Fitzwillies Blog

S&W Survival series.In 1972 a Bowie Knife pattern was presented to Smith & Wesson by the Texas Ranger Commission. The design was modified by Blackie Collins and Smith & Wesson felt it would be an ex…

5 Vintage well designed Survival KnivesA love of big knives is an addiction and there are so many great knives to choose from. These 5 Bowie/Survival knives are 5 of the favorites from the vast selec…

SOG knife collectors.com is an excellent reference and refers to SOG Knives made in Seki, Japan from 1996 - 2008 as "The EXTRAORDINARY Knives" Extraordinary Knives Of those knives the SOG Recon B…

1999 Marbles Sport 99 (R.W. Loveless) KnivesR.W. Loveless approved Marble Sport 99 knives were produced in the Mike Stewart Era at Marbles 1997-2001. The knives was produced in Gladstone, MI in 1999…

SOG Agency AG-01 and AG-02 KnifeThe Agency follows a SOG tradition of recreating and modernizing historic classics. This original version of this unique knife design was shrouded in secrecy and orig…

The Potbelly was designed by Steve Johnson of Johnson Adventure Blades. He describes it, “IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR A KNIFE THAT WILL DO ALL THE HEAVY STUFF, BUT ISN'T TOO CUMBERSOME FOR THE DETAIL WORK…

First introduced in 1993 as the Model 14R1 The Cold Steel Military Classic was patterned after the Randall Model 1-7 Fighting Knife and manufactured in Taiwan of 400 Stainless Steel. It came with a…

70’s Vietnam Era Hackman of Finland Survival KnifeDesigned by Ken Warner and Pete Dickey; this rare knife was made during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Only a few thousand were made by Hackma…

In 1972 Smith & Wesson began to examine the knife market and President William Gunn of Smith & Wesson met with and discussed designs with Blackie Collins, a gifted maker and designer of kniv…

Benchmade 153 BK- Jungle Bolo and 154 BK Jungle Clip knives. Designed by Warren Osborne.The Blade: The Bolo Jungle and Jungle Clip are made from thick carbon steel with a black textured coating to pr…

Per the wholesaler, the full story is interesting. "Carl Schlieper actually bypassed the importer in the late 1970's and sold the knife to Bianchi Leathers before the design was introduced under…

The Parker Vietnam Boot knife Sets according to a Bulletin put out by “Cutlery World” were actually a manufacture’s error. The Screaming Eagle, Delta Force and 101st Airbourne were all units of the U.…

SOG Seal Team 2000 knife; Seki, JapanThe SOG SEAL 2000 is a 7" bladed fixed blade knife with a rubber handle that was designed for the grueling US Navy SEAL knife trials in 1992. The knife was manufac…

Many people don’t realize the connection between Schrade knives and Imperial knives. Schrade Cut Co. was bought out by Albert Baer in 1946 and joined by his brother Henry Baer. They also owned Imperia…

1986 Bianchi Model M1400 Nighthawk II Knife; “The World Standard” From the brochure included with the knife, Much more than an exquisitely design hand-crafted cutting instrument, the Night…

The Bianchi Nighthawk Story;The Bianchi Nighthawk knives were manufactured by Carl Schlieper a German hardware manufacturing business established in Remscheid, Germany in the 18th century.1793. Carl…

Kershaw 4070 Series of Limited Edition Bowie KnivesModel 4070 a 6" Bowie #1754In 1992 – 1996 Kershaw produced a series of 3 Bowie Knives;#4070 a 6" Bowie (pictured above), #4071 a 7 1/2" Bowie&nb…

I attended the Oregon Knife Collectors Association show in Eugene, Oregon in 2014 and met Jim Meyers of Utility Tool and Knife. After talking with him I bought several knives to sell as well as this r…

In 1968 Browning worked with a gifted young knife designer Gil Hibben (long before Rambo fame) to design a series of knives produced in the USA, Germany and Seki Japan called the Sportsman Series. The…

In the 1980's Smith & Wesson introduced the Sportsman Series of Knives which included 2 extremely well engineered lock back, Stainless Steel folders named the Maverick. "The Maverick was not onl…