Show Your Vintage Knife

[slowtwitch73]

^^ very nice knife. Think the only way to definitively know it was a theater knife would be photo documentation, or verbal from family. materials that would have been more likely used while in service would also lend some credence.

I see this in the Willys (Jeep) community as well. Guys are quick to say a vehicle 'saw action'. Human nature.

Fwiw my dad was in the USMC and fought at Chosin Reservoir.. I have his Ka Bar knife with stacked handle and it's in at least 80% condition handle wise.. can't imagine handle replacement was needed very often. Pure speculation.

Doesn't matter one iota to me.. very cool knife with a story either way.

 

[30-30remchester]

ALLFAST, finding this with your father's stuff is getting closer to finding out the knifes history. As I stated earlier, these sold by the thousands at war surplus stores and new one could be purchased through ads in Outdoor Life and Field and Stream magazines through the 1960's. The rebuild you hope for may not be easy as the nut and bolt at the pommel is not original design. There are several websites that will walk you through the rebuild. I used to have an old junk 225 but can't locate it. Must have given it away sometime in the past. Either way you have a neat old piece of history.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

I’ll be checking out the theatre knife links Lugz, and I’ll be buying a beater off the bay to get an appropriate third washer and the two square pins to clean up the pommel.

When you click on the link I posted and study my knife taken apart and the drawing I posted there of how the pommel works, you'll see that it's impossible to restore yours to originality. I alluded to its modification in my first reply and 30-30 is alluding to the same thing in his post just above. Even if you find a third pommel piece, they will not work together as intended now. It looks to me like when some of the washers and the other spacer and maybe the pins went missing, keeping the stack tight by lopping off the T end and threading a nut on the end was the solution. But I wouldn't fret. The knife's provenance puts it in a category of its own in which a modification like that does not detract. My father was a quartermaster on a Destroyer ****** during WWII, my brothers and I have all kinds of things from him that were no long original when we got them, and I would not dream of trying to undo what he did to them.

 

[RTM]

Oh the first world problems of AllFast. I personally wouldn't try to find the "right pommel". I'd find one that matches the personality of the knife, even if it meant making one. Taking a chunk of pewter would be easiest (making the chunk first by melting down cheap **** from a second hand store), drill it to match your flat threaded shaft, then shape it so it looks nice, and compliments the rest of the knife. Trim it in such a way that your nut can be put back on and just barely show, exactly the right depth so that the threads end at the end of the nut.

The other side of first world problems, buying cheap knives that you thought were decent, but aren't. I just tossed away a folding knife, kinda Gerberish, Buck etc. Grabbed it at a flea market, thought I checked it over real well for COO, saw nothing, said I'd gamble for $1. It in the lower right corner of the tailgate. It doesn't show up in the second picture, cuz I realized it said China when I got home. Chucked it aside. Went to use it the other night to open a bag of dog food. So ******** dull. So I sat down while watching TV with a blue diamond diamond stone, and got it a bit sharper. But as I did, the pivot rivet got looser and looser. Once it was reasonably sharp, the blade was just shy of flopping about. Deposited it in a local trash receptacle and moved on.

Here is another in the Shame on Me category, bought something that looked promising, but wasn't paying attention to details. This one won't end up in the trash can, but it won't be the beauty, or familial interest that AllFast has. This was grabbed at a garage cleanout estate sale, and it was in a container on the benchtop with a couple of other lower quality knives. Saw the stacked leather, and tossed it in my pile. Totally missed that the leather did not go fully around, but instead was cut and probably glued on. The cheap looking resin pommel also didn't trip me up. Wasn't until I got home, and looked at it harder that I realized my many errors in checking what I was buying. But here, for your entertainment, is my piss poor knife. Says XXnger Made in USA and 42 (or 47) on it., the rest is poorly stamped or worn down. Will clean it up, sharpen it up, see what happens.

 

[30-30remchester]

I have a Case 225 in my collection that is very interesting. The entire pommel has been broken off and nothing but leather washers left of the handle. The cool thing is it is ID'ed. It has 2 different soldiers names on it's sheath and has had the leather etched with 3 different locations the knife has been. One is Fort Knox. Another Fort Harrison. Then New Guinea. Bought this knife from a man from Belgium.

