Guardians of The Lambsfoot!

[Jack Black]

Thank you, Jack.
The Ebony is such a beautiful knife, it deserves to be carried more.
But the handles on my Rosewood are thinner, so it gets the nod as my daily carry.

Here's a photo of them both pushed flush against a wall, you can see the Rosewood on the right is thinner.

Thanks for the comparison pic John, that's interesting From what I recall, when John Maleham told me that he had discovered some old African Rosewood, I told him I'd buy all the knives he could put it on, so maybe he cut the wood a little thinner!

+1

I'm glad it's not just me Jer!

I think we call them Christmas Eve pageants in my immediate neighborhood.

Right! I was just talking to my pal about it, and they seem to be far more popular here than in the past. When I was a kid at school in the 60's, we only ever had one. I was 5 at the time, and was supposed to play Joseph, but went down with measles, and missed my place in history!

Yorkshireman to the rescue!

I may have exaggerated it slightly!

I do that. Let the nick in the edge wear out someday rather than sacrifice depth of blade now. (Just a coincidence if it's also easier.)

Generally, I'm of the same school my friend Nice pic of your Rosewood Big 'Un

 

[JohnDF]

I told him I'd buy all the knives he could put it on, so maybe he cut the wood a little thinner!

An interesting theory.
Whatever it was, I like it a lot... nice and thin in the pocket.

 

[screened porch]

When I was a kid at school in the 60's, we only ever had one.

We had them in church. I only had to be in it once. My shepherd's crook was cardboard; I was so embarrassed.

 

[tmd_87]

The etch on my lambfoot knife is very, very faint! I thought it was gone!

 

[Tyson A Wright]

cudgee Jack Black r8shell I think all of your takes are pretty good on the resharpening issue. I think it's interesting to look at our non-stainless knives in the Traditionals subforum and see how many of them have unpatinated blades, with relatively few resharpenings happening - this is because we treat them as objects of value in themselves, not as tools that are ultimately consumables. But for someone who wasn't a collector, but just had things to cut, the one pocketknife they owned would be used a lot and resharpened a lot. I suspect that most of us posting on BF have a number of knives that we rotate through, so no individual knife of ours will get the same wear and tear as a plain old user from yesteryear.

The comments on sharpening technique are interesting to me - I agree that most people seem to be pretty bad at it. But it seems to me that sharpening a straight edge is much easier than sharpening any kind of curves - you just need to keep it flat! Putting a recurve into a straight edge actually requires some work, unless, that is, they are sharpening over something very narrow - instead of stone, using the base of a coffee cup, for instance.

Anyway, I don't know if my original observation is even correct, but it does seem to me that I see more of this reprofiling happening on lambsfoot knives than I see on other patterns. Maybe it's just the change is more obvious going away from a straight edge.

 

[Jack Black]

We had them in church. I only had to be in it once. My shepherd's crook was cardboard; I was so embarrassed.

LOL! Our only other infant school play was about the 1066 Norman invasion, it was a riot of cardboard and crepe paper Some years back, my mate's daughter, who was in the nativity play today, was in a short play about Rosa Parks. I was invited along, and afterwards was talking to the young teacher who had put the play on. I said, "You do realise that Rosa Parks wasn't the first black woman to refuse to give up her seat on an Alabama bus?" I wished I'd kept my mouth shut, as the teacher's bottom jaw dropped, and she looked absolutely crestfallen

The etch on my lambfoot knife is very, very faint! I thought it was gone!

I think that looks absolutely fantastic Taylor I'm glad the etch is still there. Hopefully, were you to ever Flitz the blade, it would still be there too It's quite different to the 'etches' found on GEC knives for example, which aren't really etches at all, I don't think. Of course a blade stamp would have been even better

 

[Jack Black]

The comments on sharpening technique are interesting to me - I agree that most people seem to be pretty bad at it. But it seems to me that sharpening a straight edge is much easier than sharpening any kind of curves - you just need to keep it flat! Putting a recurve into a straight edge actually requires some work, unless, that is, they are sharpening over something very narrow - instead of stone, using the base of a coffee cup, for instance.

