Gun Show score, a late 70's to early 80's Parker Cut Co Tanto...

PocketKnifeJimmy

PocketKnifeJimmy

Joined
Aug 4, 2013
Messages
3,989
I don't know much about this knife, but it called out to me, (it apparently wanted to be part of my collection), and @ $90, the deal was sealed.
It's a Parker Cutlery Company 'Eagle Brand' Tanto pattern specimen. Condition is unused minty condition. At 90 bucks, I don't think I likely got hurt on the deal. He was asking $130 for it.

Anyhow, she seems very well made. The pakka-wood handle scales are not usually my cup of tea, but it's visual appearance on this knife seems to be okay. Pakka-wood did get around a lot, back in the day, lol! ;)
It is likely late 1970's to early 1980's vintage.
Anyhow, her bolsters need a little untarnishing, (which a jewelry cloth will soon enough take care of), but is otherwise in great shape :)

 
Last edited:
Just did my initial "pre into the collection wiping down" on her, and she is a beauty!
It being a Japanese Tanto style fixed blade knife, it seems the company in Japan that Parker contracted, knew what to do on these :)

Anyhow, the blade is pretty thick, and the tang is a true "full tang" construction, with the steel exposed all the way around the handle scales. The thickest part of the blade is the tang, (from the butt end to the area where the info is stamped onto the exposed tang area). It looks to be about 1/4 inch thick, and then the blade seems to slowly slim down to the final tip.
As mentioned before, the handle scales are made from a black'ish stained pakka-wood, and are attached via three large stainless steel pins. The bolsters are made of nickle silver, with a nickle silver pin securing them.

I encountered one in about the same condition that had sold on that most popular sell all auction site. The seller put up a one minute video showing the knife at a few different angles. Funny that he too wears latex or nitrile gloves while handling knives :)


I have been doing some google searching on this knife, but have found very little information about it.
If anyone can provide some more insight about this particular Parker/Eagle branded knife, I'd be much obliged :)




 
Last edited:
Sorry I don't have any info, just wanted to say that is one sweet looking knife! When a blade gets thinner in crossection from tang to tip its called distal taper. Tangs can have distal taper as well, usually to save weight. I personally wouldn't call that blade a "modern tanto" . It to me is of a more traditional Japanese style, aside from the more western style grip construction. Very cool knife :cool::thumbsup:
 
Misplaced Hillbilly said:
Sorry I don't have any info, just wanted to say that is one sweet looking knife! When a blade gets thinner in crossection from tang to tip its called distal taper. Tangs can have distal taper as well, usually to save weight. I personally wouldn't call that blade a "modern tanto" . It to me is of a more traditional Japanese style, aside from the more western style grip construction. Very cool knife :cool::thumbsup:
Click to expand...

Thank you Sir! :)
 
Very nice piece Jimmy, congratulations! I don’t know about that specific knife, but most of those Japanese made knives which were commissioned by Western companies from that era were made in Seki city, in Gifu prefecture.

There’s a couple of cutlery museums in Seki which have many similar knives and western traditional pocketknives. Seki was one of the ‘Japanese Sheffields’.
 
Thank you ☺
I sure would like to run across a vintage Parker catalog showing this particular knife and how they may have described it. It would hopefully also show the year(s) it was being offered, and maybe what the pricing was for it back then.
I have a few specimens, (three to be exact), of the Parker Cut Co 1980's vintage Sheffield inspired 19th century styled Bowie knives, and they were not too difficult to find more information about online. It's definitely a tougher job on this Tanto, and it seems to be a much more rare bird than the Parker Bowie knives I speak of.

The Parker Cut Co products seem to have been VERY diverse, and although many do nothing for me, others really tickle my fancy. I guess that is what he intended, to offer a broad selection that would appeal to all sorts of knife enthusiasts.
Another surprise for me has been the quality of some of Parker's offerings. Some are just so generic and basic in their style and quality, and yet other pieces seem to have truly strived for a better than average styling and quality. This particular Tanto is one of the Parker Cut Co items that I feel is not just another basic ho hum product under that banner, but one that shows the quality that some of their products carried. It was probably still pretty inexpensive to do business with Japanese cutlery businesses back then, so this specimen's box stating that the Eagle Brand was a collector knife at a working man's price, was likely spot on. The Japanese had some great cutlery skills to offer, but had not been exploited enough yet, at that time, to the point where their prices were high. Fast forward 30 or 40 years, and that is far from the current situation. Decent to high quality made knives from Japan, no longer come cheap. And, many brands that once had their products made in Japan, have switched to the lower cost countries of Taiwan, India, China, and elsewhere.

It was the first Parker Bowie I purchased a couple years ago that had me look closer at what had been offered under that trade name/trademark, and realized that many pieces very much appeal to me.
I read much about Mr. Parker's business tactics, and a lot was/is seen as very negative. But, the good, the bad, and everything in between, is now obviously a part of knife history, since Mr. Parker and his Parker Cutlery Company are both gone. So, just like any other addition to my collecting hobby, I base the purchase on the item itself, and whether or not it tickles my fancy.

I again want to thank you guys for the nice comments about my most recent aquisition of this Tanto based knife :)

I will keep searching for more info that may pertain to this knife. If I discover more, I will try to share it here so that others may possibly be able to use the info for their own consumption :)
 
Last edited:
Parker is a name that can bring up some pretty strong feelings; search this BBS (and the net) for "James Parker". He could, and did, have some nice knives made. He also used some questionable sales tactics. His son is one of the biggest dealers in cutlery on the bay under (at least) two different names. There is a book about Parker knives that he sells time to time.

In my experience the Parker Eagle brand knives were made in Japan, I believe in Seki. They are good quality, and they made some patterns I've not found anywhere else since then. They never seem to have developed into "collectables", but that's probably more due to the "Made in Japan" stigma than cost or quality.

That Tanto was a very popular design when it was made. The pattern isn't quite as popular these days, but that's usually because people try to use it for things it's not designed for.
 
Parker did have good stuff at times.
I know the earliest Parker cutlery slipjoints were made by Schrade or Camillus, and I think Jim Parker owned Case at some point.

I guess since he had many different quality levels imported from japan you kind of just have to know how to tell a quality knife from a bad one.
 
I did my research on this Parker Cut Co Tanto specimen, and the truth is, I found no sources for original company literature info, (catalogs or otherwise). I only found a couple past recent sales of them online. One of these sellers stated that the maker in Japan that made these for Parker Cut Co, was the same maker Al Mar used to make his wares. Of course I don't know where his info came from, or if it is indeed factual, but the quality is certainly apparent enough for it to be plausible. Al Mar also went to a Japan source for his wares, so he too contracted out his product's production.
In any case, it's no doubt that my paying $90 for it was definitely in my favor, especially in it's mint condition.
As Hickory n steel stated above, Parker's product quality was varied. I mean, Parker's knife ventures took him to a lot of places, and to a lot of different makers, so the quality of his products ran the gamut, from mickey mousey, to exceptional. It all depends on the model and maker he sourced to make it for him. His knives, depending on brand and model, were made in Germany, USA, Japan, and maybe some other places.
This one is certainly a beauty that shows it's quality in craftsmanship :)

It's mine now, so it will continue to live a life of pampered luxury... Just sit there and look pretty! ;)

 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top