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  #1  
Old 08-23-2006, 09:03 AM
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Cool #12-8 "Big Shiny Bear" Bowie!

Hi all!

I wanted you all to see this stunning "Big Bear" Bowie which recently arrived after a two and a half year wait. (It was well worth it, by the way.)

I ordered it from our very own Captain Chris and had it outfitted with sterling silver fittings which are solely provided to the shop by silverknife, aka Doug Cream. Thanks very much to these two gentlemen!

Thanks to the guys at RMK for doing a super job crafting this knife. The stag is gorgeous and is "adjusted" to fit very well into my right hand. The balance is perfect, and the blade is unbelievably sharp on the cutting edge and on the top bevel. But why split hairs...

The sliver is so shiny that I was almost blinded by the sun's reflection when I was admiring it in daylight! While it would be a great knife to have engraved, I actually prefer to leave it as is, since for me the plain silver contrasts beautifully with the stag and sheath, and makes a very classy looking Bowie.

I figured it would be fun to show this knife by beginning with the closeups and ending with the whole package, so "bear" with me, as I will have to use two consecutive posts.

I hope you like it as much as I do.

Cheers!

David

















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Old 08-23-2006, 09:05 AM
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#12-8 "Big Shiny Bear" Bowie!

The striptease continues:



















Cheers!

Mooshead


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  #3  
Old 08-23-2006, 09:21 AM
panhead panhead is offline
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Very nice knife Mr. Moosehead. Again great looking stag.I really love the way that silver looks. I recently got my two Sasquatches in Doug's silver they look great as well. I'd post pictures but I'm semi-retarded. I sent photos to Mr. Silverknife maybe he could post some for me. Hint hint.
Panhead
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Old 08-23-2006, 09:41 AM
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Buddy Thomason Buddy Thomason is offline
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You are a big teaser, my friend. Thats's a beauty! For now I'd agree about holding off on any engraving - but I wouldn't rule it out in good time. It might be interesting to select an engraver and ask him/her to submit a proposal (Only when you think you might actually proceed with engraving, so as to not totally waste someone's time.) Engravers, and there are some world-class engravers who are very active here on the KN Forums, really know how to enhance an already beautiful knife without spoiling it.

Also, if you're open to a photography tip, consider getting ahold of some neutral grey paper to use as a background for your terrific Randal Made knives. If I ever visit you and your lovely/talented wife I'm sure I'll feel very 'at home' because I know your carpet so well by now! Seriously, the neutral grey will not be reflected in a distracting way by the shiny parts, AND because it is not white, it will cause the stag and the knife in general to really 'pop' as they say in the world of photography. If you don't have access to any of the type of paper I'm talking about (basic camera shops and/or art supply stores carry it in rolls and/or sheets), I'd be happy to send you some, no sweat. Seriously, don't hesitate to ask as I'd be glad to do it (translation - I have an excess of it laying around!)


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Old 08-23-2006, 01:14 PM
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Very Pretty!
jc
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  #6  
Old 08-23-2006, 05:29 PM
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David

A superb looking knife. The silver fittings really add to the overall look of the knife. You have given me some good ideas for future ordrers. You have any more ordered with silver????

Rod
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  #7  
Old 08-24-2006, 09:12 AM
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Thanks!

Thanks fellow RMK freaks! I'm glad you like the knife.

Buddy, I know I have been procrastinating, negligent and forgetful in obtaining the right kind if background material for my knife photos.
Thanks to your reminder I will now make a determined effort to get some neutral grey paper.

BTW, I have been using a piece of carpeting that I can easily unroll outside. If you saw our "real" carpets you would be impressed by the amount of cat hair covering them, since I also procrastinate when it comes to doing the housework.

Rod, I don't have any more silver coming, but I did pick up a sliver the other day when I was doing some yard work.

Cheers

David


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Old 08-24-2006, 09:50 AM
BoBlade BoBlade is offline
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David,

I think the 12-8 Big Bear Bowie has the "wickedest" grind coming out of the shop. The way you have this one configured, I'm torn between calling it "bad a%@" or "purdy"

Great knife. Thanks for sharing.
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  #9  
Old 08-30-2006, 11:56 AM
silverknife silverknife is offline
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David, that knife is absoloutly exquisite. I'm really pleased that you are happy with the silver. Of course I'm prejudiced in just loving the way Randalls look and balance in the hand. I know most folks who use silver on their knives don't use them but it's great fun to watch the looks on people's faces when they find it balancing so well in their hand.

Panhead, I lost a bunch of pictures a while ago and unfortunately yours were among them. If you send them to me again I will try to post them for you.

On the RKS forum one of the guys posted a picture of a really pretty Randall with a silver reduced hilt and collar with the shop's antique ivory micarta. Really nice combination.

