Made In USA...But by Which Contractor?

ptradeco

ptradeco

Joined
May 26, 2010
Messages
2,872
Would like a little help with this one please.

Tang Stamp: MADE IN over U.S.A.

Goins' attributes this stamp several times, always pointing to Sears & Roebuck, made by one of several contractors at different times, sometimes distinguished by an etch on the blade which will point to which contractor. I have examined the knife under up to 60X and cannot find any remnant of an etch. The likely cast of characters is Ulster, Camillus and Schrade.

At first I thought the covers were synthetic but after close examination I believe them to be stag or bone. I further believe that they have been painted.:eek: A little discreet picking produced black flakes with a tannish color underneath. Seems like a reasonably high quality build with 1/2 stops on both blades, nice swage on main but lacking any on the pen, tip bolsters, brass liners, carbon steel for the rest. No sign of a shield ever present. That is about all I have for clues.

Oh yeah, 3 3/8".

Thanks

Good Camera - Broke! Scanner - Broke! Wallet - Soon to Be!

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The handle material is definitely a composition, probably layered, Brad.
The clip blade makes me think Camillus too, but not 100%.
 
waynorth said:
The handle material is definitely a composition, probably layered, Brad.
The clip blade makes me think Camillus too, but not 100%.
Click to expand...

Thanks Charlie. Anything to point to other than the clip blade? Any ideas about the composition? It definitely is nothing related to the plastics family or phenolic resins etc. Possibly a high pressure formed board such as a paper based Micarta? Would a material such as that have been used then?

Stich2442 said:
Kastor/Camillus used the Made in USA tang stamp for Sears & Roebuck
Scroll down to lines 215-218
http://ep.yimg.com/ty/cdn/knifeworld/kastorlist.pdf

Pete
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Again Pete, thanks, but...Kastor/Camillus was not the only contractor. At least according to Goins'.
 
CCAA1D4C-837B-4761-9950-90B96BEC4EA2-5729-00000CF6597DD2B9.jpg


Not that Camillus had a monopoly on jigged black synthetic covers, but yours sure look similar to the covers on this Camillus half congress.
 
If I had to guess, then I would say Camillus. I have a Kent made by Camillus and the family resemblance is uncanny

6534082719_5bb33c0712_b.jpg
 
pipedreams308 said:
CCAA1D4C-837B-4761-9950-90B96BEC4EA2-5729-00000CF6597DD2B9.jpg


Not that Camillus had a monopoly on jigged black synthetic covers, but yours sure look similar to the covers on this Camillus half congress.
Click to expand...

Bad picture on my part Todd. The jigging on yours has typical, bad term, bone jigging. If I had a better picture you would see mine was made to look like stag. Every cut is irregular with no pattern whatsoever.

Stich2442 said:
Brad this is a good read
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/464885-Sears-Schrade-and-Camillus

Pete
Click to expand...

Pete, thanks for the link It is a good read. In some respects all of the suspects I posed are accurate; Schrade, Camillus and Ulster!


I am quite curious about the composition of the covers. I have not run into this type before. I will tear it apart, have it analyzed, and report those findings later. The way it behaves to probing I am not convinced it is synthetic. I will try to get some better pictures up in the next day or two after my trip to the camera store.
 
Brad- I can see now that I blow up your pic. I need to look harder before I post - I'll chock it up to reading the forum on a mobile device. :)
 
I have found two with the same scales and bolsters, unfortunately the one I still have is in storage ( process of moving ) the other I gave to Jeff ( rockgolfer ) I can't think of the names, but if memory serves me they were made by Camillus for hardware stores. I've never been able to pin down the scales, I thought a composite, I remember Ted has a similar knife same scales & bolsters and I asked him, I think he thought horn?

Pete
 
I remember the name of one Cornwall Knife Co. New York USA, found some reference that said 1900-1920, another said Pre 1930? Branded by Camillus

Pete
 
ptradeco said:
Thanks Charlie. Anything to point to other than the clip blade? Any ideas about the composition? It definitely is nothing related to the plastics family or phenolic resins etc. Possibly a high pressure formed board such as a paper based Micarta? Would a material such as that have been used then?
Click to expand...


Its certainly man made. Add Landers Frary & Clark to your list. Those black scales look very much like what LF&C called Perfected Stag. This was used exclusively by LF&C in the years before WW2 on many of their pocket knives. Its a rubber-like form of celluloid thats molded to look like stag. Its real dark black in color but when scratched it leaves a brownish line. Be careful with these handles. They are pretty durable but also highly flammable and will burn with an intensity similiar to napalm. Doesn't take a whole lot to set them off either. Its possible to set them alight by getting too hard on them with a buffing wheel.
 
Arathol said:
Its certainly man made. Add Landers Frary & Clark to your list. Those black scales look very much like what LF&C called Perfected Stag. This was used exclusively by LF&C in the years before WW2 on many of their pocket knives. Its a rubber-like form of celluloid thats molded to look like stag. Its real dark black in color but when scratched it leaves a brownish line. Be careful with these handles. They are pretty durable but also highly flammable and will burn with an intensity similiar to napalm. Doesn't take a whole lot to set them off either. Its possible to set them alight by getting too hard on them with a buffing wheel.
Click to expand...

Now that is some seriously good info. Thanks for that! Reminds me of some machining I did on some mag once upon a time before I knew the havoc it could wreak!
 
Looking at your photos Brad, remind me an old Camillus I had with those synthetic scales

IMG_3738.JPG


I think yours blades looks pretty much similar

Mike
 
Arathol said:
Its certainly man made. Add Landers Frary & Clark to your list. Those black scales look very much like what LF&C called Perfected Stag. This was used exclusively by LF&C in the years before WW2 on many of their pocket knives. Its a rubber-like form of celluloid thats molded to look like stag. Its real dark black in color but when scratched it leaves a brownish line. Be careful with these handles. They are pretty durable but also highly flammable and will burn with an intensity similiar to napalm. Doesn't take a whole lot to set them off either. Its possible to set them alight by getting too hard on them with a buffing wheel.
Click to expand...
Thanks for jogging my memory, Arathol.
Here are some LF&C pics showing perfected stag.
On a couple of these pics you can see the brown through the wear spots. Strange material.
LFandCHJcollageClose_zps5dd98150.jpg

LFandCHJcollage_zpsb50fd04d.jpg

LFampCuniversal_zps771518cd.jpg

LFampCuniversalBack_zps30cd15c6.jpg
 
Arathol said:
Its certainly man made. Add Landers Frary & Clark to your list. Those black scales look very much like what LF&C called Perfected Stag. This was used exclusively by LF&C in the years before WW2 on many of their pocket knives. Its a rubber-like form of celluloid thats molded to look like stag. Its real dark black in color but when scratched it leaves a brownish line. Be careful with these handles. They are pretty durable but also highly flammable and will burn with an intensity similiar to napalm. Doesn't take a whole lot to set them off either. Its possible to set them alight by getting too hard on them with a buffing wheel.
Click to expand...

It might not be the same but when I was travelling interstate I had a vic classic, and one of the scales was loose. Thinking myself the 'fixer' type, I went about trying to melt it so it could dry around the brass bushings. Luckily I realised it was burning WAY too quickly, and put it out. Now I know not to expose my SAK's to flames. Probably not a lessen that I should had to have learned... :rolleyes:
 
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