Barlow? Share all your Barlows here.

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Wow! Sunken joints and amazing fit and finish! Thanks for the great pictures

one of my barlows, from before USA women got the right to vote (shortly after alcohol prohibition)
18th amendment (alcohol prohibition) took effect on January 17, 1920.
19th amendment (women's right to vote) took effect on August 18, 1920

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Ka-bar Coppersmith Barlow...

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Those new Ka-Bar's sure are nice and that copper will start to patina quick! It took mine 3 days to start a patina after carrying it for a day and putting it back in my collection. I failed to really take into account how great the f&f is until you posted those pics, thanks Paul! :thumbup:
 
Those new Ka-Bar's sure are nice and that copper will start to patina quick! It took mine 3 days to start a patina after carrying it for a day and putting it back in my collection. I failed to really take into account how great the f&f is until you posted those pics, thanks Paul! :thumbup:

No problem at all Nick. I am really impressed by the f&f on this Barlow. And a very nice 80's stag CASE you posted as well...

Paul
 
There is some nice stag on that 2009 Forum Barlow, Jon! Is that yours?
 
There is some nice stag on that 2009 Forum Barlow, Jon! Is that yours?

I love stag! (as long as both sides are the same thickness, and as long as the covers are not fatter than the bolsters)
No, I have not found a 2009 BForum for myself yet, all those pics are lifted from the net. But yes, I would definitely be a buyer if I found a 2009 BForum knife for sale.

I started the post about wharnie barlows because I noticed the similarity between the Prov. Cut. Co and Dan Burke wharnie secondaries, then went on a history hunt about Providence Cut. Co. and got this far:

Italian Cutlers; brothers Felix and Michael Mirando, Domenic Fazzano, and brothers Antonio, Domenic, and Fredrick Paolantonio.

Prior to 1916 Both Felix and Michael Mirando as well as Domenic Paolantonio, worked for Empire Cutlery.

In 1916 brothers Felix and Michael Mirando, along with Domenic Fazzano formed Imperial cutlery in Providence Rhode Island. Fredrick Paolantonio worked for Imperial.

Also in 1916, brothers Domenic and Anthony Paolantonio formed Providence Cutlery, in Providence Rhode Island. They sold Providence Cutlery to the Italian Nicholas Amoroso in 1925.

In 1926 brothers Domenic, Anthony, and Fredrick started Colonial Knife Co, in Providence, Rhode Island.

References:

http://www.allaboutpocketknives.com/knife_forum/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=24880
The Providence Cutlery Co. was started in 1916 by Domenic and Anthony Paolantonio. The business was in Providence R.I. By 1925 they had sold the company to Nicholas Amoroso. They are known for making shell handled knives.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imperial_Schrade
The Imperial Knife Company had its roots at the Empire Knife Company in Winsted, Connecticut. Felix and Michael Mirando, Empire employees and Italian immigrants from the ironworking town of Frosolone, decided to go into business for themselves in 1916. They moved to Providence, Rhode Island to be near its jewelry industry and began making skeletons for “waldemar,” or pocket watch chain knives.[2] With their friend Domenic Fazzano as manager, they established the Imperial Knife Company, which would grow to at one point be the largest knife manufacturer in the United States.[3][4]

http://www.colonialknifecorp.com/history.htm
Colonial Knife was incorporated in 1926 by the Paolantonio brothers; Antonio, Domenic, Fredrick . Prior to the three brothers forming Colonial Knife, they each worked in other occupations which would hone their skills as manufactures and businessmen.
*
Antonio: upon returning from the First World War where he served as black smith with the U.S. Cavalry he started the A. Paolantonio Cutlery Company where he began making knives for the jewelry industry.
Domenic: worked for the Empire Knife Company, Meridian CT, as a foreman.
Fredrick: worked for the Imperial Knife Company, Providence, Rhode Island as a department head.
The brothers proved they had the skills needed to achieve success. Antonio handling the sales, Domenic the finances and Frederick the manufacturing process.
 
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Thanks for the historical research, Jon. It is most interesting!
You obviously possess a facility with computers/searching I can only envy!!
Perhaps a thread is in order, Hmmmmm?
 
Thanks for posting those shell knives Leghog, your Prov. Cut. Co certainly strikes me as the pattern Dan Burke based his on.

and your Diamond Edge sure looks like it could be cut from a similar mold, possibly Colonial, that was the sequel to Prov. Cut. Co, by the same owners. I imagine it could also be Imperial, the other Italian cutlery in Providence. However your DE is distinguished by the premium long pull.

Amazingly small world of Italian cutlers in Providence, Imperial, Prov. Cut. Co, and Colonial.

scruffuk thanks for sharing your brass bolstered Ablett, yet another sheffield flat bolster, like the Eye Witness.

I note also the Ka-Bar copper bolster looks flat.. not sure

flat, copper, brass, english, oh my!

Charlie, I can't wrap my head around all the similarities and differences well enough to post a cogent thread, so just some random bits suitable for further research :-). Thanks for your kind encouragement. Im sure your real world experience is much broader than my few web searches.

Maybe someone cares to venture an opinion on who made leghogs Shapleigh DE :-), and from what era?

unrelated, another Barlow pic, Left to right Boker USA with Bone covers, Boker Germany with clear red synthetic covers, Boker USA with Stag covers. Note the German Boker pen blade has a different tang profile than USA models. The USA pen tang profile is also what GEC uses, and it makes pressing the pen down to access a long pull easier than the German pen tang, leverage wise...

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Hey Jon, here's another flat bolster barlow for ya bud ;)



(Apologies as it is a repost)

Got one of those Ablett's myself in Stag. It's a whole lot nicer now I've given it some tea dye treatment!

Nice looking pack as well Thom.

Regards, Will
 
Imperial took over the Diamond Edge trademark ca. 1980, and used it on their hollow bolster Barlow knives, among others.
 
Yes, the DE is an Imperial. So stamped on tang.

Another Imperial

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Thanks for sharing your photos and info leghog. Note the Imperial and Prov. Cut. Co pen tangs have the European pattern of kick, closer to the choil, more forward from the pivot than Boker USA and Gec models... curioser and curioser... I wonder what the history of the two different styles of pen tangs might be?

Heres another "USA style" pen tang selection, left to right, Camillus, Remington, Boker USA, Walden, all with the kick closer to the pivot than to the blade cutting edge choil (choil as in notch between tang and edge, not tang choil as some people use the term for a finger rest forward of the bolster or guard, such as on some fixed blades)

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1979 Case

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Thats a beauty! I note it has the non pivoting style of pen tang, kick near the blade edge choil. Also of note, Case puts their pen on the pile side, so it cant interfere with access to the primary nail nick, hence no need for the pen to kicked in a way that makes it easy to pivot under pressure..
 
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