 

[ALLFAST]

^^ very nice knife. Think the only way to definitively know it was a theater knife would be photo documentation, or verbal from family. materials that would have been more likely used while in service would also lend some credence.

I see this in the Willys (Jeep) community as well. Guys are quick to say a vehicle 'saw action'. Human nature.

Fwiw my dad was in the USMC and fought at Chosin Reservoir.. I have his Ka Bar knife with stacked handle and it's in at least 80% condition handle wise.. can't imagine handle replacement was needed very often. Pure speculation.

Doesn't matter one iota to me.. very cool knife with a story either way.

Hello Slow,

Thank you for the kind words. I spoke with my mom and she’s of the opinion that it was my grandfather’s from his USMC WWII tank service; not sure if my dad used it in Viet Nam or not.

Your dad having survived the Chosin Reservoir is humbling…you must be very proud of him and that family history…having his Ka-Bar is priceless my friend.

This one is going no where and it’s EXTREMELY well made. It’s almost like it’s welded together, and thankfully the handle leather and metal discs are in great shape.

I have done my reading and found a handful of refurbishment threads on the 225s and now understand that the end has been modified.

Lugz, you also had a great example in your father and his service! I understand your explanation of this knife having been altered so . I’m now leaning towards what RTM suggests and find a nice hunk of metal and make a threaded pommel that I can screw onto the end of this threaded stud; possibly profile it down to match the curvature of the end disc.

I realize that the handle would normally need to be sacrificed in order to properly unseat the pommel discs….option “C” will be to have a machinist friend make me an end cap with a threaded blind hole to match this stud , and have him machine it flat, knurl and affix dummy pin ends ( mine here has its original pins and the tang slot) and make a faux tang end…I can then have a screw on fake pommel cap which matches the spirit of an original without needing to tear it apart.

All of your feedback is greatly appreciated! I thank you for your time!

 

[ALLFAST]

Oh the first world problems of AllFast. I personally wouldn't try to find the "right pommel". I'd find one that matches the personality of the knife, even if it meant making one. Taking a chunk of pewter would be easiest (making the chunk first by melting down cheap **** from a second hand store), drill it to match your flat threaded shaft, then shape it so it looks nice, and compliments the rest of the knife. Trim it in such a way that your nut can be put back on and just barely show, exactly the right depth so that the threads end at the end of the nut.

The other side of first world problems, buying cheap knives that you thought were decent, but aren't. I just tossed away a folding knife, kinda Gerberish, Buck etc. Grabbed it at a flea market, thought I checked it over real well for COO, saw nothing, said I'd gamble for $1. It in the lower right corner of the tailgate. It doesn't show up in the second picture, cuz I realized it said China when I got home. Chucked it aside. Went to use it the other night to open a bag of dog food. So ******** dull. So I sat down while watching TV with a blue diamond diamond stone, and got it a bit sharper. But as I did, the pivot rivet got looser and looser. Once it was reasonably sharp, the blade was just shy of flopping about. Deposited it in a local trash receptacle and moved on.

Here is another in the Shame on Me category, bought something that looked promising, but wasn't paying attention to details. This one won't end up in the trash can, but it won't be the beauty, or familial interest that AllFast has. This was grabbed at a garage cleanout estate sale, and it was in a container on the benchtop with a couple of other lower quality knives. Saw the stacked leather, and tossed it in my pile. Totally missed that the leather did not go fully around, but instead was cut and probably glued on. The cheap looking resin pommel also didn't trip me up. Wasn't until I got home, and looked at it harder that I realized my many errors in checking what I was buying. But here, for your entertainment, is my piss poor knife. Says XXnger Made in USA and 42 (or 47) on it., the rest is poorly stamped or worn down. Will clean it up, sharpen it up, see what happens.

Hello RTM, I’m sure you can get this interesting orphan back into a respectable condition with not too much trouble…It almost has the look of a coral snake with the maroon and yellow bands!

Maybe you could gently sand off the modified pommel material and start anew. It’s a cool piece and is definitely worth the effort to bring it back.

 

[ALLFAST]

I have a Case 225 in my collection that is very interesting. The entire pommel has been broken off and nothing but leather washers left of the handle. The cool thing is it is ID'ed. It has 2 different soldiers names on its sheath and has had the leather etched with 3 different locations the knife has been. One is Fort Knox. Another Fort Harrison. Then New Guinea. Bought this knife from a man from Belgium.

