What is the Definition of Ettrick??

DSCN6497.jpg

Trev Ablett -labelled as "2 blade double butt ettrick"
note the scale warpage -now fixed with a bit o ye olde supaglue.
 
pertinux said:
In hockey, an ettrick is when one player scores three goals in a game.

Oy, hain't it the truth!
No shame there!!


bag.gif~original



-- Thanks for the question, Charlie, and this ongoing discussion (complete with thoughtful contributions from others, and always helpful pictures). :thumbup:

Past my wildest dreams! Thought it would fade after a dozen posts! Thanks to all, and . . . .
It ain't over till it's over!!

~ P.
Click to expand...

There are now at least three Ettricks headed my way - imagine!!
 
Ettrick is a small town in Wisconsin where my mother's family started a farm long ago (1890?). I have never heard of an Ettrick knife, though - perhaps dairy farmers did not use them. :D
 
Jack Black said:
Hi Duncan,

That's a beautiful knife, lovely covers (where do you get all these things?!) I wouldn't say it's an Ettrick pattern though.

Jack
Click to expand...

Hi Jack,
Thank you - but for some reason "cam" at the back of the joint when opening and closing doesn't operate the spring( or the spring is seized ) so theres no walk and talk - it still has a pull of around 3 or 4 and even all the way-the blade doesn't flop back down-it just has no snap at all - it just opens and closes - so you could still use the knife all day long.
I would still rather have than not though!
 
Hi Duncan,

Yes, I've had a few old knives like that myself.

Jack
 
Jack
thanks. I will be sure to go and see him when he is back at work. thanks for letting me know.

Jack Black said:
Hope you had a good day in Sheffield Casares. I'm afraid Trevor recently had an accident at work, so he is away at the moment. He should be back at work before Xmas though I believe. He's still making the Ettricks.

Jack
Click to expand...
 
Casares said:
Jack
thanks. I will be sure to go and see him when he is back at work. thanks for letting me know.
Click to expand...

No worries. Be sure and wish him well from everyone here at Traditionals :)
 
Thanks for the very interesting thread about Ettrick knives and goals :-)

I can't yet find a writeup I once read that describes a Wharncliffe as a Handle shape, not just a blade shape. In my opinion, and its just that, a Wharncliffe was originally a Serpentine whittler with an Ettrick pruner main blade. Now a days, the word Wharncliffe is used to describe a blade shape, regardless of handle.

the closest reference I have found at the moment, that the term Wharncliffe originally described a serpentine whittler, not just a blade shape, is this:

http://www.britishblades.com/forums/showthread.php?96190-Lockwood-Brothers/page2
"A Wharncliffe jack knife is a tapered serpentine jack with the blade (regardless of shape) hinged at the wide end of the handle. A serpentine jack knife has the blade (regardless of shape) hinged at the narrow end. A Wharncliffe blade has a straight edge like a sheepfoot with a more gently curved back and more acute point. "

that thread also presents some alternative interpretation that a Wharncliffe is a blade type, an then yet again a comment from Levine that it refers to a handle shape:

http://www.britishblades.com/forums/showthread.php?96190-Lockwood-Brothers/page3
Re: Wharncliffe: blades, knives, and jacks

 Originally Posted by Berkley 
Levine's Guide to Knives and Their Values, 4th Ed., Bernard Levine, Krause Publications, 1997. ISBN 0-87349-189-0.
On the authority of Levine's work, I believe that a serpentine jack knife with a clip blade hinged at the wide end of the handle and manufactured after 1900, like my Wostenholm posted above, is a Wharncliffe jack. My Lockwood Brothers knife and the one posted by Russell are serpentine jacks. If you don't wish to accept Levine as an authoritative writer on the subject, that is your privilege of course.

"On this side of the Atlantic and in Sheffield in particular, the word Wharncliffe relates specifically to the actual shape of the master blade in a folding knife; irrespective of the style of the mainframe.

Purists however prefer the blade to be fitted wherever possible into the re-curve/serpentine/lazy ’s’ – call it what you will – style of handle and will invariably pay more than for a sleeve-board, equal-end or whatever. Added to this, a tendency has developed over years to loosely refer to the whole knife as a being a Wharncliffe’ whittler, Wharncliffe twoblade etc, regardless of the handle shape.

Over the years I’ve owned many Wharncliffe-bladed knives in a variety of handle shapes, including whittlers with a Wharncliffe master but spear-point/coping pen blades. I’ve also had six-bladed and twelve-bladed congress knives with a matching pair of Wharncliffe master blades; and of course the traditionally required matching pair of sheepfoot blades included amongst the remainder.

According to the record, in 1821 Stuart Wortley, then a Yorkshire Conservative MP, but not yet raised to the Peerage as Baron Wharncliffe of Wortley, introduced John Rodgers to the Prince Regent and for whom Rodgers made a fifty-seven bladed knife just one inch in length. Shortly afterwards, Rodgers was granted the Royal Warrant and it is reasonable to assume that the first knife or subsequent knives made by them for Stuart Wortley, whether the blades were to his personal design or not, was as a thank-you for the Royal introduction.

Wortley didn’t become Baron Wharncliffe of Wortley until 1856. After 1876 the title was changed to Earl of Wharncliffe.

Incidentally Trevor Ablett has made literally thousands of small, single 'Wharnclife' bladed knives which are known as 'Ettrick' knives, designed for use by sheep farmers in the Ettrick Valley on the Scottish Borders. It would be interesting to find out if this blade pattern has been taken from the Wharncliffe or if in fact it might possibly pre-date it."

note above the reference to the use of the Ettrick knife by "sheep farmers". Which begs the question, why did they not use a Sheepfoot or Lambfoot pattern?:-). In any case, a quick google of Ettrick, Scotland, determines that the town is in a river valley. That supports the idea that there was agricultural pruning work to be done.

But I found no reference to peach nor other fruit trees in my limited search. What I did find was reference to Sheep and Cattle farming. Note the use of the word "farm". In that usage, I could see how a knife used on livestock, could acquire the term Farmers knife. But then again, the extra long handle on an Ettrick knife, looks MUCH more useful for pruning trees, than hooves, to me.

I look forward to the input from more experienced minds :-). In any case I have not found any reference to a Barlow handle with an Ettrick style blade, yet.
 
Last edited:
This thread was just a few meters from the Black Hole that swallows threads for good! Time to haul it back from the brink! Besides; I can smell some Ettricks nearing my house! They may land at any moment, and the scanner is indeed warmed up!


Now, finding a Barlow with an Ettrick blade - that would be something else!!
Never heard of such a thing!


Here Ettrick, Ettrick!!
 
Wha wha whaaaat??? didja say a Barlow with an Ettrick blade? :eek: You are killin' me Charlie :p:cool:
This I got to see!
 
Those are some fine looking Ettricks, Jack.
Did you manage to find a long lost cache somewhere?
 
waynorth said:
Those are some fine looking Ettricks, Jack.
Did you manage to find a long lost cache somewhere?
Click to expand...

Those pics are just pulled off the internet Charlie, but it's surprising how fast Trevor's knives have become in short supply due to his broken arm. Some of the dealers have run out altogether, and it's the same with the shops. I understand Trevor was going to go in this week and take it easy, it seems these old cutlers just can't stay away from their workshops :)

I do know where there's a big stash of Ablett Ettricks, and wish I'd snapped a few up when I had the chance, particularly as the prices were rock bottom. I'm sure one can be had at some point though my friend ;)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top