Boker Manicure Knife?

[dcgm4]

My friend gave me this knife recently because she knows I like odd knives. The backspring extends out at the end in a disc shape. According to the person she got it from, that little feature is a manicure disc to clean under one's fingernails. Can anyone confirm if that's what it is or not? Thanks.

[stockman]

Do you think it could be a knife pick aka knife opener. I know they have been made.

Harold

[cato]

can we see it with everything open

[junebug]

cool knife!!


besides pix with open blade/blade....... HOW wide & deep IS THE "PICK" ??????

I'M THINKIN "DZUS FASTENER" ???????????? (total guess )
fancy gents pattern for the wealthy aviator type.......

[RobesonsRme.com]

What is etched on the pearl handle?

Possibly ID'ing an advertisement/company name might lead to an answer.

The almost discoid shape of the projection seems odd. That wouldn't be necessary to clean under one's nails or to push back one's cuticles.

Cool Knife.

Charlie Noyes

[knives-are-quiet]

Looks like the etching might read Boker Tree Brand?????

Maybe it is a budding knife?????
Usually made of bone - ivory.
Could have fell off and the disk is the base where it was attached????????????

Just a guess.................

JW~

[junebug]

I KINDA SORTA SEE : Doher's ? Brand
hard to see from that pic alone....

[rexstubbins]

Would the disk end be an "ink eraser" used on office knives?

[dcgm4]

I'll try to get some pics of the knife with the blade open tomorrow. It's a spear blade, by the way. Until then...

besides pix with open blade/blade....... HOW wide & deep IS THE "PICK" ??????

The knife is about 3 1/8" closed including the "pick". The "pick" measures about 3/8" wide and 3/8" long.

What is etched on the pearl handle?

The etch is worn, but it say's "Boker's (Tree) Brand". The trademark tree that Boker stamped on the back of the tangs was etched between "Boker's" and "Brand", but most of it has worn off.

The tang is stamped "H. Boker & Co's Cutlery Germany".

Thanks for the replies, guys. All plausible guesses. Hopefully the added information above helps narrow down the possibilities.

[junebug]

Would the disk end be an "ink eraser" used on office knives?

HET that's more like it..........DZUS fasteners is a lil far fetched

[dcgm4]

I'm starting to think this is probably not a manicure knife. If this is a manicure knife and the disc at the end is for cleaning fingernails, then why doesn't the knife have a nail file? It just seems odd to me that a manicure knife wouldn't have a nail file.

Out of all the possibilities that have been listed here so far I think ink eraser might have a slight edge, though I have some doubts about that as well.

Anyways, here's a pic with the blade fully open. Hopefully more people will give their input.

[wlf]

Unusual knife,and when I saw it ,I thought spud for bark splitting,as said by JW. The more I look the less I know.

I think Greedy might solve this one.

[philco]

Unusual knife........

I think Greedy might solve this one.

I wish he would cause I'm plumb bumfuzzled.

[galvanic1882]

Did she get it from ebay? One just like it has been on and re-listed a couple of times. When I first saw it I thought it was either a salesman's knife with the blade opener/knife pick on the back. I think the etching on the pearl has Boker etc. The other thing I thought was that it was a knife with a letter opener and that the letter opener part was modified. Seeing the knife with the better pictures I think it is a salesman's knife with the pic.

[Mason]

Very nice and unique knife. It appears to be a pre WWII model but is not shown in any Boker catalogs from 1906 on. Possibly a special order or salesman's sample as others suggested.

[wlf]

I didn't even know about saleman's samples with picks built in.

Thanks Harold and Mike.

Whoever has any,I would like to see pictures of these.

[RobesonsRme.com]

I've seen Robeson pearl handled letter openers with an ink eraser blade turned into nice knife openers by cutting off the letter blade and reprofiling the tang.

However, I think this Boker would look backwards if that projection was originally a letter opener. Should be on the smaller end of the frame.

Where is that Greedy Gullo when we need him?

Charlie Noyes

[dcgm4]

Did she get it from ebay? One just like it has been on and re-listed a couple of times. When I first saw it I thought it was either a salesman's knife with the blade opener/knife pick on the back. I think the etching on the pearl has Boker etc. The other thing I thought was that it was a knife with a letter opener and that the letter opener part was modified. Seeing the knife with the better pictures I think it is a salesman's knife with the pic.

I asked and she said it came from eBay. She sent me this link:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-EARLY-VINT ... 7675.l2557

It also crossed my mind that it could be a modified letter opener, but I don't think that's the case. I see zero signs of modification. The knife being a salesman's knife makes a lot of sense.

Very nice and unique knife. It appears to be a pre WWII model but is not shown in any Boker catalogs from 1906 on. Possibly a special order or salesman's sample as others suggested.

Thanks for the info, Mason. That you can't find it in catalogs is very interesting.

Unusual knife........

I think Greedy might solve this one.

I wish he would cause I'm plumb bumfuzzled.

I hope we hear from Greedy too. He's probably our best shot at getting a definitive answer.

[jerryd6818]

It always puts me off when I see the seller say, "THE BLADE IS TIGHT WITH NO WOBBLE AND OPENS AND CLOSES PROPERLY. " What the heck is that supposed to mean? Are they trying, in a roundabout way, to say the blades have weak snap?