From what I recall, even as a boy in Sheffield, the only adult I knew, who wasn't a cutler, and had a good sharpening technique was my maternal grandfather. Many pocket knives were sharpened, on grindstones, in factories, by men who weren't skilled at it. My grandfather had numerous dedicated stones, and I'm sure he was not alone in that, but if they had any sharpening equipment at all, many homes would only have had a steel, which often came as part of a carving set. (I was remarking to someone the other day that, in Sheffield, in the past, even the poorest homes had kitchen and table cutlery better than what one might have expected, since everyone had relatives who were in the trade ). A straight edge is certainly the easiest edge to sharpen, but a round steel wouldn't be a good way to maintain it, I don't think

 

[Jack Black]

It's Friday. It's 5 to 7. And it's Beer o'Clock!

 

[screened porch]

 

[cudgee]

this is because we treat them as objects of value in themselves, not as tools that are ultimately consumables.

So correct, a knife is a tool first and foremost.

But for someone who wasn't a collector, but just had things to cut, the one pocketknife they owned would be used a lot and resharpened a lot. I suspect that most of us posting on BF have a number of knives that we rotate through, so no individual knife of ours will get the same wear and tear as a plain old user from yesteryear.

Correct again, the people from past generations were around long before consumerism and our materialistic lifestyle. A pocket knife was a tool, and they usually only had one, and it earned it's keep. Also money was valued and not spent on items that were not actually needed or used, these were not necessarily poor folk, but lived in different and often turbulent times, they saved as much as they could, and were a lot more creative and frugal. All my family were of this ilk, not tight, but did not waste money.

you just need to keep it flat!

 

[Campbellclanman]

I have always been heavy on footwear, and while I remember having to replace laces often when I was young, these days, I often find my shoes are worn out before the laces (I always remove the old ones before throwing them out)! I save the old ones as spares

Nice work Leon, and a good-looking pair of daisy roots Great-looking Lambsfoot too

We certainly see some very old Lambsfoot knives here in this thread, but their previous owners may not have had so much knowledge about sharpening, or had the equipment, that the average member does here. Even when I was a boy, I commonly saw people crudely sharpening knives on kerbstones or on the cellar steps. While I've seen many old Lambsfoot knives deformed out of all recognition by poor sharpening, I've seen others that have been sharpened almost to the point where there was almost nothing left, but still retaining a straight edge. Without that straight edge, and the sharp point, you're really losing the best properties of the Lambsfoot blade. I don't think this is a problem distinct to the Lambsfoot pattern though, I see just as many other old knives, which are mangled at least as badly. Unfortunately, once a knife loses its point, develops a recurve, or is damaged somehow, it tends to be relegated further down the knife food-chain, and rather than being restored, simply gets more abuse

Here's a few I have pics of. This old Alfred Blackwell had clearly had a very hard life, with half the bone missing off the pile side, and the blade pushed into the liner, as if it had been run over. Yet, it was still razor sharp, and I used to carry it often.

This old J. Howarth was knifemaker Paul Mason's boyhood knife. At some point, Paul had accidentally damaged the point.

r8shell has this old Thomas Turner, and I think made a useful punch out of it

I suspect this old Abram Brooksbank Lambsfoot was damaged at some point, and that someone decided to make a useful knife out of it. It's been modified so much that I don't usually show it here, but the second photo shows how it would have looked originally.

This Joseph Rodgers has been heavily used and abused, but despite its ugliness, it still retains the characteristics of a Lambsfoot.

This Thomas Turner has pretty much been 'used to death'! It still has a straight edge at least

This old Herbert Robinson is one of 3 Lambsfoot knives @Fixall kindly sent me recently. It's clearly had a hard life

The Milner has simply lost its tip, but is spoiled because of that unfortunately ;( Maybe I'll put it right at some point

Great photo there


LOL! That sounds like the sort of clanger I'd make Barrett!

