Blade etch on queen swing guard?

The Queen Cutlery Company manufactured knives in Titusville Pennsylvania for 96 years. The company opened its only factory there in 1919 and commenced to make some of the best US crafted cutlery you will find. Unfortunately, the Titusville manufacturing plant closed down in 2018.
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Keystone
Posts: 79
Joined: Sat Aug 04, 2012 2:14 pm

Blade etch on queen swing guard?

Post by Keystone »

I think a recent purchase may be a very unusual Queen swing guard. Clip point blade, highly polished. It has a simple script “Queen steel, 1L” but no crown or larger “Q” The scales are a deep chestnut brown winterbottom bone, (Ebay seller's name) with the usual nickel silver bolsters..I do not think this handle material was factory production for Queen during the 1990s when they started making swing guards. I have seen it only once in a jackknife in the Queen Classics series (Ebay pic... so a bit uncertain about this)

So, my question is: Can anyone suggest when this knife was produced or add any information about it?. It seems quite different from the other Queen swing guards I have from 1990s.
Here is the knife. (pic #1)

Here is the blade etch from a 1992 amber queen swing guard (first prototype I believe, edition of 6)
(pic#2)
Below is the blade etch from a Queen swing guard from 1995-96, PCR 4, “Crown Red”
(pic#3)
I also have a 1994 swing guard in the “Rawhide” series, with the very unique block lettering.
(pic#4)

After about 2004, I think all Queen swing guards used the standard “Queen Cutlery Model xx, tool steel” block etch.
(pic#5)
( I hope I am getting these pics in order..bit challenged...)
All other Queen swing guards I have seen are either Schatt and Morgan or File and Wire, with their unique blade etches.

So any ideas about the date or history of this chestnut winterbottom bone swing guard?

Thanks very much.
Dan
Attachments
009.JPG
chestnut winterbottom 1L
chestnut winterbottom 1L
'92 prototype amber1A
'92 prototype amber1A
PCR4, 95-96
PCR4, 95-96
rawhide '94
rawhide '94
current queen blade etch 1L
current queen blade etch 1L
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