SMALLS (Traditionals only)

2003 Antique Bone 3 1/4''
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redsparrow said:
flatblackcapo flatblackcapo Thanks for the additional photos, maybe someone else will chime in. It sure is a beauty... tons of character.
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lambertiana said:
It is clearly Graef. My first guess would be Graef & Schmidt Germany (1881-1952), but it could be A Graef New York (1905-1908) or Charles Graef & Co Germany (Goins does not have a date).
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Shurke said:
My guess would be the Graef Cutlery Co, which Goins has listed as "A Graef." Goins' dates are wrong in this case though. The Graef Cutlery Co. was in operation 1878-1908. By coincidence, a couple months back I spent several hours pouring over old New York City directories tracking down info on this company.
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redsparrow, Thank you. You ask and you shall receive. :D This place is full of folks willing to share their knowledge.

Lambertiana and Shurke. My eyes seem to be getting worse lately. :( I thank you for the info. It is stamped GERMANY on the other side of the blade so I think Lambertiana might be right with his first guess.
 
flatblackcapo said:
Lambertiana and Shurke. My eyes seem to be getting worse lately. :( I thank you for the info. It is stamped GERMANY on the other side of the blade so I think Lambertiana might be right with his first guess.
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My thought here is if it was Graef & Schmidt, the tang would be stamped G&S or something similar. You wouldn't see a Schatt & Morgan marked only Schatt.

Also, Graef Cutlery Co was a retailer, but not a maker. They contracted with both English and German firms. It seems in the last decade or two of the business they sold almost exclusively German made pieces. I've got one of their German made straight razors from the 1890s.

Anyway, that's my thought process on the history. But no matter how you look at it, that's a sweet little knife you have there!
 
flatblackcapo said:
Lambertiana and Shurke. My eyes seem to be getting worse lately. :( I thank you for the info. It is stamped GERMANY on the other side of the blade so I think Lambertiana might be right with his first guess.
Click to expand...

Shurke has a valid point. A Graef was most likely a jobber, not a manufacturer. They would have sold domestic and/or imported knives, and with a name like Graef it would not be surprising to find that they imported knives from Germany.
 
Shurke said:
My thought here is if it was Graef & Schmidt, the tang would be stamped G&S or something similar. You wouldn't see a Schatt & Morgan marked only Schatt.

Also, Graef Cutlery Co was a retailer, but not a maker. They contracted with both English and German firms. It seems in the last decade or two of the business they sold almost exclusively German made pieces. I've got one of their German made straight razors from the 1890s.

Anyway, that's my thought process on the history. But no matter how you look at it, that's a sweet little knife you have there!
Click to expand...

lambertiana said:
Shurke has a valid point. A Graef was most likely a jobber, not a manufacturer. They would have sold domestic and/or imported knives, and with a name like Graef it would not be surprising to find that they imported knives from Germany.
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As Lambertiana states, you have a valid point, Shurke. I thank you both for the additional information.
 
flatblackcapo said:
redsparrow redsparrow hear is another shot and my best attempt at a tang stamp shot.
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Sure looks like a Graef & Schmidt tang stamp...

G&S.JPG

Goins says they established in NYC in 1881 and later became sole representatives of JA Henckels knives. Your multi-tool sure looks like it could be a sibling to many earlier Henckel's patterns... I would guess early 1900's. Goins says that Graef & Schmidt used the "WELKUT" stamp most frequently for their knives after 1923 so perhaps yours is pre-1923? Very cool regardless! :)
 
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