RE: Camillus American Wildlife Jumbo Trapper

The Camillus Cutlery Company was one of the oldest knife manufacturers in the United States with roots dating back to 1876. The company manufactured Camillus branded knives and was a prolific contractor for other knife brands up until its last days in 2007 when the company filed for bankruptcy.
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Suredan
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RE: Camillus American Wildlife Jumbo Trapper

Post by Suredan »

So what is the story on these? The ones with the Sid Bell pewter animal shields. There is one on eBay in the original box, dirt cheap with no bids. Why are they not more desirable? I have one that my dad had elk antler scales put on that he gave to me. It was my go to hunting knife for years when I was younger. It seems to be a solid well made knife. I just don’t understand their lack of desirability/value.
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Dan In MI
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Re: RE: Camillus American Wildlife Jumbo Trapper

Post by Dan In MI »

Is this the one you're referring to?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Cammil ... 5254984519

I have no idea about the low prices (a search for sold items containing "Camillus American Wildlife" revealed what seem to be some absolute steals). But if you like them, you may want to take advantage of what could be a buyers' market!
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Vit_213
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Re: RE: Camillus American Wildlife Jumbo Trapper

Post by Vit_213 »

Suredan
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Re: RE: Camillus American Wildlife Jumbo Trapper

Post by Suredan »

I was talking about this one. https://www.ebay.com/itm/255070160648
Sold for $34.00
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FRJ
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Re: RE: Camillus American Wildlife Jumbo Trapper

Post by FRJ »

If you want a large, stout packing knife it would be a good place to start.
I bought my locking jumbo trapper many years ago from Smokey Mountain Knifeworks.
I'm sure glad I did. It's been a great companion all along.
Some folks collect these to put on shelves and that's OK, I guess, but as a working knife they will hold up quite well.
As you can see I haven't put mine to too much labor but for what I have used it for over the years it has served me well.
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Dan In MI
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Re: RE: Camillus American Wildlife Jumbo Trapper

Post by Dan In MI »

After submitting my initial post in this thread, it occurred to me that many of the American Wildlife knives may have been bought by collectors. That could explain what seems a rather large number of unused examples on eBay. It's also possible that there are currently more on the market than is typical, so increased supply is driving demand down. As I said before, take advantage of the buyers' market!
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Adaptable and (usually) affable knife enthusiast, unsure of his knife collecting destination but enjoying the journey
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Mr. Chips
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Re: RE: Camillus American Wildlife Jumbo Trapper

Post by Mr. Chips »

FRJ wrote: Sat Aug 07, 2021 1:43 am If you want a large, stout packing knife it would be a good place to start.
I bought my locking jumbo trapper many years ago from Smokey Mountain Knifeworks.
I'm sure glad I did. It's been a great companion all along.
Some folks collect these to put on shelves and that's OK, I guess, but as a working knife they will hold up quite well.
As you can see I haven't put mine to too much labor but for what I have used it for over the years it has served me well.
That exact knife has been my "go to" hunting knife for a long time - over 30 years.
It has disassembled a lot of moose and deer over that period of time.
I needed help getting a moose out of a big muskeg north of Terrace, BC, and got that help from a friend with an Argo type machine. He was mighty impressed with the knife's performance, so I got him one.
I got mine from Smoky Mountain too.
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