I'm expecting a 12-9 14 with a 25 handle, ivory center, silver lugged hilt, spacers and butt cap out of the shop sometime towards the end of this year, beginning of next. I know that patience is a virtue, but no one has ever called me "virtuous" !!

David, may I snag a few of your fine pics to include in my "under construction"
web site www.silverknife1.com ??

Regards, Doug
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Old 08-30-2006, 12:11 PM
BoBlade BoBlade is offline
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Doug,

I think it would have been really cool if the shop had made silver fittings for knives back in the 40's (other than the reduced hilts on early carvers and model 8's). Speaking of, 50 years from now how will one tell if a fitting is nickel silver or pure silver? Inquiring minds "who won't be around then" want to know

Best,

Ron
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  #11  
Old 08-30-2006, 02:26 PM
silverknife silverknife is offline
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Ron, actually when Bo first started pinning handles he did use pure silver pins. I got that info from some old timers, but I digress.

The simplest way is to tell if the knife has silver, other than looking at it, is to pick up the knife. If it feels heavier than you expected, its silver. Silver is much heavier than brass, nickel silver, or aluminum.

To me the difference in the look is obvious. Pure silver has a "deeper" more lusterous (brighter) look than nickel silver which has no silver in it at all. Some folks have described silver as "whiter" than nickel silver and aluminum. In addition there are a number of harmless chemicals like sulphur dioxide (in a weak concentration) which will turn silver instantly black where it touches the metal but which can be polished right off with a little non-abrasive silver polish.

Another pretty foolproof way to tell is to look at the thickness of the spacers, if they are noticably thicker, I mean really obviously thicker than the standard Randall spacer, they are pure silver and were made very early in my relationship with the Randall Shop-somewhere between '93 and '96. They were made out of 1 ounce silver planchets which I sanded smooth with a disc sander and by hand to about .125" before sending to the shop. If there are 2 dozen knives out there with those spacers, that would be a lot. I have one which I will dig out of the safe and post here later in the afternoon/evening. If someone else has one please go ahead and post it, but if you do have one, think twice about selling it. There are very few of them and there will not be any more.

Speaking of which. If you have a Randall with a flanged silver butt cap or silver crow's beak, don't be in a big hurry to sell those either. There are very few of them around (less than a dozen) and the shop is no longer making making them, at least not until they can reduce the 5 year backlog if ever.

The spacers after that period are all .040" thick -.001. The standard Randall aluminum spacers are slightly thinner than that so if the "questioned" knife and a Randall knife with aluminum spacers are held next to one another the thicker spacers will be on a knife made with silver. So far no customer has ever asked for spacer material without also ordering a silver hilt and the Randall Shop will not accept silver from any one else, so that should be a pretty reliable way to differentiate. Of course if the knife has no spacers, see above.

Ron, hope this answers your question. I suppose that there are other mettalurgical tests that could be performed, but honestly, I think that just looking at the knife will answer the question.

Regards, Doug
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  #12  
Old 08-30-2006, 04:14 PM
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Hi Doug!

I'm delighted that you share my view of this knife. "Exquisite" is a very worthy adjective!

As far as the weight is concerned, you're right on. The silver makes this one heavy Bear, and like you said, the balance is awesome.

Ron says that he can't decide if it's "bad a%@ or purdy", but I really think it's both.

You would be most welcome to use any photos you like for your new web site. However, I plan to take some more photos of this beauty using Buddy T.'s recommendations. If you don't mind waiting just a little longer, I'm sure I can do it more justice, photographically speaking. Please email your preference.

Thanks again to you and the Captain, not to mention those fellows toiling away at the shop, who produce the most incredible knives!
Cheers all round!

David


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Old 08-30-2006, 08:08 PM
BoBlade BoBlade is offline
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[QUOTE=silverknife]Ron, actually when Bo first started pinning handles he did use pure silver pins. I got that info from some old timers, but I digress.
Regards, Doug[/QUOTE

So.............. you've given up on aluminum pins now? Where's my beer?

Thanks for the great response / info. I think we can rule out the "BoBlade scratch test" in this case

Best,

Ron
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  #14  
Old 08-30-2006, 09:30 PM
silverknife silverknife is offline
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Ron, Sure, the pins were actually an alloy of : aluminum, nickel silver, stainless steel, titanium, boron, molybdenum, copper adn kryptonite. About 8.4% kryptonite, which explains why Clark Kent never was photographed with his pinned 3-7.

Anyway, here is one of the very early silver hardware knives. The handle is mammoth ivory, the engraving is by Ron Skaggs and the scrimshaw of Chief Joseph is by Gatean Beauchamp. The butt "plate" is actually the same thickness as the spacers because it was made with the same sized 1 ozt pure (,999%) silver.

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  #15  
Old 08-30-2006, 09:34 PM
silverknife silverknife is offline
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A couple more views. Note the engraving on the spacers.

Regards, DOug
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