PREMIER CUTLERY CO. 1921-1955

kentstools · Post by **kentstools** » Thu Aug 02, 2018 10:31 pm

Thanks for the info. I'm a tool dealer and we have 2 brick and mortar stores. One buys and sells new, used and surplus more industrial tools and the other Jewelry and Lapidary tools and supplies. We have a pretty big eBay presence with used and surplus tooling, including collectibles. As you can see from the rushed pictures above, this knife has not been cleaned or refurbished (except to see the Stampings), as we leave those decisions up to the eventual buyers. We have been listing a lot of knives recently (with better pictures) and I'm wondering if this is the right approach in knife world. Thanks, Kent

kentstools · Post by **kentstools** » Fri Aug 03, 2018 9:24 pm

Re: PREMIER CUTLERY CO. 1921-1955
Thanks for the info. I'm a tool dealer and we have 2 brick and mortar stores. One buys and sells new, used and surplus more industrial tools and the other Jewelry and Lapidary tools and supplies. We have a pretty big eBay presence with used and surplus tooling, including collectibles. As you can see from the rushed pictures above, this knife has not been cleaned or refurbished (except to see the Stampings), as we leave those decisions up to the eventual buyers. We have been listing a lot of knives recently (with better pictures) and I'm wondering if this is the right approach in knife world.

Right now I have a PREMIER CUTLERY INC GERMANY, 2 blade pocket knife. According to another posting the PREMIER CUTLERY INC was presented in the early 1980's as a less expensive line of knives. Mine was made in Germany, which I guess is unusual for PREMIER CUTLERY INC. Both blades are stamped on each side of the tangs. One side is stamped "Premier" with their script type logo and the other side is stamped "PREMIER CUTLERY INC. GERMANY".
Here are some pics. Thanks Kent

Mumbleypeg · Post by **Mumbleypeg** » Sat Aug 04, 2018 12:39 am

I think most collectors prefer to buy knives uncleaned, or only lightly cleaned, i.e. dirt removed and oiled lightly but not mechanically buffed. At least I know I do. I prefer to clean them myself. Buffing removes metal, blurs the crisp lines and stampings a knife had when it was made - once removed they cannot be restored. There are numerous threads here on AAPK about cleaning knives, when and how to do it. They can get found by using the "search" feature and searching for "cleaning".

As for Premiers being made in the 1980s I guess it's possible but that's the first I've heard of it.

I believe they did offer some lower quality knives toward the end, whenever that was. I have an example that was made by Providence Cutlery, stamped both Premier and Providence, RI. that is of lower quality construction and finish.

Also although Premier had knives made in the U.S.A., England, Japan, Italy, and Germany, by far the most I have seen were German. If I had to guess I'd say around 70-80% were made in Germany, just based on my observations. Most of those made in Germany or England are quality knives.

Ken

kentstools · Post by **kentstools** » Sun Aug 05, 2018 12:24 am

Ken, thanks for your input. This knife is a quality piece. It's solid, well designed, very tight and has a unique curved bottom design. Someone will have a lot of fun restoring it and will end up with a beautiful vintage knife.

Mumbleypeg · Post by **Mumbleypeg** » Sat Jan 12, 2019 3:11 am

Here's my latest Premier Lifetime find, so thought I'd resurrect this thread. Small pen with fiery MOP covers (unfortunately cracked on both sides), and swaged blades. Doesn't appear to have been carried much if any, and has the original factory edges as best I can tell. Pile side of master is stamped made in England.

Ken

kootenay joe · Post by **kootenay joe** » Sat Jan 12, 2019 11:18 am

Nice one Ken. I think the British ones are the older Premiers and the best made.
kj

ScoutKnives · Post by **ScoutKnives** » Sun Jun 16, 2019 6:06 pm

An early bone handle premier , picked it up for 10.00 at our local flea market .
I’ll probably sharpen up the blades and carry it .

