key knives

[neal70]

i've got an old celluloid mop jack knife with two blades,one a standard clip point nothin' fancy, the other "blade" is a key. is anyone familiar with these? i've no idea where in the family it came from and to what the key belongs-car, entry door, pad-lock, whatever. any insight would be nice. thanks,Neal

 

[neal70]

the blade itself is stamped "imperial u.s.a. prov. r.i. ,if that helps at all. thanks, Neal

 

[Peregrin]

Here's a link to an old thread that has some info on them, http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...-help-me-find-a-pocket-knife-with-a-key-blade.

 

[afishhunter]

Pics?
Might be a home-made modification?

 

[r8shell]

Like this? I assumed you could buy them from the car dealership, or perhaps they were given as a premium when purchasing the car.

 

[neal70]

thanks r8shell that's it exactly. and thanks Peregrin i briefly checked out the thread but my one yr. old just woke up gotta go. thanks,Neal

 

[CNoyes]

Robeson produced a similar item.

The keys were intended for use on Post Office boxes, which were widely in use at the time.

 

[neal70]

that's a fantastic set of pictures Noyes. the one i have closely resembles the one in R8shell post,only no impression of a logo is left. i'd be willing to trade straight up ,if you'd like Noyes . however in all seriousness i believe they came with some of my grandfathers things, he retiring as a captain in the state patrol(patrolman no.4 thank you.) i have some old photos of the early state troopers firing their .38's at a nat'l guard training ground in a nearby town-all wearing jodphurs! it's glorious,really. after retiring he was a paid cabinet and mill work man for another twenty odd years. it would make sense that he had them,as he always tested new and old cars for the patrol(he also came up with Nebraska's first drivers liscense exam and the design for the still current badges). thanks,Neal

 

[Henry Beige]

I have never seen a key knife, but my son replaced some of the blades in a small multi-tool with his house keys. Dunno where he got the idea.

 

[r redden]

This is the first time I have heard of such a knife. Regardless of the original purpose it no doubt was some type of advertising medium. I would like to see this type of advertising make its way back instead of the onslaught of relentless and ridiculous commercials we are exposed to daily.

 

[Ccc]

I have never heard of a knife like that either. I really like it.

 

[5K Qs]

that's a fantastic set of pictures Noyes. the one i have closely resembles the one in R8shell post,only no impression of a logo is left. i'd be willing to trade straight up ,if you'd like Noyes . however in all seriousness i believe they came with some of my grandfathers things, he retiring as a captain in the state patrol(patrolman no.4 thank you.) i have some old photos of the early state troopers firing their .38's at a nat'l guard training ground in a nearby town-all wearing jodphurs! it's glorious,really. after retiring he was a paid cabinet and mill work man for another twenty odd years. it would make sense that he had them,as he always tested new and old cars for the patrol(he also came up with Nebraska's first drivers liscense exam and the design for the still current badges). thanks,Neal

Thanks for sharing the fascinating information about your grandfather, Neal. Very cool that you have that unique key knife from him! :thumbup::thumbup:

- GT

 

[herder]

Both the Imperial and Colonial knife companies offered an "Ambassador" line of knives in the 1950s and 1960s. The Ambassador line was made up of knives and other merchandise which was intended specifically for the advertisement of other companies. Your key knife was part of that group through Imperial.

 

[Jack Black]

Here's a different type of key knife.

 

[herder]

Here's a different type of key knife.

It looks like some clever fellow worked that one out, very neat.

 

[Ernie1980]

Those are fantastic! If they still offered those I would have several for sure

 

[Jack Black]

It looks like some clever fellow worked that one out, very neat.

Yes! Made by William Needham. Here's another pic showing how it goes together.



Needham also made a similar pattern with silver scales, the one below being dated 1937.

 

[herder]

Yes! Made by William Needham. Here's another pic showing how it goes together.



Needham also made a similar pattern with silver scales, the one below being dated 1937.

A proper gentleman's example clad in hallmarked silver, very nice.

 

[Will Power]

Very interesting items. Those car key ones might have been a thief's bonanza Kind of surprised a knife pivot would stand up to much twisting and turning when opening a lock though.

Most elegant idea that one Jack, nice hallmarked fob/cover. Any blade rub though? When people start threads about One Knife Only , I recoil, but if I could get by with just one key in life I'd be very happy indeed:thumbup:

Regards, Will

 

[Jack Black]

A proper gentleman's example clad in hallmarked silver, very nice.

I wonder which mansion that key fit! :thumbup:

Most elegant idea that one Jack, nice hallmarked fob/cover. Any blade rub though? When people start threads about One Knife Only , I recoil, but if I could get by with just one key in life I'd be very happy indeed:thumbup:

Thanks Will No blade rub, the key sort of fits BELOW the nail-file. You need to open the file to gain access to the key :thumbup: I'd swap out the key myself, but like you, I have more than one! :thumbup: