Help with a Western Bowie

oldORCA

oldORCA

Joined
Feb 8, 2018
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Need some help on an identification. I have a friend whose dad passed away and he received this Western Bowie in the estate. Purportedly it's from 1932. He's wants to identify it and try to get an idea of its value. I told him I'd try and help. I can't really find much on these Western Bowies before 1940. My guess is that it might be as old as he thinks judging from the guard. All the guards I've seen in pictures of for these Western Bowies have flat bar guards, not sculpted with knob like shown in this example. The Maker mark on the blade reads: WESTERN BOULDER COLO PAT NO 1.967,478. The knife looks to be in good condition and so does the sheath (which is also stamped WESTERN). Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

Western-Bowie1932-1.jpg
Western-Bowie1932-2.jpg
Western-Bowie1932-4.jpg
 
US Pat No 1.967,479 was granted to Harlow Platts in 1934, so 1932 is not really possible. At the time a US Patent was valid for 17 years, so it would have expired in 1951. The name Western Cutlery wasn't used until 1951 either. Before that the company was Western States Cutlery.
 
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Arathol said:
US Pat No 1.967,479 was granted to Harlow Platts in 1934, so 1932 is not really possible. At the time a US Patent was valid for 17 years, so it would have expired in 1951. The name Western Cutlery wasn't used until 1951 either. Before that the company was Western States Cutlery.
Click to expand...

Ha, beat me to it while I was looking for the patent...well summarized!
 
It is an L36KG, made in 1941, probably the spring before WW2 started since the 1941 catalog came out that late spring/summer. The 36 pattern was resurrected after the war but this style guard was not.

The L36 and L36K came out in 1936, with the L36 having a flat brass pommel and the L36K having the "recently introduced" aluminum knob so ubiquitous on Western knives for decades. The "K" suffix indicated the model had the aluminum bird head. The 1941 catalog had the L36K and L36KG, with the "G" suffix added to indicate the fancy guard.

After the war, the "K" suffix was dropped, becoming simply L36.
 
Here are pics that you don't need a magnifying glass to see.....

Western-Bowie1932-1.jpg


Western-Bowie1932-2.jpg


Western-Bowie1932-4.jpg


This is a picture from one of the links posted above
IntiJ6t.jpg


The knife in the pictures provided here is not quite the same as the one in the picture from the other thread, in that the handle and pommel shapes are totally different....
 
zzyzzogeton said:
The top knife is a 1941 L36KG. The bottom knife is an 1936 L36.
Click to expand...
Missing the point......
Knife in OP
uxpvu2n.jpg


Knife from linked thread
apyZzW1.jpg


Both identified as L36KG from 1941.
Why is it that the handles are totally different if they are the same model knife produced in the same limited period of time?
 
Two possibilities - Either the flat side 1941 L36K was assembled by a worker used to assembling/grinding the 1936 L36 and made his to match what he had been working on

OR

the L36K with the flatter sides and slightly different pommel was made early in the production of the 1941 L36Ks using left over parts from the 1936 flat side/handle 1936 version and the pommel was ground slightly differently.

The stamps, guards, and spacer patterns match so they are both 1941 L36Ks.
 
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