All About Pocket Knives

Strawberry bone Barlow and a Daddy barlow.

Nice knives.
Sure like the round bolster on the little knife and really like Robeson's good looking stamp on the larger knife too.

Thanks Joe, I really like the stamp on the Robeson Barlows too.

Most of Robeson's 3 3/8" Barlows had that rounded bolster and can properly be referred to as sleeveboard patterns. The large Barlows all had the squared bolsters.

They did make some 3 3/8" Barlows with a squared bolster and even early on had their "RCC" logo on them. Those are really quite rare. Even the squared ones without the logo are not common.

I may have some photos I took from Ebay to illustrate some of that.

I have sold almost all my Robeson Barlows, so any photos I have of those, I really do not feel I should use, since the knives no longer belong to me.

I'll have to change computers to find the Ebay photos.

Charlie

Here is a Robeson Barlow with squared bolsters and the "RCC" logo on the bolsters.

The jigged and worm grooved bone on this knife is very similar to that on my Terrier Barlow with its "TCC" bolster logo, shown below.

The knife sold on Ebay a few months ago. I hope I'm not showing a knife that belongs to someone here.

This knife and my Terrier are the only two Robeson Barlows I've ever seen with this jigged bone. I suspect they date from the same period, 1910 - 1916.

Actually, Tom Kalcevic, in Knives Can Talk!, dates that ROBESON / CUTLERY / ROCHESTER stamp 1917 - 1939, and suggests they were made in a second factory that Robeson opened in Mount Morris, New York, to ease the burden on the Perry factory during WWI.

Charlie Noyes

RobesonsRme.com wrote:Here is a Robeson Barlow with squared bolsters and the "RCC" logo on the bolsters.

The jigged and worm grooved bone on this knife is very similar to that on my Terrier Barlow with its "TCC" bolster logo, shown below.

The knife sold on Ebay a few months ago. I hope I'm not showing a knife that belongs to someone here.

This knife and my Terrier are the only two Robeson Barlows I've ever seen with this jigged bone. I suspect they date from the same period, 1910 - 1916.

Your showing the knife that a lot of us wished belonged to us.

Robeson and Terrier sure made some beautiful barlows!! Very nice gentlemen!

Great looking Barlows, Charlie.

Found another set of photos I had grabbed off Ebay.

Kalcevic dates that stamp to 1900 - 1916.

Charlie Noyes

"Your showing the knife that a lot of us wished belonged to us. "

Yeah, that Terrier is really something, isn't it?

I think if I was forced to weed my collection down to just one knife, that would be it.

Charlie

I'm with you on that Charlie.
The Terrier is beautiful.

I am late checking in on this thread and Charlie’s Barlows but I got to say like everybody has commented that that stylistic bolster TCC Barlow is stunning and would be an exceptional prize in any serious vintage knife collection It has everything going for it!

As I've said before and maybe it's because I love the movie Life With Father, with William Powell and Irene Dunn, but that Terrier logo looks like a Victorian gentleman's face with pince nez glasses and dainty mustache.

Charlie

Strawberry bone

Strawberry delrin

2 more

I didn't mean to hi-jack David's post. I was trying to point out the rarity of square bolstered Robeson made Barlow knives.

He is showing some nice ones and I'm glad the thread is back on topic.

Charlie

No worries Charlie.
Hi-jack away. I always look forward to your post on the Terriers and Robesons.
I don't think anyone knows more than you on this subject.
The more you post the more I learn.

Well hope this isn’t a stupid question but having trouble with barlows. All seem to have the first number in pattern a 5 . Which is either saw cut bone or saw cut delrin yet the strawberry bone like the one David shows looks smooth and not saw cut so why isn’t the first number a 6 ? Did they use some fine saw blade so it is still considered saw cut. And are some delrin smooth as well ? Thanks Kevin

I'm sure someone here will answer your question, Kevin.

Here are two of my Barlows. Both are Delrin covers.

Kevin11b wrote: ↑Sun Feb 28, 2021 1:52 am Well hope this isn’t a stupid question but having trouble with barlows. All seem to have the first number in pattern a 5 . Which is either saw cut bone or saw cut delrin yet the strawberry bone like the one David shows looks smooth and not saw cut so why isn’t the first number a 6 ? Did they use some fine saw blade so it is still considered saw cut. And are some delrin smooth as well ? Thanks Kevin

The ones I posted are sawcut. The saw marks are faint probably from pocket wear and dont show in the pictures.
Charlie Noyes may have more information.

FRJ wrote: ↑Sun Feb 28, 2021 3:24 pm I'm sure someone here will answer your question, Kevin.

Here are two of my Barlows. Both are Delrin covers.

May not be bone, but still beautiful barlows.

Definitely nice looking knives and one has the square bolsters that Charlie discussed. Maybe the answer to my question is just what you said they are all saw cut; just a combo of wear and photo not showing it. Wondered since I have never seen one personally thanks

Never seen this thread before. Great looking Barlows though! Glad I stumbled upon it!

I can actually answer that question.

For some reason that has been lost, Robeson chose to start the pattern numbers on their Barlow patterns with a 5.

“5” usually meant genuine stag.

I had a couple of ivoroid handled Barlows. I’ve sold them, so I’ll have to check my database to see if their pattern numbers started with a 5 or an 8.

Suffice it to say the 5 has nothing to do with the handle material on a Robeson Barlow pattern jack.

Charlie