SHOW YOUR NEW (TO YOU) ROBESON

[edge213]

Just got this one. The walk and talk is amazing! like a new custom. Tight, smooth, snappy!
Does the absence of a model number age it to the beginning of the shuredge era?

Beautiful Barlow.

[PCwizard]

Got this Robeson Doctors Knife a few months back.

[Tsar Bomba]

I can show 2 Robeson knives, a Swingguard:
And a barlow:
I like the shape of the tip on both.
Sorry dont know more about them.

That Barlow appears to be one of the Queen-built modern Robesons which, as Charlie can attest, do not necessarily stick to the criteria of old Robesons (i.e. Pocketeze with no sunken joints, Shuredge with...whatever isn't shur about the edge but are still IMO rather nice knives. I'm pig-ignorant of swing-guards like yours but I imagine due to the condition and apparent age it too is a Queen build. USA made and desirable, for sure, just not "the real deal" Robeson.

The Barlo'ws spear blade profile in particular is emblematic of Queen, especially on their #69 Barlows. It's one of my favorite things about the modern Queen Barlows. Here is one of my examples where I think you can see the telltale profile (risking the ire of the Robeson purists in the thread... ):

The older, "proper" Robeson Barlows have more of a "traditional" look to them and, at least among the ones I've seen, generally sport a rounder profile and bolster than most modern Barlows (Bear & Son excepted). This is the only one I have:

Unfortunately, I don't have a spear blade Robeson for an apples-apples comparison but I believe there are some earlier in the thread.

[bigbore]

Thanks for the info Tony.

[peanut740]

Bought a collection yesterday that had a few nice Robesons in it.First is a Robeson Shuredge hobo or slot knive.Pattern #231322.It is 4 1/2 " closed and has cocobolo or rosewood handles.

[peanut740]

Next is a big jack etched Bulldog It is 3 7/8" long with pattern# 22250.It has Robeson Shuredge tang stamp on the master and arched Robeson over USA,over Cutlery on the pen.

[peanut740]

Next is another big jack,pattern 822120 with slick black handes and deep beaver trademark etch.Master is stamped Robeson Shuredge and the pen is Robeson in an arch over Co.,over Cutlery.

[peanut740]

Next up is a bone doctors knife,pattern 622138 with a rounded main bolster.It is stamped Robeson Shuredge on the master and Robeson arched over USA,over Cutlery. It is 3 3/4" long.

[peanut740]

Next is a little 3 1/8" Mastercraft jack.Pattern 823650, celluloid handes.Robeson Shuredge on master and Robeson in arch over USA,over Cutlery.One odd thing is the master has no stops on opening and closing,but the pen has quarter stops.

[peanut740]

Next is a Carpenters Choice in slick black.I believe the pattern is 132433.Master is the only blade stamped and is the later Robeson Shuredge USA.3 5/8" and has a Shuredge shield.

[peanut740]

Next are 2 strawberry bone stockmans.They are about 3 1/4" or so long.Pattern #'s 633728 and 633295.Both have Robeson "FLAME-EDGE"USA etch.

[peanut740]

Next is a 4" strawberry bone stockman with a punch and etched Premium Stock.

[peanut740]

Last,but far from least is a pearl doctors knife,pattern #722153.Tang stamp is The,over arched Robeson, over Cut.Co,over Rochester NY.From what I read from Tom's book it dates from 1900-10.It has Physician's Knife deep stamped/etched in the blade.It is in amazing condition for it's age.

[FRJ]

What a beautiful show of Robesons, Roger. Very nice.
I've got a couple of those knives but not as nice as yours.

[PCwizard]

Last,but far from least is a pearl doctors knife,pattern #722153.Tang stamp is The,over arched Robeson, over Cut.Co,over Rochester NY.From what I read from Tom's book it dates from 1900-10.It has Physician's Knife deep stamped/etched in the blade.It is in amazing condition for it's age.

WOW, That's one nice knife, until I read your description I though it was a new Queen made model. amazing condition is a understatement.

[RobesonsRme.com]

Roger, you hit the mother lode in that collection. If the Robesons are that nice, I'd love to see the rest of the collection.

Sorry, I didn't see your private message earlier. I was out of the house for Alabama Game Day until late hours.

I suspect that pearl handled physicians knife is right as rain and a fabulous find.

The 138 physicians knife, I've seen as a MasterCraft pattern, although I suspect the number would have been different and in with the MasterCraft series.

The BULLDOG and Beavertail are great hefty jacks. I think the beaver is a tad shorter.

