Gerber Legendary Blades

In 1910, the Gerber family started an advertising firm in Portland, Oregon.[2] While working for the family business, Joseph Gerber mailed twenty four sets of kitchen knives to clients during the holidays.[2] These handmade knives were very popular, with then catalog retailer Abercrombie & Fitch requesting more of these knives from Gerber to sell in their catalog in 1939.[2] Gerber started Gerber Legendary Blades that same year.[2]

In 1966, the company relocated to new headquarters in Tigard, Oregon.[2] Finnish company Fiskars purchased the private company in 1987.[2]

Chad Vincent was hired as chief executive officer in July 2001.[2] By October 2003, the company employed three hundred people, and had revenues near $100 million and was the second leading seller of multitools in the United States,[2] after Leatherman, another company based in the Portland area.

On Gerber's website they claim to be the "largest supplier of knives and multi-tools to the United States armed forces."[3] Several of their commercially available knives fit this claim, such as the LMF II Infantry, which features a partial Tang instead of a full one, ostensibly to avoid electric shocks because the knife was designed to free pilots from downed aircraft.[4]

Designers who have since designed knives for Gerber include: Bob Loveless, Paul Poehlmann, Blackie Collins, William Harsey Jr., Fred Carter, Rick Hinderer, Brad Parrish, Ernest Emerson and Matt Larsen.[1] Former Gerber employees who have started their own successful knife companies include Al Mar and Pete Kershaw.[1]

Gerber built a line of folding knives based on designs of Rex Applegate.[1] Bear Grylls has also helped design and promote a line of survival knives and tools.

Models of Gerber fixed blade knives include:

• the Gerber Guardian: A boot knife designed by knife maker Bob Loveless more than twenty years ago.[1]
• the Gerber Mark II:A fighting knife.[1]
• the Gerber LMF II Infantry
• the Gerber 31-001901 Bear Grylls Ultimate Pro
• the Gerber 22-41121 Prodigy Survival Knife
• the Gerber Blackie Collins Clip-lock Diving Knife
• the Gerber Strongarm
• the LMF II ASEK, or Aircrew Survival and Egress Knife

Models of Gerber folding knives include:

• The Bear Grylls Folding Sheath Knife
• The Flatiron, their only folding cleaver blade knife.
• The Paraframe, a lightweight pocketknife.
• The Kettlebell, a compact pocketknife.
• The Gerber/Emerson Alliance: The first automatic knife made by either company is based on the profile of Emerson Knives, Inc.'s earlier Raven knife design and is an issued item to certain military units under the NSN (NATO Stock Numbers): 5110-01-516-3243 and 5110-01-516-3244.
• the Gerber Gator: A single blade lockback knife with an ergonomic thermoplastic handle molded to resemble alligator skin.

Models of Gerber multi tools include:

• The Center-Drive, known for its automatic opening pliers and bit driver
• The Suspension Multi-Plier, a butterfly opening multi tool
• The Truss, a butterfly opening multi tool and successor to the Suspension
• The Suspension-NXT, a butterfly opening multi tool and successor to the Suspension

Gerber recently announced several new knives and one multi tool at the 2019 SHOT Show.

• Gerber
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  Gerber logo on machete/saw combo
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  Gerber machete/saw combo
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  A Gerber LMF II ASEK used to cut through a 220 volt electrical line during a battle in Iraq
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  A Gerber Compact Sport 400 multitool, closed
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  A Gerber Compact Sport 400 multitool, open
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  A Gerber Mark II combat knife, with black anodized blade
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  A blunt tip Gerber River Shorty dive knife
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  A Gerber Paraframe I framelock knife, with fine edge and dark gray titanium nitride coating.
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  A Gerber Suspension pocket tool, blades open
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  A Gerber Suspension pocket tool, pliers open
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  Gerber Vise keychain, 60mm long when closed
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  Gerber Vise, fully opened
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  Gerber Blackie Collins One Piece, Fixed Blade CLip-Lock Diving Knife
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  Gerber Vise, only side tools opened
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  Gerber Remix, redesigned with Paraframe opening/closing system
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  A Gerber Assisted-opening knife
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  A Gerber Paraframe framelock knife, the Gerber Guardian Backup knife with sheath, and a Gerber Multi plier 600 with sheath.
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  Bear Grylls compact survival knife
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  Bear Grylls series Gerber Firestarter.
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  Old Gerber knives.

• List of companies based in Oregon
• Knife making
• Buck Knives
• Bear Grylls

• Birds and Bees: How Businesses Are Really Born (Section on Gerber)

• Official website