All About Pocket Knives

So this is where stuff like this goes.

I grabbed this picture off eBay and blew it up in hopes someone will recognize the knife or can read the tang stamp. Saber ground blades on a shell knife??? WTH! I've never seen one like this but I'm sure some of the more experienced members have.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Two-Blade-Foldi ... 19fb070883

Take a shot. There's no penalty for being wrong. (and no prize for being right)

The Ideal knife co.

ditto

I've seen them but can't recall specific makers and models. I think one of them was the company who made the shell handle knives which were only stamped U.S.A. or Made in USA. They made you think Colonial but were made by some other Co. I'm thinking The Ideal Knife Co. for some reason. Then there is that knife stamped simply Providence R.I. which I always assumed were made by Colonial. Now that I'm thinking about it I'm starting to think I remember some knives with blades ground like that by both Imperial and Colonial and some I thought were made by one of the 3 knife Co.'s mentioned but having Hardware Co's names on the tang. The Ideal keeps coming to mind… Hmmm I guess I didn't really help much did I? lol Oh yeah, Both Richardz of England and Germany would use blades ground like these in shell handled knives unless I've lost what was left of my memory… ummm… By me

Photo from Ebay..........

Thar She Is Yep Yep

Only saber ground on one side most likely, no grind at all on the pile side. I think I have a scout/utility with that same spear blade and that's the way it's done.

WB

Yes sir. Mr.WB is right and you better sharpen it gently on a stone that's not too course. I used a wheel coated with silicon carbide to sharpen one of these one time and one time only. Is that even a blade grind on those blades or did they stamp it into that shape? seriously… One pass on the wheel reminded me of the 4th of July so I decided I had better quit, went ahead and quickly made a pass on the other side to even it up lol I went ahead and just tossed it doubting that it would ever take an edge and hold an edge ever again if it ever really could in the first place. No biggie, I think it was falling apart anyway...

Thanks folks. I appreciate your input.

Re Jerry's original posting, this new guy has a question: What's a "shell knife"? The only times I've seen that term is for those knives made to look like shotgun shells or for knives with sea shell or tortoise shell handles. What makes Jerry's knife a shell knife?

Dennis

Shell knives are handles that are clipped on by the bolsters.....you can see a little folding tag on each end....that's a "shell" knife. Imperial and Colonial were FAMOUS for them, especially Imperial....and IDEAL.

Here's one:

I'm sorry TripleF I guess I'm dense. What does "clipped on by the bolsters" mean? Do you mean the handles are held on by the bolsters? And where are these tags? I don't see anything that looks like a tag to me.

Please try the explanation one more time... use simple words for a simple guy. Thanks.

Just for the record, I was gonna say Ideal or Colonial.

Shell knife handles are stamped out of sheet metal, most times the handle and bolster are all one piece covering the knife like the shell on a turtle. Sometimes refered to as clam shell handles, they are then held on to the frame of the knife by tabs at each end which are bent back under the knife frame to hold them on. Note the inset in the picture below. If you look closely, you can just barely see the tabs.

Click on the picture twice to expand it to 100%.

Thank you Jerry! I just went to my collection and found an inexpensive Richards Sheffield England knife that has the shell construction. Indeed I can see the tabs and now understand how they are assembled.

So much to learn... damn I love this place!

Dennis

Dennis, that "inexpensive Richards Sheffield England knife" is a perfect example. Plus I just love that Richards lamppost tang stamp.