18th Century Folding Knife by Scott Summerville

by Heinz Ahlers with photography by Gordon Barlow

Scott Summerville makes great knives and razors. He is a staunch supporter of the CLF Auc-tion and has again given us a great folding knife. This is a classic bone handled knife with a 3-1/2 inch blade. Scott hand builds these knives, hand shapes them and heat treats them to per-fection. This knife is a common pattern found around various British posts and encampments from the 1750s through the 1800s. Scott models his on one in his collection that was found in the Michilimackinac area of Northern Michigan.

This knife is from 1095 high carbon steel and each part is heat treated for its purpose. 1095 is a notch up in hardness (and in difficulty to work) from the more common 1084 but is perfect for a folder like this when heat treated by a master like Scott. The fit and finish is up to the best Eng-lish standards of the Victorian era. This knife will perform as well as any custom folder you can buy today.

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