Just how "Genuine" is Genuine Bone

J

JHouston

Joined
Oct 18, 2004
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120
I know that I should KNOW the answer to this but I just have to ask:

Just how "Genuine" is Genuine Bone?

I'm seeing the word "genuine" thrown out a lot on ebay and I'm just wanting to make sure I didn't miss something.

"Genuine" Bone isn't real bone, is it? :confused:
 
JHuston,
In my experience...in most cases.....it is the shin bone from cattle. I believe some mfgs. may use water buffalo shin bone as well.
Others will probably ring in, with additional information.

Bill
 
I agree with Bill. When a manufacturer or honest seller says "genuine bone" it is usually just that: Real bone. The bone from Camel's is used in some knives from 'that' part of the world, and Custom makers are very proud of using griraffe bone. And there is water buff bone, as Bill states.

When your average Ebay seller says 'Genuine' bone: Investigate. Now I know a couple of us forum members sell on ebay, and when we say it, we mean it. But others? Check it out. Go the manufacturer's website, ask a question here, or use a reference manual.

Some very inexpensive knives I know of are being made of actual bone: Rough Riders and Coleman come to mind.

Phil
 
(in my best Arkansas accent: )

'L I B!

I hadn't really looked closely at most new/recent bone handles in a long time and figured everyone, except custom makers, were using a synthetic materials only for everything now.
 
Some knives are made with plastic/delrin scales jigged to look similar to bone, so your assessment is correct on that part. Many older knives ( Sears brands Sta-Sharp and Craftsman come to mind) used synthetics but jigged it to keep the allure, I guess. And currently Queen (Winterbottom Forest Edge Delrin), and the Winchester Work series (Black Jigged Delrin), marketed by Blue Grass Cutlery, also come to mind.

So, as Phil suggests, check it out, ask questions, if you're in the market. We can all get fooled by a picture, or Sportcol.........errr, a sales pitch. :o

Bill
 
As others have said, "genuine bone" handles have traditionally been made from the shin bone of the cow. Case and Queen are the largest US manufacturers that use genuine bone on regular production knives. These two companies and others have also used and continue to use imitation jigged bone handles made of plastic.

Many sellers on Ebay don't know the difference between plastic synthetic bone and genuine bone and thus call everything genuine bone. Others may try to intentionally mislead.

In the golden years of the traditional pocket knife manufacturers, it was also pretty confusing, as indicated in the older catalogs. Apparently when jigged bone was first used for knife handles, it was a replacement for or a lower cost version of, genuine stag (deer antler) handles.

So bone handles were originally referred to as "bone stag"....although some manufactuers called it "patent stag"....just "stag"..."English patent stag"..or other terms....not to be confused with "genuine stag", which was the real thing (antler).

So sometimes genuine bone is referred to as "stag"....just to make things even more confusing.
 
genuyine bone, is genuine bone, whether from cattle shins, or camel, or giraffe, or whatever you want to use. Many cheap middle eastern knives use camel bone. case, queen, others use cattle shin bone.
 
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