Harness Jacks- any collectors?

Here's an odd one! Just got it in the mail from a guy in the midwest. I saw a couple of these in bad shape over the years, and thought they were some repair guy's idea of a spoof, but this one came from a salesman's roll, in mint condition, with a number inked on the back. From between the World Wars, it was made in Utica N.Y. I think. Stamped Iroquois, someone here knows who made it (knifeaholic, are you there?).
I call it a Harness Jack (from another planet?:D )!
IroquoisHJ.jpg

IroquoisHJback.jpg
 
Just one Kevin! I nagged him for a long time, and I think he made it to get rid of me!:rolleyes: Now I'm nagging him for a larger framed model. Custom makers don't like making punches; they take 3-6 times as long as blades to machine and/or grind, depending on style!
 
OK, Now I am totally convinced that Charlie will not be satisfied until he has every Harness Jack on the planet!.:p ;) :D
 
I tend to agree, John. I was looking through my punch pictures, and that knife has the type of punch they produced for quite a while. And, of course, it is stamped Utica, N.Y!
 
You're not holding one out on me, are you sunny:grumpy: ??:p :D :D :D
 
I thought this was a regular old Boker jack knife with a well sharpened pen blade but upon further consideration I thought, given the straight line of the bottom edge from the tang to the point, that perhaps this is a harness jack. Probably just wishful thinking on my part. What do you think?
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I judge those by the back profile of the blade, s-k. A lot of pen knives have been sharpened down to points. You will usually see a rounded, or double-beveled back on the blade in question, which gives it an eccentric cut needed to make a hole. Flat-faced punches are therefore much thicker than pen blades, in cross section. Can you post a scan of the rear of the blade?
 
Thanks waynorth. No that's all I can post at the moment but, based on your description, this is just a well worn pen blade. Sorry, false alarm. Thanks very much for the clarification though. I now know what to look for in a harness jack punch blade.
 
Psst...Don't give in Sunnyd, don't show him your secret drawer of Harness Jacks...HOLD FAST !!!! :p :p :p
 
Aha, a conspiracy, I knew it! :eek: :D :D
Actually, I'm (not here of course) looking for a place to sell some at attractive prices, to raise knife money for the Oregon Knife Show. We do need a slippie sale thread. If you list a traditional knife on "for sale by individuals" here, it sinks out of sight in the "mall" before you let go of the "enter" button:grumpy: !!
Moderators???? :confused: Small fee????:confused: :thumbup:
 
waynorth said:
Aha, a conspiracy, I knew it! :eek: :D :D
Actually, I'm (not here of course) looking for a place to sell some at attractive prices, to raise knife money for the Oregon Knife Show. We do need a slippie sale thread. If you list a traditional knife on "for sale by individuals" here, it sinks out of sight in the "mall" before you let go of the "enter" button:grumpy: !!
Moderators???? :confused: Small fee????:confused: :thumbup:
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I must concur!. What do you say Gus, think Kev would let us, huh, do ya, huh??. ;) :)
 
I am hunting harness jacks on eBay, hope to score my first one in the next few weeks. I'm OK with the looks of the Schatt & Morgan harness jacks. How's the edge on the stainless Schatt & Morgan blades? I'm guessing that they're not "shaving sharp"?

Waynorth, drop me an email RE the HJ's you're looking to let go of...

KS
 
I just recently received a S&M harness jack, a swell end in crimson bone. Looks real nice, good looking handles, nicely put together. However, it wasn't real sharp. It looked like a couple quick passes were made across the wheel just to get a so-so edge. It did sharpen up pretty well though.
I did notice a couple minor detail flaws in the construction though. The biggest was the blade itself. Theres no distal taper like that found in all the other Queen and S&M knives I have. The blade seems to have been simply straight ground from a piece of flat stock. As a result the tip is thicker than it should be, reducing cutting ability. The D-2 blade in the similiar Queen swell end lock back (same frame, single blade) is noticeably thinner and has a nice taper. It would have been a nice touch in the HJ.
The second thing I noticed was that the handle slabs seemed a bit flat and thin in cross section. They could have been a bit thicker or rounder, at least towards the rear of the handle to fill the hand a bit more like many older jacks do.
The last problem is one I have noticed with a few Queen and S&M knives, that is the back spring is less than what is should be. I have an S&M canoe with a back spring thats barely there. Same with the #7 jack, not a lot of spring in the spring. The HJ main blade spring isn't terrible, but not really a lot of snap like I would expect from a knife that seems as well made as these are. The punch spring is quite a bit stronger though. Maybe its just the one I got but I don't see it as a regular user, more of a collector piece.
 
waynorth said:
I forgot to mention, you can clean your pipe, detail carve softwood, pierce your cigar, and probably all kinds of more abusive things, with a folding punch. I used one to put some nostrils in a dragon's head cane I was carving!
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The first time I used the punch was to make a hole in my belt so that I would be more comfortable. Anyone who is fat or skinny (or wavers between the two) has probably done the same...
 
I noticed the snap is just adequate on those first model Harness Jacks main blades too, Arathol. It is more to do with the blade/tang geometry than the strength of the spring. I had them correct it in the two subsequent HJs.
When you order from the factory, you have to be on top of every detail! The second and third ones are good, but I figure the 10th one will be perfect! IF I get that far. I might have Great Eastern make the next one!
 
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