Help: In Alaska, want to buy custom knife.

1

13th Warrior

Joined
Aug 24, 2008
Messages
3
Im currently living in Fairbanks Alaska and met a guy that makes custom knives. I saw his work and like it. The sheaths are also custom leather. Here is the info on the knife and price. I could really use your guys opinion ASAP as I leave back home to Texas on Sept 7 and have to buy the knife soon as a gift for my dad.

Maker: Frank Ownby
Blade: CPM 154 Stainless Steel
Handle: Polished Caribou Antler
Price: $200

The blade is engraved near the base with the creators name and "North Pole, AK"

If anyone can offer any insights or opinions, it would be really appreciated. Feel free to post questions I should ask the maker as well. It would really help.
 
Sorry, I misunderstood the question. I thought you were looking for custom makers in Alaska.

I am not familiar with Frank Ownby's work but $200 is pretty reasonable for any well made custom. CPM-154 is very good steel with proper heat treatment.
 
I have never heard of Frank Ownby either, however you can tell by his website that he takes his business serious and his knives look very well executed. Also CPM-154 and antler are very good materials to start with.

And I agree with others in that $200 is a very good price for a well made custom knife and significantly lower than other's he has listed for sale on his website.
 
I dont own any of his stuff, but I have been by his shop and he seems like a nice enough guy.
 
well designed and seemingly well put together knives from that guy. 200 bucks is a good price for a hand made straight knife, especially when there are so many production knives available for that price which have zero character.
 
13th,

I'm not familiar with Mr. Ownby, but my buddies Ray and Ryan Thiebault at Northern Knives in A-town probably are. I'm continually being surprised by the number of quality makers up here, many of whom have wares which which end up on the shelves of NK.

Dunno if I'd bother checking with Alaska Gun or not; just kind of a side interest/tax-write-off of Bill's and he doesn't seem to be putting much time into anything but high-end tactical stuff. I don't think I've ever seen anything local there. He mainly keeps a lot of Striders on hand... if you're into that sort of thing. He's a good kid though, if you happen down this-a-way try to catch him while he's in (the posted business hours on the door are completely irrellevant).

If the knife looks good to you and feels solid, snatch it up. $200 is a good buy for a good hand-made knife. I like to catch stuff from guys before they become "known", 'cause you can usually get it pretty cheap and don't have to wait forever. Most of the AK guys who make huntin' blades do a lot of huntin' themselves, so they know what works. I.R.B.I. Knives just outside Seward, about halfway between Seward and Moose Pass, is another excellent example. They grind theirs from retired chainsaw bars. Fit, finish and ergonomics are excellent, and they do really nice wet-formed sheaths. Kinda remind me of Scandinavian knives and sheaths, but with guards. They look nice, but the feel tells you they're nothin' but hard-use.
 
I like the work Mr Ownby does, your Dad will be super happy with the gift. Also he will say "my son brought this back for me from Alaska".

Buy it.
Frank Barron
 
Wow guys, Thanks for all the help. I didn't think I'd get very many replies so everything is greatly appreciated.

I'll definatly be buying the knife in the next couple of days. After I give it to my dad, I'm going to show him this thread. If I can post pictures, I'll try to post one of the knife for you guys to see. Frank also told me that he would give me a piece of antler so I can make a knive stand display.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top