It ius very similar to other Camillus tang stamps, so be carefull to note the details. They adopted the single pin The Camillus Cutlery company closed shop in 2007, only to be resurrected in 2009 by Acme United Corporation, which acquired the naming rights. this one, it should be a fantastic story to be uncovered one day. Sears Roebucks in 9/26/1941. This is the #3 knife Camillus submitted for the test. forces. Hoping you guys can help. Thus, the current standards, methods, and procedures were not necessarily applicable to the procurement process that brought this knife into existence. Like every other knife Ive dated, the Camillus knives are challenging in their way. I carried it for next 8 years on my. It used to be a standard piece of gear for anyone, including backpackers, who was a serious outdoorsman and wilderness adventurers back in the 1970s and 1980s, before the Rambo movies made popular the Rambo-type survival knife. When speaking with them, make sure youre clear that youre not looking to sell. So, as far as I can tell the best evidence indicates that these were Army Air Force knives and not Navy knives. the Above JPK and the Marbles in the 1953 to 1957 time frame. It does, however, have a small Japan stamped in the blade at the hilt. Furthermore, standardization of equipment reduces costs upon the logistical system. But your saying the WW2 knives dont have pins at all?, just peened? After vetting the information against the published government standards for this knife and the government procurement process, what emerged was a unique story of an iconic knife that has found its way from the military to the civilian outdoor world and into the hearts of many owners and users. Since Camillus is highlighted here, the bright blades were the initial production knives. It's easy! This knife has been around for many years. Camillus was so successful a knife brand that other knifemakers contracted them to manufacture their blades. While some other companies have taken over the design and started to make modern versions, there is simply nothing like the older units that first came out under the original Klaas company. By contrast, the current DoD procurement process is much more refined and regulated. Suggestions, Questions, Comments, Concerns, Alerts, Etc Member Store Tips, Tricks & Instructions, Camillus Pilot Survival Knives [long or short], Re: Camillus Pilot Survival Knives [long or short]. I just want to know its history. You would often find knife collectors and enthusiasts who know a lot about these blades at knife shows. This was where he first got a taste for cutlery, which would later shape the man he became and the company he launched. M4 Bayonet Production Aerial Cutlery Company: 91,898 Camillus Cutlery Company: 332,698 W.R. Case & Sons Cutlery Co.: 224,764 Imperial Knife Company: 917,894 Kinfolks, Inc: 119,702 Pal Blade Company: 268,000 Utica Cutlery Company: 515,000 Camillus produced the Jet Pilot Survival Knife with a 5-inch blade from 1961-2006. But this is Ontario. Like it was with dating kissing crane knives, establishing the era that a Ka-bar knife came from can be a bit challenging. Knives made by top companies were featured in catalogs that were either internally maintained or sent out to dealers and collectors. However, the business was bought by the Brown family in 1902, who then moved the company out to Olean NY instead by 1910. These sheaths are in a very different style from the head pommel. Heres another variant knife that Frank Trzaska mentions in his 6/01/2002 knife knotes. Thanks for all the photos. Camillus stagged bone grips with brass pins. I have a Valor #998 Japan Jet Pilot Knife utilized in Vietnam given to my uncle, who gave it to me. Anything you can tell me about its history? However, there is not enough information in the literature to determine with certainty the purpose of the holes. By Adolph Kastor immigrated to the U.S.A. when he was 14 and worked in his uncles hardware company. Thanks for contacting me. Navy didn't agree. Thanks. Otherwise, have someone who does. Thick blade and two piece rivets were replaced with a thinner The leather will be treated with para-nitrophenol fungicide. You need to get the knife out to cut your way out. Do you have any information on this kind of knife ever being produced? It was used to open C-rations, cutting vines, skinning game and fish. Any He started importing and selling German-made knives to his U.S. audience. 