Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

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Boopie1
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Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by Boopie1 »

Looking for a couple of Pre-1900 Folding Fish Knives with a Scaler & Hook Hook Remover. I will take a knife with one or the other or both. Just need to fall into the 1800's. Brand does not matter.
Thanks, Ron Hanley rhanley@windstream.net
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gsmith7158
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by gsmith7158 »

There couldn't possibly be many of those out there. If you have some I would love to see some pictures. ::nod::
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Gunsil
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by Gunsil »

I agree, let's see some!! I do not think what we know as fish knives with the hook remover and scaler were ever made before 1900. What companies made them before 1900?
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Mumbleypeg
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by Mumbleypeg »

Welcome to AAPK Ron. I’d like to see some examples of pre-1900 fish knives also. Those we typically think of as fish knives, made on the “tickler” frame and having a scaler blade with a hook disgorger for example, weren’t introduced until the 1920s or thereabouts as far as I know. If you’ve got some older I’d like to see them. ::tu::

Or if it’s something different let us know so we’ll understand better what you’re wanting. There may have been some fixed blades with fish scalers prior to 1900 but I’m not sure. ::shrug:: You’ve got us all curious what you’re looking for. :)

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just bob
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by just bob »

The famous Russell Barlow with the fish scaler was a pre 1900 fish knife. There are a lot of them out there. I'm sure other companies made similar knives? Is that the pre 1900 fish knife you're looking for?

There's one in this lot. For an example.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Old-Vintage-Ru ... SwbsNc~dVL
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peanut740
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by peanut740 »

just bob wrote:The famous Russell Barlow with the fish scaler was a pre 1900 fish knife. There are a lot of them out there. I'm sure other companies made similar knives? Is that the pre 1900 fish knife you're looking for?

There's one in this lot. For an example.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Old-Vintage-Ru ... SwbsNc~dVL
I'd be weary of buying from this seller.
Roger
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by gsmith7158 »

If there are any like this pre 1900 I want one. :D
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jlw257
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by jlw257 »

Greg, my Case’s Stainless date from 1916 to 1920
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by gsmith7158 »

jlw257 wrote:Greg, my Case’s Stainless date from 1916 to 1920
Larry I've got one with that stamp minus the hook disgorger. :D
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by Gunsil »

jlw257 wrote:Greg, my Case’s Stainless date from 1916 to 1920
Stainless steel was not commercially available until 1919 so that puts a bottom date on it.
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jlw257
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by jlw257 »

Gunsil wrote:
jlw257 wrote:Greg, my Case’s Stainless date from 1916 to 1920
Stainless steel was not commercially available until 1919 so that puts a bottom date on it.
Gunsil, you’re right on Case’s Stainless stamp.
I googled this morning and found it dating 1916- 1920.
Tonight I looked in Sargent 7th Edition it show 1947-1952
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by Gunsil »

just bob wrote:The famous Russell Barlow with the fish scaler was a pre 1900 fish knife. There are a lot of them out there. I'm sure other companies made similar knives? Is that the pre 1900 fish knife you're looking for?

There's one in this lot. For an example.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Old-Vintage-Ru ... SwbsNc~dVL
The Russell does not have a hook remover as OP is looking for and I know of no proof that the big barlow with the fish scaler back is pre-1900. Russell could well have made those models after 1900.
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by gsmith7158 »

I'd like to know who was responsible for that 1916-20 for Case's Stainless stamp that's in so many charts it had me confused for the longest time. It seems I've also seen discussions about several different variations of that stamp. Perhaps on knifedb.net. ::shrug::
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Mumbleypeg
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by Mumbleypeg »

gsmith7158 wrote:I'd like to know who was responsible for that 1916-20 for Case's Stainless stamp that's in so many charts it had me confused for the longest time. It seems I've also seen discussions about several different variations of that stamp. Perhaps on knifedb.net. ::shrug::
Here’s a post I made recently regarding the dating of Case tang stamps. I believe the dates when pre-1965 stamps were used are educated guesses at best. viewtopic.php?f=34&t=62387&p=736540&hilit=Wood#p736540. As collectors we want to take published charts as gospel, but IMHO the farther back in time you go, the more +/- leeway on the dates needs to be used.

Regarding the OP request, I’m still wanting to see examples of what he’s calling pre-1900 fish knives. Speaking of which, Boopie1 hasn’t been back to clarify either. ::shrug::

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Berryb
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by Berryb »

I hung around a Fishing Tackle collectors site for years (Joe's old lures), and saw Ron Hanley's Posts pretty often. The impression I got was that he was amassing a huge and first class tackle collection. He seems to collect a specific type or maker and then moves on. He is willing to pay well for what he wants. I dealt with him once, a trade, with no concerns, in fact I got one of my favorite pieces in that exchange. Anyway I'm sure he will end up with a pretty nice pile of fishing related knives, that will be well worth seeing. Thanks
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by Gunsil »

Mumbley has it right regarding many of these tang stamp charts, most are inaccurate. The most important lesson I have learned from Mr Levine is "read the knife, not the stamp". The two bladed Case stainless fish knife shown above simply does not look like a pre-1920 Case knife. The bone looks more like tested era bone. Then there is the matter of stainless steel which was not commercially available until 1919 and wasn't even known to man until about 1916-17. Knowing that simple fact about metal makes the 1916-1920 dates from that chart implausible. The KA-BAR stamp chart supplied by KA-BAR which is shown on this site has so many mistakes as to render it almost useless and I think many of the Case charts are incorrect in many places. The KA-BAR chart was done by the old KCC and they used no provable facts, just a combined memory of people who had worked there years before that chart was made and the company had been sold several times and the old factory closed. The chart shown by Shepard Hills for Case fixed blades is useless pre-1965. The whole business of Case tested being 1920-1940 was from the memory of an old Case employee, a woman who worked there for a long time but she was in her 70s when her memory was tasked with providing dates and she did so from memory, not from any documents. We know that her memory was mistaken, but we don't have proof of either the start or end date of the tested mark. We know it was mistaken since all the WW2 folders Case made for the military during WW2 bore the tested mark so the end date had to be after the war.

I too would still like to see an example of a pre-1900 folding fish knife with a hook remover and scaler.
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Mumbleypeg
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by Mumbleypeg »

Gene, good post! We are of a like mind. (And if that doesn’t scare you, it should! :lol: )

Ken
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by Gunsil »

Thanks Ken, it might scare you more than me if you knew me! LOL
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just bob
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Re: Pre-1900 Fish Knives Wanted.

Post by just bob »

Here's a link to some very old fishing knives. One is supposed to be 1900?

http://classicflyrodforum.com/forum/vie ... 70&t=27551

Google has became a direct link of knives for sale and it is increasingly harder to find information there. The first 1750 hits are knives for sale. Anyone having any luck using the Knife Magazine web site? It is hard to navigate, but there is supposed to be an index on there of previous issues. Wouldn't you think Bernard Levine or someone else has written on this subject and has the answer with pictures of what we're looking for? In one of my books I found the 1874 J. Russell sales catalog. There are no folding fishing knives in it however there are 2 fixed blade fish scalers. By at least 1926 they show the folding daddy Barlow type fishing knife. I don't know the first year that knife was manufactured but the straight line tang stamp is 1874 until about 1934 - I think.
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