Blade's Guide to Knives & Their Values [Paperback]

Steve Shackleford (Author)

Book Description

Series: Blade's Guide to Knives & Their Values | Publication Date: January 5, 2010

The world?s most comprehensive roadmap to cutlery, Blade?s Guide to Knives & Their Values contains expert analysis, appraisals and lifetimes of research from the foremost authorities on antique, custom/handmade, factory, international, club, commemorative, period, and frontier knives, and all mainstream cutlery genres.

Expanded with new collector information, how-to stories, photographs and other images, historical background, vintage and contemporary maker listings and more, Blade?s Guide to Knives & Their Values provides you with inside details, values and other tantalizing tidbits to maximize enjoyment of your knife hobby.

• Identify, date and appraise virtually any knife with updated value guides and thousands of illustrations and descriptions.





• Decipher the values of knives from many of the world?s greatest custom makers?living and dead?via the totally overhauled and expanded custom/handmade section.





• Learn all about collecting knives: how to grade, buy and sell, and care for knives; how to recognize fakes; explore the latest blade steels and handle materials; build and maintain a collection; and a whole lot more!

Product Details

• Paperback: 576 pages
• Publisher: Krause Publications; 7 edition (January 5, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1440203873
• ISBN-13: 978-1440203879
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #516,519 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A slightly better effort., January 23, 2006

By 

Ursula Wiedemann "Mike Wiedemann" (Titusville, FL United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Blade's Guide to Knives & Their Values (Paperback)

This is the latest effort from the same folks who destroyed "Levines Guide to Knives and Their Values" by publishing the emasculated 5th edition. This effort is a step up, albeit a small one and from a position pretty low on the ladder. The format of the book has been improved, with clear page numbers and reformatted data tables, but most of the photos are the same and the text is still the same as that in Levines 4th edition.The listing of knife markings and manufacturers is pretty good with lots of additions, but still missing the quality ratings of the manufacturers. Pricing examples for individual examples of knives have been updated. Some sections are unchanged from data displayed in Levine's 4th edition. The process for valuing a a pocket knife has been improved? to one taking 4 pages to explain and it is hidden in the middle of the volume and not listed in the Table of Contents. MY guess is that somebody wasn't too proud of the effort or process. In Levine's 4th edition the process is explained using 1/2 a page inside the back cover. I bought it because I thought it was a real update to Levine's 4th edition, but I'm disappointed to find in most areas it is not and definitely not worth the expense if your copy of Levine's 4th edition is still in one piece. Just one man's opinion.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Find another resource, August 20, 2007

By 

Mandell S. Winter Jr. (Denver, CO USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Blade's Guide to Knives & Their Values (Paperback)

As a neophyte to knife collecting I thought a book with the sub-title "The Complete Handbook of Knife Collecting" would be a great start. NOT. There are bits and pieces in the book that are interesting. It lists the different materials used for knife handles, but fails to give even a basic idea of how to identify them. In the listing of American Knife Makers, the list isn't alphabetical. For a resource book this is insane. While this book appears to have logical sections, nothing in the sections appears in a logical order, and they seem to be merely touching the surface of each topic. There is a suggestion to be sure not to confuse two companies with similar names, and not even a hint how to do that. It appears to be more of a compilation of unrelated articles than a guide. There is more history about companies than information about the knives they made. This is a book for the "immediately useless reference book" shelf.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Historical background is very light, December 24, 2006

By 

JM (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Blade's Guide to Knives & Their Values (Paperback)

I'm a history buff and enjoy the history behind different patterns. There is a fair amount in the book. Unfortunately, my expectations were set based on the local library having Levine's 4th edition. As an example, compare the jack knife sections and the descriptions on patterns. I assumed this book would be an update on values, but leave content intact. Instead, big chunks are missing. Blade is a fine magazine, but this book is a big disappointment.