Need help identifying a folder

Cosmic Superchunk

Cosmic Superchunk

Joined
Jan 28, 2001
Messages
3,709
Saturday afternoon I came across a large Gerber Bolt Action folder I have never seen before. The vendor didn't know much about it either, but for $17.00 I thought it was too good to pass up, so I bought it.

The handle is black, Zytel (I think) roughly 5 1/8 inches long with an integral guard.
The blade is a drop point, matte finish, flat ground blade about 4 inches (cutting edge) in length.
The blade is stamped: PARABELLUM, and on the other side is PORTLAND, OR 97223 U.S.A.. On the pivot area there is a Gerber Legendary Blades logo with the sword in the stone, and on the the other side it reads: Bolt Action U.S. Patent 4451982.

I'm familiar with the standard Gerber Bolt Action folders and the ones now produced by Meyerco, but I have never seen one like this. Can any shed some light or a little history on this folder?
 
You got a great deal, apparently from a dealer that had no idea what he had. I have a Meyerco bolt-action, and did a little research on the lock. From the info gathered here, the Parabellum was the first incarnation of the Bolt-Action lock, and many here have lamented it's passing. Seems to be pretty rare anymore.
 
RH, the knife I bought was used a bit, but otherwise in great condition. I assume it must have originally had a sheath, but the vendor did not have it. There were only a few hardly noticible scratches on the blade itself. When I took it home, I gave it a few licks on a ceramic sharpening stick, and now it is hair popping sharp. The lockup is solid. No blade play whatsoever. I owned a Gerber Bolt Action once, but gave it away as a gift. I regret that the Bolt Action knives were discontinued by Gerber. I just never knew anything about the Parabellum knife. Believe it or not, I had never seen one before. I have to say that the lockup on the earlier Bolt Actions were sturdier than the ones they use now on the Chameleon series.

[This message has been edited by el cid (edited 06-25-2001).]
 
El Cid
The Bolt-Lock you are talking about was made mid to late 80's and its selling point was it could be carried open or closed. They sort of pushed it as a FB since the sheath was designed for open carry. Great locking system which I don't understand why Gerber doesn't offer more models today with the boltlock.
Bob
 
Strider, I wish it had it's original sheath. I tried to find a sheath to buy for it, but it seems to be too large for many of the cloth sheaths out there. Was the original sheath plastic? Can the sheaths for this knife still be found?

[This message has been edited by el cid (edited 06-25-2001).]
 
El Cid,
What you have is a Gerber Parabellum, it was originally designed by Blackie Collins, for Gerber, as an entry for the U.S. Military Field Knife. The original sheath uses Bianchi clips, and if you were to rotate the pouch section of the sheath, you can then wear the knife as a fixed blade, and the folder pouch can be used to carry other things. As for a sheath, look around at your local gun shop for a double stack pistol magazine pouch, and you should be able to find one that fits. Just for the record, I love my parabellum, and wont trade it for anything. Kelly
 
Kelly, thanks for the advise. I love the knife as well. It's very comfortable to hold and use and it has a very "military" look to it. Despite it being a "used" knife, the lock up is rock solid with no blade play in any direction.
 
I did a search on the Parabellum, but I didn't find much. I found a picture of one:

parabelm.jpg


My sample has a matte finish instead of the satin look of the pic.

I can't find a pic of the sheath, but I'm curious to know what the sheath looked like.
 
Looks like you got yourself a bargain, el cid! You may not be Scottish, but we Scots love bargains better than many other things.

I keep reading how great a knife the early Gerber bolt actions were. Has anyone ever gotten an explanation from Gerber as to why they essentially dropped a knife/knives that seem so practical today?

------------------
Asi es la vida

Bugs
 
Bugs, I too wonder why Gerber dropped the Bolt Action series. The Parabellum is my idea of what a S.E.R.E. knife should be. Big enough to handle tough tasks, and easy to keep sharp in the field. The Bolt Action lock is tight and far better than what Gerber uses now on the Chameleon series.
 
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