Vintage kissing crane?

[Slusher50]

Ran across this knife at a flea market in Tenn. I think it's an older knife but not sure how to date it, the shield is different from what I am used to on a crane knife, It also doesn't have Germany stamped on the blade, the only markings on the knife are what you see in the picture, have searched the Internet without any satisfaction, have no choice other than turn to the pros on this forum, any info on this knife would be appreciated, thanks.


Slusher 50

[knife7knut]

I'm not familiar with dating Klaas knives but if I had to guess I would say 1950's or 60's. The stag scales look very worn down indicating either a lot of use or they were polished down.That doesn't make much sense as the rough surface of the stag is what makes it ideal as a knife handle.Whatever the case it is a fine looking knife.
EDIT: Possibly the reason it isn't marked with a country of origin is that it was destined for the home market.

[Slusher50]

Hey Knife7knut those aren't stag handles, they are a man made material of some kind you can see like a type of swirl in the handles, I am not sure what they are called, also the type of shield has got me thrown off, it caught my eye and just had to have it. Thanks for the input, there's a lot of knowledge on this forum.

Slusher50.

[1967redrider]

Those scales aren't some kind of horn? . . .

[knife7knut]

Hey Knife7knut those aren't stag handles, they are a man made material of some kind you can see like a type of swirl in the handles, I am not sure what they are called, also the type of shield has got me thrown off, it caught my eye and just had to have it. Thanks for the input, there's a lot of knowledge on this forum.

Slusher50.

Could have fooled me;could you post some closeups of the scales? I'd like to get a better look at them.

[Slusher50]

Here is a picture of the scales, they are a composite, they are clear with a brownish gold color which looks like wood grain, I have seen these on another older knife just can't remember the brand, was hoping someone could kinda help date this knife from the tang stamp, thanks for all the replies.

Slusher50

[knife7knut]

Here is a picture of the scales, they are a composite, they are clear with a brownish gold color which looks like wood grain, I have seen these on another older knife just can't remember the brand, was hoping someone could kinda help date this knife from the tang stamp, thanks for all the replies.

Slusher50

OK I see now. I have a 3 line Camillus that has scales very similar to that and have seen it on others as well.

[Slusher50]

Yes Knife7knut, they are just about identical to the ones on your knife, seems you are able to get a better picture than I can, love that old camillus, I have a weakness for the camillus 23 and the 67 these are two great knives in my opinion, do you know what these type of handles are called, would love to get a general idea of the date of this knife, thanks for reply.


Slusher50

[knife7knut]

Yes Knife7knut, they are just about identical to the ones on your knife, seems you are able to get a better picture than I can, love that old camillus, I have a weakness for the camillus 23 and the 67 these are two great knives in my opinion, do you know what these type of handles are called, would love to get a general idea of the date of this knife, thanks for reply.


Slusher50

I don't know if they have a proper name but I have always called them,"waterfall celluloid".In the lighter variations;if you move them to different angles the pattern seems to move almost like water swirling about. Sorry I can't help with the date.

[msteele6]

I would think that that handle material (I would call it gold swirl celluloid) would date the knife to before WWII, just like the Camillus.

Practically every manufacturer used some variation of these handles before the war.

JMO

[basser5]

I have a few questions if i may?.........

Are the pins in the bolsters steel?
Is the shield pinned on?
Do the blades function smoothly?

[keithw]

Hey Tim,

I noticed on another thread, [European and Other Foreign Manufactured Knives] - [German Robert Klaas Brands] - page 9, that you replied to Lawrence about a knife with a similar tang stamp, and put the age at 1960-1971. Is that absolute, or does it apply with parameters that you mentioned, such as steel pins, pinned shield, etc.

I have a KC knife that was made for Queen Elizabeth's coronation in 1953, and I will check the tang stamp, when I find it

Thanks

[basser5]

Hi Keith!

Nothing is absolute when it comes to Klaas knives. They used several different stamps at the same time varying due to brand. Send me a picture or post it and we will see if it's the same time frame.

The OP's knife has me concerned if it is authentic.

The pattern is not one that i have seen from Klaas.
The shield is longer than others i have seen.
The secondary is usually marked, but not always.
The blade grinds are generally similar. These are not.

[Slusher50]

Hey Basser5 I am going to try and answer your questions about this knife, I have never seen a Klaas like this either, the shield is pinned on and the pins in the bolster are steel and the knife has great action on opening and closing it doesn't have a half stop neither does the large Klaas in the picture I posted with this reply, the big Klaas knife has Robbi Klaas, Solingen on the back side of tang where the small one has it all on one side as you can see in pic, if you notice the picture close enough you can see the pinned shield, the brads in the scales on both knives look the same, they seem to be hammered instead of spun, it took me an hour to decide if I wanted to buy this knife the little wife was getting upset and had to hurry decision, really appreciate the response from you all, if you think it's not right let know, I have made wrong decisions on a knife before, thanks again,


Slusher50

[RobesonsRme.com]

That's not "Waterfall", as that particular celluloid has a reflective motion phenomenon when tilted back and forth.

Probably not the correct name, but I've always called that "Onyx" as that is what it looks like to me.

I agree the handle material suggests pre-WWII manufacture.

Could be a bring-back by an American service member or any one of a thousand ways to get from Germany to here.

Charlie Noyes