Off Topic Tactical Knives magazine 1st issue (1994) A-F Combat Folder story (article).

Status
Not open for further replies.
P

provizor

Joined
Mar 29, 2011
Messages
7
Dear forum members,
Can anyone tell me where to get this article from Tactical Knives magazine (#1, 1994), which was published in the first issue of the magazine?
It is about this article (quote from the forum post):
Sidehill Gouger said:
The first Applegate combat folder was also the cover knife for Tactical Knives premier issue in the fall of 1994 with the full story inside. That was a custom version that came before the Gerber. Later there was some disagreement on which custom maker designed and or made the knife. For those that are interested, the knife on the cover went missing on its way back to Col. Applegate. Some of us are still interested in its current location.
Click to expand...

Thank you in advance for your help.
 
Sort by date Sort by votes
Here's your chance to be your own investigator. Contact the 'who': that magazine and Gerber. Tell them 'what' you want to know. Tell them the 'when'. Emphasize 'why' it's important. Maybe you'll find 'where', but only get some theories in that regard.

The 'where' question means Google will be a limited ally in the search. People rarely advertise their rare valuables they own. Phone calls, old school-may be your best alternative.
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0 Downvote
Delgadonine said:
Here's your chance to be your own investigator. Contact the 'who': that magazine and Gerber. Tell them 'what' you want to know. Tell them the 'when'. Emphasize 'why' it's important. Maybe you'll find 'where', but only get some theories in that regard.

The 'where' question means Google will be a limited ally in the search. People rarely advertise what they own. Phone calls, old school-may be your best alternative.
Click to expand...
Thank you for your comment. Unfortunately there are a couple of "buts":

- Tactical Knife Magazine discontinued publication about 10 years ago
- Gerber has been manufacturing A-F Folders since 1996. As far as I know, it has been discontinued.

Asking Gerber questions about what was 1994 makes no sense. That's why I turned to the forum for help.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
provizor said:
Dear forum members,
Can anyone tell me where to get this article from Tactical Knives magazine (#1, 1994), which was published in the first issue of the magazine?
It is about this article (quote from the forum post):


Thank you in advance for your help.
Click to expand...

I will certainly bow to Sidehill Gouger's and John Larsen's expertise if they respond. But in the meanwhile, what information are you looking to obtain from the article? I own that issue and can look it up for you.

If you are seeking a copy of the article itself, that first Tactical Knives issue does show up on eBay periodically. You might find one there eventually.


-Steve
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
The Whip said:
I will certainly bow to Sidehill Gouger's and John Larsen's expertise if they respond. But in the meanwhile, what information are you looking to obtain from the article? I own that issue and can look it up for you.

If you are seeking a copy of the article itself, that first Tactical Knives issue does show up on eBay periodically. You might find one there eventually.


-Steve
Click to expand...
I will try to clarify the reasons for my interest in this particular article, not the journal issue.

I am currently preparing a small publication dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the A-F folding knife design. Based on the USPTO filing date, it was April 24, 1995. See USD373521. Prototype knives were introduced to the public in 1994. That same fall, the referenced article was published.

Articles and books on A-F folding knives after 1994 are available to me.

There are questions that remain unclear to me. They are not explained in any subsequent publication, including by people who were in contact with Col. Applegate during those years (e.g. Michael Janich).

- The size and silhouette of the blade. These are the same as the A-F Boot Dagger (with the exception of the Boot Dagger's longer ricasso). Can it be stated that the AF Combat Folder is in fact the AF Boot Folder? Or is it just a matter of the overall concept. The issue of the grinding is not for discussing here.

- As written in other publications, Col. Applegate paid a lot of attention to the quality and perfection of the A-F knives. We can trace the evolution of A-F fixed knives and material quality issues, from the handle from Delrin (Blackjack) to the handles from FRN (Boker) for example. Were Applegate's folding knives challenged to be of high quality during their development? This is what is now called QBD.

- Did the article discuss the need for a clip and the advantages of tip-down carry?

In the publication I'm working on, I also plan to compare an AF Combat Folder established pattern (Gerber, 420HC blade, optional RotoLock, circa 2010) with a recently purchased knife of the same design and dimensions (SARO (Russia), AUS-10 blade with double flipper, standard liner-lock).

