I went to an auction and bought an old Barlow...

Codger_64

Codger_64

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I bought an old Barlow off the 'bay for dirt cheap, junk knife price. It was in pretty sad shape judging from the photos posted. Not too surprisingly, I was the sole bidder. I evidently either knew more about the knife than others who saw it, or cared less about it's as-found condition. The seller, as with most occasional sellers of knives along with their knick-knacks, old clothes etc, did not know squat about the knife. So I was not tempted to ask her questions.

The listing text:
Used:
Seller Notes:
“Good - Fair, in good shape generally but rusting on the blades and inside of the knife. Please review the photographs carefully.”
This vintage knife was made in the 1940s or 1950s. It measures 3 3/8" x 11/16" x 7/16"
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And the pictures:

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The knife arrived today and I gave the seller good feedback. Might she have known something undisclosed in the auction? Possibly. I didn't care. For less than the cost of a meal out at a mid-priced resturaunt I had my "new" knife. I knew that it wasn't in tip-top shape. And if I gambled and lost $12? Oh well.

So I got out my penetrating oil and set about loosening the active rust bloom. I oiled the joints, cleaned inside the steel liners, rubbed the synthetic covers and steel bolsters with an oil dampened linen cloth and this is what I wound up with for my modest investment of time and money.

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A decent example of a Kastor/Camillus made XLNT Barlow made for F.W. Woolworths between 1931 and 1951, most likely early 1940's through late 1940's. It may have originally retailed for .35-.50 cents. Both blades walk and talk, nioce half stops, good spring action, nice swedge on the pocket blade. And rust all but banished.

I can only blame that Slider guy for this one indirectly. He whetted my appetite to replace my stolen Barlows a while back but I resisted. Until now. But revenge is mine. I got him battling for another, more uncommon, more complicated, older knife. Gotcha!
 
That's a nice Barlow. It just goes to show that an old, tired, dirty, work knife can be brought back to make it a useful working knife again. Any new Barlow looks nice but the old ones have character like your knife has. Good find.
 
That one cleaned up superbly. Nice work. It'll make a nice EDC. Does it appear to have been sharpened ?
 
whetrock said:
That one cleaned up superbly. Nice work. It'll make a nice EDC. Does it appear to have been sharpened ?
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It still has the factory edges, waiting for the boy who bought it to put it to a stone. Perhaps he went off to war and didn't return, and the knife, as new, languished in a cigar box in his room until his parents packed away his things and it was forgotten until an estate sale in recent years. Hey, it's my knife now, not for sale, and I can make up any story about it's history I want to! But... in spite of the rust, it did remain all these years unsharpened and unused.
 
Doing what you did is a lot of fun, and for not much money. And you end up with a sweet Barlow that has a bunch of character. Well played.
 
That Barlow cleaned up great. Really nice find. What do you suppose they were making the scales out of back then?

Jim
 
Its a real treasure, Codger!! I have one and really love it. Congrats on a great find.
 
Grateful said:
That Barlow cleaned up great. Really nice find. What do you suppose they were making the scales out of back then?

Jim
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Some sort of prewar plastic. It isn't black cell, but it is molded. And it isn't bakelite. Styrene was one material used. This handle has shrunk just enough to get a piece of thin paper betwwen the cover and bolsters, just barely. And it is a relatively hard plastic. Camillus had been molding plastic covers for some years before the war. I have Streamlines, Cloverbrands, Syracuse, Fairmounts, Dunlaps, Sta-Sharps and Kents in molded black plastics with stagged textures, almost all prewar. These are molded faux sawcut, each side a different mold.

Gevonovich said:
Its a real treasure, Codger!! I have one and really love it. Congrats on a great find.
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Post a picture of it here please?
 
Nice! As you can see, the XLNT mark was used by them on both domestic and imported cutlery. The A.W. Wadsworth barlow was a higher pricepoint knife.
 
Codger_64 said:
Some sort of prewar plastic. It isn't black cell, but it is molded. And it isn't bakelite. Styrene was one material used. This handle has shrunk just enough to get a piece of thin paper betwwen the cover and bolsters, just barely. And it is a relatively hard plastic. Camillus had been molding plastic covers for some years before the war. I have Streamlines, Cloverbrands, Syracuse, Fairmounts, Dunlaps, Sta-Sharps and Kents in molded black plastics with stagged textures, almost all prewar. These are molded faux sawcut, each side a different mold.
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Interesting. I had always thought that all of the old synthetic scale material tended to be unstable but I don't believe that to be the case. Your barlow's scales have held up very well.

Jim
 
Nice, I love that stuff. Are you gonna use it or put it up?

I wish I knew enough about value to answer just that one question. Use the heck out of it, use it lovingly, or stow it away for now?
 
protourist said:
An XLNT deal, Michael.
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Beat me to it, pro-T!!
The obvious smart remark:D

Very nice find Codge! Sweetest way to spend $12!!:thumbup:

There is something magical when those still-factory edges jump out at you!!:eek:
 
That old boy cleaned up quite nice. I saw that one on the bay but figured it was to far gone.

Nice save.
 
My favorite knives are the rescue knives, the ones that appear to be neglected but with a little elbow grease clean up nicely, as is the case with your recent score.

Excellent or as Mack said "XLNT" enjoy your find. :thumbup:
 
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