Girafe Bone... what´s your opinion?

while the thought definitely occurred to me that the giraffe scales were the reason that the the White piece went so cheap, i doubt it is the only reason. i've grabbed a few serious bargains off the sale section here, including pieces that have ivory handles.

for some reason, some pieces just don't move as quickly as we think they should. i'd point to the bradshaw folding bowie that recently lingered a lot longer than it should have as a prime example.
 
I like GB a lot as a knife handle material. It's hard as heck and looks great in it's natural color. I bought another GB-handled knife at a custom show last weekend and will continue to buy GB-handled knives.

whitie
 
Anthony Lombardo said:
...Not knives where $50 or $100 or $150 is meaningless to the maker or the buyer.....
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That's the criterion? :rolleyes: For me, personally, $1000 one way or the other isn't a big deal. I guess I don't even have to bother posting photos of the gorgeous little fixed blade I purchased recently from Josef Rusnak.
 
cockroachfarm said:
..... I guess I don't even have to bother posting photos of the gorgeous little fixed blade I purchased recently from Josef Rusnak.
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Oh yes you do. :)

Roger
 
I will. But not in this thread.

(BTW, I just purchased Hartink's Encyclopedia of Knives and noticed that one of my Rusnak knives is shown under that maker's listing.)
 
Originally Posted by Anthony Lombardo
...Not knives where $50 or $100 or $150 is meaningless to the maker or the buyer.....


That's the criterion? For me, personally, $1000 one way or the other isn't a big deal. I guess I don't even have to bother posting photos of the gorgeous little fixed blade I purchased recently from Josef Rusnak.
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Well, thats my criteria, FWIW.

Rusnak is a talented carver for sure, but his knives are not my style.

PS-I am glad $1k isn't a big deal to you. Will you send me about $900 that I need for an upcoming knife?

Guys, if you like giraffe bone, go for it, just understand why many serious collectors and esteemed makers do not share your enthusiasm for the material.
 
Enough about the GB. I'm curious: cockroachfarm can you read Dutch:D , or is Hartink's Encyclopedia translated into English.

Rusnak has some great knives in that book, which one is/are yours?

Marcel
 
Enough about the GB. I'm curious: cockroachfarm can you read Dutch:D , or is Hartink's Encyclopedia translated into English.

Rusnak has some great knives in that book, which one is/are yours?

Marcel

PS If you ever want to get rid of $ 1000, you can send it to me. I know some darn good ways to spend it;)
 
Anthony Lombardo said:
...but his knives are not my style.....
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That's what it's all about. We each have different 'taste' - which is 100% subjective. :) My Darrel Ralph "Proto" collection looks comletely different than JR's knives.

FWIW, I personally do NOT have an "enthusiasm" for giraffe bone - it's really just another handle material to me. And I am not referreing to custom knives for which I have the option of SPECIFYING handle material. If I like a knife that has already been completed by the maker and the handles are giraffe bone, of a color and texture that complements the knife, it's no big deal to me. Until I read this thread, I had no idea that there were such strong opinions and negative feelings about using giraffe bone. I spent many childhood summers in the Black Forest, where stag antlers were a dime a dozen - and giraffe bone might have been considered very exotic and desirable! :)
 
Anthony Lombardo said:
Well, thats my criteria, FWIW.

Rusnak is a talented carver for sure, but his knives are not my style.

PS-I am glad $1k isn't a big deal to you. Will you send me about $900 that I need for an upcoming knife?

Guys, if you like giraffe bone, go for it, just understand why many serious collectors and esteemed makers do not share your enthusiasm for the material.
Click to expand...

Although Anthony and I will frequently have a differing take on things, and probably don't agree on all knives, the above quote could have been written by me, verbatim.

Nothing left to say, except I hope that Holger is handing out $1,000 at all major knife shows.:D

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
Participating in this thread really makes me wish that I had made a different career choice 'cause 'communications' obviously isn't my forté. ;)

I should have chosen an amount like $200 to illustrate my point - which is: if it's OK to have an 'inexpensive' knife with giraffe bone handles, why is it such blasphemy (obviously to some people here) to buy a more expensive knife with giraffe bone handles? As long as the material suits the overall design of the knife. And, as I CLEARLY stated, I am talking about buying a knife that is already completed. Sure, when I ORDER custom, I will probably choose something other than giraffe bone (I love snakewood or pearl or popcorn stag) - and maybe I won't. My taste, my choice, my money. I just never realized until this thread started what strong emotions a simple slab of handle material could evoke! :eek:

(...and since when is $350..."dirt-cheap"? )
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.BTW, it was LAST Blade Show that I handed out the $1000 bills. THIS year...all I can afford is Swiss Chocolate SAK's! I just lost a small fortune in Giraffe Bone Futures.)
 
You asked
(...and since when is $350..."dirt-cheap"? )
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I said
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.
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Because it sold at a 33% discount to the makers list price.
I am guessing because of the dyed giraffe shin handles.
 
Anthony Lombardo said:
....Because it sold at a 33% discount to the makers list price.
I am guessing because of the dyed giraffe shin handles.
Click to expand...

A 33 per cent discount just because it had GB handles? And everything else about it was OK?

All right, I'm convinced.

I will never ORDER a custom knife and SPECIFY that the handles be made of giraffe bone. I'm done. :)
 
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giraffe.jpg
 
Whether a guy likes giraffe bone or not, that post was... brilliant! :D :D :D
 
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