Craftsman utility/camp knives - who made 'em?

[OldGoat]

Hi All,

I present these Craftsman knives whose maker I cannot determine. Can anyone identify them as to the maker and approximate decade of manufacture?

Thanks in advance,
Russell

[chautauqua]

id say camillus post world war 2 late 40s early 50s

[johnnierotten]

Camillus or Ulster....

[Joe Dirt]

It sure looks like the Camco spear to me.

My question is..... whats up with the bail?
Is it ambidextrous (removable) or are you stuck with the position you got??

...... Joe

[Owd Wullie]

Interesting that the shields and hangers are reversed between the two knives.

NEAT LOOKING KNIVES!!

[OldGoat]

Hi All,

I'm thinking the Camillus or Ulster answer is the most reasonable. What throws me off are the hangers. I only find bails in my searches of representative examples.

The hangers, by the way, are reversible, likely because removing the knife from the hanger is easier than removing the hanger from the belt. Fair enough idea save for the fact that the knife could easily be lost during activity involving brushing contact (climbing, stalking, hiking in brush, pretty much anything a scout might be doing!).

I don't know how to address the reversed shields. Neither appears to have been off and replaced and I'll bet they are pinned.

I just cannot walk away from any Craftsman I encounter, particularly the old bone handled ones. I've got a bunch that are yet unidentified that I need to photograph and post. Some are not even marked Craftsman or Sta-Sharp but are certainly from Sears. Those seem to all have High Carbon, Made in USA or similar on the tangs.

More to come. Thanks for all the observations!

Regards,
Russell

[jerryd6818]

The one with the upside down hanger and shield was made for export to Australia.

[WelderBob]

Russell I believe these were made by Ulster in the late 50's to mid 60's. The hanger is for pocket carry, the lower knife is for belt carry. There was a discussion on these a while back in the knife lore forum under Scout knives.

Nice pair of knives...I've never seen one with the shield right side up....

Bob

[RobesonsRme.com]

Nice knives.

We discussed upside down shields in the All Scout Knives thread a while back, particularly concerning the New York Knife "Army Knife" utility.

NYK had display boards on which the opened knives hung on a metal hanger with the blades pointed down. With the shields mounted upside down that put them in a readable position for the knife shopper.

That never really made much sense to me, as once the knife was purchased, the shield would forever be upside down to its owner.

During that discussion I posted a photo of such a display board. It's NYK. It's not mine. I just happen to have the photo. Left click on the photo, then left click again. Read the instructions on the metal hanger.

BTW; JerryD, was that a serious statement or a "Down Under" joke?

Charlie Noyes

[jerryd6818]

Charlie just keep in mind that I'm seldom serious. I guess I need to stick more of those smiley faces in there.

[FRJ]

Well, I thought I would resurrect this old thread and post my new Craftsman utility knife.
This is a nice knife with a reversed shield. Dandy pocket hanger.

Somebody must have shipped this back from Australia.

[Mumbleypeg]

Nice find Joe! I have a couple of those Craftsmans with the funky belt hangers too. There's a copy of the patent for that hanger somewhere in the All Scout Knives thread.

Ken

[doglegg]

The one with the upside down hanger and shield was made for export to Australia.