Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

A place to discuss & share pictures of knives made in Japan.
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Madmarco
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by Madmarco »

ChipB wrote: Sun Nov 29, 2020 8:16 pm Hi all, brand new member - I discovered this forum after I discovered I had a Sabre Japan pocket knife that I knew nothing about.

After reading through this forum, I'm somewhat confused. I read that there is a model number that appears under the words "Sabre" and "Japan" on the main blade - this knife doesn't appear to have a number?? I've taken some photos so that I might get some help id'ing this knife. Thanks.
Hey Chip! I can't help with your knife, but others will be along who can, so stick around and have some fun! ::welcome:: to AAPK! 8)
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by cody6268 »

I have a beat-up Peanut my Grandad have me around here somewhere.

Here's one that was likely made by Ulster or Schrade. USA-made and Swinden construction. Blade is identical to early production 881 and 8OTs. Handles are brown/tan jigged Delrin.

Tang stamp is "SABRE" over "USA" on the mark side, and "SABRE" over "MONARCH" over "231" on the pile side.


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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by Stanwade »

viewtopic.php?f=31&t=68550

Just figured I'd post this link here..I'm reducing the price one more time..$55 shipped CONUS.. Sabre Japan barlows are a great EDCS..nice bone scales, they take and hold a razor sharp edge...all have good snap and zero to minimal side play.. I have 4 or 5 that I cleaned up and sharpened that I carry off and on...thanks for looking 😁
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by JTBick20 »

My Grandfather gave me this a long time ago. I think it is the Sabre 638 but there are no numbers in it. Like others have said probably not worth much but priceless to me.
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by knife7knut »

Here is one I posted on another forum:The handles were broken when I got it(free!)so I made a new set from Plexiglass. The originals were clear as well.Note the name.
Also a Sabre Tool Box;sort of a modern day TL-29
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by Toejammer »

Sabre Stockman w/o numbers. Only has Sabre Japan on tang. Interesting jigging on the handles, looks like bone and not delrin. Decent little knife for $6 :mrgreen:

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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by Stanwade »

I like it, TJ👍..good deal.. I have several Sabre Japan barlows with saw cut bone scales, good, solid knives..
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by OLDE CUTLER »

I recently picked up this Sabre pen knife for a few bucks. It is 3 1/4" OAL, stainless steel, with faux MOP (or mother of toilet seat) handles. There is no pattern number stamped on it as with most other Sabres I have.
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by cody6268 »

knife7knut wrote: Fri Dec 18, 2020 3:16 pm Here is one I posted on another forum:The handles were broken when I got it(free!)so I made a new set from Plexiglass. The originals were clear as well.Note the name.
Also a Sabre Tool Box;sort of a modern day TL-29
Clear knives are beyond cool, but highly uncommon. Most seem to be display knives/salesman's samples, which are rare, and seem to sell for large sums.

Ontario has the "Ice" Wraith which is supposedly clear, but due to the plastic used and handle pattern, is very hazy-looking. I may have to find cheap lockback and build my own.
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by knife7knut »

cody6268 wrote: Mon Apr 19, 2021 2:55 pm
knife7knut wrote: Fri Dec 18, 2020 3:16 pm Here is one I posted on another forum:The handles were broken when I got it(free!)so I made a new set from Plexiglass. The originals were clear as well.Note the name.
Also a Sabre Tool Box;sort of a modern day TL-29
Clear knives are beyond cool, but highly uncommon. Most seem to be display knives/salesman's samples, which are rare, and seem to sell for large sums.

Ontario has the "Ice" Wraith which is supposedly clear, but due to the plastic used and handle pattern, is very hazy-looking. I may have to find cheap lockback and build my own.
If you do decide to build one,I would suggest using "optical grade Lexan II" which is the material used in hockey rink windows and prescription lenses.It is crystal clear and distortion free and coated with a scratch resistant surface.It is also very expensive. The stuff I use was culled from pieces of a broken window in a hockey rink. A friend of mine's daughter works at an arena used by a minor league hockey team and he got some of it when he noticed them throwing the stuff in a dumpster.It is 1/2" thick but fairly easy to cut down.To cut shapes in it I use a sabre saw fitted with a laminate blade that cuts in the opposite direction of a normal blade and prevents the Lexan from fusing back together after cutting.
To cut it to thickness I use a standard fine tooth hacksaw with the piece clamped in a soft jawed vise and cut very slowly as it will shatter if too much vibration happens.I shape it on a 1x30 belt sander that also has a 5 inch wheel on the side using 150 grit discs and 80 grit belts.Finish sand with 220 grit wet-or-dry paper(wet) and polish with Mother's Mag Wheel Polish by hand.
Here are a couple of prototype knives I made using the Lexan.
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by sergelemee »