 

[ALLFAST]

Greetings 30-30,

This sounds like a very interesting knife…..Pictures would be cool as time allows. I’ve done a bit of reading today and the Case 225 seems very well regarded in the wartime knife community . Stay safe !

 

[Mike'smeatshop]

You do as you see fit. But if it was my grandpa's and that is the way he made it, That is the way I would hand it down to my daughter.

 

[ALLFAST]

You do as you see fit. But if it was my grandpa's and that is the way he made it, That is the way I would hand it down to my daughter.

I understand Mike,
What I’m going to do won’t hurt the past modification one bit as I can return it to that condition in a few twists of the wrist

 

[Private Lugnutz]

@ALLFAST

I don't understand why you feel the need to do anything at all to the knife, and I would normally be loath to make any suggestions of what you do with your own heirloom knife, but as long as you're the one indicating a desire to make mods to it, I'm not following you on your various plans. Maybe I'm just being dense.

Respectfully, let's make sure we understand each other. Your modified handle is stacked washers of various materials (looks like leather, steel, copper, and micarta), in a pattern, with two of the original pommel spacers at the **** end, all held suitably tight by that nut on the threaded tang. There are no washers missing. To clarify that comment, many of the original leather washers are missing. But no washers from the new, modified handle are missing. That is a complete handle. And a very nicely done one! A little shorter than the original, obviously, otherwise there would be no excess tang sticking out. But a very nice complete handle. It has a very clear pattern (meaning, the order and the size of the bands of micarta, steel, leather, and copper), as most "theater knives" do, and that pattern is unbroken and perfect and very attractive. On top of that, it has been shaped. See how it's thinner at the guard, thicker in the middle, and then thinner again at the pommel?

I don't know why your grandfather or father left excess threaded tang. I would think that would get in the way and possibly get hung up on things. Maybe they liked the look. But that excess threaded tang is not due to missing washers. That would break the symmetry of the pattern and the thinner diameter would be longer at the **** end. Even if it had the third pommel piece there would be some excess threaded tang.

If that excess threader tang bothers you, the easiest option, and the one that best preserves the spirit of what your grandfather and/or father did to the knife, is to simply lop off that tang flush with the nut. If you wanted to add a third pommel piece, just unscrew that nut, take off the last pommel piece (the one with the dimples), slip the third one on, put the last one back on, screw the nut back on, and lop the tang off.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

@ALLFAST. Woke up this morning with a clearer head, re-read all your posts, and read @RTM 's post, which I had initially skipped, thinking it was about the knife in the photos he posted.

It would've been much shorter to say I agree with RTM (that is, I can see now that what I recommended above is almost exactly what he had already recommended...), it's Option C I was not understanding, and I don't know what Option B is.

The only thing I would re-emphasize is that your end cap, with the dimples, is without a doubt the original end cap. I still don't know if you're missing the first pommel piece (which looks exactly like the end cap without dimples) or the middle interlocking piece, but it doesn't matter, because it won't lock anything anyway.

 

[Mike'smeatshop]

Hello GJ,

Does anyone know anything about this handle style on my family heirloom Cattaraugus 225Q knife here?

I haven’t been able to find any other versions which have steel and copper rings within the leather discs like this one. It appears to be missing a third washer on the pommel end?

Are replacement pommel caps available or do I need to fab one from scratch?

Thank you in advance!

This is art. One of a kind. Art and tool from another time and place. One idea that had choices in a very difficult part of the world. But it is yours.

 

[30-30remchester]

PlYing around trying to learn to post photos. Here is an interesting old folder with unusual scales.

 

[30-30remchester]

When people ask me to post some pictures I am not sure how to decide. Here are a few of my folders. Most pre 1950.

 

[30-30remchester]

ALLFAST, here is the photo of my Case quartermaster knife we discussed above. On the back of the sheath is it history. It once lived at Camp Walker, Fort Knox, Fort Benjamin Harrison, Netherlands, New Guinea and another location I can't make out.

 

[30-30remchester]

I promise to quit posting after this. The topic of WW2 theater knives has popped up again. Over the decades of collecting some great homemade knives I would like to attribute to some solder, sailor or Marine, there was no real evidence. Below is the only true theater knife I can document. Found in a pawn shop in Grand Junction, Colorado. It took over 20 years of internet research to obtain the owners story. A P-38 pilot who crashed and was never recovered off the coast of Alaska in 1946 on his last day before being sent home.