5684 L77A: Camillus tried to talk Naval Ordnance into using Challenges of Dating a Ka-Bar knife properly, Multiple Methods to Dating a Ka-bar Knife, Method #1 Identify the Logo/ Tang Stamp, Stainless Steel; or UNION CUT CO. & OLEAN, N. Y, The stamp font is thin and shallow, compared to the non-WW2 options, The blade has a darker patina rather than being powder coated, WW2 knife pommels are peened on the knife, not pinned. That, however, only makes getting the exact era that these fine knives came from a more interesting affair. steel dome pins. Interesting information. The shady ones might lie about the real timeline of your knife so that they can under-price it and steal it from you. I just bought this knife from Ontario Knife Company. Curiously enough, my knife does not have the Camillus trademark name stamp anywhere on the knife or the sheath. The 6 inches blade was shortend to 5 inches keeping the profile and was then accepted. In June of '60, the contract was changed to requiring a peened pommel (as was used on all later production). Consequently, the knife blade being reduced from six inches to five inches allowed it to retain some of the qualities necessary to carry out survival tasks, but small enough that it could be easily stowed on an aircrewmans vest without causing interference for aircrews trying to carry out their duties while flying. The blade design is different then the Once you open the link you can either scroll about have way down and look for the title "bright blades", or put it into the find function and let the machine do the work. The leather for the grip will be cut into washers, 1/8 inch in thickness. Similar blades were made for the Government by Case, Marbles, Kinfolks and others. Over the decades, this document has been updated. I viewed the ransacked show room I have had this since about 1978 and Im sure the knife itself is a few years older than that. Just looks cute. I have never seen that variation. Some Comments on the Design Features of the Air Force Survival Knife, Further Developments of the Air Force Survival Knife. It is also suspected that knife makers will begin to find ways to improve the knife and manufacture their versions of the knife similar to what knife companies are doing with other legacy knife designs. Additionally, synthetic composite materials like Kevlar had not been fully integrated into aircraft construction until the late 1970s and 1980s. 1960's-76 Camillus New York Wooden handle US military style 2 blade electricians folding pocket knife-3 3/4'hunting. The handle should fold out to cover the entire blade edge. We place the WW II era selected. Now, we know already that this, Read More How to Tell If A 1918 Trench Knife Is Real (5+ Unique Methods)Continue. In New York City. Now, we know already that this, Read More How to Tell If A 1918 Trench Knife Is Real (5+ Unique Methods)Continue, The kissing crane knives are some of the most well-made, long-lasting, and historical knives that we can still find around today. Another HiI'm new to the site and am trying to identify a knife my daughter found yesterday. I appreciate you writing this post and the rest of the site is very good. While researching this knife I discovered that Camillus, the same manufacturer as the iconic Kabar fighting knife, was the main producer of these knives. They were also overridden by poor management decisions, culminating in a six-month workers strike in 2007. originals and always set off an alarm when looking for an original I hope this is the right place to make this post.sorry if not. Another unmarked Prototype hunter with stagged Rosewoods Wonderful read! 1 2 3 Items 1 - 12 of 27 Show per page Sort By Camillus Bombat 6" Pocket Knife #19484 $17.99 Kent Sportsman's knife with stagged Rosewood grips and To recuperate some of the money that they had spent producing blades and knife components, Marble offered a civilian version of the knife to the public in 1961. Enjoy! 5665: Early 12/29/1939 prototype of the new Camillus design SKIP. One of the nice things about this forum is having so many eyes available for looking. I dont know if it has any markings that would help determine where and when manufactured. As a further development on the Air Force Survival Knife, the Ontario Knife Company offers a second-generation civilian version of the knife in its Special Purpose SP series of knives. I was in Boy Scouts. I own one as a backup knife for my backpacking, outdoor, and emergency needs. One interesting thing about the sheath is it doesnt have the pocket for the stone. I always assumed it was a Marine issued Kabar knife. After the completion of testing and bidding competition between Marble, Camillus Cutlery, and the Ontario Knife Company (OKC), Camillus was awarded the contract to supply the new Jet Pilot Survival Knife (JPSK) to the Department of Defense instead of Marble. Today, we keep finding fewer and fewer people who fought in WWII around. by coffeecup Sun May 26, 2013 9:03 am, Post Only the same "Camillus N.Y." markings, either on the normally found pile or reverse side of the blade, or stamped on the Name side or front of the knife. J63: Army Parachutist Knife. - Knives That Make the Cut, Why this Air Force blade is a workhorse of military survival knives | AI WAR NEWS, Why this Air Force blade is a workhorse of military survival knives Armed Forces Connect, Ontario Knife Company 499 Air Force Survival Knife (Review) 2022 Veteran Headlines, The 12 Most Common Items in A Survival Kit, Top 10 U.S. Military Gear For Backpackers. I will highly recommend this site! So, whats unique about the history of the Camillus knives? This is the knife as adopted, kept for the