Let's See Your Camco Knives!

The Camillus Cutlery Company was one of the oldest knife manufacturers in the United States with roots dating back to 1876. The company manufactured Camillus branded knives and was a prolific contractor for other knife brands up until its last days in 2007 when the company filed for bankruptcy.
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orvet
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by orvet »

Speaking of Camco…… and Bakelite……. (back up this page a few posts)…..

I will have to revise what I said about the Bakelite probably not being on Camco knives. ::facepalm::
It seems I have a CamcoTL-29 with Bakelite handles. It tested positive for Bakelite on 3 out of 3 tests (surface magnification, rubbing & Simichrome), so I think it is Bakelite.

I don’t know the date it was made, but I would think the 1950 or the 1960 at the latest. ::shrug::

Does anyone have any ideas?


But as regards Paul's Barlow; he thought might be Bakelite….. Has anyone ever seen a Bakelite product that didn’t have a smooth surface? I have never seen Bakelite sawcut like those handles. I am inclined to think the Barlow is not Bakelite due to the finish on it, but by evidence of the TL-29, they did make some knives with the Bakelite handles.
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Camco TL-29 Bakelite b.jpg
Camco TL-29 Bakelite c.jpg
Camco TL-29 Bakelite d.jpg
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by RandyFew »

[img]
DSCF2992.JPG
[/img]I recently got a Camco. It has a single blade and a bottle opener. The really cool thing is-----"Mumbly Peg" is stamped opposite Camco.
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by travman »

Randyfew
is this like the knife you are talking about?
Try playing mumbly peg nowadays :(

Trav
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100_3086.JPG
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by RandyFew »

Looks like we got enough to start a game. (I'm wearing shoes)!
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by trail »

My mother never would let me do that...
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by orvet »

trail wrote:My mother never would let me do that...
:lol: :lol:
I guess I am a lot older :shock: because when I was about 5 years old we were visiting my Great Grandmother, and I got bored, so she went to her purse, got her penknife and took me outside to the flowerbed and she taught me how to play mumbly peg. It was a much better world in those days. ::nod::
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by smokepole »

It was a much better world in those days.
Sad, isn't it? I can remember when we could walk down the street with a pellet gun over the shoulder and shoot pigeons off the power lines and no-one thought anything funny about it. And, just to keep it on topic, we all carried pocket knives to school - it wasn't only not quite legal, it was expected of a boy to carry one - in fact, I can remember several occasions where prizes given by the school for academic, sporting and other achievement were in the form of pocket knives!
I am glad to say that all three my kids, including the two girls, were very chuffed to receive pocket knives made by dad as Christmas presents - although I think the pink G10 scales I put on the girl's must have had something to do with it... ::woot::
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by gino »

Here is my latest Camco jack.
I have never seen these handles before
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DSCN1284[1].JPG
DSCN1284[1].JPG (56.32 KiB) Viewed 6822 times
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by orvet »

Wow Gino, those are unique handles!
Quite eye catching! ::tu:: ::tu:: ::tu::
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by travman »

Nice one Gino ::groove::
Be hard to lose that in a crowd

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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by trail »

Gino, seeing yours reminded me of this one that belongs to a friend. He brought a box full of old knives to work one day to show me and I got some pictures. There was a nice Robeson, an Imperial scout and a few others, including this Camco.
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by mtds »

Here are some comparison pics I took of two similar Camillus and Camco knives. For these particular two knives, the main difference appears to me to be the thickness of the blades and springs.
Attachments
Camco & Camillus open.JPG
Camco & Camillus blades-springs b.JPG
Camco & Camillus blades-springs a.JPG
Camco & Camillus tangs b.JPG
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by orvet »

Nice comparison shot.
Knife companies will sometimes change steel thickness or other dimensions of a knife over the years.

Do you know if these knives were both made around the same period of time? I have some Camco TL-29 knives that that I believe the parts will interchange with the Camillus branded TL-29s.
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by mtds »

Do you know if these knives were both made around the same period of time?

Sorry, Dale, but I don't know when the two knives were made. Dating these Camillus electricians' pattern knives seems to be a true art!

I will say that I haven't seen much variation in Camillus blade thickness in this pattern in the knives I've handled (which is probably 1% of what has passed through your hands). Interesting that you have seen Camco's with the same thickness as Camillus, though.

