Anyone Hear of Arno Bernard???

J

jtallant

Joined
Apr 26, 2007
Messages
113
Just won this knife on Ebay. Allways wanted a palm size skinner like the Buck Mini Alpha's, and was surprised to get a full custom like this for about the same price as a mass production one. Wanting to know more about it's maker.



http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...MEWN:IT&viewitem=&item=110120072507&rd=1&rd=1


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I bought a knife from him about 6 years ago before I started making knives. His prices are great. He makes good user knives. The one I had was a hunter/utility type with a blade of 440c and giraffe scales. Arno is from South Africa I think. It was a very good knife and it served me well.
 
I believe Arno is from South Africa. Makes a very nice hunter/skinner utilizing very nice ivory in most cases. Also a good sheath maker.
You will quite often find his work offered for sale on Blade Gallery. :thumbup:
 
The seller said that he has been making knives since 2005 and he is Arno Bernard Junior. I am quite certain that Arno Bernard has been around longer than since 2005.

Perhaps the lower price is due to the fact that it was made by Junior?

Nonetheless, it is still a good looking knife and I am sure Senior would have thought Junior all the necessary tricks, especially since Junior's knives do have a resemblance to other Arno Bernard knives that I have seen pics of.

From what I remember, Arno Bernard knives are affordable but not to the extent of $61.
 
airyq2 said:
The seller said that he has been making knives since 2005 and he is Arno Bernard Junior. I am quite certain that Arno Bernard has been around longer than since 2005.

Perhaps the lower price is due to the fact that it was made by Junior?

Nonetheless, it is still a good looking knife and I am sure Senior would have thought Junior all the necessary tricks, especially since Junior's knives do have a resemblance to other Arno Bernard knives that I have seen pics of.

From what I remember, Arno Bernard knives are affordable but not to the extent of $61.
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I didn't know there was an Arno JR.. As you said probably the reason for the low price.
Arno's ivory hunters are generally in the $350 to $450 range. Don't own any, just have admired them.
 
i visited the table of A.T. Barr at a local knife show, and he had a little hunter made by arno bernard that was just amazing. Felt so good in the hand and was as sharp as any knife i've ever seen.
 
saw them both at the Vegas show this year , very impressive work and total bang for the buck. The grinds are clean , fit & finish were spot on for both of them. That knife was a steal at that price and would have been a bargain at double that easily.
 
John T Wylie Jr said:
saw them both at the Vegas show this year , very impressive work and total bang for the buck. The grinds are clean , fit & finish were spot on for both of them. That knife was a steal at that price and would have been a bargain at double that easily.
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So you say, even though it is from Jr. and not Sr. that I still got a great deal?
 
I am dead certain the knife is as good, if not better, than his dad's work. Not that Arno Sr. is lacking, it's just that they BOTH have pride in their work and use the same methods. I wouldn't bat an eye about the quality from Jr.

You won't meet finer people on the planet. Good for YOU! :thumbup:

Coop
 
It's funny, I've seen many of Sr.'s knives at shows and they're good values. I would have bought one a few years ago when they were even better values but I hated the design of his logo and how huge it was. One of those deal breaker things I guess. Jr.'s logo is much better. When I first saw one of Jr.'s knives on eBay, a large drop point, I thought that it was Sr. with a newly designed logo and I thought "good for him." But upon reading the description I found out it was his son. I did bid on the knife but didn't win.
 
:thumbdn:
Personally, I don't care for the concept of Minis...

But Arno Jr./Sr. you can't go wrong :D :D :D

Ya done good!
 
i have one from jr. does it have a JAB logo on the blade? john arno bernard, jr.

mine is very nice, fit and finish are excellent. got a good deal on mine as well.
 
MORIMOTOM said:
i have one from jr. does it have a JAB logo on the blade? john arno bernard, jr.

mine is very nice, fit and finish are excellent. got a good deal on mine as well.
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Why yes it does!

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I'm feeling pretty excited now about this purhase. Thanks guys.
 
Grapevine said:
It's funny, I've seen many of Sr.'s knives at shows and they're good values. I would have bought one a few years ago when they were even better values but I hated the design of his logo and how huge it was. One of those deal breaker things I guess. Jr.'s logo is much better. When I first saw one of Jr.'s knives on eBay, a large drop point, I thought that it was Sr. with a newly designed logo and I thought "good for him." But upon reading the description I found out it was his son. I did bid on the knife but didn't win.
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I see your point. The maker's mark is a little overstated to say the least.:eek: :confused:
 
I bought one of Jrs first models back when Sr was at blade show west in Irvine.Ca. Thuens Prinsloo told me to buy one of Jrs blades as he was a great kid and would someday be a famous maker in his own right. Blade is probably ATS-34 and yes he is South African. I thought the sons name was different from the father for some reason, but for the sake of authenticating your knife I'll refer to him here as Jr.
 
Nice looking knife.
Arno Snr makes a great knife,. I have a couple. The steel would be ATS-34 or 12c27. I like the look of his folders too

There will probably be more Jnr for sale. As I understand Arno Snr cut back production a bit last year due to health reasons.

The biggest source I found for Bernard knives would be A T Barr, always seems to have a few.
Thanks for sharing
Mitch
 
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