 

[Mike'smeatshop]

Hello Slow,

Thank you for the kind words. I spoke with my mom and she’s of the opinion that it was my grandfather’s from his USMC WWII tank service; not sure if my dad used it in Viet Nam or not.

Your dad having survived the Chosin Reservoir is humbling…you must be very proud of him and that family history…having his Ka-Bar is priceless my friend.

This one is going no where and it’s EXTREMELY well made. It’s almost like it’s welded together, and thankfully the handle leather and metal discs are in great shape.

I have done my reading and found a handful of refurbishment threads on the 225s and now understand that the end has been modified.

Lugz, you also had a great example in your father and his service! I understand your explanation of this knife having been altered so . I’m now leaning towards what RTM suggests and find a nice hunk of metal and make a threaded pommel that I can screw onto the end of this threaded stud; possibly profile it down to match the curvature of the end disc.

I realize that the handle would normally need to be sacrificed in order to properly unseat the pommel discs….option “C” will be to have a machinist friend make me an end cap with a threaded blind hole to match this stud , and have him machine it flat, knurl and affix dummy pin ends ( mine here has its original pins and the tang slot) and make a faux tang end…I can then have a screw on fake pommel cap which matches the spirit of an original without needing to tear it apart.

All of your fee

We have had these ideas and talks on here in the past, on how to finish this knife out if the handle was bad. And I really like your grandfathers' ideas because it is simple to do with the nut on the end and maybe grind a spike like the WWI knives have. I really like the pattern, but I cannot duplicate your knife out of respect.

I wish if anything you do is drill a hole on the end grip and hang a lanyard to it and display it over the mantle.

 

[gpw_42]

It took over 20 years of internet research to obtain the owners story. A P-38 pilot who crashed and was never recovered off the coast of Alaska in 1946 on his last day before being sent home.

@30-30remchester have your ordered a copy of the MACR (missing aircrew report) for your pilot? I'm intentionally not using his name, as I'm unsure if you're trying to not advertise his identity. Given the details you listed above, you may have; if not, the MACR comes from the National Archives (or National Personnel Records Center, St. Louis?) and is the Army Air Force documentation from when he went missing. Might be an interesting bit of detail to add to the knife. Which looks to be in great shape, too!

 

[30-30remchester]

Intersting story about my eventually finding Jack. About twice a year I would enter his name into the computer with zero results. Then I got a hit a couple years ago. The state of Alaska was asking any veterans to send in any WW2 coorespondece they possess. The state would digitize your information and retun your originals. This is how I found Jacks name. A man sent in his letters home and in one of the letters he remarked that his best friend Jack had been killed the day before in a plane crash on base. With this information I was able to obtain a copy of the accident report, his plane serial number, etc. I posted the results of my search and a fellow member of a forum I post in got on Ancestery.com and by the end of the day I had Jacks high school photograph and records as well. With a little research I located his family in Iowa IIRC and talked to a niece of his that was born well after Jack had died. She said she gave the few things that belonged to Uncle Jack to her brother in Colorado and he must have sold them as he was always broke. She also said that just a month before I found her, she had sold all of Uncle Jack's diaries and papers to a WW2 collector that had advertised for such items in the newspaper, but she could not remember who he was. I offered to give the knife back to her and her family, but she declined the offer as it meant nothing to anyone in her family.
Jack's story from the accident report. Jack was due to go home the following day but was asked to fly his P-38 doing some arial maneuvers while being filmed by another aircraft and these photos would be used to promote and document his unit's history. Through his maneuvers he was unaware as to how close to the ocean he was getting. Upon realizing he was too close he put the plane on full throttle to try to gain altitude but all that did was to drive his P-38 into the sea at over 400 mph. His body nor the plane was ever recovered. The crash sight is just a few miles off the coast of Alaska and the location is known.

 

[LazKat]

Here's an old one I found in a box of "treasures" in my shop that I hadn't opened in years. Anyone familiar with this model?

