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Kwakster's Collection

A Puma 853 Fisherman's knife (Anglermesser für Feinfischerei) most likely made in the '60's
Apart from a little spot here and there basically new & unused.







Specs:

Blade length: 7,0 cm
Overall length closed: 10,0 cm
Handle scales: blackfish silver celluloid
Weight: 60 grams
 
Here a Puma 915 Emperor which was built in 1984
The Emperor was the largest model in the Aristocrat series and it is indeed quite a handful.







Specs:

Length open: 25,1 cm
Length closed: 14,2 cm
Steel: Stainless Super Keen Cutting Steel
Blade length: 11,2 cm
Blade thickness: 3,0 mm
Weight: 220,0 gram
Handle material: Sambar Stag with brass bolsters
Locktype: Backlock
 
As a model the Buck 124 Frontiersman was manufactured from 1967 until 1997, my example (still without a year code) was made between 1982 and 1985.
Still new and complete with original box & papers.







Specs:

Overall length: 30,3 cm
Blade length: 17,0 cm
Blade thickness: 4,5 mm
Steel: 425M stainless
Handle material: Pakkawood (resin impregnated birchwood) with Duraluminium butt & guard
Weight: 353 grams
Sheath: black leather
 
A Puma 6127 Luxury Machete made in 1984:





A few close-ups:





Specs:

Overall length: 54,0 cm
Blade length: 40,0 cm
Blade thickness: 2,0 mm
Steel: Genuine Pumaster Steel, high gloss nickel
Handle material: Jacaranda wood
Weight: 390 gram
Sheath:Leather
 
Thank you for showing your indeed sweeping collection. My favorite is the R. Aubry which is a very fine Laguiole though unusual with Ironwood handle.

Regards
Abu
 
Herbertz lockback folder with clip-point blade, brass bolsters & wooden inlays.
Still new in original box.







Only the size is a bit awkward :)
From top to bottom: Herbertz lockback, Strider GB, Spyderco Military




From what i could find on the internets these knives were actually made in Japan for the German Herbertz brand by good Japanese craftsmen.
The knives were made in very small series to be sold as display models to dealers who carried the Herbertz brand, and the price in the '80's was about 275 Euro.
Although fit for the hand of a giant the knife is sharp & very well made, and without even a hint of play in the lock.

Specs:

Length open: 39,5 cm
Length closed: 22,3 cm
Blade length: 17,7 cm
Blade thickness: 5,2 mm
Steel: unknown stainless
Handle material: thick brass with wooden inlays.
Weight: 697 gram
 
The G96 brand was imported into the US throughout the '70's and '80's by the American Jet Aer Corporation based in Patterson, New Jersey.
Knives were "based" on existing models by brands like Buck and Rigid, and they were sold through ads in well known outdoor magazines as a cheaper alternative for their A-brand counterparts.
The knives themselves were made in Japan, but in contrast to their lower price level the steel quality was actually very good: quite a few users reported that the knives performed better than the originals.

This is my G96 Polaris 5000, a lockback folder, possibly inspired by the Buck 500 model.
The factory edge was reasonably sharp but quite uneven, so i put on a new 30 degrees inclusive edge with my Wicked Edge sharpener.
The steel is both hard & wear resistent, and even though the blade is hollow ground, it took about 2 hours to get an even and hairwhittling edge.











Specs:

Length open: 18,7 cm
Length closed: 10,9 cm
Blade length: 8,0 cm
Blade thickness: max 3,0 mm (ricasso)
Steel: unknown stainless (ATS34 ?)
Handle material: Pakkawood & nickelsilver bolsters on brass liners
Locktype: Lockback
Weight: 157 gram
 
A BenchMark Carolina Hunter from March 1982, complete with original box & papers
It's a well made hunting knife with nice details like the ergonomically shaped handle, a soldered guard and the wild duck shield on the back.
The brochure states that the handle material on this model was either cocobolo wood, stag, or black Micarta, but the box says that my knife has a handle made from mesquite wood.
The thick leather sheath looks & feels like a custom job, but it is original to the knife.