Thanks for looking .
Mike

Mumbleypeg · Post by **Mumbleypeg** » Sun Jun 16, 2019 8:05 pm

That’s an unusual one. I’ve not seen one before with the Razor Steel stamp. Looks like a prior owner modified the master into a screwdriver. Should make a good carry though. The German-made Premiers I have all have good steel.

Ken

kootenay joe · Post by **kootenay joe** » Sun Jun 16, 2019 9:52 pm

I agree: odd markings and "Premier" is on the back tang. It does not look to have been re-bladed. Is it marked "Germany" ?
kj

ScoutKnives · Post by **ScoutKnives** » Sun Jun 16, 2019 11:19 pm

Yes it’s marked Germany , blades are all definitely original .

kootenay joe wrote:I agree: odd markings and "Premier" is on the back tang. It does not look to have been re-bladed. Is it marked "Germany" ?
kj

Mumbleypeg · Post by **Mumbleypeg** » Sun Jun 16, 2019 11:38 pm

Just to clarify, I was not implying there’s anything wrong with the knife. Just haven’t seen a Premier marked like that one, but there’s a lot I haven’t seen. The guys that ran Premier had knives made by different companies around the world. England, Germany, Italy, Japan, Brazil, U.S.A., and probably some others I haven’t seen yet. And I believe at least until near their end, Premier had good quality. I’d love to get my hands on one of their catalogs, just to see what all they had to offer.

Ken

kootenay joe · Post by **kootenay joe** » Mon Jun 17, 2019 12:50 am

Ken i understand. My comment was just that the markings are odd. Likely this is a German knife but i cannot see it marked. Could be British as my second guess.
kj

ScoutKnives · Post by **ScoutKnives** » Mon Jun 17, 2019 1:51 am

Like I said it’s marked Germany .

kootenay joe · Post by **kootenay joe** » Mon Jun 17, 2019 2:50 am

O.K., got it, German made Cattle knife. Would you put the age as closer to '21 than '55 ?
kj

Johnnycash · Post by **Johnnycash** » Sat Nov 23, 2019 2:33 pm

I have these interesting displays from this company in my upcoming auction.
www.auctionowls.com

Digitalone · Post by **Digitalone** » Tue Jan 14, 2020 9:22 pm

Hello all.

New member here and just wanted to add a penknife that I think is relevant to this thread. It was given to me by my step father and was his when he was a boy. Born in 1918, joined the RCMP in 1941 and retired Chief Sup in 1973. Passed away in 2011.

Its a Premier with the appropriate logos on the blades along with #3338 Germany on one of the other blades. Not sure what that would be other than a model # perhaps. I love this knife and was hoping that someone here would be able to give me an idea on how to clean it up. The blades and the interior are quite tarnished. No rust just blackened.

Your thoughts would be appreciated.

Cheers.

Mumbleypeg · Post by **Mumbleypeg** » Fri Jan 17, 2020 4:18 am

Welcome to AAPK!

Not a lot of love for Premiers among collectors for some reason, but I like them. And I like yours. What is the closed length of the knife?

Regarding cleaning your knife, here’s some tips and tricks. viewtopic.php?f=37&t=54157. Yours looks to be in pretty good shape so it shouldn’t take much. From looking at it and your description, it sounds like you just have some dirt and what collectors call “patina” which is a benign form of iron oxide. Patina won’t harm it and actually retards formation of active red rust. Unless for some reason you just want to make the knife “shiny”, I wouldn’t try to remove patina.

Otherwise just put some mild dish soap (like Dawn, Joy, Ivory or equivalent) in lukewarm water, an old toothbrush and a soft cotton cloth. Put the knife in the soapy water and let it soak a while, then scrub it with the toothbrush. Repeat until no dirt comes out. Rinse thoroughly, blow it dry (compressed air if you have it). Be sure to get all the water out of the joints and cracks. Once it’s completely dry put a drop or two of light oil into all the joints and work the blades open and closed to distribute it. You’re done! Being as the handle covers are synthetic try to keep solvents and oil off of the handles. And too much oil collects and holds dirt so just a drop or two in each joint is all you want.

