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Press blade to open , stamped R.W. anybody heard of this knife ?

I only had a chance to examine this knife briefly approx. 20 yrs ago but am still intrigued by its mechanism which I would like to know more about it was a larger "stockman" auto folder that I almost acquired for free as its owner was frustrated about not being able to open it thinking it was rusted shut or damaged somehow . So I looked it over and remembering my uncle told me when I was a kid that when he was a boy that there were switchblades that opened by means of squeezing or pushing down the blade and sure enough it snapped open ! Needless to say after that he didnt want to give it to me ! As I recall it was stamped R.W. {no Loveless} it had a thumb notch and a locking back that somehow split approx 1 inch from the pivot point . The only thing that could have possibly gave it away that it was no ordinary pocketknife after carefull scrutiny {before opening} was a hole or oval drilled through the entire knife for a pin to ride through presumadly for this {which I have deemed} 'gatelatch' to operate also located in the area just back of the blades pivot point . After this upon opening a few other clues to its design entailed a somewhat exagerated heel at the base of the blade and a notch cut into this heel .It had a spring much as many side openers do but a small catch deep inside to hold the bade fixed in the closed position I'm really not sure but I believe the heel of the blade served as a kind of fulcrum to release itself .Anybody ever encounter such a knife ? I would actually like to duplicate this would enjoy any info or sources for drawings etc JD in Toledo

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Permalink Reply by James J Kelley on January 28, 2011 at 20:20

I know this is a little late, but a German manufacturer named Hubertus makes a 2 bladed knife that when you press the pen blade the main blade releases automatically. they sometimes come up for auction on the SharperDeal auction site. Jim

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In MemoriamPermalink Reply by D ale on January 29, 2011 at 4:52

Yuppers ..

A common approach used by IMPERIAL .. I used to fine em broken .. because people didn't realize .. turn the knife pivot end up .. depress the blade .. gravity pulled the "floating" pin oiut of engagement with the exagerated notch in the blade .. release presure on hte blade & it "opens"

I'll see if I can locate an old advertisement, design/patent print, or dig up one of mine & take some pics.

To close .. hold knife pivot end up during last 20 deg of closure .. tip knife other end up .. gravity drops floating pin into notch in blad .. release pres on back of blade .. blade locked in closed position.

floating pin .. slides in slots in liners

.. there's a "special" name for em .. magic knife .. or some marketing genius like that .. I believe .. I recall .. maybe ... seeing an old add for one on Trent's pg .. maybe ....

Posted by j d on July 19, 2010 at 3:47pm in Knife Q & A ... thought I'd throw it out anyway !!!!

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Permalink Reply by James J Kelley on January 29, 2011 at 15:12

I completely misunderstood the discussion, Dale you are absolutely correct, I had several "trick" knives over the years and still have one in it's package, I picked it up on Blade Auction several yrs. ago. Jim

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Permalink Reply by j d on January 29, 2011 at 22:13

Notice please consider this discusion still open and I will update from time to time to remain current : Present date 1-28 11

Well guys , I can only sing praise to the helpfulness and tenaciousness to IKC's readers but so far noone has cracked this case yet . This reinforces my belief that this one was a one of a kind knife probably made by some clever craftsman who has long passed away and took his secrets with him . Its fascinating how many ways it is possible to stuff a few parts between a sandwhich of metal and come up with a folding knife thats completely different than anything you've ever seen . I am quite familiar with the 'trick' knife as a common folder [ never saw one that switched out } having owned and broken a few of them as a kid as they suffered the same fate as almost all the pocketknives of my youth succumbing to being thrown at oblects to see them 'stick' . Once I even stood my little sister against a pole and stuck one of my long lost Barlows above her head , good thing I didn't miss . Anyway this knife has puzzled me since at least 1977 and I'm sure it was quite old at the time , and quite sturdy and I'm sure mr Shrade would have been proud to have it amonst his many patents . I would like to reiterate that it opened by pushing down on the blade on many pockerknive this would serve to hyperextend the backspring by as much as you could measure the size of the kick . The kick itself acting as the fulcrum which released the catch which was visible while the knife was opened and located just before the spring that ejected the blade and just behind the pivit point of the blade the catch was an approx. 1/8'' round pin that corresponded to a slot located or rather filed out of the kick at a right angle to the the blade the catch pin and its mechanism are the most mysterious to me as it must of been another pivoting part that would have required machining a slot or recess in the backspring to accomedate its workings I do have a rough drawing , [at lest by the way I have envisioned it ] but the problem is putting everything in a perspective as to the measurement of each part and how they relate to each other . The next thing one would deduce is why don't I post my drawing and the answer at least at present is I don't have a scanner to turn this into an electronic file , hopefully I've piqued the interest of one engineer out there that could show me how this works in the meantime , however stay tuned 'cause I'm gonna work on it . Love knives , love IKC Thanks ! JD .

