They are valuable knives, no doubt. I've been fortunate to photograph 60 or so excellent examples of W. Scagel knives over the past 18 mos. for Dr. Lucie's book. I've examined many that won't be in the book - and I have a few in my collection. I've been privy to price discussions and, though I would not presume to be an expert at the level of Jim Lucie, Gordon White and a few others, I may be able to venture an educated guess as to value. Value in dollars is a slippery thing and, as we all know, is only established when money and knife are exchanged.
e-Bay is a good indicator of the 'going rate' for Scagel knives of average and below condition. It is rare that a truly mint or otherwise 'important' Scagel knife comes up for auction on e-Bay. It has happened but my impression is that almost all or at least most of the very best Scagel knives in existance are privately held by collectors who are seriously focused and well-heeled. They still pop up and it's certainly possible that any day an incredible find will be made.
Having said all of that, the two knives above are similar to those that Scagel made many of. The smaller paring knife is well used. He made many such 'kitchen' knives and my guess is it might fetch $700, more if someone desperate to own "a Scagel" who wasn't well informed (or just didn't care about the money) was onto it. I think that over time it will become more and more valuable so if it were mine I'd probably just sit on it. It's very cool though and I don't want to come off as 'dissing' it, not at all.
The stacked leather, crown stag hunter is nice, one of Scagel's more popular handle styles. It appears that there is moderate wear, some pitting and that the handle has possibly been shelac'd or something. If there is a VL&A stamp on the other side of the blade, any other stamp, or even no stamp - or of it had a companion sheath made by Scagel - it might be possible to date the knife. Assuming it is "as is" and the other side of the knife is in similar condition to the side shown (Not the case with some knives that may have lain flat in moisture for a time, like a box on a carpeted closet floor in a bedroom next to a bathroom where water had overflowed, soaked into the carpet and badly rusted one side etc. etc. etc. - don't laugh, it and similar things have happened. Remember it's probably been between 60-80 years since the knife was made.) ... then I think it could sell for in the neighborhood of $3,000 to $6,000.
As above, it could sell for more to the "right buyer" but the Scagel collectors who've been at it a while and hold many of the very best knives have up-graded over the years beyond the level of the example shown. Again, take what I say as simply one opinion. And, as a general rule, Dr. Lucie is understandably reluctant to suggest a price which the owner might expect to get at sale because so often people's expectations get tangled up in their emotions, they can become disappointed or even angry etc. Rarity begats irrationality, as I personally discovered when I got into this. Plus, in collecting, as Dr. Lucie has told me many times, "You have to leave room for the next guy." In other words, one musn't get carried away by what one imagines something is worth because nobody will buy it unless they think they can eventually sell it for more.
BTW, the story catracer83 shared above is entirely plausible and it's great that such knives and stories get passed down in families. In our book there will be many great stories to go along with some of the really fine Scagel knives that still exist. Hope I haven't offended anyone. My intent is to be helpful if I can, while making clear that there's a lot I don't know and would never pretend to know.
In the meantime, here's an example of one that would, IMHO, easily fetch $15,000 or even more. Forgive me for trying to prevent anyone copying and using the picture but in fairness to the owner and the forthcoming book, it has to be that way. Even so, note the absolute mint condition, the beautiful lines, less common handle style and especially the very rare mint A&F sheath AND the VL&A stamp also on the sheath. This is a
very valuable knife that probably dates from approx. 1929 - the year A&F of New York subsumed VL&A of Chicago and was offered through their catalogs.