If you decide you want shiny anyway, see the link I provided.

Ken

Digitalone · Post by **Digitalone** » Fri Jan 17, 2020 6:51 pm

Thanks Ken. Appreciate the information. I like these knifes also as I owned a white pearl one when I was young but unfortunately over the years it went missing. My Stepfather was obsessive about keeping stuff from his past. Case in point I have his fathers Flintlock from the late 1800's.

The fact that this knife is Canadian and so old also makes it desirable, for me at least. As for the length I have included a couple of images for reference.

Thanks again for the info on cleaning. I'll post some updates once its cleaned up a bit.

Cheers.

Dave.

Mumbleypeg · Post by **Mumbleypeg** » Fri Jan 17, 2020 7:15 pm

Looking forward to the updates. Meantime, hope you enjoy the pictures of other Premier knives and the company history in this thread. I have acquired a few more in the past year that I need to get photographed and posted here.

Ken

Grenspot · Post by **Grenspot** » Sat Apr 25, 2020 12:09 am

Hi everyone,

I am not a knife collector but the discourse here reminds me quite a bit of the vintage bicycle forums I do frequent. My father gave me this knife years ago...it was not new when I got it and I have no idea how long he had it. I am curious to know an approximate date. It has a premier stamp on the main blade (it is a 4 blade) and K-78 on the can opener. There is a 'stainless steel made in Japan' stamp. The bone has cracked and I (when I was a kid) glued it back. Obviously it has seen better days but I have a sentimental attachment to it. Can it be repaired and how old might it be? Did Premier Cutlery Co. ever source knives from Japan or was that exclusively the later Premier Cutlery Inc.? For context I grew up in central Ontario so that is likely where this knife originated.

Cheers

- Andrew

Mumbleypeg · Post by **Mumbleypeg** » Sat Apr 25, 2020 2:15 am

Welcome to AAPK. I have several Premiers including one of that same pattern. It’s pictured here somewhere in a previous post in this thread. I don’t know of any way to determine a date when yours was made, not even approximate or otherwise. If you read through the first two or three pages of this thread it contains everything known about the company and the knives.

Having a knife your father gave you is priceless. For information about repairing bone see the knife repair and restoration forum here. viewforum.php?f=37

Ken

Grenspot · Post by **Grenspot** » Sun Apr 26, 2020 1:33 am

Thans Ken,

I realize a precise date is unlikely but would the 'Made in Japan' thing preclude this from being Premier Cutlery Co. and mean that it is the later Premier Cutlery Inc. period?

Cheers

Mumbleypeg · Post by **Mumbleypeg** » Sun Apr 26, 2020 1:48 am

I am not aware of any company documentation, old catalogs or price lists that provide evidence of when where or why they had knives made in any country. World history would say that probably those made in Japan were post-WWII.

BTW the K-78 pattern I have is stamped Germany. viewtopic.php?f=35&t=42187&p=507231&hilit=Scout#p507231

Ken

Checkered past · Post by **Checkered past** » Tue May 26, 2020 2:28 pm

Good day AAPK. I'm new to the forum but thought I might add a knife to this Premier thread.

My main collection focus is Military edged weapons and have just recently been hooked on Pocket knives. I recently purchased this knife to add to the pile and thought I would like to share.

I am not certain of the date. No date markings on the blade, but I suspect mid to late war due to the can opener. It is stamped circle Premier on the opener blade, and stamped England on the Sheep's foot blade. It has me a little stumped because I know the Navy used the metal scales, but almost all the Navy blades I've seen are 2 blades, not 3.

Anyway, here it is in all its glory! Thanks for your time...

Mumbleypeg · Post by **Mumbleypeg** » Tue May 26, 2020 2:51 pm

Welcome to AAPK. Nice find. Could be military or civilian but it sure looks like a nautical knife. Can opener makes sense to me - sailors gotta eat too.

Thanks for showing it, and adding it to this thread.

Ken