 

[555]

Buck tales or The Tales of Two Buck Knives

Hard to believe these are now vintage, possibly antique. The Buck 112 Ranger (wooden handle, leather sheath) was a Christmas present from my wife in 1974. I carried it for many, many years despite the fact that it was considered illegal (concealed weapon) in most states. It has resided in my tool box since I retired from the Army in 2008. I got it out today to give it a cleanup. Notice the bolsters need a good polish. Brasso will work wonders.

The second Buck (desert camouflage) is a 422X AKA Bucklite. It was issued to me by the Army during Desert Storm. Actually this is the first of two issued to me during Desert Storm. I arrived at Fort Knox, KY in January 1991. Upon arrival I was told to report to the Central Issue Facility (CIF) for my desert issue. I reported and was given a full set of desert camouflage uniforms, boots and all the desert accessories (sun glasses, hats, underwear, boots, goggles and this knife). I was told I would deploy with a composite unit the next day. Didn't happen. The composite unit was not at required strength. So I waited around getting my battle rattle ready, went to the range to qualify with M16, 9mm pistol and 12 gauge shot gun. Now it was Day 3. About 1400 hours that afternoon I was told to report to CIF for my desert issue. WTH...I already had my issue and so I protested but I was told to "Get it done today!". I reported and you can guess correctly that I now had two complete desert issues including Bucklite #2. I had removed the original issue knife from package. I was not impressed so I threw it in my hold baggage. I didn't bother opening knife #2, just threw it in the hold baggage. The deployment was delayed once more due to political pressure. We hurried up and waited a couple more days. It is now Day 5 of my big adventure. I was called up to command and told the mission was now a go and I would be on the plane the next day. But first, I needed to report to CIF for my desert issue. I didn't even try to protest. I reported and was now the proud owner of three full sets of desert equipment but this time the Bucklite was replaced with a Leatherman. We deployed to Kuwait and then across the Iraq defensive line, captured and held 120 starving Iraq soldiers and withdrew back to Kuwait. All in 24 hours or less. The composite unit was deactivated and I headed to JRTC to be an observer/controller. I wore out all the boots, donated the desert uniforms to a couple of Army museums. I've still got a bunch of stuff. The unopened knife went to my middle son. My oldest son has the Leatherman.

 

[Mike'smeatshop]

Buck tales or The Tales of Two Buck Knives

Hard to believe these are now vintage, possibly antique. The Buck 112 Ranger (wooden handle, leather sheath) was a Christmas present from my wife in 1974. I carried it for many, many years despite the fact that it was considered illegal (concealed weapon) in most states. It has resided in my tool box since I retired from the Army in 2008. I got it out today to give it a cleanup. Notice the bolsters need a good polish. Brasso will work wonders.

The second Buck (desert camouflage) is a 422X AKA Bucklite. It was issued to me by the Army during Desert Storm. Actually this is the first of two issued to me during Desert Storm. I arrived at Fort Knox, KY in January 1991. Upon arrival I was told to report to the Central Issue Facility (CIF) for my desert issue. I reported and was given a full set of desert camouflage uniforms, boots and all the desert accessories (sun glasses, hats, underwear, boots, goggles and this knife). I was told I would deploy with a composite unit the next day. Didn't happen. The composite unit was not at required strength. So I waited around getting my battle rattle ready, went to the range to qualify with M16, 9mm pistol and 12 gauge shot gun. Now it was Day 3. About 1400 hours that afternoon I was told to report to CIF for my desert issue. WTH...I already had my issue and so I protested but I was told to "Get it done today!". I reported and you can guess correctly that I now had two complete desert issues including Bucklite #2. I had removed the original issue knife from package. I was not impressed so I threw it in my hold baggage. I didn't bother opening knife #2, just threw it in the hold baggage. The deployment was delayed once more due to political pressure. We hurried up and waited a couple more days. It is now Day 5 of my big adventure. I was called up to command and told the mission was now a go and I would be on the plane the next day. But first, I needed to report to CIF for my desert issue. I didn't even try to protest. I reported and was now the proud owner of three full sets of desert equipment but this time the Bucklite was replaced with a Leatherman. We deployed to Kuwait and then across the Iraq defensive line, captured and held 120 starving Iraq soldiers and withdrew back to Kuwait. All in 24 hours or less. The composite unit was deactivated and I headed to JRTC to be an observer/controller. I wore all all the boots, donated the desert uniforms to a couple of Army museums. I've still got a bunch of stuff. The unopened knife went to my middle son. My oldest son has the Leatherman.