Another Knife Collector wrote: Mon Nov 09, 2015 3:16 am They certainly aren't the best quality knives ever made, but I've recently developed an interest in collecting Japanese Sabre brand knives and decided to share what I have learned here. They are cheap and common, so they make a good affordable knife for a young collector or a collector on a tight budget. Sabre was a brand owned by Cole National Corporation, a company based in Ohio that dealt in a number of different markets. For a number of years Cole even owned Ka-Bar. The Sabre brand can be found on knives made all over the world, including Germany, Japan, USA, Pakistan, and Hong Kong. I've focused on the Japanese line as it seems to have been the most popular and longest lived of them. They were affordable knives, ones to give away, or to throw in a tool box or tackle box and not worry about. The Japanese made Sabres came in a variety of patterns and used a standard pattern number system. The earliest knives had no pattern numbers stamped on them but would fit into the standard system used later. Next, patterns began to be marked using a simple two digit number, and finally a three digit number. The three digit pattern numbers are all the same as the two digit, except with a "6" preceding the two digit number. For example, a "29" Large Barlow became a "629" Large Barlow, with no change in the actual knife. Sixes tend to look like fives on certain bad/damaged stamps they used. Japanese Sabres changed in material and manufacture through the years. They began with carbon steel blades, nickel silver bolsters, brass pins/liners and bone handles, and evolved to using all stainless blades and fittings and plastic handles.
Now, you seem experts in Sabre knives. I have a nice Sabre Barlow but the number is only 3 as you can see on the pictures. What to do you think about it?
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by GSPTOPDOG »

Going through my knife boxes has turned up a BUNCH of Saber brand knives... it was a surprise as to how many I have ::uc::
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by Runted »

Not much I can add but I also have a few Sabres in my knife box. I believe most of
them are stamped Japan. Now back when I was a youngster, say 55 or maybe a few more
years ago they sold Sabres at the local dollar store. Back then things went for 3 for a dollar
or 2 for a dollar and prices like that. The knife display up by the registers said .99cents.
I remember because whenever I was in there I had to look at them.
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by Chuck D »

Can someone tell me the difference between the sabre 676 and the 76. The handles are different material but seem identical otherwise
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by Chuck D »

Here's a pic I hope
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by knife7knut »

Chuck D wrote: Tue Jun 22, 2021 7:52 pm Can someone tell me the difference between the sabre 676 and the 76. The handles are different material but seem identical otherwise
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It appears the top one is a synthetic jigged to look like bone whereas the bottom one appears to be genuine bone with a different style of jigging.
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by OLDE CUTLER »

I picked up a couple of Sabre knives over the weekend at a gunshow for $7 total. One is a daddy Barlow 5" OAL, and the other is a number 5 jack, 3 and 5/16" OAL. The daddy Barlow is sawcut bone handled, and the #5 jack is bone handled with the familiar Sabre criss cross jigging on the bone. Both are in decent shape and I will be using them for EDC.
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by Captain O »

jerryd6818 wrote: Mon Nov 09, 2015 4:27 am I have a #8 Melon Tester and a #677 Melon Tester. Both with faux pearl handles.
We had both of those as children. (I had the #608 and my older brother Gary had the #677). During road trips, mom would routinely borrow my #608 to prepare bologna sandwiches.

Yep, lots of memories there!
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by woodwalker »

OLDE CUTLER wrote: Tue Nov 30, 2021 7:23 pm I picked up a couple of Sabre knives over the weekend at a gunshow for $7 total. One is a daddy Barlow 5" OAL, and the other is a number 5 jack, 3 and 5/16" OAL. The daddy Barlow is sawcut bone handled, and the #5 jack is bone handled with the familiar Sabre criss cross jigging on the bone. Both are in decent shape and I will be using them for EDC.
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OLDE CUTLER, I like you Daddy Barlow!! I have one that I use around my shop and it is a great knife in my humble opinion. Nice sawcut bone. I paid 24 dollars.for mine at an antique store and I can tell you it's worth every penny to me. Here is mine. :)
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by Reverand »

Great knives!
I knew some old-timers who wouldn't buy Japanese knives. They both fought against in the Pacific theater during WWII.
But I have a few, and most are well made and affordable knives. I buy them anytime I find them cheap, but that is getting harder to do all of the time. I think people are beginning to appreciate these knives more as time goes on!
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by Captain O »

