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Fishtail Picklock
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Re: Ace Merrill's Switchblade... Rizzuto?

Post by Fishtail Picklock »

I wish to correct myself. The two knives I brought back from Tijuana in 2009 have stainless steel stamped on the tang and korea stamped on the top guard of the set. They are NOT step bolster models.

Thank you!
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sicboy13
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Re: Ace Merrill's Switchblade... Rizzuto?

Post by sicboy13 »

BTB0923 wrote: I wish Gunner or somebody would put together some sort of Rizzuto Estileto timeline, showing the different known models and estimated date and location of origin. I'd try, but I'm afraid of spreading misinformation.
Please do! I'd love to see it! I'd almost pay money for that...
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Jeff
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Re: Ace Merrill's Switchblade... Rizzuto?

Post by Jeff »

The only one I know that can do that is busy with several things and has no time; Maybe Jerryk can help.
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gunner
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Re: Ace Merrill's Switchblade... Rizzuto?

Post by gunner »

Wow, a switchblade in The Breakfast Club??!! I don't remember there being one! I'll have to see this again soon. I'm having issues making out details in the pics. If the blade is super reflective then it's an old Japanese one. The Korean & Taiwan had blades finished with a greyer, almost but not quite matte effect. The Japanese had blades like mirrors. There was a comment that Judd's knife seemed too solid for a rizzuto...examples can be found even on the lightest made of the Japanese that have rock solid blade & guard lock-up, even when you really try to make them move. You won't ever find this on a Korean or Taiwanese, the blades are sometimes solid, but the guards always rattle.
An official timeline would be a toughie, especially when you've got a history spanning 4 countries with zero documentation to back up your speculation. I think the best history source would be someone in Italy. Only going by finishes and materials I believe that ALL the lockbacks are from Italy, possibly even the swedge bladed button open/close models. Then the step bolsters started in Japan, I also believe the little 6" ones came from this earlier Japanese time frame, they seem beefier like the steps. Then gradually the lighter ones came from Japan with the very end of production (mid-to-late 70's?) using the cheap, quick-to-break cast metal button rockers...these are the most commonly found Japanese rizzutos. In my opinion, the absolute last Japanese Rizzutos were the ones with no scale pins. Then in the late 70's/early 80's came the Korean copies and lastly the Taiwan models, which were the cheapest made of them all. There's my best guess, send payment to... :lol:
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Re: Ace Merrill's Switchblade... Rizzuto?

Post by wild zebra »

Thanks for the Profondo Rosso close ups BTB. I really wasn't a Horror movie fan til I started getting into Dario Argento. And Goblin are just an awesome band!!
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Jeff
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Re: Ace Merrill's Switchblade... Rizzuto?

Post by Jeff »

Thanks gunner. My Japan suspicion came when I saw the smooth scales on it. They are recognizable. I think it is a 8" or 9" (whatever size they made) and the blade is very reflective. I'd forgotten Bender pulled out a switchblade on Two Bit also. :lol:
JerryK says he saw a Japanese step bolster in 1965 so they were around.
Mines later made by my guess. Most of the step bolster models I see have a pronounced noticable "step" where mine is hardly noticable unless you really look. But I don't know, maybe there was a weak guy on the bolster press that day. :lol:
Also I heard one of the types has a zinc rocker that breaks really easily.
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BTB0923
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Re: Ace Merrill's Switchblade... Rizzuto?

Post by BTB0923 »

Here are some pics to go with the different categories of Rizzutos Gunner mentioned above. Keep in mind these are just a few examples of the MANY styles of Rizzutos that can fall into each. I borrowed some images, hope you don't mind Gunner and Whippersnapper :D ...
gunner wrote:Only going by finishes and materials I believe that ALL the lockbacks are from Italy, possibly even the swedge bladed button open/close models.
lockbacks:

Image

swedge blade button O/C:

Image
Image
gunner wrote:Then the step bolsters started in Japan, I also believe the little 6" ones came from this earlier Japanese time frame, they seem beefier like the steps.
I feel like I should also add to this category some of the other non-"step bolster" style Rizzys with the same style of guards. I have an 8 1/2 incher that has the same guards and the same solid lockup and overall feel as the step-bolster ones (middle one in the pic below).

1st gen Japanese:

Image
Image

I don't have any pics of the 6 inchers, sorry. Anybody have a link?
gunner wrote:Then gradually the lighter ones came from Japan with the very end of production (mid-to-late 70's?) using the cheap, quick-to-break cast metal button rockers...these are the most commonly found Japanese rizzutos.
I'm not too sure if the images below are the lighter Japanese models Gunner is referring to, or maybe some of the early Taiwanese/Korean, so please correct me if I'm wrong. I think another easy way to identify these (besides holding one and feeling the way it fires) is the shape of the ears on the guards, which are not a perfect circle like on the 1st gen Japanese models.

Image
Image
gunner wrote:In my opinion, the absolute last Japanese Rizzutos were the ones with no scale pins.


