Condition of Schrade factory 2nds

[Carl64]

I bought 3 Old Timer factory seconds from eknifeworks.com because that was all they had left. I think it's the 104OT (2 blade pen knife).

All 3 had the tang stamp completely ground off. The Old Timer shield is the only thing giving the knife any kind of ID. I know they need to do something to make sure it isn't sold as new, but I would rather they used an additional stamp or other method to mark their seconds instead of removing their name completely.

Anyway, any collectors looking to grab a few last Schrades like I did should probably keep searching. I am still glad I have them at all, but it won't be impressive to take it out of the display case years from now and say "look, this knife used to be stamped Schrade, I swear."

 

[Codger_64]

Many of the Schrade factory rejects have been sold to the public since the closing. It sounds like yours failed final inspection sometime prior to the last days before closing. I'm not sure they continued grinding the tangstamps in the last days. Some were merely tossed in a bin by the workers and not altered, just not completely finished. I have several such knives. One was nearly finished, but flawed and rather than sell it as a Schrade, they just pulled it from assembly before the shield was added. It was sold from the WIP lot is my guess. This one is a UH lockback and was pulled because there is too much movement in the blade when locked open. I have several fixed blades that were rejected after the first grind because the grind line was off. They still retain the tangstamp.

Rejects can be interesting in their own right. Sort of like error postage stamps or double strike coins. Maybe it was a sign of economic desperation that Schrade didn't chop them or grind the tangs of them all like most manufacturers would. The retail selling of unaltered rejects certainly confuses the marketplace about the quality of cutlery Schrade was known for. Perhaps in the future this will become a whole new genre of Schrade collecting.

Codger

 

[textoothpk]

A well-known and rather infamous (in these forums) eBay seller was offering a Schrade PH one with an XX through the 'Schrade' mark not long ago. Wanting to see if he would prove his reputation was justified, I wrote asking him what that meant. His response was what I expected, for someone contiually selling old German knives recently 'discovered' in a factory back room.... "I honestly do not know".

These Schrade seconds were never meant to be sold to the public, or they would have been long ago. Many excellent companies do sell seconds, plainly marked and they make good users. I sure would not trust an unauthorized factory second that had a liner or back lock. I like having ten fingers.

Phil

 

[El Lobo]

In "Fairness" to that seller who "Honestly" didn't know what an XX right through the middle of a logo might mean.......Hmmmmm, maybe they were "New" to knife collecting? Probably not, huh? :grumpy:
I don't think I want a Schrade....or any other factory knife.... that is that poorly made, unless I was going to collect seconds, like Codger mentioned.

IMO, it is quite a shame to think that many newer collectors have been confused by "New/Old stock", seconds and reproductions, not so marked, by a family who was so well known, knowledgeable and respected by so many .

I don't think I would be comfortable doing that for a living.
JMO.
Bill