Reverand wrote: Wed Dec 01, 2021 10:32 am Great knives!
I knew some old-timers who wouldn't buy Japanese knives. They both fought against in the Pacific theater during WWII.
But I have a few, and most are well made and affordable knives. I buy them anytime I find them cheap, but that is getting harder to do all of the time. I think people are beginning to appreciate these knives more as time goes on!
Who are you calling "old-timer"? We were buying these knives at the Sprouse-Reitz Variety Store on King's Boulevard in Corvallis, Oregon in 1967-1968 at $1.29 each. Wait... that was 53 years ago. (Damn, I'm getting on in years). ::dang::
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by Reverand »

Captain O wrote: Sat Dec 11, 2021 4:07 am
Reverand wrote: Wed Dec 01, 2021 10:32 am Great knives!
I knew some old-timers who wouldn't buy Japanese knives. They both fought against in the Pacific theater during WWII.
But I have a few, and most are well made and affordable knives. I buy them anytime I find them cheap, but that is getting harder to do all of the time. I think people are beginning to appreciate these knives more as time goes on!
Who are you calling "old-timer"? We were buying these knives at the Sprouse-Reitz Variety Store on King's Boulevard in Corvallis, Oregon in 1967-1968 at $1.29 each. Wait... that was 53 years ago. (Damn, I'm getting on in years). ::dang::
Haha! I was born in 1967, and I am already a grey-haired old man! But I am thankful for each day.
Seriously though, I was thinking of my uncle and my father-in-law, both of whom served in the Navy in WWII.
I don't blame them, but at the same time I have no problem buying Japanese knives.
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Here is a Monarch scout knife that I got off of eBay this week. The shield was missing, so I made one out of a worn Old-Timer shield (I flipped it over and ground it to fit). It has a little blade rub from the punch, but looks to have never been carried or used. As I said before though, it is getting harder to find these cheap nowadays.
Jesus is life.
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by Captain O »

Reverand wrote: Sat Dec 11, 2021 11:21 pm
Captain O wrote: Sat Dec 11, 2021 4:07 am
Reverand wrote: Wed Dec 01, 2021 10:32 am Great knives!
I knew some old-timers who wouldn't buy Japanese knives. They both fought against in the Pacific theater during WWII.
But I have a few, and most are well made and affordable knives. I buy them anytime I find them cheap, but that is getting harder to do all of the time. I think people are beginning to appreciate these knives more as time goes on!
Who are you calling "old-timer"? We were buying these knives at the Sprouse-Reitz Variety Store on King's Boulevard in Corvallis, Oregon in 1967-1968 at $1.29 each. Wait... that was 53 years ago. (Damn, I'm getting on in years). ::dang::
Haha! I was born in 1967, and I am already a grey-haired old man! But I am thankful for each day.
Seriously though, I was thinking of my uncle and my father-in-law, both of whom served in the Navy in WWII.
I don't blame them, but at the same time, I have no problem buying Japanese knives.

67BF2446-E607-4070-925A-782DDA74B97F.jpeg

Here is a Monarch scout knife that I got off of eBay this week. The shield was missing, so I made one out of a worn Old-Timer shield (I flipped it over and ground it to fit). It has a little blade rub from the punch, but looks to have never been carried or used. As I said before though, it is getting harder to find these cheap nowadays.
Heck, boy, I was preparing to begin my career in mimicry/comedy when you were still in your mommy's arms and drinking formula! (In 1968 I performed for my 7th-grade class party (condoned by the Faculty of Highland View Junior High School).

I served "stateside" while in Uncle Sam's Yacht Club (beginning my tour on July 19th, 1973 as an Aviation Machinist's Mate (jet). Some gave all, all gave some. You can believe that! ::pray:: ::handshake:: ::tu::
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by hddarts »

Picked up this sabre 631 with original sheath "the Original Bowie Knife" stamped on the blade
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Re: Japanese "Sabre" Brand Knives

Post by New_Windsor_NY »

This pocket knife arrived very recently in a large group of pocket knives that I purchased. I did NOT buy the group to obtain this particular pocket knife. However, I am NOT complaining that it was in the group. It is a Sabre, two blades, single tang stamp, two stamped bolsters, 3 1/4" closed, "BARLOW" pattern pocket knife. The tang stamp reads "Sabre - JAPAN." One bolster reads "BARLOW" and the other bolster reads "Sabre BRAND." Both blades have a VERY WICKED snap.
It is in EXCELLENT condition. It did NOT require any cleaning. I took some pictures and here it is.
Caption(s), if any, are on the BOTTOM of the corresponding picture(s).
Click on a picture to ENLARGE.
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