Girafe Bone... what´s your opinion?

i'm not huge on it. the stuff dyed wild colors just turns me off, but natural or a nice dye job it can be ok. while i probably wouldn't order a knife with it, i would (and have) purchase a piece that looked good with it.
 
Wild colors do look crappy to me also, so does wild colored woods. But like everything written in the thread, all opinions as asked by the original poster.
 
Seeing some GB dyed bright red left me with a negative first impression but in natural colors it looks pretty good. Considering the material itself though I would be hard pressed to choose it over some nice sheephorn or stag. On higher end pieces any ivory would be more appropriate. Bark or surface checking adds a lot of appeal, IMO, unless it's a crack around a pin or something that's going to keep growing. Crown stag is great for a presentation piece but it just looks in the way on a user. I find the Newton/Fitch much more appealing with stag but I can see why some would prefer GB.
 
This is an interesting and informative thread. Since I don't personally have a strong opinion on the subject, thought I'd simply add a picture for now.

orig.jpg
 
Not quite sure who has given the impression of "big boy" collectors, and as far as I am aware the original start of the thread made no reference to a price point,
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I started the thread, and as far as I am (and should be everybody else, specialy makers) all price ranges should be in mind, even if in separated insights. From what I gather, lower end knives to be beaten up are kind of OK to most when it comes to GB, but higher end presentation knives are a NO-NO... that´s good... gives some nice guidelines.

Jeff Velasco
 
I fully appreciate that views on giraffe bone are highly subjective. It is unlikely that anyone with a very strong dislike for the material will ever think otherwise.

But let me just say that the knife below is freakin' gorgeous and I wish it were mine! (pics from knifeart, knife by Sfreddo):

orig.jpg


orig.jpg


Roger
 
Another Sfreddo with GB... this one has a quite nice turkish pattern.

Re-reading the topic I posted I think I just might have put words in a way that people might understand the makers I quoted were doning something for sure, wich they arent. What I meant to express was that we have talked about this thread a long way and there might be some changes to acomodate the collectors taste for other materials that they don´t usualy go for, like ivory. So I decided to edit the post.

Jeff Velasco
 
I love that Sfreddo.

Just think, for another $100 it could have been fossil ivory and not giraffe shin! That is my point.

On a $300 knife, a $150-170 dollar set of scales makes a huge impact on price.

It does NOT make a huge difference in price at the $1000+ range, but based on this thread, it does make a HUGE difference in acceptance in the aftermarket.

That knife would be a great knife if it had balsa wood handles...
 
not to dredge up old theads, but when this thread first went around i really wished i'd had a good pic of a John White bowie i bought last year, that had giraffe scales on it. so, while i was getting my Broadwell piece photographed by Coop, i sent up the White bowie for him to shoot also. i certainly agree that giraffe will lower the value of a knife vs. an ivory handle. but that doesn't mean it's always an ugly or bad choice. in this case it's got nice warm colors to it, and feels really good in the hand.

White_bowie01-w.jpg
 
I don't have any pieces currently but there are at least two that I've seen that look great with it, IMO. One is the Anderson valkyre folder (here's another shot of it) and the other is a coffin handle bowie by R. Sfreddo. In general, I prefer mammoth, walrus, and wood. I also like coral and MOP on some pieces. Abablone is a bit over the top for my taste. In terms of stability, I think it's pretty much a crap shoot. Any given piece with natural handle material might shrink and crack and it's a risk I consider whenever I buy. SUre, some materials are more stable statistically, but statistics don't matter when I'm staring at a knife with a cracked handle. I say buy what you love, but if you tend to turn pieces over rather than keep them, take into consideration their resale value. Giraffe definitely suffers on that account.
 
SOrry guys, I dont' think I read the last page before posting. The Sfreddo and WHite bowies are both top notch in my book. I'd be happy to own either.
 
I don't understand all the harsh comments about GB...I'm a maker and I like giraffe bone. The only time I could see all the hubub about GB is if some crooked dealer tried to pass it off as mammoth ivory, then I could see why people would be up in arms over it. I always make sure I tell my customers exactly what I have used in my knives. If I tell you it's ivory, you can bet your last dollar that's what it is. I have no problem using giraffe on a knife but I will tell you that's what it is....;)
 
I like GB. Partly because my wife thinks they are so cute (giraffes that is). At one of the knife shows I went to I talked to someone that was selling knife handle materials and I asked about GB. The lady told me no giraffes are killed for their bones. The bones are from previously deceased animals and in fact it takes a couple years in the sun before the GB is suitable for knives. Also she informed me that due to the relatively heavy weight that the thin leg has to support, the bone becomes very dense and that makes it a worthwhile handle material.
 