I hope I have explained the cause of my interest in the article content in Tactical Knives Magazine premiere issue 1994.

Regards, Yuri
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0 Downvote
provizor said:
I will try to clarify the reasons for my interest in this particular article, not the journal issue.

I am currently preparing a small publication dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the A-F folding knife design. Based on the USPTO filing date, it was April 24, 1995. See USD373521. Prototype knives were introduced to the public in 1994. That same fall, the referenced article was published.

Articles and books on A-F folding knives after 1994 are available to me.

There are questions that remain unclear to me. They are not explained in any subsequent publication, including by people who were in contact with Col. Applegate during those years (e.g. Michael Janich).

- The size and silhouette of the blade. These are the same as the A-F Boot Dagger (with the exception of the Boot Dagger's longer ricasso). Can it be stated that the AF Combat Folder is in fact the AF Boot Folder? Or is it just a matter of the overall concept. The issue of the grinding is not for discussing here.

- As written in other publications, Col. Applegate paid a lot of attention to the quality and perfection of the A-F knives. We can trace the evolution of A-F fixed knives and material quality issues, from the handle from Delrin (Blackjack) to the handles from FRN (Boker) for example. Were Applegate's folding knives challenged to be of high quality during their development? This is what is now called QBD.

- Did the article discuss the need for a clip and the advantages of tip-down carry?

In the publication I'm working on, I also plan to compare an AF Combat Folder established pattern (Gerber, 420HC blade, optional RotoLock, circa 2010) with a recently purchased knife of the same design and dimensions (SARO (Russia), AUS-10 blade with double flipper, standard liner-lock).

I hope I have explained the cause of my interest in the article content in Tactical Knives Magazine premiere issue 1994.

Regards, Yuri
Click to expand...

Yuri, I dug out the magazine in search of answers to your questions. Unfortunately, the article, written by Chuck Karwan, was actually a profile of Butch Vallotton rather than an in-depth look at the development of the Gerber A-F Folder. And sadly, none of your questions was answered.

Here is the article introduction,

IMG-1347.jpg


the only photo of the knife (other than the cover),

IMG-1349.jpg


and the relevant A-F Folder content.

IMG-1353.jpg


IMG-1355.jpg



I'm sorry that this doesn't help you with your own article. I recall that Michael Janich authored a piece several years ago detailing some of the knives that he purchased from Rex Applegate's estate. I'm fairly certain that they included a couple of the Harsey A-F Folder prototypes. Unfortunately, I don't recall which publication printed the article, though I suspect it was Knives Illustrated. I'll look tomorrow to see if I can locate the article. If I have any luck, I'll post here.


-Steve
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
The Whip said:
Yuri, I dug out the magazine in search of answers to your questions. Unfortunately, the article, written by Chuck Karwan, was actually a profile of Butch Vallotton rather than an in-depth look at the development of the Gerber A-F Folder. And sadly, none of your questions was answered.
Click to expand...
Steve,
Thanks for the extended comment on the content of the article. Unfortunately, I can't see the attached photos. I have read about Butch Valloton's involvement in the development of the A-F knives and I believe you are correct. This text is not quite the right text to describe the background of the A-F Folder.

I have an article by Michael Janich: 'Michael Janich. Col. Rex Applegate: The Knife Designs of a Close-Combat Legend Small Arms Review- August 2, 2022'
It's very informative. I also got a lot of useful information from Tom Carey's site about BlackJack knives Co.
Again, I want to thank you for the information on the article I was interested in. Looks like my search is over and it's time to finally finalize my own text.

Regards, Yuri
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Dear participants in the discussion,
Thank you for your kind participation and information related to the thread topic. All questions have been clarified, if the moderator considers it necessary, the thread can be closed.
I guess not all forum members have seen the second knife I mentioned in the discussion.
For information, I attach a photo of Varang Evo (SARO Knives, Russia) in comparison with A-F Combat Folder (Gerber, USA). The dimensions are the same, visual distortions are caused by the properties of the lens.
Best wishes, Yuri
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/635992778663028245/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/635992778663027851/
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0 Downvote
There is a now-closed thread concerning an article in Tactical Knives magazine (ISSN 1079-865X), published from 1994 till September 2014. I found January and May of 1994 and sets on eBay from 1997 to 2014. When you are looking for back issues of any magazine I first look in ABE-Books
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top