I've always wondered if the Beavertail knives weren't an advertising knife for a company that made files. The beaver is standing above a rasp or file and the word "Trademark" is below that. But, the pattern with that etch is shown in the Robeson catalog that David Clark reproduced a couple of years ago, so it must have been a pattern regularly available to any retailer.

The reason the pen on your MasterCraft celluloid jack has "quarter stops" is because the bronze bearing on that blade has fallen off and the little indents on the tang that were supposed to hold it on are catching on the edge of the backspring. Unfortunately, that hurts that knife a bit. Would be more so if it was the master.

The Strawberry Bone handled knives are great. Many years ago, Bruce Voyles published a full page color photo of a grouping of Strawberry Bone knives lying on a grey piece of Barnwood. I tried for years to acquire the knives to duplicate that photo. Not sure I ever succeeded, I haven't checked lately. I might still be one shy.

Your post is almost enough to put me back into Robeson collecting.

Charlie

[RobesonsRme.com]

And thank you for bringing the thread back to its roots in such a big way.

No offense to those posting Queen made non-reproductions.

Charlie Noyes

[peanut740]

Thanks Joe,Gary and Charlie.The doctors knife may have been very lightly buffed,but maybe not.It is the best knife in the collection, but everything is pretty good.
It is by far the best doctors knife I have ever had and the 2nd best I have ever seen.Tommy Clark earlier this year had a New York Knife pearl doctors that was etched and had fat handles for pearl.What made it better was it was in it's original box and had a card in it compliments of a pharmacy wishing a Merry Christmas in like 1927.
Charlie the Bulldog and the Beaver are the same length,but the bolsters on the Beaver are longer.Blades appears to be the same and the pins are in the same place except for the one next to the bolster.
The collection had several Schrade Waldens,Keen Kutters,OVB'S and many others(Including 4 Maher & Grosh )

[RobesonsRme.com]

So now we know why you bought it. You were after those Maher & Grosh knives.

And my memory was faulty re' the two heavy jacks. The BULLDOG is shown in the catalog as 3 1/8" long and the Beavertail at 3 7/8".

I suspect there was a misprint as you state they are the same. I've never had an opportunity to see both at the same time, but I find it hard to visualize a 6/8" difference in closed length.

Charlie

[edge213]

Impossible to follow that great show of knives. But here is my latest Robeson.

[espn77]

Last,but far from least is a pearl doctors knife,pattern #722153.Tang stamp is The,over arched Robeson, over Cut.Co,over Rochester NY.From what I read from Tom's book it dates from 1900-10.It has Physician's Knife deep stamped/etched in the blade.It is in amazing condition for it's age.

This knife is the coolest knife I've ever seen. In any brand!!!!! Thanks for showing it Roger.

[peanut740]

Here is one I missed posting the other day. I had laid it with a couple NYK's.62201 pattern,it has a split in the bolster.Etched W.L.R.Stewart.

[RobesonsRme.com]

Roger, that's a nice old knife.

I've seen very few of the 001 pattern and only a couple had bone handles.

Prior to moving to Perry, New York, circal 1900, Robeson did not use pattern numbers. They started using them shortly after the move, however, and they assigned the first handle-die shape number, 001, to this pattern.

I have one in ebony and its stamp is a very early, possibly the initial ShurEdge stamp.

Have to wonder who W. L. R. Stewart might have been. I have found that a great many Robeson knives with blade etches were done for firms that were fairly local, New York State or Pennsylvania, for instance. Don't know why that would be the case, so a purely anecdotal opinion.

Charlie

[RobesonsRme.com]

A very brief Google search turned up a W. L. R. Stewart who was a hardware dealer and local politician in Walworth County, Wisconsin.

https://books.google.com/books?id=K1Q0A ... rt&f=false

If you scroll the pages, he appears first as clerk and later as president of the board of registrars and then as one of two or three hardware dealers.

Hopefully, his name will be highlighted in yellow wherever it appears.

In another document, a W. L. R. Stewart is listed as an officer in a bank in Whitewater, Wisconsin, which is in Walworth County, so probably the same man.

That's a possibility, but he seems to have been prominent in the 19th century. I don't know if he was still active in the early 20th.


Charlie

[peanut740]

Thanks Charlie,that`s interesting.I suppose he could still be going 30 or so years later.I have been coming home after work and slowing going thru the 70 knives in the group.The joints are dry and sticky on many of them and I`ve been using quick release oil on them and showing them some love.I will have to take a group photo and post it.