Schrade 152OT Sharpfinger

Codger_64 said:
Nothing wrong with replacing damaged scales to keep one functional. And it appears that you did a good job on that one! I see that it is a 502SC tang stamp, a Scrimshaw originally. Thanks for showing us yours!

Over the years I have picked up several orphans and absolute relics. Even the worst of them can be salvaged for use with a little effort. The simple design, durable materials and ease of assembly pretty much assured this. A tipped blade, pin cracked or campfire melted cover, heavy weathering from years on the ground or in the creek. A production of more than 3 1/2 million knives over thirty years assures that there will still be a good supply into the future for those who look for one.

Here is one of my "relic" Sharpfingers. Someone found this one after it being dropped outdoors by the owner, lost for quite some time apparently. I have no plans to repair it but it wouldn't take much more than dressing the edge to make it fully field functional again.

was just wondering how do you remove the "greying" on the handle. i know it is just exposure to air but is there a good way to clean it back to original colour?

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Was just wondering how do you remove the "greying" on the handle. I know it is just exposure to air but is there a good way to clean it back to original colour?
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The dye can be somewhat restored by just cleaning and drying then oiling the handle with gun/knife oil. Usually it is just surface oxidation but not through the dye. Worst case, if one wanted to go to the trouble, they can be redyed using shoe sole dye.
 
Here is another one recently seen. A standard production 152OT with a small blade etch added for NRA. No idea of date or quantity made, but pre July 2001 due to the old style blade grind.

 
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Here is another sad relic seen. Pretty much beyond redemption for even a crude user. Very deep rust and tipped besides. Perhaps someone will buy it and attempt to reuse it. Maybe not.

 
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Another new one I found. In 1984 BYU won the NCAA Championship and commissioned a SC502 to commemorate the achievement. I don't yet know how may were produced, but this is the first one I have seen. I contacted the seller but he didn't have much information to add except that his relative bought it at BYU, possibly in the bookstore, when he attended so was first owner.

 
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Here is one recently seen but not acquired. Date and quantity unknown, but if sheath is original to the knife, it is 1988 at the earliest and since the artwork is signed by F. Giorgianni, 1992 at the latest. I'll continue to look for better identification though. Sheaths do get replaced and Frank's art was used and reused after his 1992 retirement.



ETA: Found it. The knife was made to go with the HK92 hunting knife assortment display as a bonus for dealers. 1,500 pieces made.

 
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Here is one I mentioned some time back, the SC5LTDJD John Deer 160th Anniversary set from 1997. A friend who bought the set back then just reminded me of it.


 
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in 1997? they used a 4 pin for the LB type knife i guess they were using older knives to make this set? since they went to 3 pin way earlier?
 
delmas2nd said:
in 1997? they used a 4 pin for the LB type knife i guess they were using older knives to make this set? since they went to 3 pin way earlier?
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Non textured Delrin covers tended to warp with the new three pin configuration so those reverted to four pin. The liners were pierced for both configurations and which were used depends on the handle materials.
 
Another recent find, a SC502 issue with wood ducks hot stamp, no blade etch. Date and quantity unknown. Possibly sold to local DU chapters or remaindered from a larger SFO order.

 
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Begun in 1937, 1997 was the 60th anniversary of the Ducks Unlimited founding and they used the theme extensively in their membership recruitment and fundraisers that year. Here is a three piece SFO set that Schrade made for the event for U.S. DU.



Ducks Unlimited Canada was founded in 1938 and so used a repackaged three piece set for their 60th anniversary in 1998.



A little better view of the SC502 pattern from these sets:
 
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Here is one I found that isn't often seen. Frito Lay had a few made with their logo branded into the sheath face. I showed one of these some time back but this is the second one I have seen.

 
This one has me scratching my head trying to figure out the boxes again. The sheath was used from 1983 through 1988. But I don't know for certain when the box design changed from the woodgrain to the more familiar tan "Sharp Idea" design.



The box logo and end flap offer a few clues.
 
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FLINT77 said:
I found another sharpfinger style knife. This one is a little higher end it seems. surprising number of handle options.

the Fingerling - by the Bark River knife company

https://www.dlttrading.com/bark-river-fingerling
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I'm seeing them listed at $170 up on eBay.


Fingerling. 6.88" overall. 3.25" satin finish CPM-3V carbon steel blade. micarta handle. Full tang. Lanyard hole. Brown leather belt sheath. Boxed. Please note: Blade steel may change without notice, depending on availability of materials at time of manufacturer

ETA: They do appear to be well made and they extended the edge grind back further into the choil overcoming the complaints of some that the extra half inch of blade was wasted. I might be willing to give one a try at a lower pricepoint.
 
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A recent SGS-1 Gift set acquired. Unique in that it is essentially as-shipped and unmolested with no missing pieces to the packaging. Which helps in closely dating the set. Much of this material is discarded by the purchaser if not by the dealer before him. And once disposed of, very difficult to replace.

The outer shipping sleeve intended to reduce shipping and shelf wear to the presentation box.


The box lid with various logos, slogans and in this case an added sticker announcing an included bonus sharpening stone.



Opening the box, one is first greeted by an instruction sheet placed on top of folded white tissue paper. The sheet explains that components are packed under the vacuum formed flocked tray and how to assemble them in the tray for display presentation.



The sheath comes in a polybag to keep down corrosion and staining of the tray and components, as well as protect the sheath from marks. Tray logos and text give a clue to era of production as well as des the sheath design, prior to the 1983 introduction of the SAS-17 slip-in sheath.



Here are the knives as shipped after removal from the bottom of the box and unwrapping their white tissue. The 152OT has a vinyl tube blade sleeve and the 34OT has a polybag. I note the Sharpfinger has the earlier of the three distinct tang stamps. It also has the plain grind which changed to hollow grind in mid 2001.



Here is the included bonus stone. The short-lived "Beast" motif on it's blue vinyl sleeve gives a fairly accurate date clue. It does not appear in the advertising and catalogs until circa 1979-1982.



1979 magazine ad copy of the "Beast".



ETA: A side note on the "Beast" promo. If you are old enough to remember, a TV show was popular in 1977-1982, "The Incredible Hulk", starring Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno. Almost the exact time this promo was used. One has to wonder if there was not some pushback from the ABC producers of the TV series on Schrade over the use.
 
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wow, that is a really cool set - and especially that complete and original!

also, that particular pairing of knife models is definitely a good combo! If you only had two knives, you could do a lot worse.
 
FLINT77 said:
wow, that is a really cool set - and especially that complete and original!

also, that particular pairing of knife models is definitely a good combo! If you only had two knives, you could do a lot worse.
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Good choices indeed. As the 152OT was their all time top selling fixed blade, so was the 34OT their top selling folder. These sets must have been quite popular themselves as I first see them listed in 1987 in the catalogs and they were listed into 2000 at least. They attracted SFO buyers as well with simple embellishments like an etch and custom printing or silver mylar stickers on the trays.

Here is a later example



And one commissioned by "Friends Of NRA".



Occasionally an Uncle Henry version, SGS-9, was made with a 152UH and a 34UH stockman knife. There was also a clampack version listed in 1987 and forward. Hard to find nowdays because the PVC plastic used becomes brittle and discolored with age and UV exposure.

 
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