2018 GEC Rendezvous and Picnic!

[singin50]

Also thanks to all who have posted pics of the knives and folks so far! Really means a lot to those of us who can’t be there!!

 

[boykinlp]

Thanks for sharing your special trip with the rest of us. Keep up the fantastic pictures of the great knives. Also, maybe one of you could take and post a group picture of the BF members.

Whoever the best 007 is in the group, go in the factory and smuggle out some pictures of the early production #14 SFO knives.

 

[JohnDF]

Yes, thanks to you guys that are keeping us involved in the Rendezvous when we can't be there.

 

[pmek5]

Yes, thanks to you guys that are keeping us involved in the Rendezvous when we can't be there.

Ditto

 

[Will Power]

Also thanks to all who have posted pics of the knives and folks so far! Really means a lot to those of us who can’t be there!!

Here's a fact and not fake news

 

[Will Power]

Great time at the Rendezvous! Have spent time chatting with Travis (@Travman), Ryan (@Sabercat), and, of course, Charlie. Managed to snag one of the 12 emerald smooth bone “Factory Special Assembly” 35s and a gorgeous Whittler from Charlie.

I keep gibbering and slobbering over those Green 35s...Green with Envy I admit

Well done Ken, you merit it and that's a tidy Whittler, great frame

Regards, Will

 

[Augie]

Second day starting,will be hard to beat the first.A huge addition to the Rendezvous is GEC setting up tents for the collectors and sellers to display and sell.
Really missing forum friends from previous years but am making some new ones.
I was able to add some vintage knives to the collection including a full set of Ulster Barlow’s marked as salesman’s samples,anyone who has been on the forum for awhile should be able to guess who they came from,very much appreciated.
Time to go,my wallet is screaming at me.

 

[knowtracks]

^^^^ Man!!! What a Great snag there Augie!!
A guy could go his whole life and never find so many beauties in one spot! I wonder where they came from........

Thanks for the pics ALL! Have a Great time!!

Dave

 

[Augie]

^^^^ Man!!! What a Great snag there Augie!!
A guy could go his whole life and never find so many beauties in one spot! I wonder where they came from........

Thanks for the pics ALL! Have a Great time!!

Dave

Thanks Dave, Donna and I are missing your company,hopefully next year.

 

[Rookie82]

I forgot to post a picture of the Rendezvous button. Everyone that comes in to the GEC building gets one, and also a raffle ticket to try and win 1 of 2 different knives. But I of course forgot to take a photo of the raffle knives.
(image removed)

 

[KindaEdgy]

I’d love to get in touch with the fellows I camped out with the first night in line.

 

[paulhilborn]

View attachment 962942 View attachment 962940 Second day starting,will be hard to beat the first.A huge addition to the Rendezvous is GEC setting up tents for the collectors and sellers to display and sell.
Really missing forum friends from previous years but am making some new ones.
I was able to add some vintage knives to the collection including a full set of Ulster Barlow’s marked as salesman’s samples,anyone who has been on the forum for awhile should be able to guess who they came from,very much appreciated.
Time to go,my wallet is screaming at me.

Wow, just WOW!!! John, you hit another motherload your Barlow collection is very impressive and constantly growing. Please say hello to the special person you were able to close the deal with

Wish I was there to buy knives and to see people buy and sell, the whole experience is amazing, greet Donna for me and post her additions here as well, because we know she's wheeling and dealing

 

[jsdistin]

How was the line today prior to the store opening? Is anyone that has been there before able to comment on what the line might look like tomorrow? I know these are probably purchase process questions but man that rendezvous knife looks cool, but the only way I’d be able to swing it is to drive 2 and a half hours out there, hope for the best and almost immediately turn around and drive 2 and a half hours back. Since I’m at it how much did it run?

 

[22-rimfire]

I certainly hope you all who made the effort are enjoying yourselves. I got the usual KSF friday email and they have a group attending as well.

 

[5K Qs]

Thanks for all the reports from Rendezvousers, and congrats on the fine knives some of you are acquiring!
The stag 26s shown here are superb, "S" or not!

- GT

 

[B.F.U]

Hey fellas! Any word on the Rendezvous knife this year?

Mine has much different grain than some of the others I've seen

So, who was first in line this morning? Any brave souls out there at 3am? Didn't the line start forming at something like 4am last year?

Gary was the first in line. He had his RV in the parking lot.

It started much, much earlier than that this year.

I got in line at 10:45PM on Wednesday night! I was third in line! B B.F.U was fifth in line. @Old Engineer got a knife Augie and his wife got a knife! There was more people in line than they had knives for!

I tried very hard to convince my fiancee to come this year but it doesn't make sense for her to take off work..... and let's be honest, waiting on a porch for hours upon hours for a knife doesn't appeal to someone who isn't a huge fan like us!

I'm gonna try next year to come on Saturday for the picnic, and I think she'd be up for that.

View attachment 962486

Just saw a picture of a smooth white bone ancient and glitter gold 78!

I really like the glitter gold. I remember waffling back and forth for ages on a glitter gold #56 way back. I certainly hope they make more knives with it, but I don't foresee it. William doesn't seem to be a fan, as well as several collectors I talked to, and said that it's a "when it's gone it's gone" type material.

Actually, check out my new signature!

