Vintage Horn Handle Knives

[FRJ]

That is a bummer.

Are fleams allowed in this thread other than citing examples of the dreaded beetle?

[Miller Bro's]

They certainly are Joe, along with fixed blades or anything with an edge that has horn handles

[LongBlade]

Nice Dimitri ... funny thing is I have the same fleam made by Borwick - also the same amount of bug bites in horn and like your blades mine look practically unused ... They must have used some extra bug attractant in that horn ...

[Miller Bro's]

could be Lee!

Here's an old Henry Hobson with horn handles, inset round MOP discs and MOP bolsters!

[FRJ]

Thanks Dimitri.

Here are two Borwick fleams.

[FRJ]

Fabulous knife Dimitri.

[Miller Bro's]

Oh yeah, those two are especially nice Joe!!

[FRJ]

Thank you, Sir.

[BWT]

Thanks for sharing those Joe. I've never seen one in person, enjoyed looking at those
They are very nice especially the horn handles.

[KAW]

Here's what happens when the dermistid larvae use your beautiful horn handles for lunch!

Well that brings up the obvious question... Is there any preventative measure that can be taken to avoid the bugs from feasting on our prized possessions?

btw... cool fleams Dimitri & Joe... also learned a new term for me... knew their purpose... but first time "hearing" called that (even my spell checker doesn't like it)...

[FRJ]

Thank you, Bill and Ken.

[wlf]

That horn is beautiful Joe.
A nice bowie? Dimitri.
My last knife posted has a dermestid hole. I didn’t know the beetles were used by taxidermists. You can order the larvae.

[LongBlade]

Nice fleams Joe .. Hidden somewhere from the beetles ...

Sweet Bowie Dimitri ... very similar design on the handle of my Woodhead ..

Ken - I have a few ideas regarding protecting the horn from the beetles - I am thinking a coating of Ren Wax will deter them... now on the other hand since I need to protect literally a couple of thousand $s worth of fly tying feathers used for salmon flies that were designed in the 1800s (and it is the same darn beetles) one can use lavender or tobacco as natural products which deter - on the not so natural side and for products that will kill any eggs and adult beetles you can use pest strips (moth balls work but I hate the smell and not good to smell that for safety reasons as well)....

Lyle - I’ll get you a dozen beetles from the taxidermist for the holidays ... seriously though those beetles are voracious and eat everything!!!

[FRJ]

Thank you, Lyle.

Thanks, Lee.
I was thinking that maybe a farmer used these fleams with some sort of alcohol as a disinfectant and spilled some on the fleams.
That would deter bugs I think. Who knows. Disinfectant probably wasn't a consideration back then.
I know that isopropyl alcohol keeps a lot of critters at bay.

[Miller Bro's]

Thanks Lyle and Lee

Ken, I learned the hard way how to defend against this kind of damage I even stopped buying knives with horn or tortoiseshell handles because of it.

First thing is the beetle loves flowers so if you have a flower garden like I had it attracts them like a magnet! All the flowers had to go! Next thing is they look for a cool dark place to lay their eggs, your knife rolls, safe, cabinet, etc. make an inviting place to go to lay their eggs, then when they emerge they start eating your knife handles!

So the only way to stop them for me was to put the knives in Ziploc bags with a moth ball or two in with them, never had any damage to the blades from the moth balls so don't be concerned about it and this is from over 20 years experience.

[knife7knut]

Some more horn handled beauties:
A Tom McLuin fixed blade.
A J.A.Henckels multi-blade pen knife.
An unmarked multi-blade pen;possibly an A. Kastor knife.
An unmarked keris blade knife with sheath made of half horn and half wood.
A pair of poultry shears marked Grasoli with horn covers.

[Miller Bro's]

Nice ones Ray

[danno50]

Ray, that unmarked lobster with the spiral nail file really catches my eye, it is a beauty!

[BWT]

Very nice Ray!!!

[knife7knut]

Thank you gentlemen.

[Old Folder]

All my Horn Handle knives go way back.

Made by "A" ?

Any ideas on this manufacturer?
Bernard Levine calls the below two "English Medical Bistoury" knives circa 1815.
200 plus years old .

No name.

[BWT]

Dan those are really interesting looking. I know nothing about them except that I really like them. Thanks for sharing.

[Old Folder]

Thank you Bill.

[Old Folder]

I have one more to share. A heavy duty Fleam.

Made by: S MAW London c1807-1901

[Miller Bro's]

Unusual, can I see a picture of the top piece from the front?