The Old Kamp King American Legendary Pocket Knife

Come along with Bill to a time when pocketknives such as this Kamp King were available for sale most anywhere men gathered. They had cards that held maybe a dozen knives and you could buy one right off that card. The hardware store had them. The barber shop had them. The auto parts store sold them too. They were everywhere! They weren't expensive but they did have excellent blade steel and they performed a variety of functions that made them desirable to boys and men. Having one in your pocket today is a link to a better time in the U.S.A. it is a celebration of manliness and a tool to get things done with. Hammer Brand was a branding used by New York Knife Co. from 1878 until their closing in 1931. These were very well made knives, some of the best ever manufactured in the USA. In 1936-37 Imperial Knife Co. acquired the Hammer Brand name and used it on many of their knives up until 1955. This knife is from 1945-55. There were 3 different stampings for these in which the arm in the logo is slightly different. If a tang stamping is well struck and well preserved, then these differences in the arm can be used to further date the knife within the 1937-55 time period. If you have one stop the video and compare the markings on your tang with the logo chart. These shell handle type knives were never considered to be high tech or top of the line products, quite the opposite. The shell handle knives were for several decades the lowest price point pocket knives of usable quality made in the USA. There were many, often a kids first knife. Inexpensive and easily replaced at any local five and dime. I personally like them very much, as they represent a time in our nation’s history when every American boy was expected to carry a pocket knife and every man did.