Robeson Flame Edge Pocket Knives

[knifeaholic]

An older ad (1964) that I picked up. I know that Robeson made both sheath knives and pocket knives (also kitchen knives) with the FLAME EDGE treatment. An interesting innovation. The pocket knives seem to be rarer than the fixed blades.

Does anyone have any info as to what all pocket knife patterns Robeson made with FLAME EDGE?

[dudleythetogi]

Ask Sauconian(Fran).He perchased one at the Allentown Gunshow a few yrs. back.Neet looking knife.I believe they used a thermite charge to fire tungsten carbide onto the edge

[RobesonsRme.com]

Actually, I don't think they made very many different patterns.

There were some serpentine jacks and three blade stockman knives and a humpback serpentine jack and three blade stockman. They made all of those with genuine strawberry bone and strawberry Delrin and they eventually made the humpbacks with ShurWood handles as well. I have never seen the serpentine patterns with ShurWood handles.

The pattern numbers for the serpentines were 278, 480 and 728 and the humpbacks were 295's.

I've never seen any 4" premium stock knives with the Flame-Edge.

They made a good many kitchen knife patterns with it, in both straight and serrated edges.

Most people do not understand the genius of the Flame-Edge design.

It was meant to be sharpened only on the side that did not have the tungsten-carbide coating.

Sharpening the knife in that way exposed a micro-thin edge of the tungsten and if you looked at that edge under a powerful microscope, you would see a fine serration pattern to it.

They cut like a champ when properly honed and they don't wear down as easily as carbon steel or stainless.

You can find the Flame-Edge hunting knives with names other than Robeson on them because they made the knives for other distributors.

Here are some pics of the ones I have. I recently picked up a mint 295 Flame-Edge two blade jack with ShurWood handles, but I do not have a photo of it.

Charlie Noyes

[Mason]

Actually, I don't think they made very many different patterns.

There were some serpentine jacks and three blade stockman knives and a humpback serpentine jack and three blade stockman. They made all of those with genuine strawberry bone and strawberry Delrin and they eventually made the humpbacks with ShurWood handles as well. I have never seen the serpentine patterns with ShurWood handles.

The pattern numbers for the serpentines were 278, 480 and 728 and the humpbacks were 295's.

I've never seen any 4" premium stock knives with the Flame-Edge.

They made a good many kitchen knife patterns with it, in both straight and serrated edges.

Most people do not understand the genius of the Flame-Edge design.

It was meant to be sharpened only on the side that did not have the tungsten-carbide coating.

Sharpening the knife in that way exposed a micro-thin edge of the tungsten and if you looked at that edge under a powerful microscope, you would see a fine serration pattern to it.

They cut like a champ when properly honed and they don't wear down as easily as carbon steel or stainless.

You can find the Flame-Edge hunting knives with names other than Robeson on them because they made the knives for other distributors.

Here are some pics of the ones I have. I recently picked up a mint 295 Flame-Edge two blade jack with ShurWood handles, but I do not have a photo of it.

Charlie Noyes

Very interesting, thanks for this information.

[knifeaholic]

Thanks for posting those Charlie.

Those are the only patterns of pocket knives that I have ever seen or heard of either...basically the 3-1/4" pattern in round and square bolsters, two and three blades. I have never seen one in the Shur-Wood handles though.

Robeson sure was an innovative company, I think that modern knife companies like Buck have been selling coated blades recently but Robeson was way ahead on this innovation.

[jerryd6818]

There's a Flame Edge Kinfolks fixed blade up on eBay right now that ends Monday. I'm curious to see what it goes for.

[RobesonsRme.com]

Flame-Edge Kinfolks hunting knives still in the box with sheath typically sell for a couple hundred dollars.

In today's economy, maybe not so much.

Charlie Noyes

[bonehead]

Awesome knives Charlie Thanks for showing us them Very cool and neat change from the other knives produced in that time.... I love them

Bonehead

[knifegirl888]

Awesome knives Charlie Thanks for showing us them Very cool and neat change from the other knives produced in that time.... I love them

Bonehead

I second that!

[RobesonsRme.com]

Here is my lastest acquisition in the Robeson FlameEdge line of pocketknives.

This knife was made, probably, in the early 1960's. The tang stamp is the pre-1965 ROBESON / SHUREDGE (block letters) / U.S.A. stamp.

I don't know exactly when they began using the ShurWood handles on pocketknives, but I suspect it was after 1960. They used genuine strawberry bone from 1948 to 1959 or 60. They started using the strawberry Delrin in 1959 or 1960. I think the Shurwood was added after that and was used concomittently with the strawberry Delrin.

This is a 923295 pattern two blade jack with nickel-silver bolsters and brass liners. It's the same handle-die shape as the 295 strawberry bone stockman I posted above.

They made this knife with the ShurWood handles as a three blade stockman, as well.

This was an Ebay find a month or so ago.

Charlie Noyes

[philco]

I was digging through the knife drawer in our kitchen over the weekend and discovered a Flame Edge Robeson butcher knife down at the bottom of the drawer. It's got the tungsten carbide coating on one side just like the pocketknives do. I sharpened it on the opposite side of the coating per Charlie's instructions, and man did it take an edge! I'm sure I had seen it before, but only after having read this thread did I realize what it was. Thanks for the education.

[RobesonsRme.com]

Practically unused Robeson kitchen cutlery with the very durable ShurWood handles can be bought for very little money on Ebay.

ShurWood was made by Robeson in a separate shop. It is a laminated material made from thin layers of wood (I do not know what kind) and a phenolic resin and compressed under high pressure.

ShurWood and PakkaWood are probably the same thing. I have seen Robeson sets with a PakkaWood label on the case.

Both Flame Edge and Frozen Heat, two of Robeson's innovative productions can be found on an almost daily basis.

Flame Edge, which we have been discussing here, are not seen quite as often as the Frozen Heat line.

Frozen Heat refers to an extreme cold and extreme heat treatment technique that was developed by Emerson Case while he was president of Robeson. The technique is still used by cutlery companies today.

Unused sets of various sizes appear on Ebay frequently. I think they were originally given as gifts, i.e. wedding, anniversary or Christmas, back in the 1950's and early 60's. They were put away and not used or not much used. Now, they are being sold by the heirs of the original recipients.

I have purchased mint five and six blade sets for eighteen dollars and twenty-five dollars, both in wood wall hanger display cases with a magnetic retainer strip to secure the knives.

Go to your local kitchen shop and check out the cutlery. Look at the prices.

Now, listen to me. You cannot buy a better knife than the Robeson knives you can buy for practically nothing on Ebay.

A Robeson Frozen Heat carving knife will go though a turkey, ham or roast like it is made of butter.

I use these knives every day.

I have a son in culinary school right now and I have put together a set of Frozen Heat knives, still with the cardboard blade covers in place, for $25.00 and will give them to him for Christmas. The set i bought had a non-Robeson ECKO knife included that the seller did not mention. I searched Ebay daily until a proper knife appeared. It arrived today.

I highly recommend these knives to anyone that has a kitchen.

Addendum:
Robeson imported some fancy stag handled German made etched blade sets and also some steak knife sets in the 1950's. These were generally labeled "Robeson - Continental".

I cannot speak to the quality of those. Never owned one, never used one.

Stick with the knives made in Perry, New York.

Charlie Noyes