Specs:

Overall length: 21,8 cm
Handle material: Mesquite wood with soldered brass guard
Blade length: 10,1 cm
Blade thickness: 4,8 mm
Steel: 440C stainless
Weight: 165 grams
Sheath: Leather
 
A Puma 6394 Hunter's Companion from 1977.
The knife is basically new, but had a few light sharpening marks on the edge from a previous owner.
I restored it to a hairshaving semi-polish with the help of my Paper Wheels, which also helps to guard the edge from corrosion as it is still a carbon steel underneath that hard chrome top layer.











Specs:

Overall length: 22,6 cm
Blade length: 11,8 cm
Blade thickness: 4,9 mm (ricasso)
Steel: Genuine Pumaster Steel (forged & hard chromed carbon steel)
Hardness: 61 HRC
Handle material: Sambar Stag with aluminium guard
Weight: 151,0 gram
Sheath: Leather
 
A Puma 6317 Fahrtenmesser (Scout or travelling knife)
The knife is still in excellent condition, be it that there are a few shallow scratches on the blade from the 2 metal clamping springs inside the leather sheath, which itself is sadly missing it's belt loop.



I gave the knife a new semi-polished edge on the Paper Wheels as it was completely blunt when i received it.
Nice details are the silver monogram shield inlayed in the thick stag, and the message on the reverse side of the blade which reads: " Rostfrei - schneidet sehr gut", which translates to " Stainless - cuts very well".









Specs:

Overall length: 24,3 cm
Blade length: 13,5 cm
Blade thickness: 2,6 mm
Steel: unknown stainless steel
Handle material: Sambar Stag with silver monogram shield.
Sheath: Leather with metal clamping springs
 
A Gerber A400 Hunter from the beginning of the '80's, when the company was still making quality stuff.
The blade of this knife is manufactured from hard chromed M2 high speed steel, while the handle is cast-on solid aluminum with a grippy Armorhide coating.
In it's day quite a few users of these knives reported difficulties in sharpening them since the steel is quite hard and very wear resistant, and diamond sharpeners weren't readily available yet.
I've reprofiled & sharpened mine to a crisp edge using the diamond stones on my Wicked Edge sharpener, and it turned out to be an extremely good allround user with very good edge holding capabilities.
It was the main knife i carried during our Australia trip in 2011, and it was used from whittling sticks to kitchen duty.









Text from an old Gerber brochure:

"These deluxe hunting knives with new, handsome blade designs, are hand-crafted from an exclusive high speed tool steel - hard enough to cut other steel!
Having a super-hardness of Rockwell C60-62, each blade is ground to a straight, double wedge shape for razor sharpness and extra strength to withstand the roughest use.
A special hard chrome plating keeps these blades permanently bright and stainless.
The solid aluminum alloy handles are cast directly onto the notched tang of the blade.
Armorhide, a ground thermosetting vinyl material, is then permanently fused to the handle to create a non-slip firm gripping surface, even when hands are wet or slippery."

Steel: M2 Tool steel
Handle: Cast on aluminum with "Armorhide" (a baked on electro deposited powdered epoxy coating)

Specs:

Overall length: 21,5 cm
Blade length: 10,0 cm
Blade thickness: 2,65 mm
Steel: M2
Hardness: 60-62 HRC
Handle material: cast-on solid aluminum
Weight: 113 gram
Sheath: Leather
 
A SOG 1 Bowie, in my opinion the most beautiful as well as the most high quality knife that ever was offered to the public by SOG.
Notice i didn't say manufactured, because according to Mike Stewart (owner of Bark River Knives) these knives were actually made by Hattori in Japan.











Information from http://www.sogknivescollectors.com

The S1 Bowie is the flagship model of SOG Specialty Knives Inc, the first knife design to roll off their production line.
It is modelled after the exact knife that the brave men of MACVSOG used while in Vietnam for covert recon operations.
This knife is gun-blued to a shiny hue; making it a very pretty knife indeed.
Many praise it for its beautiful gun-bluing and the use of high quality SK-5 steel, and is considered to be one of the more collectible Seki Japan SOG Knives.
The S1 Bowie is commonly known by some as the "5th Special Forces knife", but it was actually called the "SOG Bowie" by SOG.

