Show Your Vintage Schrade Scrimshaw Designs by F. Giorgianni

Saddlebum said:
Very interesting train of thought and informative. Staying with that line of thinking, these would then be the "Neanderthals" of the evolutionary chain of scrimshaw knives.
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Exactly. And (due to familiarity and prejudice) I refer to the early Camillus projects such as the Babe Ruth figurals made by Camillus bearing a likeness of his signature and a baseball. Albert Baer personally secured Ruth's endorsement contract for these. And then there were the cartoon theme imprinted knives, Buck Rogers, Dick Tracy, etc. And a variety of "Scout knives", one of which had the morse code imprinted on the pile side.

But... it was Giorgianni who brought about the idea for Schrade to issue "limited edition" knives with art for art's sake, first with faux scrimshaw of the sea, then of American wildlife, then of every imaginable theme... space exploration, American history, classic cars, dog breeds, native American heritage, etc.

I can easily imagine how a man who was first and foremost a creative artist would get bored to tears doing production graphic arts, mostly text, logos and blade etches. In another earlier life I was one. I did the faux tooled leather and woodgrain printed art for the interior door trim of the 1970's Chevy and GMC trucks, gauge faces for Catapillar tractors, control panels for stoves and toaster ovens. It was fun and challenging at first but quickly became boreing. Thus I became a patent illustrator and prototype builder where original creative art was expected.
 
Nice Gasouthernboy! There are some really good deals out there on the scrims, especially if one is not stuck on getting them complete with boxes and papers. And the variety is near endless in pattern and art.
 
Coder_64, the scrims are my favorite because each is a of artwork. Not having paperwork to me is not a deal breaker. My plans are to build or find a display case for them.
 
First up I have a SC505 1987 print of a lab retrieving a duck. The knife has already been cleaned up.

Back view

My SC505's to date


Next up is this beautiful frontier. Given the time frame that the knife was done. I'm guessing that it was done by F Giorgianni. Does anyone know how many of these were made; 3000? I have only seen two. Not to say this could not be the same one I saw earlier this year. I'm a sucker for Scrimshaws and Mustangs. Some would say that my Mustang is my baby vs my wife. Hahaha








 
This one was done by a different scrimshander, Feeney, on pearl. I don't think there were very many sfos in the Schrade/IXL lineup. There are several pieces of paperwork with this set, description, history of Orgill Hardware Company, registration, etc., which I am not showing here. Orgill was in Codger's old stomping grounds, Perhaps he has a comment. The slab, also scrimmed, is either elephant ivory or a man-made material, and I have not been able to determine this as of yet.

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A very nice selection of scrims! Orgill Brothers. Hmm. Yes I grew up on a cotton, soybean and wheat farm just across the river and for most of that time Orgill was the "getting place" for many farm needs. Their story is parallel with that of the other hardware concerns in the South, born in the 1840's as local distributors and retailers of imported hardware from Europe via New York City, thence Port Of New Orleans and up the river to Vicksburg, Memphis and beyond. Interestingly, to me at least, this was the root of Camillus Cutlery as well as the Baer brothers eventual cutlery empire.

They are still in business by the way and have succeeded in increasing their market while many other competing firms have gone by the wayside. Belknap is one example.

https://www.orgill.com/index.aspx?QType=100162

Orgill, Inc. is the world’s largest independently owned hardlines distributor providing retailers across the United States and in more than 60 countries throughout the world access to over 75,000 products and industry-leading retail services.

Over the past two decades Orgill, a privately held company, has emerged as the fastest growing hardlines distributor in the United States. With annual sales in excess of $1.4 billion in 2012, Orgill has the size to offer retailers the best pricing on products from every category while allowing them to make the choices that are right for their businesses.

Orgill’s market-focused approach to distribution has earned the company a reputation of unsurpassed customer service. Through its mix of sophisticated marketing programs, low-cost distribution services, highly flexible programs and a corporate dedication to support the uniqueness of individual retailers, Orgill has emerged as a viable alternative to the industry’s co-operatives.
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Here is my small collection of Schrade scrims.IMG_8603.jpg\

I am really liking the SC 503. I hope I can acquire a few more.
 
Overdue for a bump on this thread, so I'll do it with this SC507 Cougar, 1988. Also in 2000 price list as a 4 pin instead of 3.

SC507 1988 Cougar, before
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after
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I just recently picked these two up. Here are the before & after pictures of a 1989 SC507 Checkered Flag Edition with original box & sheath along with a 1984 SC505 Boat with duck decoy.









 
The last one to the stable in my collection of SC503s with a trout scrimshaw. It has been elusive and the last on my list cuz I'm not a spoon fisherman. Now to find the salmon and steelhead to make my life complete. I've never even seen one. At this point, I would be happy just to see what they look like.

circa 1990
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GASOUTHERNBOY said:
I just recently picked these two up. Here are the before & after pictures of a 1989 SC507 Checkered Flag Edition with original box & sheath along with a 1984 SC505 Boat with duck decoy.
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Good job cleaning up that knife! That is a good example of why I started wrapping all my leather sheath knives in paper if they are stored in the sheath. Especially the petroleum tanned, oily smelling leather. It eats brass and nickel bolsters. I use acid free sketch paper from a sketch pad I bought at Walmart. It's a heavy weight paper and makes a nice wrapper to store the knife in while in the sheath. Leave one end folded and un-taped so it will slide out when you want it. I have that green oxidation gew on the outside of some of my knife wrappers, but the knife inside is fine and the brass doesn't tarnish near as fast while wrapped. I'm on my last page in the sketch pad and need to find another soon. Last time I looked at Walmart, I couldn't find one. 9"X12" Mead ACADEMIE, medium weight paper. Acid and legnin free. I also started wrapping loose knives too. Keeps them from getting dings and dust scratches on the bolsters and labeled with a pen on the outside.
 
Saddlebum said:
Good job cleaning up that knife! That is a good example of why I started wrapping all my leather sheath knives in paper if they are stored in the sheath. Especially the petroleum tanned, oily smelling leather. It eats brass and nickel bolsters. I use acid free sketch paper from a sketch pad I bought at Walmart. It's a heavy weight paper and makes a nice wrapper to store the knife in while in the sheath. Leave one end folded and un-taped so it will slide out when you want it. I have that green oxidation gew on the outside of some of my knife wrappers, but the knife inside is fine and the brass doesn't tarnish near as fast while wrapped. I'm on my last page in the sketch pad and need to find another soon. Last time I looked at Walmart, I couldn't find one. 9"X12" Mead ACADEMIE, medium weight paper. Acid and legnin free. I also started wrapping loose knives too. Keeps them from getting dings and dust scratches on the bolsters and labeled with a pen on the outside.
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Thanks for the storage tips Saddlebum.
 
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