Schrade 152OT Sharpfinger

oh no! he was great and a true artist. very kind and willing to help in any way. i am lucky enough to have several of his creations and treasure them.
 
I don't often see these Sharpfingers NIB in the woodgrain fold down box with the SAS-17 sheath for some reason. The drop-in sheath was introduced in 1983 and was included with the display boxed Scrimshaw knives through 1988. But the SAS-19 sheath with the handle strap appeared in catalogs and clampacks as early as 1985.


 
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Circa 1991, Schrade made some Sharpfingers, complete with custom boxes, using stainless blades and tangstamped "SCHRADE+" over "U.S.A. 512OT". Other than the steel and the tangstamp, they were identical to the base 152OT.

The knife was produced for a special order for Europe and was supposed to ship in a special black and blue box. They should be 440 stainless blades.

Records show that only 25 or so were exported. The remainder of the just over 2,000 pieces produced (2,156 according to records) were “salted” from inventory into the American market. These are relatively rare.

The one I have was purchased in the base tan box with standard 152OT Sharpfinger markings. I have since obtained an original unused box intended for the 512OT Sharpfinger, black with blue and gold printing.

Another example surfaced in the clampack “bonus” package (152OTCPCK care kit with oil and cloth) of the standard production 152OT. The finished knives bore a “440 Stainless” blade etch. Not all of them salted into the domestic market did.




 
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Hi Codger,
Do you have any information on the 2004 wooden handle Anniversary Sharp-finger.
Hope you are OK... Ken.
 
koldgold said:
Hi Codger,
Do you have any information on the 2004 wooden handle Anniversary Sharp-finger.
Hope you are OK... Ken.
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HHi Ken! Sorry but records from 2003-2004 are sparse at best. No real data on pieces assembled and shipped either in those dealer sets or as singles like mine was. I wish we had more.
 
Here is one that, in spite of having no box or papers or packaging, is relatively easy to date. It has it's original sheath which is the very earliest style using the choil retainer strap with a pointed end. Only the first few years used this.

The knife grind and edge itself agree with this assumption. The spine of the blade has a distinct angular grind on both sides bringing the tip to a needle point.

The final edge, though lightly resharpened, still shows traces of it's aggressive A.C.A. edge, micro serrations. And of course the first tang stamp style which continued for years.



 
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An uncommon SFO for Ducks Unlimited Canada. For several years in the late '80's through mid 1990's, CDU ordered special hallmarked knives each year. In 1993 it was the Sharpfinger pattern.

1993 - 152DU for DU Canada, golden fibron handle, coined DU shield, Hallmark Etch blade on pile side, Ducks Unlimited blade etch, Duck head logo branded sheath, 550 pcs.


 
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Codger_64 said:
1991 - Another special issue is the 152OTO knife with hunter orange Delrin handle and "OLD TIMER" or “LIMITED EDITION” shield. It was commissioned by Smokey Mountain Knife Works circa 1991 for inclusion in their "father and son" hunting sets with the 165OTO "DEERHUNTER", 15OTO "LIMITED EDITION", and 158OTO with an "OLD TIMER" shield. The original production 152OTO most often are found with sheaths having a deer head image embossed on the front. Quite a number of these orange handled knives appeared for sale after the Schrade closing, so they are unique, but not really rare. I believe these used the 1095HC carbon steel blades and had the standard "Schrade USA 152" tangstamp. “Father and Son” sets (152OTO and 15OTO) were again offered in 1998.

380-1991--152OTO1569105218.jpg

380-1991--152OTO-Sheath1569105276.jpg
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Discussing these knives with other collectors, it came to my attention that there was a third issue of the 152OTO. I've not yet found that SMKW catalog to confirm them to have been the customer in 2003-2004, but it seems likely they were. These late order knives have the post July 2001 hollow grind and are only seen in the last box design.


Here are the SMKW catalog pages from the earlier orders showing the plain grind.



 
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For those who have managed to follow along so far, you will remember my mention of the reuse of some of Giorgianni's art on later issues after his 1992 retirement. Here is one prime example of multiple uses.

The scrimshaw art for the 1983 Sharpfinger pattern (SC502) was a brown bear and hound. This was the first issue to include the new SAS17 drop-in sheath. There were eight patterns in the 1983 issue.

