Old Timer
Founded 1958 · Ellenville, New York, United States · Schrade Cutlery
Old Timer is not a company: it is the line of traditional knives Schrade launched in 1958, with grained Delrin handles imitating bone and carbon steel blades. It is the pocket knife half of America carried for four decades, and the name now belongs to Smith & Wesson.
History
Schrade Cutlery had been manufacturing in New York State since 1904 when, in 1958, it brought out the Old Timer line, built to last and to sell cheap. The design became the archetype of the American working knife: two or three blades, a brown grained handle, a sawtooth shield. In 2004 the parent company — by then Imperial Schrade — went under and closed the Ellenville factory after a century of production in the United States. Taylor Brands, of Tennessee, bought the trademarks and the designs and moved manufacturing to China and Taiwan. In 2016 Taylor passed to Battenfeld Technologies, of the Smith & Wesson group, which owns it today.
Iconic models
8OT Senior
Three blades and a four-inch handle; the Old Timer most people remember from their father's pocket.
1520T Sharpfinger
A fixed skinning blade with a drop point, one of the best-selling hunting knives in history.
12OT Pal / 34OT Middleman
The small two-blade ones, the line's everyday version.
94OT Gunstock
A handle with the curve of a rifle stock; a classic American pattern.
Worth knowing
Old Timers made before 2004 were built in the United States and today's are made in Asia. Collectors tell them apart by the tang stamp — "Schrade Walden" or "Schrade+ USA" on the old ones — and only those carry resale value.