All good points Leon Many of us here having been carrying and using Lambsfoot knives for a good few years now, but we don't really see rounded points or recurved blades, because I think we probably take better care of them than the average punter

Looking forward to hearing more opinions on this interesting discussion point

Good morning Guardians, it's a bit brighter here today, but my mate, who I usually meet up with on Fridays, has his daughter's nativity play today, so I'm left to my own devices I think I'm going to have to head into town at some point unfortunately, but maybe I can wangle a piece of cake somewhere I hope everyone has had a good week, and that you have something to look forward to at the weekend. Unfortunately, I think we have more rain on the way here Carrying my Hartshead Barlow again today Have a good Friday Guardians

So so interesting
I look everywhere for the older Lambsfoot knives, I very very rarely come across them, I agree Jack, the Sharpening on these older Knives was often brutal- the fact there's any blade left is amazing- yet...the actions on the Older ones I have been lucky enough to grab the actions were pretty sad, but with patience and lots of Mineral Oil and a Bamboo pick the snap comes back very quick- so for a knife that is on the brink of being 100 years old the Knife sings again in most cases- says a lot for the amazing bunch of people who made these knives.

When they are displayed in this cool Thread it's a treat to see them!

 

[Jack Black]

All my family were of this ilk, not tight, but did not waste money.

Yorkshiremen have a reputation here for being frugal, and somewhat stingy. The local saying is, 'He's not tight, he's CAREFUL!'

 

[cudgee]

He's not tight, he's CAREFUL!'

 

[Jack Black]

So so interesting
I look everywhere for the older Lambsfoot knives, I very very rarely come across them, I agree Jack, the Sharpening on these older Knives was often brutal- the fact there's any blade left is amazing- yet...the actions on the Older ones I have been lucky enough to grab the actions were pretty sad, but with patience and lots of Mineral Oil and a Bamboo pick the snap comes back very quick- so for a knife that is on the brink of being 100 years old the Knife sings again in most cases- says a lot for the amazing bunch of people who made these knives.

When they are displayed in this cool Thread it's a treat to see them!

I dare say a lot were worn down to nubs, or went into the ground with granddad Duncan I have a couple, which have lost their W & T, and which I'm hoping will come back, but some of the very worn ones I've had still have great action surprisingly They certainly made them right my friend Hope you're keeping well, and that you have a great weekend

 

[Jack Black]

Good to see The Silent Lambsfoot Jer

 

[Jack Black]

It's not a great weather forecast for the weekend here, but I'm hoping I can get a walk in the woods before the rain comes in again. Hoping to meet up with my pal, and his two boys, and maybe get lunch in the Middle Eastern restaurant we went to last Saturday

Have a great weekend Guardians

 

[cudgee]

and a good-looking pair of daisy roots

Haven't heard that rhyming for a while.

John Maleham told me that he had discovered some old African Rosewood

so maybe he cut the wood a little thinner

With my very limited knowledge of Sheffield knife history, that sounds very logical. We have an outlet here, i have had many email and phone exchanges with the owner, he told me years ago that he had old stock from John Maleham. Many were Lambsfoot knives in differing handle shapes, he apparently experimented a bit over a period of time.

 

[Pt-Luso]

 

[Jack Black]

Haven't heard that rhyming for a while.

There used to be a walking boot maker here called Daisy Roots!

With my very limited knowledge of Sheffield knife history, that sounds very logical. We have an outlet here, i have had many email and phone exchanges with the owner, he told me years ago that he had old stock from John Maleham. Many were Lambsfoot knives in differing handle shapes, he apparently experimented a bit over a period of time.

Interesting Leon, I forget how long John had the firm, off-hand, but before him, it was run by Jack Howarth, the last of the Howarth cutlers

Good morning Guardians, dull as dish-water here today, but not actually raining yet. Hope everyone has a great weekend

 

[Ogri]

Hi, I am thinking I would like a A. Wright Heartshead Barlow. My question is , do they still make these and who supplies them ?