I was in Oregon today and went into a pawnshop. Amongest the guns and cameras and regular fare, and to my surprise, it was LOADED, (at least five long display cases), with fixed blades and folders by knife makers, Sornberger, Barney and Jim Corrado. Call me stupid but I had never heard of these makers. The clerk told me a collector had died and his family had brought them in to have the pawnshop sell them. The clerk was unaware of Sornberger or Barney's first names, (those examples were marked simply "Sornberger" and "Barney"), but a lot of the folders were marked "Jim Corrado" and some were marked just "Corrado".
The Sornberger knives were especially nice. They were mostly fixed and every conceivable handle materials from abalone, the finest grade MOP, exotic woods and even gold or silver, were on display. Mr. Sornberger made everything from the simplest hunters to the finest examples of early San Francisco Bowie Masters to, well, ANYTHING you could imagine! Some of the sheaths were made from solid silver, gold and some embellished with precious jewels or natural materials such as abalone, MOP, stag, you name it! The grind lines, fit to finish and quality of this master's wares were a sight to behold!
The Barney knives were almost the same as above and all had examples in stainless and Damascus.
The Corrado or Jim Corrado knives were mostly folders. I swear, these folders, (mostly slip joints but quite a few lockbacks), were SO quality, I couldn't believe it! There were Damascus blades and scales that flowed so expertly into natural materials it was a joy to behold! Opening and closing was silk!
All these knives were priced from a low of $50.00 to a high of $2,500.00. Here's the kicker, the clerk told me he would take much less because they weren't moving because of the economy!
Please, let me know ANY info on these makers you may have. Thanks.
EDIT: I've been getting PM's asking if these knives are still there and to let folks know, this thread is 8 years old and I haven't been back to that pawn shop in 7 years so I have no idea if any of these knives are still for sale but I highly doubt it.
The Sornberger knives were especially nice. They were mostly fixed and every conceivable handle materials from abalone, the finest grade MOP, exotic woods and even gold or silver, were on display. Mr. Sornberger made everything from the simplest hunters to the finest examples of early San Francisco Bowie Masters to, well, ANYTHING you could imagine! Some of the sheaths were made from solid silver, gold and some embellished with precious jewels or natural materials such as abalone, MOP, stag, you name it! The grind lines, fit to finish and quality of this master's wares were a sight to behold!
The Barney knives were almost the same as above and all had examples in stainless and Damascus.
The Corrado or Jim Corrado knives were mostly folders. I swear, these folders, (mostly slip joints but quite a few lockbacks), were SO quality, I couldn't believe it! There were Damascus blades and scales that flowed so expertly into natural materials it was a joy to behold! Opening and closing was silk!
All these knives were priced from a low of $50.00 to a high of $2,500.00. Here's the kicker, the clerk told me he would take much less because they weren't moving because of the economy!
Please, let me know ANY info on these makers you may have. Thanks.
EDIT: I've been getting PM's asking if these knives are still there and to let folks know, this thread is 8 years old and I haven't been back to that pawn shop in 7 years so I have no idea if any of these knives are still for sale but I highly doubt it.
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