SCHROH

[Interested Party]

I think this knife is within the scope of our forum.
9 7/8" Overall length
5 1/2" Blade
4 3/8" Handle
15/16" Wide at the base of the blade
3/16" Thick above the bolster
A distinct distal taper on the full tang. The guard is forged not brazed. The blade has a spine, a false edge, and a slight hollow grind. Riveted stag or jigged bone handles. One handle slab is considerably more worn than the other. The balance point is the guard, and it is very light.

I have only found one knife on the internet by this maker, pictured below. To me the knives look German. Does anyone have any information about this maker, the period of manufacture, and location of maker? I am completely lacking books on this subject.

One last question. On the right side of the handle scale is worn almost smooth, and the horn and rivets are darkened Any ideas what would cause one side of the handle to wear so much more than the other?

Thanks
I.P.

[Interested Party]

Sorry I didn't mean to make the room go quiet It is just a knife I got cheap for a work knife and then saw the distal taper on the tang and the odd wear pattern on the handle. That aroused my curiosity. It made me wonder if it had possibly been part of a hunting sword set. Probably not, from what I can tell those are usually guardless. So, I thought I would ask the group what they thought concerning this knife and its maker. Here is a question someone might know off hand; when did production knives lose the distal taper in the tang?

[ausjulius]

Originally Posted by Interested Party

Sorry I didn't mean to make the room go quiet It is just a knife I got cheap for a work knife and then saw the distal taper on the tang and the odd wear pattern on the handle. That aroused my curiosity. It made me wonder if it had possibly been part of a hunting sword set. Probably not, from what I can tell those are usually guardless. So, I thought I would ask the group what they thought concerning this knife and its maker. Here is a question someone might know off hand; when did production knives lose the distal taper in the tang?

its a german or austrian made nicker styles trenchy knife.. probably ww1.
its nicely made,
the forging is very detials in the guard.
the grip is not a mistake sometimes ive seen these wityh one stamped hollow steel scale on the underside that sits against your body and a stag scale on the other side or ine side horna nd the other side stan or other such things . probabyl jsut a fashio0n.. fancy side out.

when tdid knives lowse tapered tangs..
well you can still get some french kitchyen knvies with tapered tangs. but its very rare now.. it once was standard. its a mark of quality and improves balance and heft greatly.
why we dont do it any more.. because were are post industrial age morons.. and dont know about such thigns as balance anymore.
when did it decline.. in nroth american long ago 19th century as hand working of knvies by skilled workers was in short supply in america.. in englanld a little later except on kitchen knvies that ended post ww2.. dies take a wile or wear out.. germany post ww2 began declining rapidly.. and french was the last to stickl to in the 80s or 90s many french kitchen knvies still had tapered tangs on them.
its much harder to fit the scales thats why epople dont do it.. also the tang has to be forged or milled to the taper.
infact in the 19th century some pocket knives even had tapered backsprings.. starting off very wide and becomming narrow towards the butt of the pocket knife.
it gives a different feel. and it loks fantastic.

[Norman McCormick]

Originally Posted by Interested Party

. Here is a question someone might know off hand; when did production knives lose the distal taper in the tang?

Hi,
I received some Gustav Emil Ern kitchen knives as a wedding present, 1982, and they all have tapered tangs, very well made and still going strong. The company closed down round about this time. Knives are being sold now under this company name but as far as I can see the quality is just not there. This fits in well with the timeframe that Ausjulius has proposed. In conclusion I guess that a tapered tang is not a reliable determinator of age other than the probability that it is pre third quarter of the 20thC.
Regards,
Norman.

[Interested Party]

Thanks, ausjulius and Norman. Some perspective on this knife was greatly appreciated.

[ausjulius]

Originally Posted by Norman McCormick

Hi,
I received some Gustav Emil Ern kitchen knives as a wedding present, 1982, and they all have tapered tangs, very well made and still going strong. The company closed down round about this time. Knives are being sold now under this company name but as far as I can see the quality is just not there. This fits in well with the timeframe that Ausjulius has proposed. In conclusion I guess that a tapered tang is not a reliable determinator of age other than the probability that it is pre third quarter of the 20thC.
Regards,
Norman.

yeah comp[anies woudl keep using the old dies till they were broken, many solingen makers wou7ld buy the forged blanks form a supplier so many had the same modles . when the dies began being worn out more simple designs would appear. and that woudl influence many makers to adopt the simpler designs because the supplier supplied them.. now the bosters are forge welde dinto the blade blank on the modern stainless knives form solingen sadly .. no more dropforged blades.. well maybe a couple of smaller makers using thier dies or old blade blanks.. but the big makers none. it is easier to have the blank strip with a bolster welded ont it and then just drop forge that out. but you must use a simpler dimension making a tapered tang or a very refined bolster unlikely.