Congress whittler covered in antique tortoise

As usual, Ken has crafted a superb knife. When I contacted Ken about a new knife, I had an idea in my mind of how I wanted this knife to look. We talked about size of the knife, blade selection and what type of handle material to be used. The only thing I was sure about, was the tortoise shell and the blade selection. Ken's input and expertise did the rest. He took an overlooked pattern and made it look like a vintage knife! 100 years from now, someone will look at this knife and say, "they don't make 'em like that anymore".:thumbup:
 
I haven't seen to much out of Congress that I have liked lately, but that knife is a real winner,congrats on a great job.
 
State of the art Ken, is it a usual practise to use Gold leaf behind the Shell?
I can understand why-its given a transparent and brilliance in one!
 
kamagong said:
A beauty Ken. Any pics of you backing up the tortoise shell with the gold leaf?

- Christian
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Sorry, I did not take any pictures applying the leaf. I have only used leaf once before and there is definitely a learning curve working with it.

ptradeco said:
Very balanced aesthetically Ken. Size, shield, tortoise, blade selection...everything works well together. Very, very, nice:thumbup::thumbup:
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I always have a hard time with the proportions of the shields on Congress patterns. When I study vintage examples it seems that by and large Congress shields are a bit larger in general. In my eye the shield is part of what makes a Congress if that makes sense.

Campbellclanman said:
State of the art Ken, is it a usual practise to use Gold leaf behind the Shell?
I can understand why-its given a transparent and brilliance in one!
Click to expand...

From what I have read I believe it was common in the day that gold leaf was used. While tortoise shell was a commonly used cover material I think it was still reserved for better quality knives. The gold really adds that something extra.


Thanks everyone for the looks and comments on this knife!
 
Mr. Erickson, your knives reach new peaks of design and craftsmanship, and this one is no different. It is another gorgeous knife that pay respect to the old knife makers of Sheffield and US.
The gold leaf backing was common practice with tortoise shell in order to give depth to the shell, the use of tortoise was indeed in higher end knives.
Thanks for sharing.
Mike
 
Ken, I was just thinking we hadn't heard from you in a while (being spoiled as we are by your ongoing work).

I should have known that you were once again working on something spectacular.

While my own tastes run toward simpler designs, I love how you continue to challenge yourself in both the aesthetic and technical aspects of knife-making, and the stellar results. I am especially glad for jivedaddy's comments above. How rewarding for both of you, to take concepts and materials and create an(other) exceptional piece.

Well done!

~ P.
 
jivedaddy said:
100 years from now, someone will look at this knife and say, "they don't make 'em like that anymore".:thumbup:
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They very nearly don't make them like this today either. I'm so glad Ken (and a few others) have been revisiting old patterns, and hand crafting these masterpieces.
 
That is a beautiful package...the design and materials seem to be made for each other. Very well done!
 
If only I had a few extra grand lying around, that'd be the perfect knife for me. I love the congress pattern, and very recently I was lamenting the lack of modern traditional knives with manicure blades.

I'm curious, what does the tortoise shell look like without the gold leaf backing?
 
I'm genuinely moved by this knife. What an amazing display of high quality materials, vision and craftsmanship.
 
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