The News from ElephantToenails.com

Talking to a knife collector in AZ earlier this week I learned there is a Platts stamped jumbo pen blade somewhere out there floating around. The collector said it reeked old. The guy who had it wanted $600 for it.

If you know the whereabouts of this blade let us know. And, don’t go taking one off your swellcenter….

In the quest of dating Cattaraugus toenails and the number of pins used during the company’s 77 year existence (1886- 1963), here’s a tidbit-

Pre- 1913 Etched Cattaraugus Elephant Toenail

This Catt is etched “The Western Hdwe & Imp. Co.”

I am able to only find a snippet of information at this point on the hardware company. 

 

 

 

 

The Western Hardware & Implement Company’s name was changed in 1913 when the business was sold.

So, one fact we can nail down is this- the 3 pin dates back to pre- 1913.

I’m still waiting on the Catt expert to step forward and clear up the handle pin mystery.

In the meantime, Cindy & Jim Taylor are offering a nice 3 pin (counting center pin) Catt on eBay.

I’m of the opinion the 3 pin is the older model with the 5 pin coming before Catt closed up. Again, that is my guess based on looking at the age signs of the different knives. It is possible the 5 pins were assembled by the parts sold off after the factory closed.

Cattaraugus Cutlery Co. Identification and Values by Roy Ritchie and Ron Stewart and The IBCA Price Guide to Antique Knives 2nd Ed. by Bruce Voyles both show a 3 pinned toenail in their books.

As our collections grow most of us begin to get more selective. Many of us narrow our targets down to particular brands. Knife Shows provide an excellent hunting ground to find other toenails of a brand. One of the challenges with shows is learning to recognize the brands when we see them in the dealer’s case.

Typically, my MO is to walk through fairly quickly. Picking out the knives I want to get more information about. And yet, I don’t like showing my hand prematurely to the seller.

One of the challenges with this approach, for me anyway, is knowing if the toenail is even one I am interested in. I decide to buy based on brand and then condition. You may be totally different. Maybe you will buy any toenail if its condition meets your approval, regardless of the brand. Your decision may be based on condition and price. 

My ability to recognize what brand toenail it is is important. If I know it is one I am interested in, then I approach the situation different.

Identify This Toenail Series

So, let’s have a little fun here. Over the next several weeks, I’m going to post a picture of a toenail and you are to identify what brand it is. If there are any particulars associated with a particular knife, I’ll get into that when I post it, like a knife that was made on contract and looks like a knife of another brand. We are going to try to keep is simple.

No cheating. No looking at The List, catalogs or books, unless you don’t know the answer. Good luck. 

Let’s do a practice round just to show you how it is going to work- Ready? Here we go:

Do you recognize this toenail? What brand is it? Oh yeah, I will be marking out the tang stamp

Click below to see if you got it right-

(more…)

If you are an eBay watcher then you have undoubtly noticed the decent quality toenails going off there lately. Late today, another knife friend passed on one to me that has just been added.

While Camillus doesn’t seem to rank up there with Platts, Case Brothers, Napanoch and W R Case & SON and the other grade A Brands, Camillus is still a fine brand and one that should move up a notch or two with them shutting down in 2006.

While I do I a number of them, I am not a Camillus expert, but from what I have read it seems the 4 line is the older model.

This one is worth checking out-

I know I am a week behind posting about these blades, but my internet service has been offline at home since last Tuesday. We are going crazy. My son, middle daughter and I am at my office today (Sunday afternoon). They are big WOW players and have their weekly raids shortly.

I saw these blades last week before the auction ended and thought it would be cool to add them to the ol’ collection. Needless to say, it is hard to buy online with you are offline. My guess is they sold to a knife maker.

It was a set of elephant toenail blades. I agree with the seller that they look like Catt blades.

How often can you find toenail blades that haven’t been tang stamped or drilled for the pin and are unsharpened, literally.

If you have ever wondered what an honestly full masterblade looks like- here is the fullest of full. Don’t you just love to see how it bows (bulges) out near the tip. You won’t find many used toenails with truly full blades, except for every now and then.

I need some help! Would a Cattaraugus expert please come forward to answer this question for me.

I’ll pose it to the group here- “Just how many pins does it take to pin handles on a Catt toenail?”

I thought I had seen it all on Catt toenails. I’ve seen toes with 3 pins, 4 pins and 5 pins, but now there is a 7 pin?! The most interesting aspect of this knife is it is at a pretty fair price of $355 on eBay so far, so maybe it is just me. I have never seen any toe with 7 pins before now that I can think of it.

Roger Cunningham, the ETCC Vice President, pointed out a Jumbo Swellcenter is being auctioned on eBay right now.

Here’s what the seller has to say about it-

“I have a great old sunfish knife up for bid.  It is a W.R. Case and Sons, winterbottom bone with full blades and excellent condition.  This knife is built on the old Platts frame, and I am dating it at about 1903.  These knives book at 3500 if you can find one .  This one is in great condition.  It takes a thick thumbnail to open it, the backspring is that strong.  Nice winterbottom bone handles make this an extremely rare piece.”

I’m not sure about the date being able to be pinned down to a single year.

Too bad the seller dictated a starting bid of right at $2000 to get into it. Personally, I am convinced an item will bring its worth without forcing buyers to start at a wholesale price. Plus, the market is deep enough (sufficient demand) that it would have brought what it was worth. We may have been willing to spend $2000- $5000 after being caught up in the fever, but he is asking us to commit to spend $2000 cold.

It will be interesting to watch a quality knife sell today via eBay. Before I bid, however, I would ask for additional close-ups of the handles and stamps, for sure. These are my favorite swellcenter handles. I don’t know they are technically Winterbottom. I was told by Joe Seale they called Platts Bone. But, I’m OK with Winterbottom bone if you are.