Schrade- Loveless RL-2 Knife


R.W. Loveless was a gifted knife maker and designer and there are many books, articles and videos about him. He was a down to earth kind of guy with an amazing talent for making knives. Here is a pretty good example of Bob Loveless. Bob Loveless video
When you talk of the Schrade- Loveless knives there is a lot of confusion. The the original  Schrade-Loveless knife was the RL-2 which Bob Loveless designed on the back of a diner's menu in 1971 and was very similar to his Skinner model. There is also a RL-1 which was to have a white Delrin handles. I have no information on that knife.
A little info. From Blade Forum Feb 14, 2012:
Uncle Henry (Schrade) 1st contacted Bob in 1967 but was rebuffed. Henry got him to NY in 1971 where they struck up a deal. Bob drew an example of what he had in mind on the back of a menu which I have posted in the past which was very similar to the knife produced. It took them a few years to develop the 1st Loveless knife mass produced. 3600 were ordered for 1975 with the first 2000 delivered in May. Dave Swinden was heavily involved in the design and manufacturing processes of the Loveless knife. After the contract expired or was cancelled(looks to be a bit of a story there), Schrade sold the knife as the PH1 and later the PH2.
Here is a link to the sketch he made on the menu: Wolfies Coffee house drawing. It is an amazing piece of history.
Blade magazine features an article:, 

The Iconic Loveless Knife Built For Schrade

By: Joe Kertzman | 
The knife Bob Loveless built for Schrade features a stainless steel blade and synthetic molded handle with no guard. The top piece is the Schrade knife, and the bottom is the Loveless semi-skinner prototype from which the Schrade knife was developed. Note the finger-grooved handle, a feature seldom seen on a Loveless knife. 
You can definitely see the similarities. Research reveals the following;
From 1975-1976 Schrade made a Bob Loveless designed knife called the Schrade-Loveless Hunter (RL-2) I believe the blade was made from 154CM and it retailed for $100. the knives of 1975 & 1976 had handles of burgundy delrin and had the laser engraved  R.W, Loveless/Schrade oval on the blade.
Then in 1991-1995 two knives called the Pro Hunter are introduced. The PH-1 (which based on its profile) looks like a clone to the 1975-1979 models. A smaller version called the Mini Pro Hunter (PH-2) is also offered. The Mini has an overall length of 7". These "new" knives had black delrin handles instead of the original burgundy. For five years the PH-1 listed at $74.95 while the PH-2 went for $59.95. In 1996 these two models were dropped from the catalog.
Here is an example of one I sold some time back. You can see how similar they are, the blade though is stainless steel but not 154CM.
There were a lot of Schrades produced similar to this pattern in different handles, sheath colors as well as some custom knives for companies like Ducks Unlimited.
There are lots of experts on Schrade/ Loveless knives and all the different handles and Sheaths. For a more detailed look at all the models I recommend this posting of Larry 303 in Blade Forums may 24, 2011.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

1970's Smith & Wesson handbuilt knives designed by Blackie Collins

Image
S&W Survival series. In 1972 Smith and Wesson worked with well known and innovative knife designer Blackie Collins to introduce the company into the knife business. This program was announced in 1975 and seven knives were initially offered. Called the Survival Series they included a Bowie, Outdoorsman, Survival, Skinner a folding hunter knife, a fisherman knife and a filet knife. The Outdoorsman and the Survival knife featured a Hollow Handle for the storage of Survival supplies. The blades were forged from modified 440 Series Stainless Steel. A total of 47 operation from forging to hand polishing are performed on the blade before fitting to the handle on the Survival knife. The amount of work necessary for these knives caused S&W to fall behind on production and delivery to the retailers. Smith and Wesson produced in house a few other knives but none that required the amount of hand fitting as this series. The most beautiful knives S&W ever pro
Read more

1970's Carl Schlieper Survival Knife; Eye Brand mfg. Solingen, Germany

Image
Was a Vendor at the Washington Arms Collectors show in Puyallup, WA recently. I bought more knives that I sold but found this1970's Carl Schlieper Survival Knife. Eye Brand mfg. Solingen, Germany. Carl Schlieper was a German hardware manufacturing business established in Remscheid, Germany in 1793. Eye Brand knives, sometimes called German Eye, have been Hammer forged in Solingen Germany by the Carl Schlieper family for over 100 years. Eye Brand Knives still use forged blades. Hammer forging compresses and realigns the blade steel's grain structure, thereby increasing the toughness and edge holding characteristics of the knife blade. It is a more costly and time consuming process, but worth the effort.  www.fitzwillies.com
Read more

Valor 373 Long Commando Knife - Made in Seki, Japan by Tak Fukuta

Image
T akao FUKUTA, began making pocket and hunting knives inSeki, Japan then around 1970, he went to the United States to sell his TAK FUKUTA products. Takao FUKUTA’s passion for knives continued to develop, and in 1978 he was recognized by Robert Wald “Bob” Loveless, known as the “god of knives” in the United States, with whom he began an apprenticeship.  The same year, he was the first Japanese person to be accepted into the American Knife Guild for his high-quality work the “Loveless folding knife.” Since Mr. Loveless appreciated Takao FUKUTA, he shared with him all of his skills in making hand-crafted knives. When he got back to Japan, Takao FUKUTA continued creating very useful handmade knives that were simultaneously handy, strong and elegant.  Over the years, his factory in Seki, Japan also produced knives for Parker, Valor, Gutmann, Explorer, Frost, and Browning among others. Valor model 373 Long Commando knife Model: Valor 373 This is a rare Valor long comma
Read more