Older(er) Imperial Id

[ixer]

My father in law gave me this knife and i was just trying to figure out some additional info on it. I know the tang stamp is circa 1956-1988 "Imperial Prov. R.I." with the crown over the "i" in Imperial. Is there anyway to narrow the year down any more? I know the pic isnt the greatest, but the silver diamond has an arrow from left to right behind "DE", with no other markings anywhere on hte knife. Any help is much appreciated.

 

[supratentorial]

DE=diamond edge

It was previously a Shapleigh trademark. I'm not sure when Imperial/Schrade acquired it but that might narrow it down.

 

[orca8589]

I have that identical knife in my collection. May not be purty, but it'll sure get the job done when you need to cut something. Those blades will take a wicked edge.

You've run into the same thing I did - not easy to find a lot of specific info on these. The Schrade Collector's forum here on BF will probably have some info on it, as Schrade owned Imperial for a time, or vice-versa.
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php/732-Schrade-Knives-Collectors-Forum

~Chris

 

[thawk]

Those shell handled DE Imperials came out in the mid to late 1970's I believe. There are 55 pattern stockman too, 3 1/4" with that particular shell.

http://www.collectors-of-schrades-r.us/FLYERS/IMPERIALS/knives/Pre-1980/index.htm

This is the era, but no matches on that particular handle.

 

[ixer]

Thanks for the help guys!

This knife has never been used, it was given to my Father in law and he threw it in a dresser drawer. It has a nice feel to it, but atm i carry an Alox SAK + BM Grip. Maybe one day i'll attempt to sharpen it up and carry it.

 

[glennbad]

That knife looks to be a DE-850. I think it dates somewhere around 1982. This run of DE's did not have an etch on the blade, unlike previous versions. Makes identifying them more difficult.

Glenn