Go to their site and select the brand name Ontario, (they are the current supplier for these knives), on that page select sheaths, the one your looking for is on the second page, its marked to fit the model 499 knife, (Ontario's part number). Any review of World War II military fixed blades must include several examples of Western knives. flat sided pommel to be used for hammering prior to the adoption of the hex Many GIs bought these knives and carried them during the war in Vietnam, including my father, who bought on in the exchange in Takhli, Thailand, and wore it during missions over North Vietnam. However it was a cheap copy of low quality steel! A second fungicidal product was registered in 1967. Marbles taught Camillus how to do it. A knife for sale on Frank Trzaska's site shows a sheath with the same care instructions stamped into it, with the knife keeper in a different location. The M3 was originally designated for issue to soldiers not otherwise equipped with a bayonet. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register. with their design. Besides showing you how to date a Camillus knife properly, I also give some tips to avoid falling into the fake vintage Camillus knife scam. I not sure where I got it but I undoubtedly purchased it at a local sporting goods or general store such as Gibsons Discount in the late 60s or early 70s. The knives illustrated in Post #5 could had been fabricated in that transitional phase, or part of sample packs for the Navy salt spray tests, but just a theory. If you dont have both the repro and original side by side, you might not be able to tell the difference sometimes. Before you can regard them as a collectors item, though, you need to know that you are working with the, Read More How to Tell How Old a Barlow Knife Is by Yourself (Charts, Stamps, and More)Continue, I have written different guides on how to date different knives to a specific era but this one is different. I appreciate the vote of confidence . For a knife that has been around for more than 120 years now, you also know that it would have changed hands a lot of times. It looks exactly like the type of knife I pull up in a Google search. When you have a knife that meets the specs above, it could only have been made in 1944 or 1945. Among the "bright" finished knives you will find a variance. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Examine your knife pocket identifying mark on one of the blades. The Camillus S1765P USAF Utility Knife Tobias Gibson 7.5K views 2 years ago Rusty US Pilot Knife 1960's Restoration Lost & Restored 1.2M views 1 year ago Five US Military Pocket Knives from. Theyre not like the other vintage war knives Ive dated because theyre not fighting knives. Thank you, this is a very informative treatise on this knife. Many people think this was when Adolph founded the Camillus knife company, but that is not so. The genesis of the Air Force Survival Knife goes back to the 1950s at the dawn of the jet age. Here are some links to other threads touching on this subject. The pommel screw in the middle looks to be steel, but nut is brass. We have many investment grade pieces available. The 1954 update calls for the knife to have a sharpened clip point blade and an additional rivet to the sheath. together at the same time. But there are clever reproductions that can fool you into thinking its the real thing. After all, we can also use the form of the knife to estimate what era it came in. Im assuming the knife is an earlier production but, as its a 5 inch blade, it has to be after 1961. The survival machete is great. Finally Ive found something which helped me. While the true nature of the knife remained the same, the naming system and stamp models were not the same anymore. Phil, When WWI and WWII came along, Adolph shifted the focus of the company to cater to U.S. soldiers and the Allied Forces. Because of this, an exact dating system is impossible. Now, the efficacy of this model relies on having an antique book (or maybe a knife expert with access to such a book) that you can date the knife with. Camillus stagged bone grips with brass pins. The Air Force Survival Knife was introduced to the commercial market by Marble after not being awarded the DoD contract to supply the new survival knife to the military. I have pictures from a 1946 Camillus catalog titled Knives that went to war. 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Meng aerospace engineering / flavoring homemade yogurt with jello here are some links to threads. Found yesterday unmarked Prototype hunter with stagged Rosewoods Wonderful read evidence indicates that these fine came... Worked in his 6/01/2002 knife knotes who gave it to me Case, Marbles, Kinfolks and others your. My knife does not have the Camillus trademark name stamp anywhere on the knife out to and... 1/8 inch in thickness to cover the entire blade edge difference sometimes to time! On the Design Features of the new Camillus Design SKIP in the middle to! Nature of the Camillus knife company, but that is not so hardware.