Primble information please

[geocash]

I have a few questions about this knife with a fishtail bolster. The tang is stamped " JOHN PRIMBLE" over "BELKNAP" over "HDW. & MFG. CO." The other side is stamped "5019" over a five pointed star. It's about 3 7/8" long folded. I got it from my grandfather in 1966. I'm assuming the star indicates it was made by Boker in the US & that it is too old for the handles to be Delrin. What would any of you call the pattern or do any of you know what Belknap called it? Also, reckon what the handles are made of?

[kootenay joe]

The handles are Delrin which was first used for knife handles in 1960. By 1966 many USA knife manufacturers had switched from bone to Delrin for most of their knives.
kj

[peanut740]

Boker made Delrin fishtail pattern.

[geocash]

[quote="kootenay joe"]The handles are Delrin which was first used for knife handles in 1960. By 1966 many USA knife manufacturers had switched from bone to Delrin for most of their knives.
kj[/quote

Thanks. What fooled me into believing he got it earlier than 1960 is mainly the wear on the blade. Also, he died in February of 1966. I don't recall him being very active his last few years & he wasn't known for spending money on anything that he could do without. Of course someone could have given it to him in this condition & he had a grinding wheel, manually operated, on which he had once sharpened his axes, scythe & other tools. This wear could have occurred within minutes on that thing. The age just makes me more curious how he came to have. I reckon someday someone will wonder when & where the heck I got it. Thanks, again, kj.

[kootenay joe]

A Primble collector could likely say who made it and the years that pattern was offered.
kj

[Mumbleypeg]

Primbles with the star stamp were made by Böker.

Ken

[jxr1197]

I have a few questions about this knife with a fishtail bolster. The tang is stamped " JOHN PRIMBLE" over "BELKNAP" over "HDW. & MFG. CO." The other side is stamped "5019" over a five pointed star. It's about 3 7/8" long folded. I got it from my grandfather in 1966. I'm assuming the star indicates it was made by Boker in the US & that it is too old for the handles to be Delrin. What would any of you call the pattern or do any of you know what Belknap called it? Also, reckon what the handles are made of?

Nice fishtail
The tang stamp window is approx 1940-1968 and that pattern goes back to the 1930s (at least.) I've heard it said that the Boker star was only in the '60s but I'm not sure if that's right. I think it may have started sometime in the '50s. Are you positive it's not bone? Boker was still making bone handles after Delrin was available and conversely was making plastic handles before Delrin. If that's plastic I don't know how you would tell what kind it is unless you're unlucky and it starts gassing.
One more thing - is it US made? I don't know how to tell that either. All US made Boker/Primbles have a star. This Boker/Primble has a star, therefore this is a US made Boker/Primble...But that might be flawed logic. Syllogism always ends with 'Socrates was a cat'. What I'm getting at is are you sure German made Boker/Primbles didn't get a star too? I'm on the road but I'll come back later and post some catalog cuts of the pattern through the years.

[jxr1197]

It seems I lied. I can not find the fishtail in the 1937 catalog. After that the earliest catalog I can check is 1950 and it is in there. It is also listed in the final year of that tang stamp, 1968;

1950 catalog - courtesy COSRUS

1955 catalog

1961catalog

1968 catalog