Don't have any pics of those either, sorry again.
gunner wrote:Then in the late 70's/early 80's came the Korean copies and lastly the Taiwan models, which were the cheapest made of them all.
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motley2.jpg
motley2.jpg (35.75 KiB) Viewed 22215 times
Man, putting this post together really made me realize how badly I need to get a real camera instead of using my phone :lol: Anyways, anybody who thinks any of these images might be in the wrong category please correct me. Also, feel free to send links to more images of Rizzutos and we can try and figure out which category they belong in and add them.
Last edited by BTB0923 on Sat May 29, 2010 9:02 am, edited 4 times in total.
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sicboy13
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Re: Ace Merrill's Switchblade... Rizzuto?

Post by sicboy13 »

Call me crazy, but looking at Rizzy pics is almost as good as porn....

Now here is an assignment for you fargin iceholes.... remember "Johnny Dangerously"?.... Joe Piscapo pulls a swing guard out towards the end to slice the movie screen open to try to shoot Bobby the DA.... any screen shots?


*edit, i just noticed my pun... "screen shots"? get it?
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Jeff
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Re: Ace Merrill's Switchblade... Rizzuto?

Post by Jeff »

Image
Image
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BTB0923
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Re: Ace Merrill's Switchblade... Rizzuto?

Post by BTB0923 »

Jeff_75 wrote:
We have a match! I'd still like to see a less fuzzy picture of the one in the movie though, just to be sure.
sicboy13 wrote:Now here is an assignment for you fargin iceholes.... remember "Johnny Dangerously"?.... Joe Piscapo pulls a swing guard out towards the end to slice the movie screen open to try to shoot Bobby the DA.... any screen shots?
Let me see what I can do...
Click here for the most recently updated list of movies covered in our "movie switchblades" thread...
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BTB0923
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Re: Movie Switchblades

Post by BTB0923 »

sicboy13 wrote:Now here is an assignment for you fargin iceholes.... remember "Johnny Dangerously"?.... Joe Piscapo pulls a swing guard out towards the end to slice the movie screen open to try to shoot Bobby the DA.... any screen shots?
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Last edited by BTB0923 on Tue Aug 10, 2010 2:26 am, edited 2 times in total.
Click here for the most recently updated list of movies covered in our "movie switchblades" thread...
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gunner
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Re: Ace Merrill's Switchblade... Rizzuto?

Post by gunner »

Glad to see all the rizzy love. I've never seen Johnny Dangerously, but it looks like a big Korean to me. I loved Christopher Lloyd's character "Switchblade Sam" in the early 90's film Dennis the Menace. He carried, and was named after the same 10 1/2" Korean...how can such a cheap, flea market knife have such a popular film life?? It's uncanny 8)
BTB, Those rizzutos in the pics with the different guard tips are what I consider to be later (and lighter) Japanese, those guards are the type that the Koreans copied and wisely made longer to better fit their larger knives. I don't think any of the Koreans ever had any markings beyond generic "stainless steel" and/or "Korea" and always with swedgeless flat blades. It also should be mentioned there's a couple Korean variants that are rarely seen and I've never found for sale, but I've seen pics of one that has smooth scales like a Japanese and another with 1-piece metal handles/bolsters with painted on black "scales" (like a switch comb) both had flat grind blades and the raised peek-preventing humps at the bottom bolsters. I don't know where they fit in, but they certainly seem to have not been made very long.

Here's some older group shots of a 10 1/2" & 8 1/2" Korean and an 8 1/2" Taiwan on the far right & bottom.
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Last edited by gunner on Thu May 27, 2010 4:14 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Fishtail Picklock
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Re: Ace Merrill's Switchblade... Rizzuto?

Post by Fishtail Picklock »

The knife that brought back from Mexico is one of the Korean clone illustrated in the last picture(s). There isn't much to them, but they are still lots of fun.
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Re: Ace Merrill's Switchblade... Rizzuto?

Post by TRYKER »

[quote="sicboy13"]Call me crazy, but looking at Rizzy pics is almost as good as porn....
YA NEED TO GET OUT MORE!!!
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BTB0923
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Re: Ace Merrill's Switchblade... Rizzuto?

Post by BTB0923 »

gunner wrote:BTB, Those rizzutos in the pics with the different guard tips are what I consider to be later (and lighter) Japanese, those guards are the type that the Koreans copied and wisely made longer to better fit their larger knives. I don't think any of the Koreans ever had any markings beyond generic "stainless steel" and/or "Korea" and always with swedgeless flat blades.
That's what I thought, but I wasn't sure. Thanks for clearing that up. Do you still have those three Korean/Taiwanese clones? I'm on the hunt for one of those 10.5 inch Korean ones now. 8)
Click here for the most recently updated list of movies covered in our "movie switchblades" thread...
http://www.talkblade.info/viewtopic.php ... 08#p216408
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