Engraved on the left front of the blade near the cross-guard is the old "square SOG logo", while on the other side of the knife just directly above the guard reads "Seki Japan".
In front of that engraving is the "MACVSOG" Special Forces logo, and further down the blade in the middle of the knife reads "Vietnam 5th Special Forces Group".
The knife features a leather handle and a classic 'faceted tip', that is the signature feature of the current SOG Bowie knives made today.
Most of the current SOG knives follow the form/design of the S1 Bowie.
The modern versions which use different materials include the S1T, Super SOG Bowie and SOG Bowie 2.0.

Specs:

Overall length: 28,0 cm
Blade length: 16,1 cm
Steel: SK-5 tool steel
Hardness: 57-58 HRC
Blade finish: deep hot blued
Blade thickness: max 7,0 mm (at the ricasso)
Handle material: leather washers with steel guard & pommel
Weight: 340 gram
Sheath: Leather with sharpening stone in pouch
 
Anton Wingen Jr./ Othello Scout knife from the late '60's early '70's, with a stag handle and a highly polished carbon steel blade.
It has a bit of light peppering near the point on one side, which doesn't show up in the pics.
The quality of these knives is imo comparable to Puma knives of the same era & style.











Specs:

Overall length: 28,0 cm
Blade length: 15,6 cm
Steel: polished carbon steel
Weight: 328 grams
Blade thickness: max 6,0 mm
Handle material: Stag with nickel silver guard and aluminium pommel
Made in Solingen, Germany
 
Vintage Puma 3588 Waidblatt from 1982 (serial number: 27282) in mint condition & complete with unused leather sheath & papers in wooden box.









Specs:

Overall length: 33,2 cm
Blade length: 21,7 cm
Blade thickness: 7,5 mm on the ricasso & 8,0 mm at the Rockwell indentation
Steel: carbon steel
Handle material: Sambar Stag with inlayed silver monogram shield, nickelsilver guard & pommel
Weight: 582 grams
Sheath: Leather
 
One of my latest acquisitions, a Gerber Magnum from around 1965
5 1/2" x .100 heavy duty blade (M2 high speed tool steel)



This is the knife that Gerber called Lamb Handled Hunter from the late 1950s until 1965, and then called Mg = Magnum Hunter until it was discontinued in 1969.
This handle shape, first used by Gerber on the Abercrombie & Fitch Hunter in September 1947, was patented by Thomas Lamb of New York City in December 1945 No. 2,390,544 and licensed to Gerber.



Gerber licensed Lamb's 1945 utility patent (most of his later patents were design patents) to make the Abercrombie & Fitch Hunter, and these were made from Sept 1947 to April 1953.
They have unplated aluminum handles, and are usually marked for A&F.

A modified version of this with plated handle was introduced in the late 1950s (dunno the exact date), called Lamb Handled Hunter.
Its name was changed to Big Hunter in 1959, and its name was changed again, to Magnum, in 1965.

(Source: Bernard Levine)



The first Magnum models were made with bright chrome handles and later coated with a “Steel Grip” finish (that was sprayed stainless steel) and then “Armorhide” coated (sprayed Teflon) and finally coated with black powder-coating (epoxy powder that is heated to bond it in place).
Some of the first knives had M-2 tool steel blades and later they were changed to 440C.
Both are great hunting knives and if they are in good condition they are becoming collectable.
The handles on all of these knives in die-cast aluminum that is cast onto the blade and then finished to shape and coated with one of the above processes.
This makes a virtually indestructible knife.

(Source: Doug Hutchens, Gerber production manager)

Like Charles and Ray Eames, Lamb noted the inadequacy of the crutches used by wounded and disabled veterans.
Initially focusing on the armrest, Lamb quickly noted that the hand bore the main burden, and began to experiment with ways to redistribute the pressure and make the crutches easier to handle.
After extensive study anatomical and medical textbooks he developed his Lamb Lim Rest crutch.



