All About Pocket Knives

I wanted to start a new thread on vintage pocket knives that are handled with Genuine Mother Of Pearl.

These were some of the most expensive knives to buy back in the day.

Working with this substance is dangerous to your health and when the knives were being assembled it was easy to crack it. The workmen that hafted knives in Pearl were the highest paid! Too bad it ended their life prematurely

Most every pattern knife could be bought with MOP, at a higher price, therefore you see very few large knives with it as a handle material. The few examples like E. Toenails that have it command a very high price from collectors.

Lots of tiny, small, and medium sized pen knives come handled this way, I even have a 15/16" charm knife in MOP. It seems every small scrap of this material was used and not wasted.

Some of this pearl is what is called "Firey", meaning it has color. Some of this type is very attractive.

Here is a Boker MOP handle Office Knife, firey mother of pearl on the front and back side! It measures almost 4" closed, so these are big slabs.

If you have any vintage MOP handled knives, big or small, Let`s see `em

Here's a C. Lutters(sp?) Lion Brand

Here's another one of MB's knives..
A pretty little Union Cutlery he traded me out of a while back.


It has some AWESOME pearl on it.


Just hard to get a good picture of that stuff.
Here's an old S&M


Back scale is cracked


ANd a pretty little UNITED CUTLERY Co Germany whittler I got from MB quite a while back in a roundtable trade.


Got some more oldies but I need better pics.

Just picked up this little jewel today, a Case XX 8261 pattern.

Check out the secondary pen blade, yes it came this way from the factory!

TJ,

Nice one!


Willie,

I like that old Schatt, crack and all

Miller Bro`s wrote:TJ,

Nice one!


Willie,

I like that old Schatt, crack and all

Whatcha got to trade? You know what trips my trigger. LOL

This is one of my favs
Not quite as old as some of the others but 30 some years

Gerber Saki silver knight

Here's a few from my collection.Some are in relic condition and others near mint;I love them all.
First up is a really old multiblade marked,"A*Tyler Celebrated Cutlery" a little over 2" long.Some of the blades have tabs to assist in opening.
Second is a favorite:an Empire 2 blade with sterling silver bolsters and came in a nice chamois pouch.
Third is a 2 blade(Wharncliffe and coping)marked,"G&J Allen Superior Cutlery" with pique work and threaded bolsters on one end.Dates around 1840.
Fourth is an 8 bladed congress marked,"H.W.Mason &Co."Not in the greatest of shape but most unusual.
Fifth is a 4 bladed Krusius Brothers with button hook.
Sixth is a Needham Brothers with an ivory master blade;likely a fruit knife.
Seventh is a nice 4 blade Rodgers No.6 Norfolk St.
Eighth is a half congress by R.Bunting & Sons circa 1840.
Last is a 2 blade marked,"R.Thomson & Co."What is unusual is the length of the master blade;it barely fits in the handle.Not replaced as far as I can tell.

Gerber
Silver knight ( only 30 something years old)
but one of my favs

holler when you get tired of looking at my CATTARAUGUS knives. numbers on these are cattle knife 32183, congress whittler 32053, long bolster equal end 22793, equal end 22683, and tip bolstered whittler 32683.

here is another cattle knife number 32203, a tip bolstered whittler and a knife that jewelers used to stock and personalize with your name number 3093.

K7K,

Nice pearls


JKB,

I ain`t tired yet...........keep `em coming

Miller Bro`s wrote:K7K,

Nice pearls


JKB,

I ain`t tired yet...........keep `em coming

What he said!!

I'll third that;JKB those are some beautiful pearls!I could stay up all night looking at them!
Here's a few more to keep the thread going.:

First up is a Schrade lobster candle end with a black pearl scale on one side and regular pearl on the other from the factory.

Second is a Wahkonsa Cutlery Co.3 blade.Levine's guide(#3)lists the name but no information except a High rating.

Third is a W&G Vogel Cutlery Co.2 blade with a built in nail clipper.To access the clipper,there is a slide button that releases the spring loaded handle.

Fourth is three views of a W.H.Morley multi-blade knife with very fancy file work on the spine and file blade.

Last is a four blade marked,"Silver Steel" on one side and an owl's face on the other.I have no info on this knife at all but it looks old.

Goins doesn't have much to say about Wahkonsa Cutlery Co. either: c. 1928 - 1930

Dale

Here is a Swell-Center Balloon pen knife by New York Knife Co.

Some nice pearls posted here so far on this thread

JUST REMEMBERED THE WINCHESTER PEARLS. 2378, 2337, AND 3343 WHITTLER.

Here's two of mine. Both are advertisers, pre-prohibition I'd guess, and both are somewhere in the near mint to mint range, not counting the ink loss on the pearl. The Schlitz is a Wester Bros Germany and the Old Log Cabin/Golden Wedding is a PAL Brand, which Levine sez is a UK&R import brand from Germany or Czechoslovakia. I think the most interesting part of it is the bolsters, which I think are bakelite. Eric

ole_muddy wrote: think the most interesting part of it is the bolsters, which I think are bakelite. Eric

Eric,

I have a knife with those bolsters I think they are made of Rubber or possibly dyed Leather.

I know one thing they are soft if you test them with your fingernail

Check yours closer and let me know if they are soft

Thought I'd add a few more to the mix;this time in a smaller vein.All of the pennies in the pictures are actual size.Most of these are unmarked except for the Peres,the Hart Cutlery,and the Krause.

-


Here's an old Torrey I got awhile back, don't really collect them but just couldn't resist. I still am not sure if the engraving on the bolsters is original or added.

-

WoW!

Nice Torrey

If the bolsters are Aluminum, and I suspect they are, the engraving is original.

msteele6 wrote:-


Here's an old Torrey I got awhile back, don't really collect them but just couldn't resist. I still am not sure if the engraving on the bolsters is original or added.

That is the most beautiful pearl knife I have EVER seen!!! I would agree that the engraving is original to the knife and I would bet it was a VERY expensive piece in it's day.Judging by the condition it is in,whomever owned it treasured it.

In the interest of time and space:
Enlarge the photo twice.
You guys are showing some great knives in this thread. I love pearl handled knives.
Charlie N.

SHA - ZAMM!! Really nice Charlie. I'm kinda surprized there are any left.