$300-$400 alternative to the Perceval Sgian Dubh?

C

chackoc

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Feb 7, 2010
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Can anyone recommend a less expensive alternative to this €2500 knife? Ideally something that would fall in the $300-$400 range? I like everything about this knife (symmetrical design, relatively short, double edged, simple design, matching sheath, etc.) but the price is out of my range.
 
So... you're looking for a short dagger or boot knife or another skean dhu / sgian dubh?

What specific features are you interested in to give the $300-$400 range? Are you restricting options to damascus-style steel? Hand-made? What sort of restrictions are you placing on handle material? Do you want a skean dhu or will a similar size double-edge blade suffice?

I guess what i am asking is, have you already researched alternatives yourself and are looking for recommendations from among them, or are you testing the waters?
 
Go custom and get exactly what you want. $350 would certainly be in the ballpark.
 
The design is the main thing. I started out looking through the boot knife / dagger threads in search of a small, double-edged fixed blade. I wasn't too interested in most of the knives I saw in those threads because they are asymmetrical. I also don't like the long thin look of a lot of the daggers. Basically after looking through all of the pics in those threads I didn't find anything I liked, but I really like the look of the one I posted. It meets all of the criteria I'm looking for:

Double edged
Symmetrical design to both blade and grip
Simple, clean lines -- ornementation is materials as opposed to lots of figuring on the blade or handle
Short and fat rather than long and thin

At the price point I'm looking at I do want a good steel and decent materials, but I'm not expecting stainless damascus and ivory handles. The perfect find would be something designed very similar to the one I posted but made with less expensive materials.

Alternatively if there are makers/companies that are known to make good, simple fixed blades at this price point I would be interested as well. Most of my knives are folders so I have a good idea of who works in that space, but I don't know much of anything about fixed blades outside of Busse and BRKT and neither company looks to make this sort of design.
 
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gooeytek said:
Go custom and get exactly what you want. $350 would certainly be in the ballpark.
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Do you have any makers you'd recommend? Most of the custom fixed blades I've seen have been ornate works of art and I'm looking more for a well designed, well built user. As I said in the post above I don't really know anything about fixed-blade makers.
 
You can try to ask to Karl-Erik Lindblad, member on here too. He made a couple of daggers some times ago
http://knives.dreamlandproject.se/index1.htm

or to finnish smith Pasi Hurttila. He made a viking dagger earlier this winter
http://www.hurttilanpaja.suntuubi.com/?cat=1

Following their styles I would suggest Böhler K510/silversteel blade, brass bolster, dyed oak and red deer antler. In this way you could also get some rather historical accurate materials that could have been used in Scotland, fatherland of the sgian, during Middle Age.
 
Thanks for the suggestions all. On the spectrum between art and utility the Koyote designs are a bit too far towards utility for me. I do want simple, but something a bit more involved than the Koyote designs I saw on the website and thread. My comment "well designed, well built user" was misleading in that regard. I meant more of a user than the art knives I've always associated with custom fixed blades, but still something a bit too nice to take out camping the woods.

The Kalles Knives link shows just the aesthetic I'm hoping for. Simple but beautiful.

The Pasi Hurttila knives are more rustic looking than I'm going for. Specifically I'm looking for smoothly finished blades rather than the hand hammered look.

I like the blade design on the A.G. Russell. Especially the central ridge detail, which it shares with the knife I originally posted. Unfortunately the handle and especially the guard, are a bit busy for my tastes.

Thinking about this further the knife I originally posted is pretty much a perfect fit. So really what I'm looking for is a ~$400 knife that comes as close as possible to that design.
 
Karl-Erik and Pasi are custom knife makers, so you can just drop them a line and ask. In the webpages you see just a hint of what they are capable to make and polish the blade isn't a tragedy. By the way, if you don't want damascus blade, I suppose they could remain in 1/2 or 2/3 of your pricerange.
 
As others have mentioned, you can get a custom-made knife for your price with decent materials, etc. There are a number of good, great, and budding makers out there, many who frequent this forum. I can recommend Bob Dozier - his model KM20 (with various handle scale options) might fit your preference, and you can request a custom one from him with modification preferences (e.g. if you prefer no flare/guard as is characteristic of his knives) and a leather sheath (rather than his standard kydex) if you prefer. Dozier uses D2 steel to optimum performance.

Good luck with your choices!
 
chackoc said:
Thanks for the suggestions all. On the spectrum between art and utility the Koyote designs are a bit too far towards utility for me. I do want simple, but something a bit more involved than the Koyote designs I saw on the website and thread. My comment "well designed, well built user" was misleading in that regard. I meant more of a user than the art knives I've always associated with custom fixed blades, but still something a bit too nice to take out camping the woods.
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He like many makers take custom orders. Maybe he can dress one up for you. Good luck finding something.
 
I dont want to self-promote in here but Gooeytek brought this to my attention. And something like this is totally in the 300-400 range. I would highly recommend Anders Hogstrom as a maker, as these kind of knives are one of his specialties. however, if you dont find someone to do it, i would be more than willing to give it a try. what kind of matching sheath did you want? I have done a couple daggers before. I personally really like clkea and simple designs. if you are interested hit my up via PM or email at Knifemaker87@gmail.com
thanks and good luck!
~Chris
 
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