Gerber MKII info needed

K

KAL110

Joined
May 30, 2001
Messages
36
Greetings, I am looking for some background information on a Viet Nam era Gerber MKII (bent blade/cats paw)that I have.

Anyone out there have a clue as to where to start looking? I am trying to get a basic idea of what it is worth for the homeowners insurance and have had some scary offers made for it in the past.

I know where this one was then (with me) and I would never sell it I am just trying to do the documentation things like production date and quantitys made etc.

Thanks for looking.
Stay safe - Gordon
 
Gordon,

Check out this link... http://www.gerberknives.com/ it should help you date your MK II by S/N.

My wife and I collect these, so if you're in the market to sell some day, look us up.

We've been tracking the older Gerbers for a few years now....and this is the deal... A new collector with some money comes along, buys up all the knives of that type for sale over a short period of time, then crashes and burns....reselling his knives at a loss soon thereafter.

Another new collector comes along, hears the high dollar stories, sees the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, and then does the same thing as the first guy...

It's a repeating cycle, as Bernard Levine keeps writing about in all of his 10 or so last published articles... It's actually a very limited market, albeit with new players coming on scene from time to time rolling the dice...

In all fairness, it's a very speculative market for a semi-limited production, production made, mission specific so-so knife. From a historical perspective, with corrosponding documentation, they're not a bad choice for a "collection"; but "stand-alone", undocumented, in used condition...they are a particularly bad investment for the novice collector.

Yours has intrinsic value to you, and that should be enough. Just don't get a full head of steam thinking it's particularly valuable.

Hope that helps...

btw, it's "Cats-Tongue", not "Cats-Paw" ;)
 
MP

Thanks I'll look at that site and I appreciate the lead.

As for the cats paw thing...I really do know better, I just can't think sometimes. I read the post a couple of times and still missed it....Duhhhh!

I would agree that the value is really more emotional to me than anything else. There are a lot of stories in that old blade, but it's condition might be best described as "used". At least I kept the original sheath and steel intact.

I had started to look into this about 10 or 11 years ago (pre internet for me) and there was some strangeness about the serial number and the bent blade if I remember right.

I am not a collector by any means and have no ideas of selling it. If that changes for any reason though I'll let you know . Interesting about the collector cycles.

Again, thanks for the inputs. I was not really sure where to post the thing!

Stay safe - Gordon
 
beware -have a mk11 '67 mod, been told its worthless(less than $100) and been told about $500 value - go figure - carried mine in 'nam so not for sale, but price is fluctuating on them imho


sifu
 
SIFU1A,

Yeah it is strange. I made the mistake ONCE of showing it to a guy at a gun show that "just wanted to see a real one" and who then turned out to be a dealer of some kind. He chased me for a year or two then vanished. I've also heard the "what you paid in the PX for it" line as well.

I think Melvin-Purvis hit it exactly on the collector cycles.

Complete left turn - Does the last digit in your serial no. look like the rest of them? Mine appears to have been added in the parking lot someplace and is barely legible and not lined up well. Just curious, it could explain a lot about why this one does not match the info in the site Melvin-Purvis sent.

Stay safe - Gordon
 
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