Bob Loveless Stacked Leather Delaware Maid Abercrombie & Fitch Co. Knife, Leather Sheath

In December 1953, a Merchant Marine named R.W. “Bob” Loveless walked into Abercrombie & Fitch - a retail sporting goods store - in downtown Manhattan, New York.  He was looking to purchase a Randall Made Knife.  However, upon his arrival he learned that all the Randall knives were out of stock, and the waiting period for the knife he wanted was in excess of nine months.  Bob decided to make a knife on his own.  He ground his first blade from a 1937 Packard Automobile spring found in a Newark, New Jersey junkyard and forged it on the oil-fired galley stove of the ship on which he was serving.  When he returned to Abercrombie & Fitch and showed the homemade knife he had built to the cutlery department, the store manager liked it well enough to order four more just like it.  The manager was very impressed.  Bob formed a relationship with the retailer and was asked if he could make knives for the store to offer for sale.  Bob agreed and set off to make the knives.  And a knifemaking legend was born! This knife is a very rare piece of knifemaking history.  It features a drop point blade, etched with Delaware Maid on one side and Abercrombie & Fitch Co. on the other.  Hiding the tang is a stacked leather handle, with a brass single finger guard and brass butt cap.  The red, white and blue spacers between the brass and leather have faded from age.  There are light scratches on the blade that can be seen if you move the blade in the right light.  And the brass has developed a patina from age, which you can polish, but does add character of the knife.  Neither the knife or sheath are numbered.  It comes with the original leather belt sheath.  The brass rivets have a patina, with some greening around the edges of the rivets.  Definitely a special knife for the Loveless collector, and a knife that certainly could be the centerpiece of any collection. ( NOTE :  Credit card billing address and shipping address must be the same.  No P.O. Boxes.  PayPal address must be confirmed.  No exceptions.) ( ALSO NOTE :  Expedited shipping by either USPS or UPS, fully insured with signature confirmation required.)

Condition:  Previously owned, Excellent condition (considering its age)

Overall length:      10"

Blade length:         5 1/2"

Handle length:       4 1/2"