Robuck - Gun Traders Guide to Collectible Knives: A Comprehensive, Fully Illustrated Reference with Current Market Values

Copyright 2014 by Mike Robuck

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file.

Cover design by Owen Corrigan

Cover photo credit Mike Robuck and Thinkstock

ISBN: 978-1-62914-183-1

Ebook ISBN: 978-1-62914-320-0

Printed in China

CONTENTS

To my wife, Debbie, who is from the East Coast and did not grow up around knives. To her, passionately pursuing knives was probably akin to someone starting a wood screw collection, but she has endured.

Introduction

M y interest in knife collecting was piqued by a knife show that aired on Friday nights many years ago. Being married, I had plenty of time to delve into the outer realm of cable TV land, which is where I came across the self-proclaimed hoppin mad hillbilly knife show and his killer car crusher knife deals of the day. (Which is not to be confused with the tactical knife shows that featured more than 300 knives for $14.99 plus shipping, although it might be worth your while to search knife show katana accident on YouTube.)

While the knives on that show werent exactly top-shelf, they did trigger my memories of the traditional pocketknives I grew up with and carried. From there, I started buying knives off of eBay.

I tried to improve my chances on eBay by having two Internet browsers open at the same time on a dial-up connection in an attempt to bid on a knife auction faster than the competition. Cursing, gnashing of the teeth, pounding on the keyboard, pulling out what was left of my hair, and the occasional war-whoop of victory often followed the close of each auction.

I didnt know the difference between a knife that was made that year or thirty years ago, but that didnt stop me from bidding in the beginning.

After another frenzied round of bidding on eBay for what I thought was a rare and high-quality knife, I would often see the same knife sell for less a few days later.

Aside from the adrenaline surge of bidding on eBay, knife collecting also made me into a postal junkie of sorts as I waited on the postal worker to bring me a knife package.

After ripping open the package, more often than not I would be disappointed to receive a knife that didnt look anything like the one I bid on or came with an assortment of problems, including loose blades, cracked handles, and flat-out counterfeits.

I needed to up my game if I was going to keep collecting knives, so I started looking for local knife shows.

After months of corresponding with fellow knife enthusiasts through email and on Internet forums, I finally attended my first knife show, which was actually collocated in a much larger gun show at a Holiday Inn outside of Denver.

I was particularly looking forward to meeting an online buddy who had a friend selling traditional knives at the show. The knife dealer looked like an accountant by day except for the orange Harley-Davidson bandana on his head.

My friend, several other new enthusiasts, and I proceeded to pull out our knives in front of the dealers booth prior to gossiping about them. At some point, we started setting them down on his table next to the knives he had for sale. After realizing that we were slowing draining the oxygen from in front of his booth, the Harley accountant scooped up our knives and put them underneath his table while we were giddily examining someone elses knife.

We had to ask for our knives back; then we were asked to move along if we werent going to buy anything.

The long-winded point is that I had no clue what I was doing when I first started collecting knives.

There are several good knife books that are already in print, but one of my goals with this book is to impart the tips, lessons learned, and common sense that others took the time to teach me. If ignorance is truly bliss, I should have been a lot happier in the early days of my knife collecting, but mostly I just felt like a rube. Hopefully this book will be of value to new collectors and contain a few new kernels of information for those who have been at it for a while.

Mike Robuck

Grand Junction, Colorado

April 17, 2014

I: How to Collect Vintage Knives

I n the not-so-distant past, pocketknives were as ubiquitous as cell phones and apps. Maybe your father or grandfather carried a pocketknife and used it to cut off a plug of tobacco, or perhaps your first knife was a stockman pattern made by a company that is no longer in existence.

Vintage knives come in all shapes and sizes, from elegant pearl lobster patterns to fixed blades that saw service in both World Wars. Deciding what to collect and how to assemble a collection is the first order of business if you are new to the hobby.

On the East Coast, the Blade Show reigns supreme for knife collecting enthusiasts, while the Oregon Knife Show in Eugene has the largest assortment of vintage knives available at any show for purchase from the sellers tables.

Keep in mind that if youre waiting in line to get into the Blade Show or Oregon Knife Show, other collectors are getting the first look at whats available via table holder badges or paid memberships.

The Blade Show in Atlanta runs for three days in late May or early June. Attendees can purchase VIP passes for the entire three days so they dont have to wait in line to buy day passes. Even better is to get a table holder badge from someone that has paid for a table on the show floor, which will allow you to enter the show floor before it officially opens each day. The Blade Show also offers early bird tickets on Friday, which will get attendees in two hours earlier than general admission tickets.

In a similar vein, attendees at the Oregon Knife Show can join the Oregon Knife Association in order to attend a members-only day on the Friday before the doors open up to the public.

There are also numerous small knife shows across the country, particularly in the South. Gun shows can also be a good source for finding vintage knives.

Lastly, check to see if theres a knife collectors club in your area. In addition to hosting their own shows or knife swaps, some knife club members possess a great deal of knowledge on knife collecting and are usually amiable to passing that information on.

What to Collect?

Some vintage knife companies, such as Case, have large national followings when it comes to collectors, but there were also regional knife companies that made high-quality knives for short periods of time.

A good starting point could be to pick a knife company thats from your state or maybe the same manufacturer that your grandfather carried every day. Some collectors focus only on a specific pattern or knives from a certain era.