- Joined
- Feb 17, 1999
- Messages
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For a few years when I visited my friend and long time knife collector, Ron Lockhart on Vancouver Island, he would show me knives made by a fellow Canadian, Frank Niro. I admired them from the onset but just did not find something that talked to me in that special way.
Frank lives in Blind Bay, BC which is not far from Kamloops, BC, where there were a lot of major forest fires this past summer. Many Niro knives can be found on EBay and many collectors have made some fine acquisitions.
After the summer of fire hazards, Frank built a few more folders and this one has found its way into my hands.
let me quote a few things that Ron had to say about this knife.
"Custom folder maker Frank Niro's newest linerlock is in the classic folding boot knife pattern featuring a 3-1/8" clip point blade crafted of hand forged nickel damascus from blademith Jim Ferguson. The pattern and coloring in the damascus is rich and vivid and is accented by a custom fileworked thumbstud with an inlaid Burmese ruby. Bolsters are also from the Ferguson forge and are hand carved, colored in a deep bronze tone and nicely curved to accomodate the handle scales. Mammoth ivory, which the maker has obtained directly from miners in the Canadian Yukon exhibits superb colors including tan, orange/brown, blue and brown...both scales are simply outstanding examples of this prehistoric ivory hidden for many thousands of years in the permafrost. All torx mounts are 18 carat gold plated. Niro's liners, leafspring and full backspacer are of super strong but very light weight Titanium, deeply anodized and fully fileworked including the interior of the spacer where the "Niro" signature is found. Overall length is 7-1/2". This stunning linerlock operates as smooth as silk."
I had long been looking for the right knife with fine Mammoth ivory like this piece has and the heat colored blade and carved colored bolsters made this a knife that had to be added to my collection.
The fit to the hand is terrific and is abetted by the slow and gradual palm swell from bolster to butt.
This is a great knife by an excellent Canadian knifemaker.
Frank lives in Blind Bay, BC which is not far from Kamloops, BC, where there were a lot of major forest fires this past summer. Many Niro knives can be found on EBay and many collectors have made some fine acquisitions.
After the summer of fire hazards, Frank built a few more folders and this one has found its way into my hands.
let me quote a few things that Ron had to say about this knife.
"Custom folder maker Frank Niro's newest linerlock is in the classic folding boot knife pattern featuring a 3-1/8" clip point blade crafted of hand forged nickel damascus from blademith Jim Ferguson. The pattern and coloring in the damascus is rich and vivid and is accented by a custom fileworked thumbstud with an inlaid Burmese ruby. Bolsters are also from the Ferguson forge and are hand carved, colored in a deep bronze tone and nicely curved to accomodate the handle scales. Mammoth ivory, which the maker has obtained directly from miners in the Canadian Yukon exhibits superb colors including tan, orange/brown, blue and brown...both scales are simply outstanding examples of this prehistoric ivory hidden for many thousands of years in the permafrost. All torx mounts are 18 carat gold plated. Niro's liners, leafspring and full backspacer are of super strong but very light weight Titanium, deeply anodized and fully fileworked including the interior of the spacer where the "Niro" signature is found. Overall length is 7-1/2". This stunning linerlock operates as smooth as silk."
I had long been looking for the right knife with fine Mammoth ivory like this piece has and the heat colored blade and carved colored bolsters made this a knife that had to be added to my collection.
The fit to the hand is terrific and is abetted by the slow and gradual palm swell from bolster to butt.
This is a great knife by an excellent Canadian knifemaker.
