MarkK
02-18-2009, 08:05 PM
It seems reasonable that the first "Dalton of the Week" should be the first knife that Mr. Dalton produced - the original SEAL. This model is also called the "Miller style SEAL" and the "Black Knife". The SEAL was modeled after Ron Miller's Black Knife, which was the granddaddy (and the basis) of all modern button lock/coil spring autos.
http://home.comcast.net/~km4yk/large.jpg
Dimensions:
Overall Length: 9 - 1/2"
Blade Length: 4"
The Dalton SEALs were produced in several runs between 1991 and 1994. In between these runs, Mr. Dalton also made a smaller version (the Baby SEAL) and some runs of the AFO. We'll cover the Baby SEAL as a separate basic model in a future "Dalton of the Week" installment. These knives were before the Daltons had CNC machinery, so the machining of the handle slabs was outsourced. Everything else was done by hand by the Daltons. All of the SEALs that I've seen had the same basic blade shape as the one pictured above. As with all Dalton knives made before early 1999, the blades were hand ground. This is the reason that you'll see a lot of minor blade grind variations within the basic model. I have seen beadblast, satin and polished versions of the standard blade. Several different blade markings were used on special runs, including "SEAL TEAM 2". I don't recall seeing any serrated versions. It appears that most of the original SEALs were sterile. Some were made with the "D" tang stamp on the blade and some were stamped "USA" on the blade. Later runs had the familiar Dalton logo stamped into the blade and the last runs had the logo etched into the blade. A small number of damascus bladed SEALs were made with the "D" tang stamp.
http://home.comcast.net/~km4yk/large2.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~km4yk/miller3.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~km4yk/damascusseal.jpg
The only handle colors I've seen in this model are gloss black, matte black, gold and a light purple. The gold ones appear to be particularly uncommon. Machining marks are usually visible on the handle surfaces. I think that most of the SEALs that I've seen had an Allen set screw as an adjustable blade stop, though I've heard of ones with a flat head adjustment screw. This feature may not be on all knives of this model. I've never seen one with a pocket clip, but they did add pocket clips to a few pieces at the special request of a customer. Mrs. Dalton said that the clips were hand made and should be easily recognizeable.
http://home.comcast.net/~km4yk/goldseal.jpg
For Dalton collectors interested in acquiring one of these, I'd recommend that you be very careful unless you find one with one of the markings above. With the sterile versions, it is somewhat difficult to tell the difference between the Dalton and the Miller versions. It appears that the best way to tell if one of these is a Dalton is to look for a ridge in the button cutout, as shown below. As far as we can tell, only the Daltons had this characteristic.
http://home.comcast.net/~km4yk/daltonbolster.jpg
Anyone have anything else to add?
http://home.comcast.net/~km4yk/large.jpg
Dimensions:
Overall Length: 9 - 1/2"
Blade Length: 4"
The Dalton SEALs were produced in several runs between 1991 and 1994. In between these runs, Mr. Dalton also made a smaller version (the Baby SEAL) and some runs of the AFO. We'll cover the Baby SEAL as a separate basic model in a future "Dalton of the Week" installment. These knives were before the Daltons had CNC machinery, so the machining of the handle slabs was outsourced. Everything else was done by hand by the Daltons. All of the SEALs that I've seen had the same basic blade shape as the one pictured above. As with all Dalton knives made before early 1999, the blades were hand ground. This is the reason that you'll see a lot of minor blade grind variations within the basic model. I have seen beadblast, satin and polished versions of the standard blade. Several different blade markings were used on special runs, including "SEAL TEAM 2". I don't recall seeing any serrated versions. It appears that most of the original SEALs were sterile. Some were made with the "D" tang stamp on the blade and some were stamped "USA" on the blade. Later runs had the familiar Dalton logo stamped into the blade and the last runs had the logo etched into the blade. A small number of damascus bladed SEALs were made with the "D" tang stamp.
http://home.comcast.net/~km4yk/large2.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~km4yk/miller3.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~km4yk/damascusseal.jpg
The only handle colors I've seen in this model are gloss black, matte black, gold and a light purple. The gold ones appear to be particularly uncommon. Machining marks are usually visible on the handle surfaces. I think that most of the SEALs that I've seen had an Allen set screw as an adjustable blade stop, though I've heard of ones with a flat head adjustment screw. This feature may not be on all knives of this model. I've never seen one with a pocket clip, but they did add pocket clips to a few pieces at the special request of a customer. Mrs. Dalton said that the clips were hand made and should be easily recognizeable.
http://home.comcast.net/~km4yk/goldseal.jpg
For Dalton collectors interested in acquiring one of these, I'd recommend that you be very careful unless you find one with one of the markings above. With the sterile versions, it is somewhat difficult to tell the difference between the Dalton and the Miller versions. It appears that the best way to tell if one of these is a Dalton is to look for a ridge in the button cutout, as shown below. As far as we can tell, only the Daltons had this characteristic.
http://home.comcast.net/~km4yk/daltonbolster.jpg
Anyone have anything else to add?