  A friend of ours confided their large booth cost $6K and an additional $100 for Wi-Fi.

Anyway, the knife show is amazing.

Benchmade is here, but they don’t bring catalogs or knives to sell.  “We’re on the internet,” they tell you.  “We’re not interested in that filthy green stuff called cash.”

It used to be you could find deals on new knives and some of the collectibles.  You can, but nothing is cheap.  It’s too late for you to attend this year.  Unless you know someone you can stay with, the hotels are sold out!  But next year, leave half the clothes at home, bring twice the money.  Maybe three times….

I'm too important to be bothered by the likes of you, but I want you to know that I'm important.

There are plenty of people and you’ll see all kinds. I ran in to three guys, I think, covered head to foot in either black or white fabric, wearing masks and hats.  I assume they are famous, or something, and don’t want to be bothered by fans.  But they don’t want to give up the attention either.

I like the red and blue patchy coloration on these Case knives.

You’ll find every and any kind of knife here.  I’m not a big fan of Case, but I really like some of the new handles.

I stopped at Pro Tech and bought one of the special one-of-a-kind knives. I couldn’t resist.  

ProTech SBR Micarta 

Karen found a Vosteed she couldn’t resist.

 

Vosteed Thunderbird   I like the green and black handle and so does Karen.

Here’s a few photos and comments.

The opening day crowd is light, compared to Saturday.  One vendor told me she thinks of Saturday as the buying day.

The feathers in the clear resin are striking!

Knives, knives, knives, gotta get me a whole bunch!

Keep an eye on CRKT.  They have two new autos and a line of limited production, like this Pursue.  The image can't convey how icey this knife is!

A Blade show special from Hawk Knife.  It's a clever razor blade holder.
I asked, "How much?"
Them, "475."
Me, "Just to be clear, that's four hundred and seventy-five dollars."
Them, "Yup!"

So high end, there's no price.  If you have to ask, you can't afford it.

Soon to be released TOPS Knives,  They still need a little tweaking.

.

But frankly, there is so much to see.  You’ll find people posting for the next six months.  If you’re not into knives, well, people-watching at Blade is a specialty. 

I can’t wait for tomorrow!

 

Good Thing I have two Pockets

 A couple of knives just arrived, and I admit I've been waiting for them.

The first is a collector’s knife from CobraTec.  Their auto Trapper with a hidden bolster release has been out for a while, but they just released one with Abalone scales.  The deep, iridescent color jumps out at you and draws you in.  This Trapper has been upgraded from D2 to a 154 CM blade.  The 3.1-inch blade is 0.11 inches thick at the spine.  The blade has a high shoulder, with a saber flat grind and a saber clip point.  This is one of the more useful grinds for a pocket knife.

Abalone grips

The stainless steel clip makes the knife suitable for deep right pocket carry, but in all honesty, I don't expect anyone to make this their EDC knife.

CobraTec Trapper with hidden release

The knife is 0.48 inches thick (excluding the removal Clip) and weighs in at 4 ounces.

The blade is released by sliding the checked front bolster sideways.  The bolster moves slightly and the knife opens.  The same action unlocks the blade so you can close the knife.  There are other bolster-release knives, but CobraTec claims they have applied for a patent on this mechanism.

The opening /unlock mechanism is activated by sliding this bolster towards the knife's spine

It's a nice knife.  I really love the amazing display of unearthly colors.  I only wish both bolsters had the same appearance, one is checkered and the other polished.  Some knives don't need a lot of extra glitz.  They benefit from not distracting you from their one amazing feature.  This is one of them.  You can find it on the market for $130.

You can get yours at https://cobratecknives.com/collections/hidden-release/products/trapper-hidden-release-abalone-with-154cm.

This is a knife you'll be passing on to your grandchildren.

 

 

Boker's Slike

I've seen advertisements for Boker's Slike, and it just arrived.  The Slike is a light-weight sliding dagger.  The double-edged blade manually slides out of the handle.  The blade locks in three positions.  Fully closed, fully open, and half-way.  The lock is controlled by a raised button located in the butt end of the blade.  The release button is spring-loaded and needs to be depressed to slide the knife blade in or out. 

Slike's clip. 

The knife is a sandwich consisting of a metal back (aluminum?), the D2 steel blade, and a G10 top.  The knife's overall weight is less than 1.3 ounces.  The dagger blade has a fuller on both side that makes the dagger really pop!  The G10 has an attractive light texture.  The blade is very thin, measuring 0.087 inches thick at the fullers.  The frame, excluding the clip is 0.2 inch thick.  This is a light duty knife so don’t expect to use it with abandon.

The Slike has a lock/stop that allows you to partially extend the blade

The knife is assembled with Torx-X screws, and it looks like you might be able to move the wide, open frame clip to the other side.  Frankly, I don’t know if this will void your warranty.

One of the problems with out-the-front knives is that retracting the blade brings dirty stuff, food, blood, you name it, back into the knife.  This material will find its way onto the blade's track.  The open handle will allow the crud to fall away from the blade and help keep the track clean.  It appears the knife can be washed clean and blown dry when needed.  I wouldn’t use anything but a dry lubricant, like a moly disulfide/graphite powder, to lubricate the track. 

Clip side of Boker's Slike

 What do I think?  I like it with some reservations.  It’s a gent’s knife.  (But I associate daggers with women!) What are most of our cutting needs?  We could open sealed snack packages, cut articles or coupons out, and slice pizza.  You could open cardboard packages with it, but I wouldn’t expect to be able to reduce the cardboard shipping box to nibbles with it.

Yes, you could defend yourself with it.  The blade is just under 3 inches in length and Boker knives are out of the box sharp.  But it wouldn't be my choice when I go off the pavement.

Get yours at https://www.bokerusa.com/slike-01bo411 for $84.

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!