BRAND:   Western

MAKER:   Western

PATTERN:   L36

BLADE ETCH:  ORVET CUSTOMS (logo)/ DALE VINCENT 

OAL:   9 5/8”

BLADE LENGTH:   5 ¼”

GUARD:   Brass with file work.

POMMEL:  Aluminum birds head pommel

HANDLE:   Sambar Stag

TANG STAMPS:   WESTERN/BOULDER, COLO./PAT’D MADE IN U.S.A. Rear Stamp: L36

SHEATH:   leather aftermarket sheath

MADE IN:  U.S.A.

RESTORED in the U.S.A. by Orvet (Dale Vincent)

ADDITIONAL INFO:   This knife was a bit of a challenge to rebuild because someone had taken a bench grinder or a coarse belt sander to the blade. There was lots of scratching on the blade, which I removed the majority of it, mainly by hand sanding. I made a sanding base of micarta that was about 14 inches in length about 1-1/4 wide. I covered one side with leather. I clamped pieces of shop roll abrasive to the sanding base and then move the knife across the abrasive instead of moving the abrasive across the knife. It takes a little longer to do it but I think the result is far better than trying to accomplish the same thing with a belt sander. The leather handle on this knife was also rotted so I replaced it with some pretty sambar stag. Somewhere in the history of this knife something had happened to remove a nick from the side of the brass guard. It didn’t ruin the knife but it certainly made it look bad. Replacing a guard on one of these knives is a major ordeal because it involves removing the aluminum pommel. Instead I use the existing nick and the guard to create a file work pattern. When you hold the knife in your hand with the edge facing you and look down at the guard it looks like an oak leaf. It’s not a perfect oak leaf but the guard appears to have a pattern filed into it rather than having a nick taken out of the middle of one side. One of the picture shows this file work clearly.

Western knives have been valued for generations by hunters and others who use and appreciate good knives. The carbon steel that Western used is the best in my opinion. They all hold an edge very well and they are easy to resharpen in the field. I didn’t restore this knife to be a safe queen, but to be someone’s favorite hunting knife. Because it is a blemish free knife I kept the price lower to make it affordable for someone who would like an excellent hunting knife.

This is a restored & customized vintage knife. Like most old soldiers it may have a few battle scars but it is ready to go to work!

Item # 34070