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Soldiers and officers tang stamps

nl Offline Ron Who

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Soldiers and officers tang stamps
on: January 12, 2017, 08:15:41 PM
I have some questions about tang stamps. Soldiers are stamped with a year number; officer's knives have the text "officier suisse". Was this always the case? And if not, when did it start? And what about Wenger?

PS The pic I took from a Victorinox brochure "Everything you need to know about Multi-tools and cutlery". Soldiers to the left, officers to the right.
DSC04196-soldiers-and-officers.jpg
* DSC04196-soldiers-and-officers.jpg (Filesize: 207.09 KB)
« Last Edit: January 12, 2017, 10:23:30 PM by Ronald Schröder »


nl Offline glenfiddich1983

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Re: Soldiers and officers
Reply #1 on: January 12, 2017, 08:17:41 PM
 :nothingtoadd:


Interesting question  :popcorn:
[--- arms length ---] (-.-) 

                                ^-- where the cat sits


us Offline jazzbass

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Re: Soldiers and officers
Reply #2 on: January 12, 2017, 11:28:46 PM
Soldiers from Victorinox from 1890 until 1961 are almost always stamped "Elsener Schwyz" on the front and with the date of manufacture on the rear after 1921. So that's the first four soldiers in the left column starting from the top. Exceptions here would be if the knife was made for private sale (technically a Model 200) or if it was stainless steel instead of carbon (Model 200 inox). In these cases the front may be stamped with "Victoria Switzerland", "Elsener Schwyz Victoria", or "Victorinox". Private issue knives may have an "E" on the back, or it may be blank. As with all things dealing with hand made items, there are plenty of exceptions to be found, but the bulk of the knives I've seen follow this general pattern.

Starting in 1962 with the Model 61 soldier, the front is stamped "Elsener Schwyz Victoria" and the rear has the date. Since these are all stainless now, there's no differentiation for "private issue" or stainless/carbon knives. "Elsener Schwyz Victoria" remains the front stamp until 1973 when they change to "Victorinox Switzerland Stainless Rostfrei" on the front which lasts until they are discontinued in 2008.

Officer's knives (right column) are a lot more complicated. This is a very abbreviated version: since there was no army specification they had to follow, there's a ton of variation. Early models are typically either stamped "Armee Suisse", "Elsener Schwyz", or have the name of the cutlery shop that sold them on them. Later models are stamped "Victoria" and "Victorinox" starting in the mid 1930s. "Elsener Schwyz" disappears in the mid 1940s and "Armee Suisse" in the early 1950s, leaving "Victorinox Switzerland Stainless Rostfrei" as the standard by the late 1950s, at first with "Victoria Officier Suisse" on the back, and then just "Officier Suisse" from about 1974+.
« Last Edit: January 12, 2017, 11:30:13 PM by jazzbass »


nl Offline Ron Who

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Re: Soldiers and officers tang stamps
Reply #3 on: January 12, 2017, 11:36:44 PM
Thanks, Jazz!

Is there anywhere on the Internet where I can find the long version? Is there a book that has all the details?


us Offline Aloha

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Re: Soldiers and officers tang stamps
Reply #4 on: January 13, 2017, 12:36:34 AM
Thanks, Jazz!

Is there anywhere on the Internet where I can find the long version? Is there a book that has all the details?

We've have all been waiting for a Jazzbass book with such excitement.  He IS the book. 

 
Esse Quam Videri


us Offline cali-SAK-attack

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Re: Soldiers and officers tang stamps
Reply #5 on: January 13, 2017, 04:04:17 AM
Thanks, Jazz!

Is there anywhere on the Internet where I can find the long version? Is there a book that has all the details?
+1
I eagerly await  :popcorn: :hatsoff:
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