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In MemoriamPermalink Reply by D ale on January 29, 2011 at 22:19

.. a 3D solids CADD drawing would be great .. but then you wouldn't need to post the quest here ...

Also .. glad to hear you're still active .. we are in the active process of weeding some older stagnant discussions out .. thanks for dating your response :)

j d said:

Notice please consider this discusion still open and I will update from time to time to remain current : Present date 1-28 11

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In MemoriamPermalink Reply by D ale on January 29, 2011 at 22:27

j d ..

You're last post leads us back to Jim's description .. HOWEVER .. a smaller pen blade's kick will provide pressure against the backspring .. this relieves the backspring presure against the main blade .. which is all that was keeping it (the main blade) closed .. with the backspring pressure relieved .. the main blade is free to spring open .. under the pressure of a coil spring .. I'm sure other variations exist.

But .. from your description .. was there only a single blade in the knife you describe ??????

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Permalink Reply by j d on January 29, 2011 at 23:10

Yes only one blade , seems by your reply you havent read the entire discussion this was a large handmade pocketknife and I don't think it was some Hubertus knockoff and certainly not the trick knife you you could peel off the cardboard display at the drugstore when I was a kid

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In MemoriamPermalink Reply by D ale on January 29, 2011 at 23:32

Hummphhh .. j d .. you've certainly piqued my interest .. got my degree from UWP & one of me special interests is unique locking mechanisms .. I’d love to find a new one & will certainly help .. I’ll advance the friend request !!!!

j d said:

Yes only one blade , seems by your reply you havent read the entire discussion this was a large handmade pocketknife and I don't think it was some Hubertus knockoff and certainly not the trick knife you you could peel off the cardboard display at the drugstore when I was a kid

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Permalink Reply by j d on January 29, 2011 at 23:49

OK maybe I might have confused you as for the hole being drilled through everything and the pin in the trick knife you describe indeed there is a pin that catches the blade but in the knife I have tried to explain in such detail perhaps I've lost some of you this knife could be opened in any position you held it . The pin for the catch was not the same one that floated between the liner/handle assembly but another served to 'A' hold a bar that held the catch pin within the backspring and 'B' the tiny oval cut in the liner/handle permitted this assembly to float between said assembly permitting it [backspring] to move up and down this is the most curious part of the mechanism and would be located unseen beneath the blade at the pivot point as it is/was recessed within the backspring this is probably an important part to have been left out my apologies but I hope it enlightens rather than further confuses anyone who is willing to help me out with this perplexing switchblade thats why I've pondered this for so long as I have Thanks JD

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In MemoriamPermalink Reply by D ale on January 30, 2011 at 0:13

j d .. are you familiar with the current design variations for dual-action .. some are pretty ingenius these days .. a good machinest can turn a Case Copperlock into a full auto .. that also functions 100% as it did upon leaving the factory .. a hidden release to a leafspring fully automates .. yet it still funtions with the nail nick.

.. others .. operate as a simple folders .. till a slight shift to the heel of one scale releases the potential energy stored in the hidden spring.

I can not quite match your description to a familiar design .. a sketch would be great !!!!

Also .. google/search/whatever .. dual-action auto

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In MemoriamPermalink Reply by D ale on January 30, 2011 at 2:18

VVVVVVVVV... could it be some variation based on this approach ... VVVVVVVVV

Courtesy of ... knifekits.com

NOTE: the notch in the blade tang .. could be similar to what you describe .. it's required for clearance on the "Spring Release Button" ..................

... further, imagine if the "Spring Release Button" were not present in the drawing .. could this be the "HOLE" you describe .............................

????????? ... or some clever variation thereof ... ?????????