This particular Camco sharpens up nicely and the reduction in thickness makes it a little more pocket-friendly. I wish I had one that was a little more beat; I'd remove the bail and make it an EDC.
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by orvet »

I finally got a Lone Ranger knife.
I thought it was neat and there were several on ebay, so I picked up one a couple weeks ago. Bidding on a blue one now. Camillus made quite a nice production of this knife. It comes in a tin box with pictures printed on it. The box is covered by a cardboard sleeve. It was made to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Lone Ranger in 1993. It is nice to see a metal box made in England and not in China, as they are these days.

I hope you enjoy the pictures.
Camco Lone Ranger a.jpg
Camco Lone Ranger b.jpg
Camco Lone Ranger c.jpg
Camco Lone Ranger d.jpg
Camco Lone Ranger e.jpg
Camco Lone Ranger f.jpg
Camco Lone Ranger g.jpg

There is also has the Lone Ranger’s Creed printed out on a piece of paper.
I could not help but notice how politically incorrect the creed is by today’s standards (or lack there of).
Can you imagine the response of the average schoolteacher of some hapless young boy brought it to class?
Not just to the knife but those Right Wing radical ideas like:
· God & believing in Him! :shock:
· Every man must gather & light his own firewood, (and not get it from the government)!
· Being prepared physically, mentally and morally!
· To fight when necessary!!
· He carried a gun and he USED it!!!

By today’s standards the Lone Ranger was a subversive Right Wing radical, probably on the Terrorist Watch List and definitely on the No-Fly List!
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by garddogg56 »

::ds:: WOW ::ds:: Nice ::ds::
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by trail »

I finally got a yellow Camco small rope knife. It isn't as pretty as the ebay knife I posted a couple of pages back, but it's still one of a kind in my small collection of this pattern. Neither mine nor the ebay knife have an easy open cutout in the handles, though mine does have the cutout in the frame. Mine has a handle etch "Say it with Flowers" so perhaps this was an SFO for FTD. It is not a traditional florist's pattern but I'm sure the little coping blade would work well in that application. Just goes to show what a versatile pattern this is. I still carry one almost every day.

This one really stands out in a crowd...
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camillus_yellow_rope_scaled.jpg
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by 313 Mike »

I just received my first Camco today, don't have a pic of it but it is a medium stockman, brown jigged synthetic hadles with a shield, tang marked Camco USA, on backside 771. Interestingly it has script barely visible along the main blade that says New Britain K15. Anyone else have a Camco like that...?
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by orvet »

I don’t know if I have one or not, but I have seen that New Britain etch on Camcos before.
I remember New Britain Tools from when I worked in an Auto Parts house in the 1960s in Jr. High School.
We also had a lot of New Britain tools the service station I worked at in High School.
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by 313 Mike »

Hey that's another great bit of information Dale, thanks much. You are like the wise man on top of the mountain that has wisdom to share on all kinds of interesting things! I had never heard of New Britian Tools before. So then the knife was in effect an advertising knife, so to speak. Either that or perhaps it was given out to employees or salesman, something along those lines. I will make a note of it, with all the great info from everyone here I might have to get bigger index cards for recording individual knife info...
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by orvet »

I am not sure if it was an ad knife or one made for New Britain that they sold, (or both). ::shrug::

I have also seen them with the Proto name, I have a TL-29 Camco or Camillus (not sure which brand) with the Proto etch. Proto was another tool company.

Black Hawk was another that had Camillus make knives for.
Sometimes you will find a Camco or Camillus knife with the Black Hawk etch.
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by orvet »

I picked up this little Camco rope knife for a rebuild project.
It is 3-1/4" closed. Someone decided to customize the handle. ::facepalm::

I think it can be salvaged.
Attachments
Camco rope a.jpg
Camco rope b.jpg
Camco rope c.jpg
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by trail »

Lots of use left in that little knife, even with the butchered handle and butter knife blade profile...It will be a beauty once Dale gets done with it, that's for certain.
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by smokepole »

Nice find Trail, and a nice collection. I have a very nice rope knife too - but I am too sorry for it to use it! And I agree, once Dale is finished with the mangled one, it will be a knife worth having again - plenty of life left in that one...
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Re: Let's See Your Camco Knives!

Post by singin46 »

I believe this to be an older Lone Ranger Jack Cracked Ice pearl. Note the raised bullet on the pile side and absence of studs for the advertising instead.
Camco!
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