I finally got in a short nap! The old man can’t stay up 24 hours without sleep anymore! The first day has been great! My friend Ron and I got in line last night at 10:45pm. I was third in line. They opened the doors shortly after 7:00am this morning! There was a lot of people in line and a lot of Forum friends. They made 50 Rendezvous Knives so they are selling 20 Thursday, 20 Friday and 10 Saturday morning. Some people in line did not get a Rendezvous knife today. We were able to buy one Rendezvous Knife and one Rendezvous Special Knife and anything else they had in the store! Of course with friends and family a lot of people ended up with more than that making quite a haul. On my first and only trip through the store today I bought a 46 Whaler Rendezvous Knife 1 of 50 and a 35 Churchill Special 1 of 12 Emerald Smooth Bone. I also bought a Kifer Cutlery Classics 78 SFO in Tortoise Shell Acrylic from Kifer directly! Also in this photo is a 43 Sambar Stag that I was fortunate to buy on Tuesday afternoon when we first got into town. The only one they had available! So far today I have spoken with the following BladeForum members. @Travman B B.F.U @sabre cat @waynorth @Rusty1 @mrknife @Old Engineer Augie @FeelingEdgy I know I’ve probably missed someone so please forgive me.

Great to see you and your wife again this year Ron!

You got some great ones. That Smooth Emerald bone looked great. I hope they use something like it again! The #78s seem to all be great. Gary's SFO is super cool, I was really struck by the Maher & Grosh Yankee Whittlers, and I ended up getting a Glitter Gold as my parts knife.

By the way, I think I liked the system of only one parts knife per person this year. Not that there weren't other parts knives I would have loved to get, but I think it's nice to have them be available to more people and makes you really hone in on what you want.

So I was able to get time enough to make the 250 mile trip up to Titusville and visit the rendezvous for the day. Met a couple of real nice BF members while waiting for them to open up, and in the store I purchased a rendezvous whaler and a special construction 26 stag with 2012 blades. out in the front yard was a kindly gentleman looking to unload a few barlows with white smooth bone, I helped him out too. all in all, I would highly recommend the rendezvous.

Those white bone ancients were a great surprise!

I got it because my first GEC was a smooth ivory bone TC sheepfoot (the black one in this picture) and it reminded me of it. But I totally forgot about Charlie's upcoming Ivory Bone #14 TC that I'm planning to get, so I'm not sure if I'll keep this ancient.

I’d love to get in touch with the fellows I camped out with the first night in line.

Hi Wen! Logan here, great to meet you.




5 years of Rendezvous Specials

This was my 5th year at the Rendezvous and the best one yet. I got to the porch very early on Thursday. Always interesting discussion during the long wait. Bill actually came out at around 6 and offered to tell us what the knife was, but we all said we wanted the surprise... I actually think he wanted to tell us and might have been a bit disappointed.

It wasn't too much of a mad rush once they opened the store, but it did fill up quickly and I think there was a little bit of line shift in the store. I was behind Ron and ended up getting the #06 serialized knife (6th in line). I really liked a lot of the parts knives but went with the above glitter gold single blade #78 (1 of 12 I believe), and really like it. I also ended up getting one of Charlie's smooth white bone TC Ancients (1 of 25), it's made extremely well like all the ancients.

Meeting and talking with new and old friends is always the best part. It's such a concentration of knowledge and enthusiasm, and a great opportunity for someone like me to learn. It's also always great to interact with Bill, William, Chris, etc. William buffed a spot out of my AMKCA 2018 club knife. It was a tiny scuff, but since it's definitely a display/collection piece I wanted to have it perfect if possible. I asked someone who was sharpening #44s if they could sharpen my #13 Office Knife that has been driving me absolutely insane because it wouldn't get sharp and they were nice enough to do it and did an incredible job. I also left my #44 because unfortunately and idiotically I broke the blade. I had planned to have it turned into a single blade and am now kind of thinking I should have just done that, but oh well. I have had a #45 there for a couple months because it was seizing up and had burrs on the tang, and a #43 and #65 along with it that just had blade rap and I was hoping to just get those two back but it didn't pan out. As always, they have great service especially in person.

My original plans to stay at my dad's fell through, but I was offered a great opportunity to stay at someone's camp and I really appreciated that offer and hated to pass on it. Serious fear of missing out, and I hope I'll have the opportunity again in the future. I was just so tired from being awake from 6am Wednesday till 6pm Thursday that I was barely able to stay awake and make intelligible sentences, and I had to work some today and I have to make weight for a competition tomorrow so I headed home.

It was a lot of knife looking, talking, and buying that I fit into a day though, and I'm really glad I made it for a 5th year and had a great time!

 

[Modoc ED]

Did any of the gals (members) from BF show up this year?

 

[Rookie82]

How was the line today prior to the store opening? Is anyone that has been there before able to comment on what the line might look like tomorrow? I know these are probably purchase process questions but man that rendezvous knife looks cool, but the only way I’d be able to swing it is to drive 2 and a half hours out there, hope for the best and almost immediately turn around and drive 2 and a half hours back. Since I’m at it how much did it run?

Guys are camping out to get this knife. If you want one of the remaining 10 knives that will be sold Saturday morning, you probably need to get in line at midnight Friday night and stand in line all night long so you can buy one Saturday morning at 7am. Dunno what the selling price is on them, probably under $200.

 

[B.F.U]

Did any of the gals (members) from BF show up this year?

I was disappointed not to see @pertinux

I'm not sure of others, I'm not great with names let alone matching usernames and real names.

Guys are camping out to get this knife. If you want one of the remaining 10 knives that will be sold Saturday morning, you probably need to get in line at midnight Friday night and stand in line all night long so you can buy one Saturday morning at 7am. Dunno what the selling price is on them, probably under $200.

$160

 

[singin50]

Yeah, silly, I've never wanted a knife that bad!