I am a Buck guy. Are those the size of the 112 or 110? And I had been to the rifle range there just on the edge of Ft Knox. There were always someone there with an auto shooting. I had one of the Navy Seal Buck knife. Sold it. I got it with a trade of a Mossberg 12 ga.

 

[555]

Mike, same size as the 112.

 

[Private Lugnutz]

The Buck 112 Ranger (wooden handle, leather sheath) was a Christmas present from my wife in 1974.

She set the bar pretty dang high pretty early!

I didn't even try to protest.

Snerk. Good ol' Uncle Sam.

 

[Mike'smeatshop]

She set the bar pretty dang high pretty early!

Snerk. Good ol' Uncle Sam.

My bad.

 

[555]

She set the bar pretty dang high pretty early!

Snerk. Good ol' Uncle Sam.

She is a keeper.

These was so much waste (abuse?) during the Gulf War it was sickening to those of us who had lived through the lean times.

 

[555]

Since I'm cleaning up some knives, I thought I would throw this old junk into the mix of military/electrician's knives.

In September 1984 my bunch of goof balls was tapped for Exercise Campaign Reforger AKA "Return of Forces to Germany" or simply "Reforger". We hit Frankfurt about mid afternoon and I spent most of that night dragging young and not so young Soldiers out of the brothels.

After a bit of confusion about where we were supposed to be based...maybe Wiesbaden or maybe Baumholder we tossed a coin and headed to the mountains. We were co located with a bunch of experts AKA government contractors who's contract was expiring on September 29. All week long they had been loading stuff on trucks and making way to many trips to the dumpsters. One of my especially talented dumpster divers went diving and brought back all kinds of interesting stuff. He handed me the this kit complete with the pliers but missing the knife. Bummer!

A Klein electrician's knife is about the same size/shape as the TL-29. I happened to have such a knife so it took residence in the tool holster. I packed this around for years and at some point the Klein was replaced by an Army TL-29 made by Boker USA.

The leather tool holder is NSN: 5140-00-198-8898 with an official title of Carrier, Tool. The NSN is no longer active. There were seven manufacturers and my carrier was made by Action Leathercraft which is closed. The pliers were made by KAL and were made in Japan.

The two blade Boker knife model 9229 dates to the 70s. The screw driver blade locks into place and Boker thoughtfully provided engraved instructions for closing the blade.

 

[imagineer]

Maybe someone out there versed in old knives can tell me about this old knife.

I know it's at least 59 years old. For as long as I can remember, this knife was in my father's fishing tackle box. Rumor had it that the knife was from Ireland and was my maternal grandfather's. All I knew was this was the absolute coolest looking knife ever, but I was forbidden to touch it. The old man passed away in '22. I inherited most of his tools, and among them was this old knife.

There are no markings on it or the leather sheath. The knife is 8.75" overall with the blade being 4.5".

The tip is broken off and it appears someone tried to file it. I'm not sure if I want to try and fix it myself, or send it to a pro for sharpening. The leather "plates" that make the handle are a bit loose. I was thinking I'd apply some leather oil and see if they swell and tighten up. The aluminum knob shows signs it was used as a hammer, but that might polish out.

 

[ctuai]

Just came across this 7" clip point with a 3-3/4" blade and bronze guard. It's a Sears Roebuck & Co made in Germany. You can screw down the ferrel, which is nice as the spacers have shrunk. Here's a pic with my Navy pilot survival knife.

 

[ctuai]

Another knife from the same estate sale. A 12" french knife with a silver ferrel. It's made by M & H Co New York. It's a "Charles" France model. I don't think its made by Martin and Hall, but can't find any information on the company. Found it in the garage and its still sharp. Likely carbon steel. 12" french knife sounds a bit unwieldy, I wonder what you'd use it for.

 

[Mike'smeatshop]

@30-30remchester have your ordered a copy of the MACR (missing aircrew report) for your pilot? I'm intentionally not using his name, as I'm unsure if you're trying to not advertise his identity. Given the details you listed above, you may have; if not, the MACR comes from the National Archives (or National Personnel Records Center, St. Louis?) and is the Army Air Force documentation from when he went missing. Might be an interesting bit of detail to add to the knife. Which looks to be in great shape, too!