Becoming the "Handle Man"

Lamb applied the patents developed in designing the Lim Rest to cookware, cutlery, surgical tools, luggage, sports equipment, and industrial equipment.
His designs culminated in his unique "Wedge-Lock" and "Universal" handles, and were a major influence on the Universal Design movement.
By the late 1940s Thomas Lamb was known as the "Handle Man".
In 1948 his work was featured at the Museum of Modern Art during the period when the design establishment were focused on Bauhaus-inspired functionality.
This publicity led to contracts to produce a line of cutlery for Cutco and cookware for Wear-Ever.

Thomas Lamb died on February 2, 1988 at ninety-one years of age.

(Source: Wikipedia)

Gerber Legendary Outdoor Blades made from the steel that cuts other steel

" Imagine owning a blade as hard as a file, yet tough and springy !
Impossible in any cutlery steel - possible only in the kind of high alloy tool steel, which only Gerber is extravagant enough to use for knives.
Besides costing three times as much as any cutlery steel, it costs a lot more to make into a knife.
But it pays in the long run. It outlasts the user.
And all the time you own it you can be cutting with a sharper edge.
It's the knife you want on any outdoor adventure.
Complete with cowhide belt scabbard and unconditional guarantee."

 
1st generation Microtech/Lightfoot L.C.C. Manual Action, made in December 2000.
While this is a production model, the build quality is comparable to a good custom knife.
Details are a precision ground pivot bushing with a "spring washer" around it which smoothens opening & closing action, a half round cutout in the blade tang where it touches the bladestop, and a ceramic ball detent.







Specs:

Length open: 21,0 cm
Length closed: 11,9 cm
Blade length: 9,0 cm
Blade thickness: 3,77 mm
Steel: 154CM
Hardness: 60 HRC
Handle material: Titanium bolsters/liners & carbon fiber
Locktype: linerlock (1,6 mm thick)
Weight: 168 gram
 
Microtech Socom Elite clip-point Manual Action from June 2000
Details are the precision ground pivot bushing, a thick linerlock called a Microbar, and a ceramic ball detent.







Specs:

Length open: 23,0 cm
Length closed: 13,0 cm
Blade length: 10,0 cm
Blade thickness: 4,45 mm
Steel: 154CM
Hardness: 60 HRC
Blade finish: Stonewash
Handle material: Hard anodized aluminum with Kraton inlays.
Locktype: Microbar (3,0 mm thickness)
Weight: 129,0 grams
 
Microtech Ultratech DE in satin finish from January 2004, still with steel inside parts instead of aluminium which is used today.







Specs:

Steel: 154CM
Hardness: 60HRC
Blade length: 8,2 cm
Blade finish: Satin
Handle thickness: 11,0 mm
Handle width: max 23,0 mm
Handle material: Mil-Spec Type III hard anodized 6061-T6 aluminium
Length closed: 11,7 cm
Length open: 20,3 cm
Pocketclip: 301 stainless
Slider button: 303 stainless
With nylon belt sheath
 
Microtech HALO 2.3 from December 2006
Hybrid single action out-the-front knife with blade from a HALO 2 & handle from a HALO 3













Specs:

Single Action OTF
Action: Continuous propulsion compression spring
Steel: S30V stainless
Hardness: 58-59 HRC
Blade length: 10,2 cm
Blade thickness: 3,9 mm
Handle thickness: 11,0 mm
Handle width: max 2,6 cm
Handle material: Mil-Spec Type III hard anodized 6061-T6 aluminium
Length closed: 13,7 cm
Length open: 23,7 cm
Weight: 96,0 gram
 
Vintage Othello (Anton Wingen Jr.) 4375 dagger from the early '80's, complete with leather sheath with steel beltclip on the reverse.
The thick blade with ovalized ricasso is most likely made from drop-forged 440C steel, a process that Anton Wingen Jr. used to be famous for in it's day.
Handle is polished Micarta with brass guard & pommel.
Imo a good example of the quality that came out of Solingen only a few decades ago.











Specs:

Overall length: 24,4 cm
Blade length: 12,8 cm
Blade thickness: 6,6 mm (ricasso)
Steel: drop-forged 440C stainless
Handle material: Brown linen Micarta with brass guard & pommel
Sheath: Brown leather with steel belt clip
 
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