Odd Pen Blade

[JulesVane]

Part sharing photos- Part discussion: I collect a few Hugo Koller knives that I find interesting, and this seems one. Though I've personally never held one, we have seen the Hubertus pen blade-release automatics. Some have nail-nicks, some don't. By reading the descriptions of them, the pen blade is somehow pressed down or in towards the main blade to auto deploy the main blade. Then, the pen blade is pushed the same way to unlock the main blade from the open position. I don't see any sear pin holes in those main blades, so I'm not sure what locks them in the closed position. Fast forward to this recent Hugo Koller acquisition: It's not an auto, at least I don't believe it was meant to be. But, the feature I found rather unique, was that the pen blade has to be pushed straight down to unlock the main blade from the open position, much like the descriptions I've read on the autos. So, my question is: Was this a common feature to unlock the main blade from the open position on manual knives? Maybe it's very common, I really don't know. Seems like more intricate a mechanism to unlock the open blade, when maybe they could have just used a lockback closure. I've never seen inside the well of a pen blade release auto to compare what's going on with that mechanism to fire and unlock the blade. This knife is tang stamped Hugo Koller over Germany. Is 8.5" in the open position, and 11.5cm closed. Seems to have bone(?) scales.










I tried to get a clear shot of the mechanism inside the well. Seems like a lot of stuff going on in there, just to unlock the main blade..




Seems to be one of the 2 models listed in the 1950's (60's?) Hugo Koller catalog, but at 8.5", I'm thinking it's likely model 2162...



...could be a very common way to unlock the main blade from the open position. Just seems they put in more effort than needed.

[boots]

I'm more interested in how the corkscrew works.

[JulesVane]

I'm more interested in how the corkscrew works.

Ha! Interestingly, if both blades are open, it's locked closed. One blade open, the corkscrew opens with ease. Both blades closed, and opens smooth. No idea what's going on in there. I'm fairly sure it works well on wine corks though!

[Bill DeShivs]

This mechanism is sometimes referred to as the "Lingard system," after early Sheffield knives of this type produced by Lingard.
The mechanisms can operate 2 ways.
One is actually a common backspring release type that is actuated by pushing the pen blade down. There is a tab on the pen tang that raises the main backspring-releasing the blade.
The other method uses a sear that is pinned to the liner and protrudes through the pen blade well and into the main blade well. The pen blade's tang is tapered, and when depressed, levers the sear out of the main blade. Hubertus knives used this mechanism.

[JulesVane]

Thanks so much, Bill! Naturally, I know nothing of the internal workings of a pen blade auto, myself. The dark square above/left of the green arrow, seems to be where the pushing down of the pen blade goes through the liner to unlock the main blade from the open position. The green arrow points to what "looks" like a possible sear pin, and the red arrow points to what "looks like" a possible broken spring. I could be more than completely wrong, but it doesn't appear that it would take much to make this an automatic knife, though I believe it's very likely always been manual. Just wishful thinking, I'm sure.

[Bill DeShivs]

Need to see the same picture, except with the main blade closed.

[JulesVane]

Need to see the same picture, except with the main blade closed.

Thanks, Bill. I was able to catch today's sunlight through the window this afternoon. I will certainly work on providing that next photo. I appreciate you taking a look.

[Bill DeShivs]

I believe I see a notch in the tang of the main blade, similar to a lockback notch, in the closed position picture.
If so ,it is a backspring-type release.
Should you want to include more pictures of the blade wells, with blades both open and closed, perhaps I can be more definitive.

[jim d,]

Educational thread, I learned a few things.

Jim

[boots]

I'm more interested in how the corkscrew works.

Ha! Interestingly, if both blades are open, it's locked closed. One blade open, the corkscrew opens with ease. Both blades closed, and opens smooth. No idea what's going on in there. I'm fairly sure it works well on wine corks though!

So, if you're on a killing spree you can forget about wine?

[JulesVane]

Sorry for the additional photos delay. I took more than likely required here. One thing, at least, that I was positively wrong about, was the possible broken kickspring. The shadows made it look like something abruptly stopped or broken off. But, it's just a downward slope, not broken at all. I now see absolutely no signs that this knife was ever intended to be an automatic. I admittedly know absolutely nothing about knife building, but it just seems like quite a bit of intricate work went into such mechanisms to unlock the blade from the open position (to me). But, you were certainly correct, Bill. While the main blade is open, pressing down on the pen blade raises the backspring ever so slightly, I hadn't even noticed the movement before. Seems it would have been "easier" for them to make it a lockback. Here's too many photos...



















...So, is this the same mechanism used to unlock the main blade from the open position on an auto pen-blade knife? I can't recall any of the Hubertus pen-blade autos being tang stamped or even West Germany blade etched, so I'm not sure when those were produced. I've never even held one.

[Bill DeShivs]

The closed position pics show a lockback notch on the main blade-so unlike the Hubertus-it's a backspring release.
It's strange that you can see vestiges of a sear on the main blade in the open position. It looks like it was ground away- making this knife a manual, but it's possible others were made in automatic form.

[JulesVane]

I remember buying a few Hugo Koller leverlock autos from Henning Ritter a few years ago, and one of them didn't lock in the open position. I asked him about that one, and he said that the hole that's used for it to lock open might have been filled in or covered over or somehow manipulated to not lock open to fulfill regulations of wherever the knife might have been headed. Now, that could be true in that case, or, the knife just doesn't fully function properly. It works fine in every other way. Point being, knives were apparently indeed manipulated for auto and locking features for various location regulations and/or laws, though I have no certainty this is one. I certainly appreciate you looking at this one, Bill. Thank you!