How far back do you think the National Personal Records Center will go back in time? This is probably during the time that Danial Boone formed Ft Boonesborough. lol. But I also have some Items that my wife would like to discover the rightful owner during the wars.

 

[RTM]

A 12" french knife with a silver ferrel. It's made by M & H Co New York. It's a "Charles" France model. I don't think its made by Martin and Hall, but can't find any information on the company.

Wow, not much I can track down on either M & H or the Charles France model. Only like 4 or 5 references online showing up for the combination, but millions for either one.

 

[gpw_42]

How far back do you think the National Personal Records Center will go back in time? This is probably during the time that Danial Boone formed Ft Boonesborough. lol. But I also have some Items that my wife would like to discover the rightful owner during the wars.

@Mike'smeatshop go to this link and follow their instructions: https://www.archives.gov/veterans/military-service-records/pre-ww-1-records

For records the age of anything comparable to D. Boone, the NPRC is not the agency you need. "Older military personnel records, generally prior to WWI depending on the service branch (see Records Location Table), are on file at the National Archives and Records Administration, Old Military and Civil Records Branch (NWCTB), Washington, DC 20408. See Requesting Copies of Older Military Service Records for more information" per https://www.archives.gov/st-louis/military-personnel-archival The same link provides this little chart:

OMPF, Archival Holdings (at NPRC) Branch of Service Official Military Personnel Files, Archival Holdings Army (includes Army Air Corps and Army Air Forces) Enlisted discharge dates 1912 to 1961* Officers discharge dates 1917 to 1961* Navy Enlisted discharge dates 1885 to 1961* Officers discharge dates 1902 to 1961* Air Force All Personnel with discharge dates 1947 to 1961* Marine Corps All Personnel with discharge dates 1905 to 1961* Coast Guard All Personnel with discharge dates 1898 to 1961*

 

[Mike'smeatshop]

@Mike'smeatshop go to this link and follow their instructions: https://www.archives.gov/veterans/military-service-records/pre-ww-1-records

For records the age of anything comparable to D. Boone, the NPRC is not the agency you need. "Older military personnel records, generally prior to WWI depending on the service branch (see Records Location Table), are on file at the National Archives and Records Administration, Old Military and Civil Records Branch (NWCTB), Washington, DC 20408. See Requesting Copies of Older Military Service Records for more information" per https://www.archives.gov/st-louis/military-personnel-archival The same link provides this little chart:

OMPF, Archival Holdings (at NPRC) Branch of Service Official Military Personnel Files, Archival Holdings Army (includes Army Air Corps and Army Air Forces) Enlisted discharge dates 1912 to 1961* Officers discharge dates 1917 to 1961* Navy Enlisted discharge dates 1885 to 1961* Officers discharge dates 1902 to 1961* Air Force All Personnel with discharge dates 1947 to 1961* Marine Corps All Personnel with discharge dates 1905 to 1961* Coast Guard All Personnel with discharge dates 1898 to 1961*

Still Digging.

 

[ObnoxiousFumes]

Another knife from the same estate sale. A 12" french knife with a silver ferrel. It's made by M & H Co New York. It's a "Charles" France model. I don't think its made by Martin and Hall, but can't find any information on the company. Found it in the garage and its still sharp. Likely carbon steel. 12" french knife sounds a bit unwieldy, I wonder what you'd use it for.

Well this is very interesting, my grandma just today gave me this knife, which appears to be very similar to yours, only German. It belonged to my grandfather, he was a chef and bought this knife new sometime in the mid-60's for some chef's course he was taking at the time. Blade is around 12.5" or so. Unfortunately gramps was not a very good knife sharpener and the blade is in pretty rough shape.
Still, I am super pleased to have inherited this piece.

 

[Macduf]

Two Tina 641/10 and a sak economy pruning knife. No interest in horticulture but $10 seemed an OK price

 

[Old Radar]

Found these three the other day at an estate sale. No idea as to vintage status...

Schrade Old Timer
Böker Solingen Tree Brand 8388I <--<< "eye"
Barlow Sabre Brand Japan (Nail groove is very narrow and hard as hell to open)

 

[JunkNstuf]

Had this old WWII USN RH35 passed down to me decades ago.