Small boker 83881 knife for trade ?

[Oldredbone67]

Hello, I bought this small boker 83881 tree brand classic knife not bothering to ask the closed length. It is very small for me, 2 7/8 closed. It is new, old stock, no box, but it is the classic brand and a very nice knife. Black jigged delrin handles. Just too small for me. If anyone is into collecting these small knives , I would like to trade this knife. Take a look at the pics and let me know what you would trade or I would sell it also if interested . Thanks

[Edgewise]

This looks to me like the Boker equivalent of the Schrade 108OT but somehow does not seem as popular.
Why is that, even on the Boker Forum?
Is it simply because Boker has less collector status or that it's quality is inferior to Schrade ( or Camollus or Case)?

[Tsar Bomba]

I suspect it's because Boker Germany is still in business making Solingen-based knives while Schrade and Camillus have been gone for over a decade now while Case just flat-out makes more knives than most. You'll probably see a similar shift in sentiment with Queen knives in the next year or two as people start to connect the dots that we're likely never to see a new USA Queen roll off the line again.

I'd be interested in the knife if I made a habit of carrying small stockmen. I own a few as it is (and carry them often enough) but I don't have the kind of desire that leads to accumulating a wide variety like I do with Barlows, large trappers, doc knives, etc. However, if the price (or trade) were right I'd be glad to take that knife. It's just not a priority for me personally. YMMV, of course!

[Edgewise]

Makes sense.
I suppose I haven't quite got into the collector's way of thinking where other factors figure alongside the quality of the knife in hand.
After all, I've seen some very beat up, worn out old knives go for high prices.

[Tsar Bomba]

Makes sense.
I suppose I haven't quite got into the collector's way of thinking where other factors figure alongside the quality of the knife in hand.
After all, I've seen some very beat up, worn out old knives go for high prices.

I attribute this to two things, "age + quality = rarity" and that many long-gone knife companies will never be producing knives again, meaning a limit on the number of times one can expect to see many of those knives up for sale. Sometimes people with niche collecting strategies who look for those particular knives find themselves in bidding wars and one-off examples see pretty drastic price increases. There are also crazy people in this world who get a wild hair over certain things and just drive prices into the stratosphere. Your example is definitely a newer knife and likely was manufactured in larger numbers than some of the old, wore-out knives by defunct cutlers.

I expect we'll start seeing this trend take hold over time with even some of the newer, nicer Queens now that it seems official they're going the way of the dodo. Schrade, Camillus, Imperial's American operations, all ceased business and sold off the names to companies that did business manufacturing out of the Far East (sometimes among others), and even some active cutlers like Boker maintain lines of lower-priced knives manufactured in the Pacific Rim. I do hope Queen finds a way to emerge from Chap 7 (a rarity, especially in a difficult industry like cutlery) but the writing does appear to be on the wall for "anyone who isn't Case or Buck" in the USA.

All that being said, I find Boker Solingen knives to be high-quality, sharp, reliable cutters with the same or better QC standards than Case or more recent Queens. They build a solid, desirable knife with excellent steel for a more than fair price. My beer barrel copperhead is among my favorite knives, full stop.

Hmm, I may have actually talked myself into offering a trade for ORB's stockman... Oldredbone, still got that knife?