A Marble Expert reborn...

[Absintheur]

I found this blade in the bottom of a tackle box bought at a garage sale. I didn't see it until I got home, it was wrapped in oily brown paper and stuck in the bottom back of the tackle box. slightly rusty, broken tip which had been reground, no handle material left and the threads cut off the back of the tang.

I pondered what to do with this and then I recalled an article in an old (1973) Gun Digest Book of Knives that showed cholla cactus wood being used as a knife handle material. I decided to try this and am rather pleased with the results. The cholla has a lot of character and the red tinted casting resin goes well with it. I debated turn the handle round but decided to leave it bumpy and irregular and it really does feel good in the hand. I sealed the wood with a honey oak Minwax finish and for a touch of whimsy placed a WWII era steel wheat penny into the but as it matches the age of the knife. The sheath in the pics came from a maker in Africa and was a real bargain on that infamous auction site, $12.50 including shipping, the cholla cost me a buck at a pet shop, the casting resin was about $15.00, and I paid $3.00 for the tackle box. Plus I still have a bunch of very nice older lures.

At any rate here it is, a Marble reborn...

 

[thawk]

Nice find. That looks like a thick slab of a blade. Did you go heads or tails on the penny to choose Abe or the Wheat? Nice job on the knife.

 

[Absintheur]

I just liked the wheat side better...I was going to use a Mercury dime but the penny seemed more fitting.

 

[popedandy]

You did a really nice job with that. It sure makes a good looking package.

 

[zeppos]

I'm from over the pond, so i had to look up cholla cactus. Odd stuff, but nicely worked!

 

[Rupestris]

Great find and good job of keeping the knife in use. :thumbup:

Speaking of tackle boxes. I just bought a Buck Creek Stockman that was in a tackle box that was for sale. It was on line and the box was a POS full of old lures I wasn't interested in. In the pic there was a knife. I contacted the seller and offered him $5 +S&H for just the knife. It arrived today.
So,I'm in the process of saving a tackle box knife myself.

I'll put pics up later in a new thread.

Chris

 

[Absintheur]

I will probably make some slabs in cholla as well, just have to decide on colors. I have seen it done in white and black and didn't care for either. Bright yellow might be good and well as a dark blue, any color is possible including some swirls in earth tones. I will have to experiment some and see what looks good. I have a couple inexpensive carbon steel blades coming so I will have something to play with.

 

[mp510]

Who made the sheath? Does he do custom work, or is it luck of the draw premade?
Can you give me his (ebay??) name?

If posting would violate board rules, email or PM me it.

 

[Absintheur]

The sheath is a wonderful piece of workmanship and was a bargain to boot. If I need more sheathes, and I know I will need at least 2 more in the immediate future I hope I can get this guy to do a couple more for me.

Next up is this Camillus, also found at a garage sale. I want to try a piece of Saguaro Rib for it. The wood ribs left when a Saguaro cactus dies has a very fine grain and looks rather unique, almost like bone. Just harder to find than cholla but I have found a place that sells it in something other than commercial size lots. Has anyone else here worked with it?

 

[stockman242]

You did a great job, and the sheath is a piece of art. I cant wait to see how the camillus turns out. :thumbup:

Peter

 

[Hinterland]

Well done, old Marbles blades are great users too.

 

[Absintheur]

The Expert got it's first light workout today. I, and the consulting doctor agreed, it was time to start a light rehab program so I administered a gentle sponge bath and a cooking oil rub down then proceeded to exercise it with approximately 75 cuts through USDA Prime sirloin. It perform this exercise routine with ease, it's sharpness not at all in question at this point in it's recovery. This was followed by another gentle sponge bath and oil rub down. The patient exhibited no signs of distress through out the exercise and indeed seemed eager for more. The Expert is now resting quietly and my Mother proclaimed the sirloin delicious.

One side note, ie, the patients mental health...it is now cutting with a Texas accent and insists on being called Cactus Jack, for now I will play along with this delusion and see where it leads.