Anthony Lombardo said:
I love that Sfreddo.

Just think, for another $100 it could have been fossil ivory and not giraffe shin! That is my point.

On a $300 knife, a $150-170 dollar set of scales makes a huge impact on price.

It does NOT make a huge difference in price at the $1000+ range, but based on this thread, it does make a HUGE difference in acceptance in the aftermarket.

That knife would be a great knife if it had balsa wood handles...
Click to expand...

My thoughts, exactly. Any knife that looks good with Giraffe bone, would look even better with something else, IMHO.
 
Anthony Lombardo said:
Just think, for another $100 it could have been fossil ivory and not giraffe shin! That is my point.
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You could also say the following:

• For more $$$$ you could have had curly maple instead of G10

• For more $$$$ you could have had maple burl instead of curly maple

• For more $$$$ you could have had spalted maple burl instead of maple burl

• For more $$$$ you could have had ironwood instead of spalted maple burl

• For more $$$$ you could have had MOP instead of ironwood

• For more $$$$ you could have had fossil ivory instead of MOP

* For more $$$$ you could have had a finer hand rubbed finish

• For more $$$$ you could have had filework

• For more $$$$ you could have had damascus instead of 52100

• For more $$$$ the damascus could have been mosaic damascus

• For more $$$$ etc ..........

The point I'm trying to make is every collector has price points that they will not or cannot go past. The result is material & labor costs are reduced by knifemakers to make the knife hit a price point. Giraffe bone is an material that costs more than wood and less than ivory. It satisfies the desires and price points of some collectors.

There are materials I do not like on knives. However, I try to not publicly disparage any material. I prefer to explain why I prefer other materials. Belittling a material that some people like hurts knife collecting.
 
Chuck Bybee said:
....However, I try to not publicly disparage any material. I prefer to explain why I prefer other materials. Belittling a material that some people like hurts knife collecting.
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:thumbup:

Where are those 'rep points' when you really need them?
 
I'd go one further...lose the G10, micarta (except old ivory :) ), carbon fiber and replace with attractive giraffe bone!

I'm surprised any knifemaker would make an otherwise nice knife, then choose to incorporate a plastic/resin product. Given that giraffe bone is 'cheap' there is no reason for even $300-500 folders to have artificial composite scale, much less some at $2-3K plus! Gauche at best...

Think how nice this folder would look...

onion.jpg


with scale material like this...

griffin_folder.jpg


or this...

anderson_valkyre.jpg


;)

Just my $0.02

-Michael
 
There are materials I do not like on knives. However, I try to not publicly disparage any material. I prefer to explain why I prefer other materials. Belittling a material that some people like hurts knife collecting."
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Great point from a guy who just happens to SELL giraffe bone.

I think there is a great place for giraffe bone on inexpensive knives.
Not knives where $50 or $100 or $150 is meaningless to the maker or the buyer.

Take Gaussian's John White bowie for example. It is a gorgeous knife. He is a maker with a real following and very, very backed up. That knife languished on the for sale boards until the price was greatly reduced below fair market value. I and others would have jumped on that knife with any other handle materials, so in that case, apparently the giraffe bone really hurt the percieved value of the knife as I cannot give any reason why the knife lingered around for so long. Thats not good for collecting, is it? To see your knife instantly devalued by a poor use of handle material?

I think the stuff has a niche on cheaper, user grade knives where something other than wood is demanded. I bought a user-grade bowie from an up-and-coming bladesmith with a giraffe bone handle on auction. A big 10" knife with some nice lines for under $350. Pretty much dirt cheap. I wanted one of the makers knives as I had never seen on in person. The knife was nice, but the Gbone morticed handle has already seperated. OH well. At least it was an inexpensive knife. I am hoping he will rehandle it for me with a nice piece of wood.
 
Chuck Bybee said:
There are materials I do not like on knives. However, I try to not publicly disparage any material. I prefer to explain why I prefer other materials. Belittling a material that some people like hurts knife collecting."
Anthony Lombardo said:
Great point from a guy who just happens to SELL giraffe bone.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
So is it a "great point" or does the fact that we sell LOTS of different materials make my point moot?
 
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