Michael, here's a shot of the barlow's backspring, note classic Schrade delrin dye "signature".
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The thing that has always puzzled me about this particular model is that the bolster stamp doesn't match the one's in the catalogs. It's much more similar to the Old Timer stamp, font-wise. I'm wondering if the two co-existed for a time. I know that there was a concern when the R.J. Reynolds Old Timers came out that they'd eat into the sales of the Ulster barlows, and Henry suggested that the Ulsters have some upgrades over the Reynolds knives, such as full polished blades. I've got an internal memo around here somewhere that states his concerns. (Just gotta find it

) . I'm hoping to snag one of those 10OT's tomorrow, with box if all goes well, I'll do some comparing then. (It's a VERY interesting box at that! I hope it's still there!)
Russell and Charlie, I'm not sure what to make of the different handles. At first I thought the front was just more pocket worn, but a closer inspection reveals that it's not worn at all, just rather heavily hafted from the shield back. It doesn't appear to have been used much at all, inside's clean save for a bit of rust on the springs in a couple of areas, otherwise they're shiny too. Both blades line up nicely with the springs, and have nice tight half stops and excellent walk and talk. The odd thing is that it doesn't appear in the catalog in this form, the only jack with the file is the Navy knife on page 31, and
that's an EO, with a shackle, and no shield. That's another odd thing, the bar shield is something you don't often see on the old Schrade jacks. Of course they may well have been on the pre-1926 models. I am somewhat baffled, hopefully not to the point of being miffed.
Eric