Guardians of The Lambsfoot!

Kevin-B said:
I took some better pictures and played with the contrast etc. And i think i can see J. Nowill & sons. Im sure if im correct though.
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Nice work Kevin, that worked a treat :cool: Nowill's had a nice 'cross keys' tang stamp, which they used on their earlier knives :thumbsup:
JohnDF said:
Thank you, Jack. :)
There was nothing exciting about the trip, just peaceful and relaxing... which is just what we needed.
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Sounds like just what I need myself John :)
JohnDF said:
I see the AC is starting to hog the pocket a bit. 🤠 :thumbsup:
I'm glad you were able to get together with your friend and have a few drinks.
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Well, to be honest, the last thing I felt like when I got up this morning, having drunk 10 pints in the pub yesterday, was fumbling around for different Lambsfoot :D ;) :thumbsup:
JohnDF said:
I love the deep blade stamps, they last so long. 🤠 :thumbsup:
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It's a shame modern manufacturers are so shy of using them :thumbsup:

JohnDF said:
Good Morning Guardians.
I had to oil and flush my Usual Lamb when I got home, the joint was full of sand. 😁
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:D :thumbsup:
 
Jack Black said:
Nice work Kevin, that worked a treat :cool: Nowill's had a nice 'cross keys' tang stamp, which they used on their earlier knives :thumbsup:

Sounds like just what I need myself John :)

Well, to be honest, the last thing I felt like when I got up this morning, having drunk 10 pints in the pub yesterday, was fumbling around for different Lambsfoot :D ;) :thumbsup:

It's a shame modern manufacturers are so shy of using them :thumbsup:


:D :thumbsup:
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Thanks. So knowing who made it. Do you have any guesses on it's age? Any ballpark assumptions? I'm not familiar with the brand at all.

(I guess i was too quick with calling it a 'lost cause')
 
Jack Black said:
Well, to be honest, the last thing I felt like when I got up this morning, having drunk 10 pints in the pub yesterday, was fumbling around for different Lambsfoot
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After 10 pints, I wouldn't be climbing out of bed at all... I'm not used to that any more. 🤣
 
Kevin-B said:
Thanks! I'm a bit skeptical whether it is really from 1920 or not. I can't make out a lot from the stamp. I can kinda see 'Sheffield' but that's about it.
Here is a picture of it.
I
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Kevin-B said:
I took some better pictures and played with the contrast etc. And i think i can see J. Nowill & sons. Im sure if im correct though.
7ZCNrp1.jpg
Chau47J.jpg
Click to expand...
Nice shooting. Also the darker one that shows Nowill that I thought I had also quoted.
 
Kevin-B said:
Thanks. So knowing who made it. Do you have any guesses on it's age? Any ballpark assumptions? I'm not familiar with the brand at all.

(I guess i was too quick with calling it a 'lost cause')
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Well, as if things aren't complicated enough, I think your knife may have been made by another firm as a contract knife. Comparing the tang stamp to other Nowill tang stamps, I'd say that it is post-WW2. Now, during WW2, the Nowill factory was bombed, and after the war, the firm was sold to F.E. & J.R. Hopkinson Ltd. That company seem to have marketed knives, rather than manufactured them, and while they sold a variety of knives with the Nowill stamp, mainly FB knives, the firm also sold pen and pocket knives. As late as 1988 (according to Geoff Tweedale - I'd actually thought it was earlier), the Hopkinson assets, including the Nowill mark, were transferred to J. Adams Ltd. Adams still use the Nowill name, but they don't make folders themselves, having them made for them by other Sheffield firms, as Hopkinson may have done before that. The job of dating a Sheffield knife is made considerably harder by not having it in hand, because while doing so is almost always guesswork, the overall 'feel' of the knife, it's quality and fit and finish, may give us an idea, because, for example, in general, the overall quality of Sheffield knives declined after WW1, and again after WW2. The tang stamp indicates a post-WW2 knife, in which case it was probably a knife made for F.E. & J.R. Hopkinson. We don't know which small firms or Little Mesters made folders for Hopkinson, but in the case of the Lambsfoot, it would certainly have been a maker who already manufactured the pattern (since otherwise they wouldn't have had the blade-stamping 'tools'). We may be able to determine that manufacturer by comparing certain aspects of the blade, (the exact dimensions, the nail-nick, the blade stamp, and also the covers, and the way they're pinned, for example) to other Lambsfoot knives. If we can determine the manufacturer, it may assist us in dating the knife. A number of Sheffield manufacturers used compressed fibre handles, in different forms, but I only have one Lambsfoot with them. Undoubtedly, there will be others, but that is the only one I have. So how do they compare? Does the compressed fibre have the same pattern, even if it does, other manufacturers may have had the same supplier? Do the bolsters compare, even if they do, that type of bolster was once very common, as it was until relatively recent times? Nail-nicks vary, even from the same manufacturer, but they may tell us something. What about the blade stamp? The fibre handles actually remind me of another Sheffield knife in my collection, but I'll need to go and find that out! There are few lost causes Kevin, but as I always try and explain here, dating Sheffield knives is extremely complex. A very rough guess? 1950's, but don't hold me to that ;) :thumbsup:

vUUg2ak.jpg

JohnDF said:
After 10 pints, I wouldn't be climbing out of bed at all... I'm not used to that any more. 🤣
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Me neither! :D :thumbsup:
Kevin-B said:
I am positive that they are compressed fibre.
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That's helpful :thumbsup:
 
