Switchblades were a forbidden fruit of my youth, something I coveted, but never managed to obtain. Instead, I settled for false button and manual lockback stilettos. I kept an open eye for decades but never managed to acquire the real thing. Years later in 2000 I performed an internet search for “switchblade” There I learned that I could purchase real switchblades, and among other things, found the old SKM forum (the predecessor to this forum). It was high time to make up for lost time. At first, my only interest was in Italian stilettos as the Italian Stiletto was my vision of what switchblade should look like. Leverlocks seemed ugly to me and I had no desire for any. Times certainly do change!!
At first the thrill of actually being able to purchase switchblades resulted in me building a collection of modern swivel bolster stilettos in just about every size, scale material, and blade type. Then over time as I became educated my tastes evolved to different types of knives and mechanisms. Now, I focus on vintage German leverlocks. The move from routine production models to the old and the unique seems to be the path many collectors take. Like some others, the absolute number of switchblades in my collection has decreased over the years as my tastes have become more selective.Many thanks to those who through the years have contributed to my switchblade education.
Jim
