All About Pocket Knives

Hello everyone. I have been lurking for a few days, and am really impressed with the site. I have loved pocket knives since I was 5 and have recently gotten bit by the collecting bug. I only have 5 knives now, and all of them are carry knives. I am looking to getting into collecting a bit more both for carry knives and display queens. I have a few questions.

First I know mint knives with boxes seem to be the standard of course for collectors. I also like trolling around flea markets for older knives, or carry knives. If I find an older knive that is dirty should I clean it up or leave it as is? Are used knives worth much? What kind of price is fair for a decent carry knive? Say you find a random Case stockman that costs $45 new, and it has some scratches and normal wear. What is it worth?

I like Case knives a lot. Is there any newer ones that are particularly collectible? I have seen the limited editions and such. I would assume those would gain more value than a run of the mill one would. Is this correct? I am not neccesarily wanting to collect just for value. My liking of a particular knive is paramount, but value is a concern of course.

Oh yeah my current carry knives consist of a large Hen and Rooster lockback, a black Sodbuster, a Swiss Army Hunter, a small 3 blade stockman, and a blueish Russlock. I got everything but the Hen and Rooster at pawn shops and flea markets.

One last question. If I polish up the bolsters on the Hen and Rooster, and put it back in the box can it be considered mint? The blade has never been touched, and there are no scratches on it.

Thanks a lot for your help. I look forward to talking with you guys a lot in the future.

Hello & welcome. This is a great place to learn as we have some very knowledgeable members here. That was a lot of questions so I'll tackle a couple.

In general knife collectors prefer older knives to be left alone, uncleaned. Cleaning will reduce value for old knives. "Old" is somewhat subjective though. If I acquire a knife that is 10-20 years old I may clean it up. If the knife is 50 years or older it is probably best to give it a gentle clean/lube and leave it at that. It also depends on whether you intend to use the knife or just put it up.

Every collector has their own preference. Some collect new knives & keep them for pretty. Others prefer an older used knife for its character. I'm somewhere in between, but I lean toward users. Collect what you like.

Browsing ebay is a good way to get an idea of relative prices for knives. There is also a Case price guide here- check the menus above. Check your library for books too. Last, IMO if a knife has been out of the box & carried it is no longer "mint"- perhaps minty or like new. That's just my $.02.

Nick

nick is correct, a knife cannot be made mint. mint, no matter how old the knife, is as fresh from the factory. period

Hi Chrisb. Warm welcome to the site. I'm glad you decide to join us. You raise lots of interesting questions. Many of my knives are older so the box (if there ever was one) is long gone. I like to give them a gentle clean. This means removing any active looking rust, wiping off dirt and grime, gently cleaning the handles as lots of crud gets into the jigged pattern etc. My essential cleaning tools are a wooden toothpick, cotton swap (q-tip) and an old soft-bristled toothbrush. I don't polish the older ones. I like the patina on the blade/springs. I do use a little renwax. If you're buying new knives then I think the resale value will be enhanced if you have the original box, papers etc. On a nearly new knife I may use a little Flitz polish to remove some minor blemishes. That's my approach anyway. Best wishes s-k

Thanks for the info guys!

The hobby or addiction of collecting cutlery and related items is subjective, collect what you like and what you want to learn about (in collecting anything you will learn a lot). As smiling-knife stated boxes are a source of collecting as much as knives are just ask PA-boxes…I mean PA-knives. Some boxes are as rare as the knives they once held. A lot of the older manufacturers shipped knives in boxes of 6 or 12 and many times without individual boxes so once all of the knives were sold the empty box was discarded so as you can imagine some knife boxes can be pretty rare.(I won’t mention someone’s Kane box I want or someone else’s Chaplin) Mint knives, a knife can not be made to be mint either they are or they aren’t like a car either it is factory mint or it is restored, but they can be cleaned up to a point, mint knives are usually newer. As far as cleaning older knives a good hand polishing (to me) is acceptable but I don’t care for a total buffing(you loose something when you do that. And sometimes you need to do a little light cleaning to find out what you have. I came across a plats that I had to hand clean to really see what I had and it didn’t hurt it in any way (my opinion). Collect what you like and do it for the fun of it if not then it is an investment, and in any investment be prepared to loose money or make money. Don’t necessarily buy something because of the cash value buy it because you like it and you will do just fine. It all takes time. If you find an old PA related knife BOX let me know.

Hello, you asked about used knives, they can be very valuable first buy some books and study them. Who knows you might find a 500.00 Remington made in the 20's and pass it up without the knowledge of what it is worth. Study have fun buy what makes you happy.

Stockman

chrisb ; ("One last question. If I polish up the bolsters on the Hen and Rooster, and put it back in the box can it be considered mint? The blade has never been touched, and there are no scratches on it.")

I think if you just use REN-WAX to clean and PROTECT. I fell the word MINT still applies. But you see others might not.
If you use any polishing stuff then I fell you polish off the MINT.

As far as VALUE? You must mean $$$$
A polished knife looks super. I just love pretty girls my self.
A super good looking knife (as you see many here) Have HIGH value I fell because you can't buy one from the collector to offend here.
Value is $$$ and only the last one sole for the day tell you the $$$
Next day it might be less too.
I see this happen many times on E BAY

I hope this helps. All the post here is very much trying to help you with YOU having recently gotten bit by the collecting bug.

IMO, No, a knife that has polished bolsters is not mint. If I receive a knife that is advertised as mint, and it is not, I will demand my money back including shipping. I've gotten pretty familiar with the complaint system at ebay and I use it. I'm not afraid of a negative feedback and I'm not afraid to give one, though it must have been 2 years or so since I did.

Polishing by ren wax, I would think is still mint. I was thinking of a buffer polishing a bolster when I first answered.