John Primble Knives. Any info.?

[VonMises1881]

I'm a fan of traditional pocket knives and I've been looking to buy a nice bone handled trapper. Browsing on the Smoky Mountain Knife Works site I noticed some in my price range made by John Primble. When I went to do some research on the company I found surprisingly little and the little blurb on the SMKW site doesn't give much information either. From what I can tell they seem to be made in the U.S. and are a very old company but beyond that not much. I don't think the company even has a web site.

I could go higher in price and get a Case or even higher and go German with maybe a Boker or Hen & Rooster but if Primbles aren't bad knives I'd rather spend for one of them in the mid $30 range. Thanks.

 

[jrsmith]

John Primble was a registered trademark of Belknap Hardware and Manufacturing Co. out of Louisville KY. It was founded @ 1840 and stayed in business until the mid 1980's. The trademark is now owned by Bluegrass and has been replaced with cheap imports instead of US made.
I own several original "John Primble" knives and when you find one, you will know the difference.

 

[Miles]

There's a ton of great info on different knifemakers at www.bladeforums.com. Check out the traditional folders and fixed blades forum.

By the way, Case knives can be a real pleasure to own and use. Personally, I go for their chrome vanadium blades (AKA CV) instead of the stainless. Both my medium stockman and trapper get a lot of pocket time.

 

[beau5278]

There is a difference between the new Primble knives and the old ones,as already stated the new ones aren't made here.There are still reputable knife companies making knives in the USA,if your looking for something less expensive than Case,try Queen,Schatt & Morgan which are made by the same company,another highly recommended US company is Great Eastern Cutlery.I like Canal St Cutlery knives also but they're priced as high,if not higher than Case,but they do have some nice traditional knives.

 

[BrianL]

Try looking in an antique store, I have seen many good looking inexpensive Case knives that needed just a little TLC in the sub $20 range.