All About Pocket Knives

A couple of hours ago I bought an Ontario JPK survival knife listed as "Ontario 1-1973 JPK's Fixed Blade Knife 5" Drop Point w/ Leather Handle". I figure both knives are survival knives for jet fighter pilots in case they go down. Both came with the original sheath but I paid $30.00 shipping included for mine. The 4 photos right below here are of my knife & sheath. This JPK is Camillus stamped and is listed as "Vintage Military Survival Knife Fixed Blade Camillus, NY 3-1967 Vietnam Era" and its current bid (with 17+ hours left) is at $230.00. Both knives have the same 5" length blades. What's the big difference besides the price, maker and the fact that it was made 5 years 10 month earlier than mine? The 3 photos below are of that knife & sheath. The sheath on my knife is not badly torn and the stitching is intact. Both handle and sheath from both knives just needs a little leather care.

Edit: Price just went up to $255.00!!!

They are essentially the same knives but Camillus is no longer in business and Ontario Knife Company is in business.
That along with age is probably the main difference. Note however, I am not an expert in this pattern.

Someone who knows this pattern or knows military knives better then I do may have a different answer.

Perhaps someone with real expertise, which I do NOT have, will come along and give you a good answer. My guess is that the Camillus has more cachet, is sexier, has more collector appeal. Does the seller have special information? For example, is the original owner known?

On any of the Vietnam area knives, do be careful. I have no reason to doubt the authenticity, but is there any provenance that better establishes that it was in fact used in VN? To me it looks genuine but....I am not the person to verify that. Besides being a VN era knife, does the seller say it was actually used in VN?

orvet wrote:They are essentially the same knives but Camillus is no longer in business and Ontario Knife Company is in business.
That along with age is probably the main difference. Note however, I am not an expert in this pattern.

Someone who knows this pattern or knows military knives better then I do may have a different answer.

Thanks, Dale. Hey, Dale. How's that 2OT doing? Are you ready to let her go yet?

Hello, Quick Steel: Nothing like that. No history on either knife and both blades are designed exactly the same to my eyes. The blade shot on the other one only looks better because of the photo angle taken from the point of the blade. Here's the link - http://www.ebay.com/itm/311837231573?_t ... EBIDX%3AIT

Here's the link to the one I bought. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Ontario-1-1973- ... SwXYtYthax It was recently lowered and listed as a "Buy it Now" for $35 (I got the email) but I asked if they'd take $30 and got a super fast reply accepting my offer. The snaps on the sheath work too.

Edit: Price is $285.00 with 2 hours left. There's nothing special about this particular blade except for two stubborn, deep pocket guys going at it. The current highest bidder has only 1 previous buy on the bay & the other has 7. I did a sold listing search & less than 1/2 went for top $ from $192 to $150s while the majority same year, Camillus made, in better condition sold from $50+ to $60 some. I could put mine (dated 1-1973) on the bay and claim Vietnam era too. It's just crazy.

[Google says: "Vietnam War Era. According to the Code of Federal Regulations Chapter 38 Paragraph 3.2(f), Vietnam Era is the period from February 28, 1961 to May 7, 1975 inclusive for those who served in the South Vietnam during that period and from August 5, 1964 to May 7, 1975 inclusive for all other cases.Jun 21, 2013
Vietnam War Era - The Vietnam War
TheVietnamWar.info › vietnam-war-era"]