Origins of manufacturers

A request to visitors for your collective knowledge

Impact Weapons have been made by numerous makers historically, many examples have no makers marks, and some do.

I'd like to put together a timeline of makers and eventually their models, and perhaps where there is a distinct model cross over from maker to maker.

If anyone has first hand catalogues showing impacts, or impacts with logo's stamped in please send them in to davidsonleather@live.co.uk

List of Companies who made Impact Weapons historically (Incomplete as I'm sure they're probably others)

Listing out makers who stamped their work

B&B Leather Co. (A.Baletineco.) 5518 Nevins Road, PH, Charlotte North Carolina. 28213 - Formed 28 June 1984 - now dissolved
Brauer Bros. MFG, St. Louis, Missouri
Bucheimer
Bianchi
Fink Leather Shop
Gene Hulse, Fort Smith, AR
Gould & Goodrich
Lewis Leather
Jay - Pee
EIG Germany
Safariland
F.I.E. Japan

Bucheimer

Probably the most well known maker ever. This is most like due to the quantity and variety of models they offered, and the different commercial government contracts.

They had three locations in the USA;

California
Maryland - J.M. Bucheimer
Massachusetts

From researching a number of paper catalogues were available which offered impacts. The years for the catalogues don't seem consistent and consecutive i.e. published every year annually. I've seem them range from 1953 to 1975.

At some point (possibly as early as 1959) Bucheimer merged with Clark in MA to become Bucheimer-Clark.

No original Bucheimer company is still doing business presently. There is someone who has adopted the name to sell bags, but is not linked to the sap maker. Another individual claims to be producing original licensed J.M Bucheimer jacks and saps, but only possesses the USA copyright to a J.M. Bucheimer logo but that copyright does not cover it to be used on impacts. There is no functioning Bucheimer company, so he can't be licensed to reproduce designs, no official government entity in California, Maryland, Massachusetts backs up his claims.

Bucheimer didn't just make impacts but a whole variety of leather goods used by the police and general public.

Standard Impacts were;

Flat saps: Midget, Denver, Big John, Junior and Texan

Blackjacks: Penna, Bull, Convoy, 894, 799, 720, 821, 700, 796, 211, 8981, 8980, 7980, 7982, & T96

Palm sap: #20

Bianchi

Started in Monrovia in the 1950's then later moved to Temecula, California. A producer of leather goods for the Police, military and sportsman.

945 WEST FOOTHILL BLVD. MONROVIA, CA Dates to 1968

100 CALLE CORTEZ TEMECULA,CA92390 Dates 1968 to 1986

27969 JEFFERSON AVE. TEMECULA, CA 92590 Dates 1982 to 2015

Accounts of various police in the USA using their saps. There were a few different designs. There is catalogue evidence that these were available in the 1970's. As with most saps, these were phased out when the police departments replaced such impact weapons. Gone from the catalogue by 1985.

Catalogue 1970 - Referred to as Model 39 Police Slapper Sap. A common design actually seen over a number of suppliers, 10" long filled with lead shot. Stated only sold to bonified city, state, county and federal law enforcement officers and police distributors, in black or tan

Catalogue 1972 - one item referred to as a Police Slapper Sap. Similar design and shape. but may have changed to solid lead head cast to a spring. I own this version, same 10" but definitely not made as described in 1970.

Safariland

A company started with leather holsters from a small garage in 1964 and grew. They dabbled, as many did, in saps but was by no means a main line item. The Logo is stamped under the hand strap, and the over the back of the hand straps are webbing.

422 Model - longest

420 Model - shorter at 8.5" and 12 oz

This original company has been sold and bought many time over the decades. Long since stopped doing saps

1930 S WALKER AVE MONROVIA,CA91016 Dates 1974 to 1986

Lewis Leather

Located on Sunset Blvd in Los Angeles California. Mainly made holsters and police leather goods. Very similar products to Clarks and Bucheimer.

1321 Sunset Blvd, LA, California Dates 1940's to early 1970's

I have only ever seen one sap made by them, one which I recreate. They opted to use a rectangular shaped head, similar to the Gonzalas.

As far as I can see saps never featured in any catalogues, the only one I saw may likely have just been a custom order request

Jay-Pee

An original maker that is proving extremely hard to track down anything historical on in the ways of documents.

From what I have seen they existed in the 1950's and 60's, possibly up till 1980 but doubtful. They only made three saps, the LONG, the MED. and the SHORT, referred to as Sluggers. All very similar in overall shape, flat saps with the over the back of the hand strap riveted into place, like the later Bucheimer's.

Their saps have a quite basic logo stamp, with the name of the sap in the middle. Their holsters have a different Oval logo with the JAY-PEE in the middle, these Oval logo's were not used on the saps.

There is a current JAY-PEE brand, which makes various leather goods, police related, some of the original designs too. They don't use the original Oval logo, but they've copied the plain JAY-PEE lettering. The company behind this is based in Maine, USA, filled in the year 2000, and one of its (7) Assumed trading names is JAY-PEE. Therefore it's doubtful they have anything to do with the original vintage maker.

Unfortunately it appears there are some new saps with the original makers lettering replicated, pictures still seen on Arizona Custom Knives. Poor copies, you can tell by the leather and the stitching quality. $115-$145 for not an original. The original Jay-pee saps which I've seen were all made with smooth leather.

Gene Hulse, Fort Smith, Arkansas

Struggling to track down details on this maker. I'm not finding a registered business under this name. It appears they mainly did cowboy style gun belts and holsters, with the odd sap.

Fink Leather Shops

Fink Leather Shops Inc 00087139

12th Street, Kansas City, Missouri USA.

Established in 1939, they produced many different leather goods, including holsters used during WW2. Relevant here two flat sap models, both plain flat with either complete circumference double track stitching or partial double track head stitch, called;

Model 46, 11"

Model 40, 10.5", 13.5oz, similar in shape to the Bucheimer 211.

Gould & Goodrich

Gould & Goodrich Inc,

709 E. McNeill St, Lillington, NC 27546 USA

They used two different logo's on their saps, the one to the left and a smaller on with G&G and then the full name underneath

Models

B96 L flat sap 10"

B96M flat sap 8"

B96S flat sap 6"

Brauer Bros. MFG

Brauer Bros

St. Louis, Missouri

This company made several sap designs, some the same size but with variations like straight pommel end, flared pommel end, some have the hand strap 'V' stitched in place and some riveted. The occasional 10.5" have a wrist thong throw a hole in the pommel end. The circle shaped head saps may or may not come with the thong hole.

8.25"

10.5"

10" - circle shaped head with shaft pattern stitching

F.I.E.

Stamped Japan like the picture to the left.

I have seen a slightly different logo, with just the F.I.E. being more like the Japanese logo's of the 80's with the letters wider and blended into each other. However with that design seems some are stamped Brazil, possibly moved manufacturing locations.

Classic shaped saps with over the back of the hand strap riveted or 'V' stitched into place.

B1 model - 6.5"

B3 model - 11" 10.8oz

Smith & Wesson

Of 2100 Roosevelt Avenue, Springfield, Massachusetts 01101. A Bangor Punta Company

Looks like they made three model saps, all similar in design, and of the classic shape, stitched with flax thread and available in black only. Advertised in the 'Non-lethal Weapons' catalog

Model B96S small and 8oz

Model B96M medium 9oz

Model B86L large and 10oz

EIG Germany

Older versions have the 'V' strap stitch, later riveted. And the older logo has EIG Cutlery Germany, later they dropped the Cutlery and Germany.

I have seen two different models