Jack Black said:
Well, as if things aren't complicated enough, I think your knife may have been made by another firm as a contract knife. Comparing the tang stamp to other Nowill tang stamps, I'd say that it is post-WW2. Now, during WW2, the Nowill factory was bombed, and after the war, the firm was sold to F.E. & J.R. Hopkinson Ltd. That company seem to have marketed knives, rather than manufactured them, and while they sold a variety of knives with the Nowill stamp, mainly FB knives, the firm also sold pen and pocket knives. As late as 1988 (according to Geoff Tweedale - I'd actually thought it was earlier), the Hopkinson assets, including the Nowill mark, were transferred to J. Adams Ltd. Adams still use the Nowill name, but they don't make folders themselves, having them made for them by other Sheffield firms, as Hopkinson may have done before that. The job of dating a Sheffield knife is made considerably harder by not having it in hand, because while doing so is almost always guesswork, the overall 'feel' of the knife, it's quality and fit and finish, may give us an idea, because, for example, in general, the overall quality of Sheffield knives declined after WW1, and again after WW2. The tang stamp indicates a post-WW2 knife, in which case it was probably a knife made for F.E. & J.R. Hopkinson. We don't know which small firms or Little Mesters made folders for Hopkinson, but in the case of the Lambsfoot, it would certainly have been a maker who already manufactured the pattern (since otherwise they wouldn't have had the blade-stamping 'tools'). We may be able to determine that manufacturer by comparing certain aspects of the blade, (the exact dimensions, the nail-nick, the blade stamp, and also the covers, and the way they're pinned, for example) to other Lambsfoot knives. If we can determine the manufacturer, it may assist us in dating the knife. A number of Sheffield manufacturers used compressed fibre handles, in different forms, but I only have one Lambsfoot with them. Undoubtedly, there will be others, but that is the only one I have. So how do they compare? Does the compressed fibre have the same pattern, even if it does, other manufacturers may have had the same supplier? Do the bolsters compare, even if they do, that type of bolster was once very common, as it was until relatively recent times? Nail-nicks vary, even from the same manufacturer, but they may tell us something. What about the blade stamp? The fibre handles actually remind me of another Sheffield knife in my collection, but I'll need to go and find that out! There are few lost causes Kevin, but as I always try and explain here, dating Sheffield knives is extremely complex. A very rough guess? 1950's, but don't hold me to that ;) :thumbsup:

vUUg2ak.jpg


Me neither! :D :thumbsup:

That's helpful :thumbsup:
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Thank you soo much, Jack! You have been such a great help already! I have to say that your example looks very much like mine! I wouldn’t be surprised if it were the same. Same handle material, same bolster and the nailnick on my knife is a bit further up the blade aswell. I knew that vintage sheffield knives are very complex but i never knew about the lots of different makers, brand and who took over who etc…

You have given me great insight about my knife. I’m only getting more and more excited about it!

Thanks!
 
Good morning Guardians. A little drizzle this morning but clearing out and getting sunny/warmer later on:cool:. Going out for a hike around our lake and through our neighborhood:thumbsup:. Last night we hosted a nice neighborhood get together and now I need to work some of those calories off. For me anyway it is "eat it today and wear it tomorrow"o_O. My New Years resolution is...you guessed it...lose weight;). Another day having my Ebony in the pocket.IMG_3375.JPG
 
Kevin-B said:
Thank you soo much, Jack! You have been such a great help already! I have to say that your example looks very much like mine! I wouldn’t be surprised if it were the same. Same handle material, same bolster and the nailnick on my knife is a bit further up the blade aswell. I knew that vintage sheffield knives are very complex but i never knew about the lots of different makers, brand and who took over who etc…

You have given me great insight about my knife. I’m only getting more and more excited about it!

Thanks!
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You're very welcome Kevin, sorry my photography is so poor (I have to say, I've felt brighter than I do today). At least you know it is a Nowill now, and possibly made by Milner. Almost all the Sheffield firms, even big ones like Joseph Rodgers, used outworkers, which complicates things no end, because tang stamps vary, as well as other aspects of the knife. Milner may have used outworkers themselves (something which happened a lot)! :thumbsup:
Onebigbill said:
Good morning Guardians. A little drizzle this morning but clearing out and getting sunny/warmer later on:cool:. Going out for a hike around our lake and through our neighborhood:thumbsup:. Last night we hosted a nice neighborhood get together and now I need to work some of those calories off. For me anyway it is "eat it today and wear it tomorrow"o_O. My New Years resolution is...you guessed it...lose weight;). Another day having my Ebony in the pocket.View attachment 1711591
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Enjoy your hike Bill! :) I guess most of us could benefit from more exercise ;) Nice pic of your Piper! :D :thumbsup:
 
Jack Black said:
You're very welcome Kevin, sorry my photography is so poor (I have to say, I've felt brighter than I do today). At least you know it is a Nowill now, and possibly made by Milner. Almost all the Sheffield firms, even big ones like Joseph Rodgers, used outworkers, which complicates things no end, because tang stamps vary, as well as other aspects of the knife. Milner may have used outworkers themselves (something which happened a lot)! :thumbsup:

Enjoy your hike Bill! :) I guess most of us could benefit from more exercise ;) Nice pic of your Piper! :D :thumbsup:
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Thanks! Ill definitely look into the different makers and the relations they have with eachother.
I hope you feel a bit better soon.
 
Kevin-B said:
Thanks! Ill definitely look into the different makers and the relations they have with eachother.
I hope you feel a bit better soon.
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That kind of information can be hard to come by unfortunately, even today in Sheffield, arrangements are often verbal, with cash laid down on the bench. Thanks Kevin :thumbsup:
 
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