Knife Factory Question

[SpyderEdgeForever]

Aa many of you know I like knives and history. I would appreciate your help to give me a mental picture of early modern industrial knife factories.

You see, I have a very detailed idea of what blacksmith hand making armorers and blade smithing shops looked like from the ancient times up to the 1750 AD period. ( we will ignore claims of ancient Pre Noah Flood super science here). And I have a basic mental picture of what modern factories look like, from the Assembly Lines of the early 1900s to the most current factories and machine shops, with computers, electronics, robot arms, and skilled machinists, laser, plasma and warer jet cutters, and all that.

But what is missing is this: With knives, swords, edged tools and guns in particular, what machines and lay out did factories have in that basic 1750 to 1900 AD period?

That is after they advanced away from hand making black smiths but before the Assembly Line era.

Focusing on USA, UK, and Europe of that time

Would we see lines of men doing specialized work like forging steel bars into blades, while others used grinding wheels and others finished up on handles and sheaths, or what?

One reason I ask is because I read a book about knives, swords, and daggers used by Germans and Europeans in the 1870 to 1940 period. The author showed beautiful daggers used in Pre WW1 Germany. It said these were factory made. But they look like custom hand made daggers.

Is it that in that interim period the factories consisted of many blade smiths working together in a building, each doing an operation on the knife or sword?

A friend told me it is possible that in ancient times kings and emperors like Romans and Chinese paid groups of like 1000 black smiths to hand make so many blades that it would be as fast as our modern factories.

[apollo]

I think Sal's story about fox can be an example. If you have guilds of knifemakers working together it perhaps can be counted as "factory made" in those times.
Also Boker became a brand in 1869.
So perhaps there history can be interesting for you?

[Paul Ardbeg]

This might be interesting, it's about knife making in France.

https://knives-of-france-blog.com/thier ... fe-making/

[SpyderEdgeForever]

Thank you all this helps!

[Mad Mac]

In the 1800s, Eli Whitney, in addition to the cotton gin, created jigs and fixtures to create interchangeable parts for muskets. That is probably the missing link between hand made products and mass produced products on an assembly line.

[SpyderEdgeForever]

In the 1800s, Eli Whitney, in addition to the cotton gin, created jigs and fixtures to create interchangeable parts for muskets. That is probably the missing link between hand made products and mass produced products on an assembly line.

Great insight Mac, thanks for bringing this to my memory. So there was a transition point where the teams of employees were making large numbers of blades, barrels, locks, firing pins, ramrods, handle scales, etc using jigs and stamping machines and then finishing them by hand, and later much of that work was done by conveyers and automated devices?

[Mad Mac]

Right. And now we have come full circle.
My grandson is making parts for a company
with his 3D printer at home!
The return of cottage industries.

[SpyderEdgeForever]

Right. And now we have come full circle.
My grandson is making parts for a company
with his 3D printer at home!
The return of cottage industries.

This is very cool!
That was my next question? What is the future of the manufactory?

Increasingly advanced 3d printing peaking in the Nanotech and even subatomic particle replicator, and then further miniaturization?

Rudy Rucker the mathematician and author in his books speculates a combination between synthetics and biology and beyond that the "Femto Quantum Age" in the 3000 AD period where humans have miniaturized machines to the quark proton level and below, where a Universal hand held Wand combined with a wearable cap allows people to make anything we want from direct mind to matter.

Ray Kurzweil believes we get there much faster. Around 2099 to 2140, but before then universal nano assembly by the 2040s and 2050s.

On the opposite extreme is my friend who believes Peak Oil hits us by 2040 and by 2070 and after we are back to Pre 1800 levels where everything is hand made.

[Mad Mac]

In the meantime,
I ordered a Magpul Breslau knife
with a metal injection molded (MIM) blade
and OD green handle
to complement my Ruger RXM pistol
with an OD green Magpul grip frame
and my Ruger American Predator rifle
with an OD green Magpul American Hunter stock.
Somebody stop me!

[SpyderEdgeForever]

In the meantime,
I ordered a Magpul Breslau knife
with a metal injection molded (MIM) blade
and OD green handle
to complement my Ruger RXM pistol
with an OD green Magpul grip frame
and my Ruger American Predator rifle
with an OD green Magpul American Hunter stock.
Somebody stop me!

Mac that knife has some very great specs:
MVN35 MIM steel that has a hollow-to-flat grind.
Opener: Flipper opener riding on a built-in friction reduction system.
Handle: Proprietary blue polymer handle scales made from a super plastic that has a carefully guarded recipe.
Lock: Lug lock that interfaces with the unique blade.
Carry: Tip-up pocket clip for ambidextrous carry.
Please update us on your review of it. The Lug Lock is interesting, too.

I wonder what the "secret super plastic" is. Another form of FRN or some new polymer? Ka-Bar uses PA 66 FRN in some knives.