What Makes a Good, Traditional Barlow?

Christmas musings; just Joanne and I in the nest, a big bird about to go in the oven. The rest of the family will be here tonight, but for now, I get to think about Barlows for a bit. This always happens when I have a run of knives coming up; I can't stop thinking about them. It's my last chance to tweak them before they are carved in stone, so-to-speak.
I'm the only one on this thread at the moment - everyone is busy with Christmas (or whatever is being celebrated), and their families, and that's as it should be.
But I have some Barlow stuff going on, so here I am!

Back later - on the next page!!

Oh!! Hi Philllll!! Merry Christmas to you too! Nice Day's Work Spey!!
 
This Barlow drawing represents knives that are about 200 years old!!
Pretty Ancient by my standards!

Ancient1_zpsbc2423fc.jpg


This guy is maybe 150 years old! Still might be referred to as Ancient, sorta.

Ancient2_zps51bc5ec0.jpg

Ancient3_zps59bfcdd8.jpg


Pretty good scratting on the Bone. I've seen much cruder efforts.

This blade has really intrigued me. It is similar to the top one in the above drawing. Wonder what they called it back then?? It's sorta Sheepfoot-ey, but not exactly. Closer to a Lambfoot, I'd say. Might have had a name lost to history????
It's quite long - really fills the knife.

Ancient4_zps6633fa55.jpg

Ancient6_zps402cfd2b.jpg

Ancient5_zps13524ee9.jpg

The only marking on the knife is OATES deep-stamped on the blade.
There are at least 3 different OATES markings/companies on record.

The construction suggests age (mid 1800s) and economical effort.
Liners and bolsters forged as one piece each.
Ancient7_zps3452bc0b.jpg


Love these old ancestors!! Cover a lot of Christmases, don't they?!?!
 
Wow! Talk about utilizing the full length of the blade! I like the slight teardrop shape to it too!

We are having quite the gorgeous Christmas down here! Merry Christmas everyone!!

 
philllll said:
Interesting pin placement and tapered spring on that old Oates.
Click to expand...

Here's an "x-ray" view of the construction, Philllll
Ancient8_zps5f231de3.jpg


esnyx said:
Wow! Talk about utilizing the full length of the blade! I like the slight teardrop shape to it too!

We are having quite the gorgeous Christmas down here! Merry Christmas everyone!!

Click to expand...

Looks like spring - not winter, Evan! Nice!
 
It is debatable if we even have a winter down here. More like dry season and rainy season!

Thanks for the x-ray drawing of the ancient barlow! I figured that something like that had to be going on with the spring in order to get such a length on the blade!
 
Charlie- VERY interesting, I love those old Barlows you put up a way back - I didnt click onto the integral Bolster/liner though - and I like it!!!
Have you thought about possibly a smooth Bone with Scratting? If you could replicate the length of the blade - that would be just amazing or is that getting into a whole different type of tool range which would sky rocket the price? - mind you - I for one would pay more without hesitation for such a result, and I dont think I would be alone there.

Merry Christmas everyone - its the day after Christmas here so its nice and quiet - almost too quiet....maybe time to look through some good old Threads like Elusive Schrades and stuff!
1
 
waynorth said:
This guy is maybe 150 years old! Still might be referred to as Ancient, sorta.

Ancient2_zps51bc5ec0.jpg

Ancient3_zps59bfcdd8.jpg


Pretty good scratting on the Bone. I've seen much cruder efforts.

This blade has really intrigued me. It is similar to the top one in the above drawing. Wonder what they called it back then?? It's sorta Sheepfoot-ey, but not exactly. Closer to a Lambfoot, I'd say. Might have had a name lost to history????
It's quite long - really fills the knife.
Ancient4_zps6633fa55.jpg

Ancient6_zps402cfd2b.jpg

Ancient5_zps13524ee9.jpg

Love these old ancestors!! Cover a lot of Christmases, don't they?!?!
Click to expand...

Charlie - I may be WAY behind the times here, but in this Thread where Christian has posted a photo of the knives found on the Steamship Arabia that sank on the Missouri River in 1856, note the Barlow in Centre - at the very bottom of the page...its exactly like your lovely old Barlow - same scales, same pattern of Scratting,I would be surprised if it were another manufacturer!!

go to Christians post #15....
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...ia+when+it+sank+in+the+Missouri+River+in+1856
 
Good catch, Duncan! Looks very similar--but like the blade is much fuller.

Charlie, thanks for posting that. You always have a few tricks up your sleeve. That blade looks like a cross between a Lambfoot and a Sheepfoot to me--maybe closer to a Lambfoot because of the (slight) taper.

I would love to have a scratted Charlow! And I've been a longtime proponent of a Lambfoot Charlow. Whatever emerges from your super-secret Santa works--it will be fantastic. And highly sought after. Merry Christmas!
 
Thank you Robb,
Dont forget that the knives on the Arabia were Brand New when the Boat sank - Charlies knife has had indeed a lot of use - and a lot of Sharpeneing - I would say that Charlies Barlow looked exactly as the one on the Arabia.
 
