Restored CARTAILLER D & Co. FRANCE

[john]

Hello Everyone,
This knife was sold as a restoration project. It came with no front black plastic checkered scale, no pins, no ring and no safety. The brass D stamped liner was dented, bent and twisted. I restored this vintage French Switchblade for my collection. The 12 cm knife handle is scaled with French Tip Blonde Horn, Nickel Silver Button (original), Ring and Pins, Stainless Steel 10 cm Blade, Ricasso is stamped CARTAILLER D & Co. FRANCE in a circle with LAME over INOX in the center of the circle, Brass "D" Stamped Liner, Two Piece Spring, OAL 22 cm, Fires Lightening Fast, Rock Solid Lock-Up, Mirror Polished Blade and Bolsters, the Blade Sits Deep and is Centered in the Channel. All of your comments are welcomed. Any suggestions on how to improve my craft are always welcomed.
Thank you for taking a look at my latest mangled knife,
John

[Viking45]

Dang John that's some fantastic mangling.

Look out Ron and Bill John's gunnin' for ya.

[gravknife]

John
That's a beautiful looking knife!
I've never seen one with horn or this close up,its a stunning knife all round.
I love the horn and would never know it wasn't made like that,also the work on the ring and safety.
I wish all knives were so well stamped on the blade like this,it gives a knife class,I love the bolsters too very classy.The ring is great ,I'll bet it wasn't too easy to make either,it matches the bolsters flawlessly,i can see you love this kind of work with the finished product,you have a unique knife there.
Thanks for sharing this John and wish you lived closer,you could mangle any of my knives with workmanship like this.
Thanks for sharing this mate.
I love the French switches but this one is one of my favourites so far.
All the best

Gravknife

[john]

Hello Ian,
I find mangling to be very relaxing almost therapeutic.
Typically these knives have black plastic checkered scales with a beveled edge. I considered getting black acrylic and attempting to reproduce the original handle. I thought better of it and decide to use the French tip on the knife. I beveled the edges, butI did not check her the horn. I don't have many French knives in my collection; I know I will have more opportunities to pick up other French switchblades in the future.
It seems to me that all of these knives have excellent stamps. I wish that all knife makers used new dies and not their old worn-out dies. After all of this is their product, it's their name you would think they would want it to look perfect. I know I would.
The ring would not be too difficult to make with the proper tools. There are tools which you can wrap the metal rod around and get a perfect circle. However, I was fortunate enough to buy a dozen large and medium sized nickel silver rings a while back.
I didn't make the safety I did have an extra one that I used. Cutting the slot for the safety wasn't easy, but I took my time. I didn't rush it. I know if I messed it up all my hard work would have been for not. Patience is my best tool. Cutting slots for safeties is one area that I need to work on. A badly installed safety can make all your work look poorly. It was a challenging and fun project.
I too have often wished that my mangling or collector friends lived close by. It would be great to get together and work on knives and admire each other's collections.
Thank you, Ian, for taking the time to take a look at my latest restoration project and for your comment,
John

[john]

Hi Dave,
It's always great to hear from you. I honestly think that Bill and Ron have nothing to worry about, but I do appreciate having my name mentioned in such fabulous company.
I think if you have basic tools and lots of patients anybody can do this. There is one tool that makes this hobby a little bit easier and it is a drillpress. Having pinholes perpendicular to the liners is so important.
Thank you, Dave, for checking out my latest restoration project,
John

[merKar]

I played my very best For your guidance I have benefited
genting club

[Fishtail Picklock]

Excellent work, John. I admire such efforts.

Beautiful, just beautiful.

[Chad72]

Wow! Love the horn scales ya got there, I have one with the standard checkered handles but this is definatly an attractive knife. Well done!

[john]

Hello Merkar,
I think something was lost in translation. I'm glad I could help.
Thank you, MerKar, very much for taking a look at my restored knife and for your comment,
John

[john]

Hello fishtail picklock,
The work and effort put into it certainly equaled a positive outcome.
Thank you, fishtail pick lock, for stopping by and leaving a comment,
John

[john]

Hello Chad 72,
When I got the knife it only had the back scale and it was in poor condition. I considered getting a piece of black acrylic and making a front scale to match the back scale, but I thought better of it and decided to put French tip blonde horn on it.
Thank you, Chad 72, for taking the time to take a look at my latest restored knife and for leaving a comment,
John