Customer Reviews

American Premium Guide to Knives and Razors: Identification & Value Guide

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Jim Sargent's book, American Premium Guide to knives and razors is not a let down if you are into Case or Queen knives. If you have bought other guides and been disappointed by how many advertisements were in it you will be very happy with this book because there are none.

Most of the pictures are black and white but they are detailed and easy to see. There are color pics and these are quite good but few. Even still, going through the pictures is akin to walking into a knife museum.

There are sections in the book for Crandall and Remington but not as detailed or lengthy as the Case and Queen sections. Still these smaller sections are very good compared to anything else I've found.

The Case fixed blade section of this book is about as good as any I have ever run across with information I have never found anywhere else for any price. This section even details the differences in sheaths from different eras and how to date the knife by the sheath if necessary.

I would recommend this book to any Case, Queen or Remington collector. It is not going to cover other manufacturers in detail so if you are looking for values on your Spyderco knives this is not the book you want. What it does cover for the Case, Queen, and Remington collector is perhaps some of the most comprehensive and detailed information for these knives as you can find anywhere at this writing. It is a great guide for these brands.

I've said, "WOW, I did not know that" more times since acquiring this book than any other knife guide I've ever purchased.

No one book can completely cover even one subfield of knife collecting and values anymore, but this is probably one of the five or six essential reference works for knife collectors. I bought it mainly because I've been a case collector in the past, and it's also especially strong on pocket knives, and Case is the most well known and most collectible of the factory production pocket knives. The book covers all the other main names in that field, including Buck, Schrade, Remington, Queen, Camillus, Parker, Kershaw, Schatt and Morgan, Winchester, and many other lesser known names. But it also covers fixed blades, limited editions and semi-custom, and custom knives are covered as well. But this book is considered to have the strongest coverage of any collector's book on Case, and it's probably an essential reference work for any Case and other American pocket knife collector.

I will be returning this book. I should have read the reviews before buying because one reviewer described what I just discovered with the arrival of "Knives and Razors." It is a huge, detailed encyclopedia of Case (307 pages), with a bone-thrown to Queen/Shatt & Morgan (84 pages), and Remington (86 pages). It is advertised as an all-encompassing guide to American knives. It is not, although Case collectors will love its focus/detail.

I collect vintage knives, mostly the Texas toothpick pattern, but not Case. An incomplete list of manufacturers in my collection includes Parker, Buck, Ka-Bar, Shrade, Robeson, Hammer Brand, Imperial, Camillus, Winchester, Smith & Wesson, Smokey Mountain, A.G. Russell. NONE of these brands are given a word in the "American Premium Guide to Knives and Razors."

This book has chapters on many of the quality but lesser known American cutlery brands along with extensive check lists and illustrations. It does the same for many straight razor makers. For those who collect the brands covered herein, this book is essential.

Excellent reference guide at an affordable price. Pertinent information and photographs fro experienced collector or novice. Great service and shipping time.

I bought this book for my father-in-law who is a big collector of knives and razors. He informed me that it was alright but it now does not cover Remington Bullet Knives (the antique ones). It covers only the reproduction Remington Bullet Knives. So I now need to find an up to date value guide that covers the Remington Knives like this one use to do.

The first thing to notice is a lack of an index. Why call something a guide if you don't provide a way to find information? The book, called an Identification and Value Guide covers only four brands of knives. It would better be called an extensive look at Case Knives and short look at a few others. If you are looking for a general guide for collecting knives, there must be better books available.

The book covers mostly Case and four other makers. It is
advertized as a guide to help you identify and date individual
knives or whole collections. If your collection is limited to
these five makers then you could be satisfied,however if you
collect throughout the industry you will want a refund. It should be described properly.