Walton's Thumb

[ablecane]

Any of our austere members using one on these?
Opinions?

[rsagebrush]

Beautifully made piece. Works well, very heavy and sometimes kind of clunkly. But, I really like mine, just a classic piece of equipment.

[ablecane]

Did it originally have a case/sock?

[slw]

IIRC, the 1st generation ones (1976-79 or so) came in a brownish card board box. They'll have a serial number and the Hank Roberts logo stamped on them. The 2nd generation ones (from the mid-1980s) I think didn't come in a box, nor did they have the stampings. They weren't as nicely polished out either.

I thought they were pretty cool, but broke the frame on mine after 8 or so years by using the pincher part for closing split shot and debarbing hooks. They were kinda pricy in 1976...$22.00.

afgantrout might be able to help with more info. He was working for Hank Roberts about the time they were first made.

[ablecane]

Thanks for that info, slw.
I took a look under the flip lever(?) and see mine says;
Stainless Steel, Serial No. A, 15868 so it must be a first generation.
Also has the logo.
Pretty nice litle tool. I wonder how long it will take me to drop it in the river:)

[slw]

Good that you have one. I think it'll serve you well if you're kinder to it than I was to mine.

Funny thing...out of all the serial numbered stuff I have, the only 2 serial numbers I can remember off the top of head are my Jenkins rod and my busted Walton's Thumb (#A 01001).

[saltydancindave]

Can't remember if the first one I bought at Hank Roberts in Boulder had a plastic sleeve that it slipped into or not as it was stolen after a few fishing tours on the Front Range. Got another one almost 40 years later & it had no sleeve or case; but in a 1976 Fly Fisherman magazine there's an ad of the Leonard Rod Co. which has Hank Roberts' Waltons Thumb in a presentation case.

[rsagebrush]

Mine has the Hank Robert's Logo/Walton's Thumb HR on one side. Patent number and made in Japan on another marked stainless steel on another, also Walton' Thumb on the thumbpeice too. Very finished, very well made but not apparent serial number.

[slw]

Well, now we've got a mystery on our hands. :-) Walton's Thumb's were purchased from Hank Roberts and sold by a number of tackle companies in addition to Hank Roberts. Leonard, T&T, A&F...I even purchased some and sold them from an Orvis Shop that I was working in even though I wasn't supposed to. That was in the summer of 1976. None of those Thumbs (as far as I know) carried a seller's marking on the tools themselves...maybe on the packaging, but not on the tool.

The "Walton's Thumb" name was trade marked in October 1975 and expired in 1997. Dunno about the patents. Hank Roberts retired in 1983 and sold his business, but that doesn't mean that the operation didn't continue and continue to offer products carrying the Hank Roberts name. Nor does it mean that someone else didn't purchase the rights to the "Walton's Thumb" and continue to make and sell them without the Hank Roberts logo.

I know for certain that the earliest ones I'm aware of (excluding whatever prototypes there might have been) had no stampings indicating manufacturer's country of origin. What they had was the Walton's Thumb shield cemented on one side of the lever and stainless steel/serial number on the other side of the lever. They also had the patent stamping on one side of the frame and the Hank Roberts logo stamped on the other side of the frame. There're lots of possibilities, including that there may have been more than one company contracted to make them, any of which might have included or excluded certain markings, and finished them out to varying levels of quality.

[afgantrout]

What a great thread! I just got back from the Catskill Bamboo Gathering where (after the event), I fished the Willowemoc with my old Leonard and Dingley and my Walton's Thumb. I had just bought the angler's tool on eBay two weeks before.

I worked at Hank Roberts' shop during the period he came out with Walton's Thumb. I even drew the line drawing showing the various blades and tools for Hank's catalog.

As soon as I can get Photobucket working again I will post a pic of my Walton's Thumb in action on the Willowemoc. I'll also post a scan of the HR catalog page. Cheers!

[afgantrout]

Here's one of 'em...

[Silver Doctor]

Been looking for a Walton's Thumb for a few years now but keep getting outbid. Looks like a handy device.

[afgantrout]

I finally got my scanner to behave...so, here is the page from my Hank Roberts catalog (which, like my other catalog has no date... I'm guessing @1975-76).

[ablecane]

I finally got my scanner to behave...so, here is the page from my Hank Roberts catalog (which, like my other catalog has no date... I'm guessing @1975-76).

That's perfect!

[wb4tjh]

I bought my Walton's Thumb in Memphis in the mid 1980s for $25. It has no serial number and says made in Japan and has the HR trademark. I bought a brand new Scientific Anglers Hardy-made System 5 reel at the same time for $90, and I still regularly use both.

[Webfly]

It's an excellent buy. I sold one on that site for $140 a couple of years ago. It looks like they are going from $60-$80 these days. And yes, I use mine every time I'm on the stream.

[reelsmith]

A few more pictures. Threads are so much more fun with pictures.







Dean.

[DrLogik]

I picked this up on the auction site recently. I was checking here to see if there was any information on them and found this page. This one is an older one with the serial number. No box, just the tool but it was cheaper than the new ones sold today and made really well and looks to be un-used or very lightly used.

[henkverhaar]

Looks like the frame is formed like a douk-douk knife (also seen in the Cold Steel Pocket Bushman)...

[DrLogik]

Henk,

Correct. The frame is formed like a Douk-Douk knife (France), or a Mercator knife (Germany); however, the frame is machined to form the nippers on the side. It's a really well-made tool.