80T sheepfoot blade sizes

[Producer]

I've just obtained a 2nd 80T and my first 881 to go along with my small Schrade collection.
I noticed while comparing the recent, like new 80T and 881 that my first 80T has a larger sheepsfoot blade.
Is this normal? The large one looks original from what I can tell.
The newly aquired 80 and 881 share a similar sized sheep that appear stock also.

Anyway I was just wondering and have included some pictures I hope illustrate the subject.
Thanks, Harold

[orvet]

I took the liberty of lightening a couple of your pics to be better able to see details.
The tang stamps on the 8OTs are the same, so in theory, from the same general time frame.

I don’t have an explanation for the difference in sheepfoot blade length, with one possible exception: Camillus did make complete knives for Schrade and also a lot of blades for Schrade.

It may be that Camillus made the blades for one of the 8OTs.
If I had to guess, I would guess they made the blades for the 8OT with the longer sheepfoot blade, though I don't think they made the whole knife.
But that is just a seat of the pants guess!

[Producer]

Thanks for the response Dale.
It did cross my mind of camillus's hand in this somehow.


The larger sheepsfoot is kind of neat.

[coffeecup]

I've seen a pinned 8OT; I just figured it was Camillus-made, like the pinned 61OT etc.

[orvet]

I've seen a pinned 8OT; I just figured it was Camillus-made, like the pinned 61OT etc.

It would be a lot easier if we could see a pin in the bolsters!
It may very well be a Camillus made knife, but you can't always see the pins in them from the factory.
I usually scuff the bolster with a Scotch Brite pad to make the pins visible (not suggesting that in this instance).

What makes this unusual to me is that the two knives appear to be made at approximately the same time; same tang stamp.
But upon closer examination of the picture there is a slight difference in the distance the handles have been hafted back from the bolsters, and a slight difference in the color near the bolsters, which may just from the difference in the depth of hafting.

It is pretty hard to tell more than that without having the knives in my hands to compare them, and even then there is no guarantee that a person could find anything conclusive.

What I suspect it that the knife with the long sheepfoot was assembled with sheepfoot blades made by Camillus.
I found the document Tom Williams sent me about a batch of 30,000 blades made by Camillus (or at least ground by Camillus), for the 8OT and 34OT knives. There were 30,000 of each of the blades used in the 8OT & 34OT, for a total of 180,000 blades.

I wonder how long that would last at Schrade? Was it enough for one weeks production? A month? Three months? I guess we will never know.

[Producer]

Dale, I know there is no firm answer but if the contract for the 30 thousand blades with Camillus is relevant to my longer sheepfoot blade, would that make
the 80T circa 1986? [ the contract/blade order date?]
Here's a few more shots. Sorry for my poor photography skills.
Thanks for the response, it's very interesting.
If the "long' 80T was made in 86 I would have been 36 years old.

[coffeecup]

In a post over on BF, Codger_64 gives these numbers for 1985 production of the 34OT:

1985 - 294,776 + 2,256 + 14,236 +22,901 (SGS-1)

That would suggest that 30,000 of each blade would tide Schrade over for a month or two. I couldn't find any numbers for the 8OT production levels.