Gerber Legendary Blades

Gerber Legendary Blades

Infobox_Company
company_name = Gerber Legendary Blades, Inc.
company_type = Corporation
foundation = Portland, Oregon (1939)
location = Tigard, Oregon
key_people = Pete Gerber, Founder
industry = Manufacturing
products = Knives
revenue = US$30 million
num_employees = 100
homepage = [http://www.gerbergear.com Gerber Knives]

Gerber Legendary Blades is a maker of consumer knives and multitools headquartered in Tigard, Oregon, United States, within the Portland metropolitan area. Currently Gerber is a sub-division of Fiskars Brands Inc, owned by the Fiskars company of Finland. Gerber was established in 1939 by Pete Gerber, and has a reputation for making quality knives of innovative design, designed by famous knifemakers. Gerber was the first Producton knife company to collaborate with a custom knife maker when it collaborated with David Murphy.Pacella, Gerard (2002), 100 Legendary Knives, Iola, USA, Krause Publications, 145. ISBN 0873494172]

History

In 1910, the Gerber family started an advertising firm in Portland, Oregon.Williams, Christina Dyrness. “Inside Oregon Business: Gerber sharpens edge on growth, marketing”. "The Oregonian", October 9 2003, Business, p. D1.] While working for the family business, Joseph Gerber mailed 24 sets of kitchen knives to clients during the holidays. These handmade knives were very popular, with then catalog retailer Abercrombie & Fitch requesting more of these knives from Gerber to sell in their catalog. Gerber then left the advertising business and started Gerber Legendary Blades that same year.

In 1966, the company relocated to a new headquarters next to Interstate 5 in what is now Tigard. Finnish company Fiskars purchased the private company in 1987. Chad Vincent was hired as chief executive officer in July 2001. By 2003 the company employed 300 people and had revenues near $100 million and was the second leading seller of multitools in the United States.

Designs

Designers who have since designed knives for Gerber include: Bob Loveless, Paul Poehlmann, Blackie Collins, William Harsey Jr., Fred Carter, Rick Hinderer, and Ernest Emerson. Former Gerber employees who started their own successful knife companies include Al Mar and Pete Kershaw. Gerber also sells a family of folding knives based on designs of Rex Applegate, and authorized by Applegate.

Examples of innovative designs by Gerber are the "bolt action" locking system designed by Blackie Collins, the unique front opening action of the Gerber multitools, and the push button locking Paul knives by Paul Poehlmann. Also unusual are Gerber's niche market products, such as the Clip-it diving knives.

Gerber has also led the market in using new technologies, and materials normally found in custom made or premium brand knives, such light but tough injection molded Zytel handles, Kraton rubber on handles for enhanced grip, ATS 34 and AUS 8 high carbon stainless steels (widely considered far better than the standard 440 series more commonly used), and titanium nitride coatings. Additional products in the Gerber line include tools, lights, accessories, packs, and hydration products.

For his work and Gerber's impact on the cutlery industry, Pete Gerber was inducted into the Blade Magazine Cutlery Hall of Fame at the 1985 Blade Show in Atlanta, Georgia.cite news |title = Pete Gerber| work = Blade Magazine| date = 7/22/1985 | accessdate = 7/30/2008 ]

Famous models

There are many different models of Gerber knives, including:
*the "Gerber Guardian": A type of boot knife designed by knife maker Bob Loveless more than twenty years ago. The handle has a hard inner core. The Guardian 1 has a Santoprene rubber coating for a nonslip grip and a double-edge blade finished in non-reflective black. It is the blade weapon of choice used by Lara Croft, of Tomb Raider fame, and special operative Sam Fisher of Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell series until .
*the "Gerber Mark II"
*the "Gerber multitool"
*the " LMF II ASEK", or Aircrew Survival and Egress Knife
*the "Gerber Gator" - A single blade lockback knife with an ergonomic thermoplastic handle molded to resemble alligator skin.

Gallery


titanium nitride coating.

References

* [http://www.brainstormnw.com/archive/oct02_feature.html Birds and Bees: How Businesses Are Really Born] (Section on Gerber)

External links

* [http://www.gerbergear.com/ The Gerber official website]
* [http://www.fiskarsbrands.com/ Fiskars] (the parent company of Gerber)


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Gerber Legendary Blades — Gerber Legendary Blades, Inc. Rechtsform Inc. Gründung 1939 Sitz Tigard, Oregon, USA Leitung Chad Vincent (CEO) seit 2001 Mitarbeiter …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Gerber — may refer to: * Gerber (feast), an Udmurt fest * Gerber convention, an ace asking convention in contract bridge * Gerber Legendary Blades, a maker of consumer knives and multitools headquartered in Portland, Oregon * Gerber File, computer… …   Wikipedia

  • Gerber — steht für: einen Beruf, siehe Gerben einen Familiennamen, siehe Gerber (Familienname) Gerber Products Company, amerikanischer Hersteller von Babynahrung, heute Teil von Nestlé Gerber Format, Datenaustauschformat für CAD Daten Gerber Legendary… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Gerber (Multitool) — Logo der eingetragenen Bild /Wortmarke Gerber Legend Multi Plier 800 …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Gerber multitool — thumbnail|A Multiplier 400 Compact Sport Gerber multi tool, in the closed position.A Gerber multitool is a compact multi function tool from a range made by Gerber Legendary Blades, part of the Fiskars Corporation.There are many similarities with… …   Wikipedia

  • Gerber Mark II — The Gerber Mark II is a fighting knife manufactured by Gerber Legendary Blades from 1967 to 2000, with an additional limited run of 1500 in 2002, and full production resuming as of July 2008Dick, Steven(2008) Vietnam Legend Returns , Tactical… …   Wikipedia

  • Pocket knife — A pocket knife is a folding knife with one or more blades that fit inside the handle that can still fit in a pocket. It is also known as a jackknife or jack knife.[1][2] Blades can range from 1 cm (1/2 inch) to as much as 30 cm… …   Wikipedia

  • Kris — For other uses of the word kris , see Kris (disambiguation). For other uses of the word KERIS , see KERIS (disambiguation). Kris from Yogyakarta Dapur Carubuk The kris or keris is an asymmetrical dagger or sword nowadays most strongly associated… …   Wikipedia

  • Michael Walker (knifemaker) — Michael Leon Walker Born Oregon, USA Occupation Knifemaker, bladesmith, sculptor Spouse Patricia Walker Michael Leon Walker is an American custom knife maker and sculptor based in Taos, New Mexico. Walker is the inventor of over 20 different… …   Wikipedia

  • Straight razor — A straight razor with square point and a double transverse stabiliser Main article: Razor A straight razor is a razor with a blade that can fold into its handle.[1] …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”