"Old Knives"

Over the last few years i have seen quite a few minty looking Jacks on ebay marked "Electric Cut. Co."(or variations of this). I am suspicious that some of these are not vintage at all. The used knives with this marking seem to be rarer than the minty ones which is not 'right' for a brand that is now over 100 years old.
kj
 
kootenay joe said:
Over the last few years i have seen quite a few minty looking Jacks on ebay marked "Electric Cut. Co."(or variations of this). I am suspicious that some of these are not vintage at all. The used knives with this marking seem to be rarer than the minty ones which is not 'right' for a brand that is now over 100 years old.
kj
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I remember the tutorials Bernard gave a few years back on how to spot a fake. And it seems that a fair percentage of the minty knives I see posted show the signs. Some of the fakers are pretty good, welding new blades onto broken tangs. Hard to spot unless you know what to look for.
 
lambertiana said:
I remember the tutorials Bernard gave a few years back on how to spot a fake. And it seems that a fair percentage of the minty knives I see posted show the signs. Some of the fakers are pretty good, welding new blades onto broken tangs. Hard to spot unless you know what to look for.
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see anything suspicious about this?

s-l1600.jpg
 
Here is a real nice Electric Cut Co Walden. I bought this one of Paul - in my opinion this is an outstanding Jack - its a genuine knife and I took a long time to clean the Bone with a Bamboo spike and picked out paint and what-have-you form the Jig work.
These are photo's and very poor photos at that and show the paint still in the jigging, I will try to find a later photo...







 
bamboo spike?....is that good to use because it's stronger than
a toothpick and doesn't damage the bone?...great idea....

they're both nice.....almost 4am,man i've got to get some sleep.....
i'll be up again around 7:30....good mornin all,
jd
 
Off topic - bamboo spikes are used in rust cleaning from Antique Japanese sword guard (tsuba) as they are strong enough to take the rust off without scratching te surface and without damaging the old patina (which is great issue on antique iron tsuba). Also in use for the same purpose and the same reason is piece of ivory. It takes hours of work but the outcome is excellent.
Mike
 
YES, bamboo meat screwers are the Best tools for proper knife cleaning IMO. I shape them into chisels for cleaning the back spring inside the slot. Great with oil for hard rust spots. You can get under the tang while rolling the blade and get gunk out as well..

Best regards

Robin
 
Pipeman said:
YES, bamboo meat skewers are the Best tools for proper knife cleaning IMO. I shape them into chisels for cleaning the back spring inside the slot. Great with oil for hard rust spots. You can get under the tang while rolling the blade and get gunk out as well..
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THIS, gentlemen is a GREAT idea! Thanks for posting this guys. :cool:
 
Thanks for everyones comments, Duncan another nice Electric Cut Co.

I agree that there are good fakes out there but if this is one someone did a hell of a job, I can find no evidence this knife has been apart. It has been cleaned unfortunately , all the pitting or patina was not buffed out and you can see lines left where the knife sat closed for many decades. Handle pins match exactly to other examples.

Personally I wish I could find more like Charlies with patina untouched but when your dealing with 100 year old knives sometimes you have to take what you can get. I did take some better pictures, you can see the patina left behind.

IMG_4693_zpsmpwik6mk.jpg


IMG_4695_zpsfkccyksv.jpg


IMG_4696_zpsmqlpdsjk.jpg


IMG_4697_zpslbpepfbe.jpg


IMG_4698_zpsd5rj0aop.jpg
 
Campbellclanman said:
Here is a real nice Electric Cut Co Walden. I bought this one of Paul - in my opinion this is an outstanding Jack - its a genuine knife and I took a long time to clean the Bone with a Bamboo spike and picked out paint and what-have-you form the Jig work.
These are photo's and very poor photos at that and show the paint still in the jigging, I will try to find a later photo...

Click to expand...

Augie said:
Thanks for everyones comments, Duncan another nice Electric Cut Co.

I agree that there are good fakes out there but if this is one someone did a hell of a job, I can find no evidence this knife has been apart. It has been cleaned unfortunately , all the pitting or patina was not buffed out and you can see lines left where the knife sat closed for many decades. Handle pins match exactly to other examples.

Personally I wish I could find more like Charlies with patina untouched but when your dealing with 100 year old knives sometimes you have to take what you can get. I did take some better pictures, you can see the patina left behind.

IMG_4696_zpsmqlpdsjk.jpg
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Both Duncan's and Augie's knives appear entirely original to me, with no signs of tampering. I would bet the bank account that the hammered and tiny handle pins are original. They are both fine examples of old cutlery.

(Unless we are talking a knife being represented as mint or near mint examples, which command high prices, I see no harm in someone replacing say a broken pen blade with another OLD pen blade from an identical knife. If they do such a great job that I have trouble telling and the tang fonts are original, I say thank you very much !) ;):D:D:D
 
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paulhilborn said:
I had this EXACT knife about two years ago. It now resides in very good hands in NZ;):thumbup:

The one I sold was Identical to this but in original shape where this one underwent a bit of restoration:eek: I bought it this way and am glad to have it but I always look for "as is" condition that can yet be made serviceable again:thumbup:

Electric Cut Co Jack with great Bone covers Circa 1910---1920? 3 7/16 closed, SOLID blades with great walk and talk:thumbup:

3c2Bw3.jpg
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I'm not even sure if I have this one anymore but I sure love the covers!!!

Nice Electric' s Augie and Duncan:cool::thumbup:
 
My post was not implying that any knife posted here is a 'fake'. I was stating that i have seen what i think are 'too many' near mint looking Jacks that are marked "Electric Cut Co". Some of these look as if the markings were made with a vibrating 'pencil' type of tool, whereas others look to have a proper die stamping.
A knife does not have to be apart to be a fake. There are posts in the BRL forum describing a gentleman who shows up at East coast knife shows with a "bucket" of minty looking Jacks with markings of vintage USA knife companies. He is up front that he has made them all himself using parts scavenged from old knives and that he has a few vintage stamping dies that he will use when needed. They are described as very well made and very hard to distinguish from a true vintage knife in near mint condition.
Likely we all have a few such knives but are unaware of them.
kj
 
Paul, the knife pictured in post 8413 (2 above): are the blades showing the original finish ? or have they been buffed ?
kj
 
Joe, I just jumped back into this thread after seeing Augies and Duncan's Electrics. The one Duncan posted he purchased from me (original condition) and the one I requoted from an earlier post had been polished. I believe I gifted to Duncan? Help my failing memory here Duncan? or I either sold it or gifted to someone else:o:confused:

If memory serves...I felt the blades to be original finish but was difficult for me to believe as it is hard to fathom them existing that way for so long? It did not have the tell tale signs of being buffed as many I've seen in the past. No indication of any pitting at all. If Duncan has it still I'd like his take on it once he finds time to look?

I've heard of the man you described in your post and feel certain I've seen his knives on the big site...your right in that he describes them as 're-purposed.
 
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