All About Pocket Knives

Today at work ,I found anold Oldtimer stockman. It is 4" long. It has a brown sawcut handle and the ends by the bolsters are white. I'm not sure if it came like that or is just pocketworn. The blades are in good shape. It needs some cleaning so I'm going to soak the blades in oil for a couple of days to try and remove what little rust it has. The tang stamp has Shrade, N.Y.USA,and the number 907. Could someone fill me in on perhaps the age and a little history about it, and maybe it's value
Also I think the blades are carbon steel but I'm not sure

Hi, that is probably 8OT, not 9O7. The numbers are easily mistaken. The ends are probably bleached out, they do that after many years, even if kept well. Most likely carbon blades if they have rust.

Thanks muskrat man, Here's a pic

Here is a pic of the tang stamp

at closer inspection I think it is 80T on the tang stamp

yep, it's an 8OT, a common mistake. The mainblade has been tipped at one time and reshaped. looks like a great user tho

What year or years did Schrade make knives in New York?

richied wrote:What year or years did Schrade make knives in New York?

From 1904 to 2004. They were never located outside of NY.

The white stuff may indeed be sun bleaching as MM suggests. Or is it a white deposit that you can scrape off with your finger nails?

I have seen this Old Timers before. There is really no easy way I know of to remove it, except to scrape it off (I have found that my finger nails work the best). If it is really deep into the Delrin (plastic) you will see grooves in the plastic where you have scraped it.

I have seen this as white and even one that looked blue. I don't know if it is deterioration of the plastic or an outside agent that causes this. I had some plastic items stored in a damp room of an old farm house I lived in many years ago. Some types of plastic items stored there seemed to develop a whitish deposit on them & it softened the surface of the plastic. I assumed it was a type of mold.

It seems to soften the surface of the plastic and can be scraped off. If the grooving from the scraping is deep, you can smooth them out with 600-800 grit sandpaper. Use it lightly. You can also progress to finer paper, to get it smoother.
Resist the temptation to put it on a buffer. You will melt the Delrin!
After you have it cleaned, rub the handles with Renaissance Wax.
It is expensive but seems to stop the deterioration process. You can get Ren Wax at K & G Supply: http://www.knifeandgun.com/

I hope this helps,
Dale

I believe the 8ot was first made in the early 70's, 72 or 73. I guess it would be hard to date it any closer than from then to 2004? Is that correct Dale?

Right Bill.

With the Schrade tang stamp they were made from 1973 through 2004.
I do have one 8OT with the Schrade Walden tang stamp, which predates 1973.

It is pretty hard to date a Schrade Old Timer, especially one that was made for all 31 years that they used the Schrade tang stamp, unless you have the box they came in, or if they made some changes in the design of the knife. Like changing from 4 pins to 3 pins in the case of the LB7.
The 8OT was one of those enduring models that they made for many years before 1973, when they changed the tang stamp to Schrade. I am not aware of any changes in the 8OT after 1973, though there could have been some minor ones.

Robert Clemente says they were first produced in 1959 & came onto the market in 1960. An amazing 45 year history! A very popular knife indeed and very enduring pattern!

Dale

Thanks for the info guys.You've answered my questions.,and thanks Orvet for the cleaning info. Like I said I'm new to collecting and am learning something new every day. I've said it before but you guys really know your knives. Thanks

richied wrote:Thanks for the info guys.You've answered my questions.,and thanks Orvet for the cleaning info. Like I said I'm new to collecting and am learning something new every day. I've said it before but you guys really know your knives. Thanks

Richied,
The strength of this forum is not that one person knows everything, but that we all know a little & are willing to share it.
It won't be long before you will be sharing things you have had experience with.

Welcome aboard!
Dale

Heyeverybody, The local mom and pop hardware store here in town still has a supply of MADE IN USA Old Timers. Think I'll pick up a stockman (or two)

useem where is this store.
Will you buy some for me too. Like folding hunters.???
Any Shrade they have that sold for $45.00 and UP I WILL BUY from them.
See what they have and put them on LAW-A-WAY for me please.

justold52, Will do buddy. Store is in Calipatria, California. (Nice and HOT here. About 102 today.)