Noob Questions: 13 inch Stilettos......

swingshot · Post by **swingshot** » Fri Oct 28, 2005 9:13 pm

Picked up my first Stiletto in about 10 years the other day. It's one of the 'low cost' type 13 inch ones, so there's about half a dozen things up with it.

(Slightly loose bottom bolster, slightly asymmetritcal handle halves, dent in swivel bolster, whole frame is slightly twisted out of shape)

for the price i paid, i can't complain. however ....

What i'm really wondering here is, at what price point do problems like this go away??

If i were to get one of the 'non low cost' 13's say with brass bolsters and wood handles, would that be enough??

I'd thought about a 15in Campolin, however i was under the impression that they're not just longer, but much 'beefier' too.

Is it true that all the larger Stilettos are made by one company, and then branded with the stamp of individual manufacturers??

I'm a tad lost...

can anyone help?
thanks

Snapdagger · Post by **Snapdagger** » Fri Oct 28, 2005 10:18 pm

15 inch Campolins are super knives. I picked one up a few years back, and it's the closest you will get to an old picklock. Mine is honey horn, and it's the prettiest horn on any of my newbies. And yes, it's a monster, it will kick across the room. They are family made, and supposedly, Grandpa ( a true icon in the antique switch world ) still grinds the blades. As for 13s my personal opinion about the wood/brass stilettos, I think you would be happier with horn scales. The wood just don't have the same feel as horn , kind of a hollow sound and feel when fired. If you are looking for a carry knife, don't get the 15, it would look like a baseball bat in your pocket

It used to be with the old picklocks, several "cottage" indusrties made the common size knives, and the very small, or very large ones were made by one or two people that specialized in those sizes. I may be wrong but I think that is still true to some extent. That's why you see tons of 9,11 and 13s while the 5.5 , 6 , 15 , 18 or "fish" styles don't come around much. Hope this has helped.

Post by **natcherly** » Sat Oct 29, 2005 12:02 am

Snapdagger's got it pretty much covered. The 15" (and the 18") are all made by Grandpa Campolin. They are really hefty pieces. All the 13" are made by a member of the extended Beltrame clan. I guess he is getting up there as there are a lot of "seconds" that are sold as Cheap Switchblades. I have several regular 13" and a couple of Cheapies. The parts involved, such as the backspring, are all the same. The quality of even the higher priced examples is not that spectacular. The Campolines came out with a 13" picklock that was quite expensive (around $400+), and while they were miles better than any other current 13", many of them left a lot to be desired. We hope for better examples at a reasonable cost, but so far no luck.

swingshot · Post by **swingshot** » Sat Oct 29, 2005 9:42 am

Cool. Thanks for the help guys.

Harry · Post by **Harry** » Sat Oct 29, 2005 7:01 pm

Picked up my first Stiletto in about 10 years the other day. It's one of the 'low cost' type 13 inch ones, so there's about half a dozen things up with it.

(Slightly loose bottom bolster, slightly asymmetritcal handle halves, dent in swivel bolster, whole frame is slightly twisted out of shape)

for the price i paid, i can't complain. however ....

What i'm really wondering here is, at what price point do problems like this go away??

Mr Swingshot,

If you want a 13" (or any other size come to that) stiletto that doesn't present flaws as described above then you're looking at buying a custom piece.

The production 13" autos, and some are slightly better than others, will all have some aspects that could be improved upon.

Incidentally, several custom makers I have talked to tell me that the 13" size gives them a lot of headaches to get right in the making.

All the best,

Howard