The Randall Collector

There persists to this day a great deal of misinformation about the Randall-Springfield “fighter(s)” in spite of sustained interest in these knives by collectors and the information written by Robert Gaddis in Randall Made Knives.

Knife “type” or design varies in this model as we know, but why? Should this lead us to accept the exception as being the rule? At the inception of this project the Randall Shop provided William Larsen of Springfield, MA with a prototype knife. Initially, at least, “Springfield Fighters” were manufactured very closely to this prototype, or “Bo” would not have approved the project.

The first knives were made by Northampton Cutlery, a well-established and respected company. Although none of these knives bare a particular mark allowing us to identify the manufacturer, we can deduce that of the variations currently seen in the final product(s) there exists a prominent design of sufficiently high quality that has similarities in many of these finished pieces that we may observe today.

I have three such knives: two in mint or unused condition, and a third that was lightly cleaned at the Randall Shop years ago. This is important to note, as all of these knives reveal the same careful work on blade, hilt, handle and butt cap and must be viewed in as close as possible to their original state in order to make comparisons. With the exception of one, the spacers are thick red-white-black at the hilt and the reverse at the butt cap. The other knife, identical in all other respects, is green-white-black. The design of the blades closely resemble the Randall Fighter and the deep stamping of the logo is about as far forward as on the Model #1 of that period. The guards on these knives are similarly shaped and are made from good quality brass. The handles have swelled centers and are nicely contoured and finally, the elliptical butt caps are evenly shaped with the tang nut well centered. My conclusions to these observations are as follows: (1) skilled hands made these knives in the image of the original. (2) Sufficient material of good quality was used in the manufacture of these knives. (3) Variations which occur, e.g. spacer colors, are well within the range tolerated by Bo Randall in his early WWII Fighters (1943-44). In short, an early Springfield Fighter would have been a compelling contemporary purchase even if given the alternative of choosing a Randall Made Model #1.

This being the case, where did the variations come from? Shortly after the project began, Larsen ran into similar controls that restricted Bo’s efforts; but he did not have a knife shop in which to overcome the problems. The result was that Northampton Cutlery was prohibited from making further knives. This not only left Larsen without a forger, but fitters and finishers as well. He never overcame this handicap. What took place next can be seen in the “variations” of blade shape, handle lengths, spacers, logo stamping, soldering, and even the butt cap shape of knives made after this event. We can only speculate as to who did what with the remainder of the finished (and unfinished) knives that in finality were reportedly assembled at least in part in Larsen’s cellar.

Being mindful that the entire project lasted only about one year puts the generally accepted numbers of finished pieces at between 1,200 (Gaddis) and 1,500(unconfirmed speculation). Gaddis did his homework and had access to the Randall files. Speculation attributes the second figure to the fact that Larsen might not have reported all of the knives made to avoid paying Randall a royalty.

I have heard it repeated that too many of these knives have turned up recently to accept these estimates and that more must have been made. I reject this based on the following: (1) the short period of time that this relatively unstable but successful operation was tenured. (2) Most of these knives were marketed in large (and small) department stores around the country and therefore had shelf life, leading to many not making the war, (unlike the Randall Shop, which received and completed specific requests for wartime knives). This accounts for the “like-new” condition of some of the pieces. (3) Knives recently surfacing, both used and unused, have in many cases been in the hands of first or second-generation owners that no longer have further use for them. Finally ask yourself, just how many “Springfields” have YOU actually seen?

Now a brief word about the sheaths. It has been speculated that Southern Saddlery of Tennessee supplied the sheaths. There is no basis for this. Gaddis’ research of the Randall files indicated that the sheath(s) supplied by Bo with the prototype was too expensive and that Larsen found another supplier. Identified as Mosser from Pennsylvania, this manufacturer made an acceptable product in the likeness of the “original.” I hasten to repeat that no one has discovered who made the sheath that accompanied the prototype fighter, although we can assume that it could have been made by Southern Saddlery, or Heiser, or Clarence Moore. Viewing the Springfield’s that are out there indicates that there was more commonality to sheath making than knife making. Type, stone pocket size and placement, handle keeper location, stitching, leather quality, and even dyeing is consistent. (Notable exceptions are rivet type and snap metal material, which are again within an acceptable range.) I have seen some stone variations, but at least in the case of originals, they were made by Norton, although they may be either white or gray in color. But again, we are speaking about only one sheath supplier.

All of this should lead up to making some judgments about the collectibility of these knives. It follows that the better the condition, the more collectable the knife. This should and does extend to the quality of manufacture itself, as older used pieces that were well made have a more lasting appeal. I point to the knives that were first produced in their entirety by a reputable cutlery company as being not only identifiable to the observant, but more valuable a collectable. It is a question of degree as to the relative worth of those later pieces whose manufacture were impeded by Government regulations of the time and that were produced in whole or in part by less skilled and poorly equipped craftsmen. These later knives will reveal different blade grinds, poor soldering, weak stamping, shorter handles, various spacer arrangements; all resulting in a less carefully made knife. This does not imply a great diminishing of value however, but a relative one.

In summation, we should no longer accept the premise that all Springfield Fighters were created equal. The project which was approved by Bo to help alleviate the war shortage problem and the demands on his shop was a success. Initial production resulted in very high quality knives with obvious close quality control. Subsequent production was impacted by wartime restrictions that impeded manufacture and created variations within the standard. Sheaths held the line on QC throughout this period and is reflected in the remaining examples. Finally, a well-constructed “Springfield Fighter” resembled the prototype in quality as well as design and provided the American serviceman an affordable alternative to the Model #1 fighter that may have been just out of reach.

Robert Hunt
Randall Collector

© 2001 by Robert Hunt. All rights reserved.