All About Pocket Knives

I just got back from a gun and knife show where there was a booth which had a lot of used knives. Apparently they were knives which were confiscated at airports, courthouses, from criminals, etc. and the vendor buys them by the barrel. They had a bunch of old carbon steel slipjoints so I was in heaven.

I bought one Schrade small Old Timer stamped 720T USA on the blade which was obviously carbon steel so I can assume it is USA made.

I bought another small Old Timer which was stainless (I think). It had USA 120T stamped on the blade.

My questions are...

Can I assume the stainless(?) knife is a USA made Schrade? I mean, they don't make them in China (Scrade "replicas", I like that) then do final assembly here and stamp USA or anything do they?

And..

What kind of steel is it?

Thanks

If its stamped USA , it was made here.
Mark

The one you thing is stainless; does the tang stamp say “SCHRADE+”?
The second line (or third) should say USA.

SCHRADE+ appears on many of the Schrade stainless blades made in the USA, (but not all of them).
If it has the + it is definitely stainless and US made, (see disclaimer).

Disclaimer-
So far as I know to this point they have not used the + on the “replica” Schrades nor have they stamped USA on the China made “Schrade replicas” either. Who knows what they will do tomorrow or next year?

All of the Chinese Schrade's that I've seen have had a single line stamp "Schrade"

Actually, I've gotten a magnifying glass out to check the blade stamp and am seeing tiny flecks of rust. The thing is just so pristine it looks like stainless. It's never been sharpened.

Is it worth anything? If not I'll hit it with vinegar and see if it patinas.

Is there another way to check to see if it's carbon steel?

Tjmurphy, where are you located in Ky.? I live in the Cincinnati area and work in Kentucky. I love bluegrass myself.

Hey David, I live in Florence. We have a big jam session at Willis Music Florence every fourth Friday of the month. Come visit us. I think they still have a jam session at the Willis store in Eastgate but not sure of the night.

I work at Oystar North America, used to be R.A. Jones in Crescent Springs. Sweet, thanks for the Bluegrass info and thanks to all for the answers.

Looks like I got a good condition USA Schrade which makes me happy. Now someone needs to tell me it ain't worth a lot so I can sharpen it up and stick it in my watch pocket.

I hunt for old carbon steel knives 'cause they are the best users. Anything that MIGHT be worth anything at all I'll oil up and stick in a drawer. I also got an old Boker in p*ss poor shape which will be my next EDC now that I had fun cleaning and fixing it up.

davidketterer wrote:
Looks like I got a good condition USA Schrade which makes me happy. Now someone needs to tell me it ain't worth a lot so I can sharpen it up and stick it in my watch pocket.

A quick search in ebay shows several 72OTs (USA made) selling new in box for under $25.
The 12OT is usually a few dollars less.

Congrats on a nice new user!

Thank you much.