It's interesting to see that both Charlie's 150 yr old barlow and the ones that came off the arabia have a pattern known as skip line checkering. It's clearly not machine marks from being sawcut. I know that some of the old knife companies like John Russell used coarse checkering on their handles but this is the first time I have seen skip line checkering on an old knife.

Makes me wonder how much bleed-over there was in talent or design between the cutlery and firearms industries at the time. Of course both manufacturing processes work with forging, hardening and tempering processes as well as handle fabrication and decoration.

Currently skip line checkering is mostly out of fashion in the rifle industry and seems to still only be popular on handles for the 1911 Government 45ACP pistols.
 
Duncan--It looks the same to my eyes, too, just with a fuller blade. On the the new blade in the Arabia photo the edge and spine look parallel. Maybe it did begin life as a Sheepfoot, or some kind of razor-sheepfoot hybrid. Look at the closed example on the right. The blade spine sits really high in the handle.
 
Howdy Robb
Yes - I see what you mean, and please dont get me wrong here my friend - as I am merely discussing and certainly not arguing - as I have much to learn.......

I see the ( closed ) example on the right that you pointed out in Christian's post, but again I feel Charlies knife that he has shown - has the exact same Bolsters the way they have the curvature out on the edge ( where the Bolster meets the Scales) - as to the ( open ) one centre bottom in Christians post, and the closed example on the right with the way the blade sits so high - almost like a Rope knife ( exaggerated slightly )...is as how I see Charlies would have looked -( as with the open example in the centre ) but because Charlies now through years of sharpening - the blade now sits lower into the Liner, I believe that quite possibly that is how Charlies knife started life looking like.
 
Looks like a carpenter's Barlow! Rather I should say that is a dream blade for the purpose. The scratting is interesting too.

Is the checkering purely decorative or intended to be deep enough to provide extra purchase?
 
Duncan, friend, I'm afraid I created some confusion. I'm lazily sitting in front of the TV on Christmas night with my family, surfing the forum with my tablet. Because I'm not at my usual keyboard, I've been replying in half-formed ideas, incomplete thoughts and abbreviated typing. Sorry for the confusion I created.

I agree with you that these handles and blades left the factory looking the same. And also that the shape and size of Charlie's blade was due to wear and sharpening. I confusingly emphasized the fullness of the new blades, rather then the wear of Charlie's blade. In my first post I also wrongly wondered if Charlie's blade could've been a lambfoot originally, but you're astute comment on the shape of the blades in the "Arabia" in your next post set me straight on that account.

I can't blame alcohol, so I'll chalk it up to lazy surfing and concise keyboarding. LOL. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!
 
RobbW said:
Duncan, friend, I'm afraid I created some confusion. I'm lazily sitting in front of the TV on Christmas night with my family, surfing the forum with my tablet. Because I'm not at my usual keyboard, I've been replying in half-formed ideas, incomplete thoughts and abbreviated typing. Sorry for the confusion I created.
Click to expand...

But Robb...thats what I do all the time :eek:, so please dont aplogise my friend as you have nothing to apologise for! I enjoy talking about knives, and sometimes I explain because I am trying to make MYSELF be understood because my brain doesnt work in conjunction with my fingers and I simply dont make sense when trying to explain what I think lol :o
Also to be honest my friend you always make sense - myself?...well I work like this,,when I am thinking " I wonder if this blade does this"...I come out and make some statement - and it just looks so wrong :grumpy:

I love it when Charlie throws us a curve ball and gives us something to think about and we all have to have a guess - thats when I classically make an ass of myself and show just how much I know :D :thumbup:

You and I are on the same track though Rob...cause we love these knives so much, and I cant wait to see what Charlie has up his sleeve, and I am so interested in these older Barlows, and remember quite clearly when Charlie showed us when he first got them - just simply Wow!

Sjostygg - me - I think the Scratting would be more so in those days for purchase on the scales - especially on a Barlow as this was a workmans tool - one that was made to be an affordable tool to be used hard and not so much of a gentleman's knife where they would have spent more time on the finer finishing etc ( this is me thinking aloud here Sir ).
 
Just to continue the discussion on the "Ancient" blade shape, I have no doubt that the blade in my old knife was wider when it was first created. The kick has been filed almost to nothing, to keep the tip of the blade from "peeking" out of the knife as it was worn down. How wide was it? A bit of a guess.
Sitting it open, side by side with some of the sheepfoot knives I posted earlier, it doesn't look like it could have been as wide as the usual Sheepfoot, but that is a guess on my part.

BTW in Christian's "Arabia" post, you can see the handle and bolster of what looks like yet another similar Barlow, 4th from the bottom, on the right!
 
Charlie, it's about time for another issue of the sheepsfoot barlow so I could quit kicking of myself for not getting in on one earlier. One with the beautiful crisscrossed patterned bone handles like the ancient one above, would definitely get my attention.
 
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