All About Pocket Knives

Wondering if there's any way to identify this small stag sleeveboard knife. Measures 2 7/8 inches closed. No tang stamp on secondary blade, missing main blade. (Not sure if the "easy open" is original or added during its post-new life). Thanks!

Could it be a Cattaraugus 22239?

That looks like a pretty darn good match, have you measured up your knife and matched up the results ~ I wasn't sure about it at all and kept checking to see if anyone else knew anything ~ looks like you've figured it out ~

Yes, mine measures same as the one in picture from Ferguson's guide. 2 7/8 inches long.

58chevy348 wrote:Wondering if there's any way to identify this small stag sleeveboard knife. Measures 2 7/8 inches closed. No tang stamp on secondary blade, missing main blade. (Not sure if the "easy open" is original or added during its post-new life). Thanks!

I don't think it is possible to determine with certainty the maker of what remains of the knife. I don't see anything to narrow it down. A LOT of companies made sleeveboard knives. If the pen blade was originally unmarked, then manufacturers that marked all of the blades could be dropped from the possibilities.

58chevy348 wrote:Could it be a Cattaraugus 22239?

In the Cattaraugus catalog cut, "stag" was used in place of bone. This was common in old catalogs. The knife in the catalog cut is actually bone, not Sambar stag. Your knife is "genuine stag".

I found this image of a 22239 online for comparison.

58chevy348 wrote:I found this image of a 22239 online for comparison.

That knife is bone, not genuine stag. Your knife is genuine stag.

The old terminology can be a bit confusing. "stag" was used in place of the word "bone" in the old catalogs. Sambar stag was often differentiated as "genuine stag".

Thanks so much for the help! So, am I understanding that Cattaraugus never made genuine stag knives?

58chevy348 wrote:Thanks so much for the help! So, am I understanding that Cattaraugus never made genuine stag knives?

You're very welcome. I have Ferguson's Cattaraugus catalog reprint but I don't have Ferguson's guide. I don't recall seeing any sambar stag knives in the reprint but that doesn't mean they didn't make them at any time. You might check Ferguson's guide.

Throughout the catalog, the word "stag" is used in place of "bone". Cattaraugus' famous "Roger's Indian Trail" bone sometimes looks like sambar stag but it is bone. If they did make such a stag sleeveboard, it would have a different pattern number.

"Sleeveboard" is a term of art (a widely used term in the industry) like "premium stockman" and the pattern was a common catalog item. There are a LOT of old companies that made sleeveboard knives. Even if you find a match, there could be tons of other matches not yet considered or long forgotten. But you can still enjoy it as a relic from the past even though the history may be elusive. Some nice old stag on your knife.

According to the reference on AAPK, the last number in a Cattaraugus pattern number will be 5 if the covers are genuine sambar stag.

In the catalog cut, the last number is 9 (bone).

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