No 6 Sheffield Military knife?

[americanedgetech]

I just bought this, and do not have possession of it yet so I will post what I know...
The tang is stamped No 6 (first line) Sheffield (second line), and what appears to be STFT (third line) but I believe it says STEEL or it is supposed to.
I have seen this exact blade on several different "Sheffield" knife models. All of them are swing guards but the handles are all different from mine.
I have also found that this style was counterfeited by Indian makers for some time, and all of those bore a pair of Maltese crosses on the pile side that mine does not appear to have.

So my question s are what exactly do I have, approx when was it manufactured, who manufactured it.
The more I google search, the more confused I am getting... Tough day to boot...
Thanks!

[rexstubbins]

I don't want to say this but to me this looks like a knife that is typical of Pakistan manufacture.

[americanedgetech]

What I am finding is that the style is a folding Bowie, and no matter what any of the dozens of these are sold as they all appear to be made in India between 1940, and 1970.

I am curious as to if there is an actual English made precursor to these. I have seen one that is said to be English made listed in the inventory of some California museum. There is no description on the page, just a few images, and THAT one has a steel pommel end, and a lock back configuration but otherwise, the EXACT same blade. That one is inventoried as an English Military knife. Thus my title here...

No matter what mine is I find it a cool "controversy" knife with a history. It is obviously old enough to have a couple good stories behind it, and I bought it cheap enough that I did not care what it was/is.
I'd just like to know if there is a REAL historical counterpart.

[rexstubbins]

It looks like it is modeled after the Marbles safety knife. I have a Parker and Son knife that is modeled after the Marbles safety knife.

[americanedgetech]

That is an awesome knife Doug! Beautiful handles.

I understand that Marbles began in the US around 1890. Do you know the first production date of the pattern/model?

I am trying to tie in the dates to the beginning of these No 6 knives (1940).
I can't figure why they (Indian makers) would copy an American pattern, and use an English (Sheffield) mark. I get the English presence there in 1940, and the want to attract their money... Perhaps they were targeting the English military with a "go to war" capable pattern, and a back home makers mark?

I tend to over think things... notice much?

I really do like that Marbles. I'll keep them in the "radar book".

[Gunsil]

There are may many different style of knives with the spurious J Rodgers markings, not just the one you show. None of these were made for any military. More likely tourist items. I have seen many different "bowie" knives, folding "bowie" knives and pocket knives all with these marks and naturally all made in India. I think a lot of them may date back to the earlier 1900s since Rodgers was not a company to copy in the 1970s, but certainly was during the early 1900s. None of them do well in the collector market and I have seen some folks get burned by spending a couple hun on what they thought was a real J Rodgers bowie knife. They are often represented as real Rodgers knives on ebay and I suppose less knowledgeable folks might see them as real and spend money on them.

[americanedgetech]

I have also seen the dozens of non Rodgers knives on Ebay with this same stamp.
It is surprising how much some are selling for, and how many people are buying them. I never fell into that trap but I had thought that "No 6 Sheffield" may have been another English made brand.
Most definitely more modern than than "Joseph Rodgers No 6 Norfolk". I have a small Bare end Trapper from them dated around the turn of the century so I knew a little about them, and their stamps.
I figured this knife was around 50-75 years old, and was selling for 40 bucks so it was interesting enough for me go at it blind. Actually I didn't think I would win it because my max bid was only 9.50 more than the current bid with 8 hours left.

Anyway I can't wait to see this thing, and I am glad for the experience. Win/Win!

[smiling-knife]

These knives were made in India and Pakistan in 1950-70s. They have no connection whatsoever to Jos Rodgers & Sons or Sheffield.

[americanedgetech]

I agree Smiling Knife.
I never thought that they did connect to J. Rodgers.
I thought the "No 6 Sheffield" on the blade was a totally different English company.
It wasn't until after I posted, and started really researching when I found that ALL of the "NO 6 Sheffield Steel" knives were India/Pakistan made knives.

I still find it interesting, and worth the 40 bucks. I'm gonna stick this one into an Oak stump on my work bench.