All About Pocket Knives

WHat would be your book recommendations for a new collector?

GA1dad, There are many, many different books on knives out there but the one that is the most important to me is "Goins' Encyclopedia of cutlery markings". This will help you identify just about any knife you come across and this you will find is very important and interesting in knife collecting. JMO. gino

gino wrote:GA1dad, There are many, many different books on knives out there but the one that is the most important to me is "Goins' Encyclopedia of cutlery markings". This will help you identify just about any knife you come across and this you will find is very important and interseting in knife collecting. JMO. gino

Also, Oficial Price Guide to Collector Knives - Fifteenth Edition by C. Houston Price and Mark D. Zalesky. This one not only deals with the makers marks but also has great everything else. Here is a scan of the table of contents:

I have many knife books, but Brucve Voyles Guide to Antique Knives is the one I use the most.

"Collecting Case Knives" by Steve Pfeiffer
Mark

If your going to collect older / specific brands, try The Official Price Guide to Collectors Knives - Parker & Voyles.

I snagged a 1983 Edition simply because it has a real comprehensive Ka-Bar section. Sometimes you'll only find certain patterns in the older books. The price guide is irrelevant, but the reference is great.

that 1984 Parker & Voyles small size book has great reference on stuff that was made, of course the pricing is obsolete, but if you want to see what was made of certain brands it's what you need. James Buzz Parker has them up on silverladdie on Ebay sometimes.

In addition to the books already mentioned.....I would recommend Levines Guide to knives And Their Values, either 3rd or 4th edition (not 5th).

Paul

if its case,remington, queen,or primble sargents price guide has alot of info also.

I would also highly recommend Levine's 4th.(if you can find one), and Steves book.

Griz

You can't have too many. You really need all of the ones they have mentioned. Most of us have several books. I also like Parkers Pocketknife Trader's Price guide. There are nine different volumes. Most have Bulldog values as well as Case. Perry Miller and Tony Foster helped with the Case Values in the later editions. I would say if you decide which brand you want to concentrate on, start with a book that covers the brand. There are a lot of them out there. Of course, nothing replaces experience.

I have a small library of knife books, about 60 volumes and growing as I find books that intrest me.

The two books I use most are “Goins Encyclopedia of Cutlery Markings,” & “Levine’s Guide to Knives And Their Values”, vol. 4. I use them more than all the others combined.

Other books I find useful:
“Knife Repair & Restoration” by Adrian Harris.
“The Complete Book of Pocketknife Repair” by Ben Kelly.
“The Collector’s Guide to Switchblade Knives” by Richard Langston (lt632ret on AAPK).
“The Best of U.S. Military Knives” by M.H. Cole.
“Pocket Knives of the U.S. Military” by Michael Silvey.
“The American Guide to Pocket Knives & Razors” by Jim Sargent, especially vol. 1 & 2 which cover Schrade Walden & Schrade.
“The Knife Makers Who Went West” by Harvey Platts; The story of Western Knife Company.
“The Old Knife Book” by Tracy Tudor (1978).
“The Knife Collector’s Handbook” by Revis C. Ferguson.
“Official Price Guide to Collector Knives” by C. Huston Price (14th edition).

While there are many books I refer to from time to time, these are the ones I have referred to most recently or on a regular basis.

While books are important for the purpose of referring to company history and knife pattern info, I believe it is important to subscribe to good magazines that cover the types of knives you are interested in.
The magazines I use mostly are Knife World, OKCA Knewsletter (the newsletter of the Oregon Knife Collectors Association) and Blade Magazine.

I don't have a lot of use for price guides. Since the advent of eBay it seems prices change too fast for the price guides to be useful for the more common knives. However, I do like the info on knife companies included in some guides like those by Jim Sargent and C. Huston Price. I tend to avid books that deal mainly with Case knives as I do not collect Case.

Knife books can become a sub-collection associated with your knife collecting.
They can be as much fun as the knives you collect, and they certainly add meaning and value to your knives.

Dale

bump for gary