A special factory order for K-Mart was made also in 1983 reversing the art on the pile side handle with special tang stamp, SC205, also on the pile side. Both issues were sold in the black gift box with molded felted tray.
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This artwork would be reused much later on the 1998 drop point 154UH stamped 501SC , "Wildlife Collector's Limited Edition" knife.



And as a curiosity, there was a sample made for K-Mart but not used, which even reversed the colors of the Delrin and stamp.
 
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Another example of artwork being recycled. The Giorgianni art of a buck deer on the 1979 SC501 was revived again for the 1997 502SC97. That one was cataloged in 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000.

 
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Codger_64 said:
For those who have managed to follow along so far, you will remember my mention of the reuse of some of Giorgianni's art on later issues after his 1992 retirement. Here is one prime example of multiple uses.

The scrimshaw art for the 1983 Sharpfinger pattern (SC502) was a brown bear and hound. This was the first issue to include the new SAS17 drop-in sheath. There were eight patterns in the 1983 issue.


A special factory order for K-Mart was made also in 1983 reversing the art on the pile side handle with special tang stamp, SC205, also on the pile side. Both issues were sold in the black gift box with molded felted tray.


This artwork would be reused much later on the 1998 drop point 154UH stamped 501SC , "Wildlife Collector's Limited Edition" knife.



And as a curiosity, there was a sample made for K-Mart but not used, which even reversed the colors of the Delrin and stamp.
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oh wow i have the 1998 set. so nice to see it featured and learn some background on it.
 
delmas2nd said:
oh wow i have the 1998 set. so nice to see it featured and learn some background on it.
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Unfortunately I have not found much on the set in the archives (yet). But I will keep looking. Did your set come with any papers?

I did forget one other use of the 1979 SC501 deer art. In 1981 the knife was used as a bonus with the purchase of that year's HK-8 dealer display of hunting knives.

 
Here is the 1997 Endangered Species Set. The Sharpfinger 502SC for that issue was the Gray Wolf.


 
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Codger_64 said:
Unfortunately I have not found much on the set in the archives (yet). But I will keep looking. Did your set come with any papers?

I did forget one other use of the 1979 SC501 deer art. In 1981 the knife was used as a bonus with the purchase of that year's HK-8 dealer display of hunting knives.

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i think it came with what you showed no slip cover or anything. i usually keep everything together and that is all i have.
 
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Mail lady brought me a user Sharpfinger today which I had forgotten about. The knife and sheath are in good condition, but the knife has definitely seen some use. Not sure what I am going to do with it yet. It was cheap and I was vulnerable.


 
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Here is a Sharpfinger seldom seen in the wild these days. Production and shipment to dealers was most likely abbreviated by everything else going on with new pattern being launched as well as all of the 100th anniversary editions, regular production demands by major customers like Wal-Mart and financial strains which led to the mid-year July, 2004 forced bankruptcy closure.

Beginning in 2000, Schrade made a "Ducks Unlimited Collectors' Series" of oak handled knives with brass furniture, enameled shield and simple blade etch. Composed of four folding pattern and one fixed blade knife, the SDUPH2 was chosen each year until the 2004 edition when the SDU152 was chosen.

In the years I have been watching and collecting the pattern, I only recall seeing a scant handful of these. It is anybody's guess as to how many were produced and shipped or made it out in [the boxes of auctioned lnventory.

 
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A recent find, a 1977 Guns & Ammo Sharpfinger still in the original postmarked shipping box, owned by Craig Pickrall, one of the Co-founders of the U.S. Militaria Forum who passed away Aug. 18, 2014. Forty year old Sharpfingers don't get any more pristine than this one.



 
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For those unaware of the backstory on these 152GA knives, they were offered as bonuses for buying a two-year subscription to Peterson Publishing's Guns & Ammo magazine. There were two productions, the first one above began in 1976 and ended in October 1977 with a total of 30,350 pieces shipped.



A second production began in 1982 and ended in 1984 with a total of 44,979 pieces for a two production total of 75,579 pieces. So they aren't rare today, but very uncommon to find unused in their original Peterson mailers.

Here is my 1983 dated issue acquired many years ago. Note that it came with the SAS-17 slip-in sheath.

 
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