Hibben Knives

Gil Hibben is a ledgend in the knife industry and current president of the US custom knifemakers guild.

His history is very long and worth chasing down.

sal
 
I only know he has a line of "Fantasy knives" that have no practicality embedded with the design

hornetsword.jpg


Picture%20016b.jpg
 
I have a Rambo factory second-I was told it's 1060 steel upon purchase but there's no possible way it ever could be... I can't get it to patina and it has been HT'd so hard I have yet to find a sharpening implement that will as much as scratch it. Right now it's a 3 pound half inch chunk of unidentified crap steel that I wasted 10 bucks on.
 
He's famous among the younger generation for his movie and fantasy knives and the United line(the quality on these production lines ranges from just ok, to nice relative to cost). These may or may not be your cup of tea, but his handmade tradition hunters and fighters are very nice if you like a slightly older style in your knives.

He also deserves a lot of credit for getting many very well known knife makers into the game.
 
I have his dragon lord, bought it back in '97 cause it looked cool, still haven't used it. But it still is kinda cool looking.
 
It's important to distinguish between the knives that are actually made by Gil (which are absolutely top notch and some of the most collectible things out there today) and the United Cutlery knives (which are so-so, to put it nicely).

And if you happen to notice "Karen Hibben" down at the bottom of the page, you might want to say hello.
 
PayetteRucker said:
I have a Rambo factory second-I was told it's 1060 steel upon purchase but there's no possible way it ever could be... I can't get it to patina and it has been HT'd so hard I have yet to find a sharpening implement that will as much as scratch it. Right now it's a 3 pound half inch chunk of unidentified crap steel that I wasted 10 bucks on.
Click to expand...

$10 whole dollars? Send it to me...I'll sharpen it for you for free.
 
PayetteRucker: does your Rambo knife have the logo or was the logo sandblasted off? I saw one example recently (that I assume was a Hibben product) that behaved as if it were stainless. True 1060 will be simple to sharpen.

Also, check youtube for some extra eye witness accounts. Any steel can be honed with the right sharpening equipment. I suspect that the three pounder in your mit might be an unbreakable beast and a veritable chopper with the proper edge.
 
Oh, The Elmer Keith? The big reason why it's so thick(3/8") is because he sorta wanted a mini-hatchetish knife, he felt that was what was needed for breaking down large game. Having read Keith's notes on knives ove the years, his taste ran toward shorter, wide fixed blades. That was a big thing when he reviewed knives.

The d-ish guard was just something he liked, I never saw it in print, but one theory advanced was that it was so you could rest your hand for a few seconds during a big skinning job, without setting down the knife. You just open your hand and stretch a bit, if you are tired, the d guard will still keep it at hand's reach.
 
+1 to what sal said. gil is a master craftsman when it comes to knives.

i would take morrow up on that offer payette. the paper wheels will put an edge on that knife in a short order. i would even do it for free just to see exactly how hard it is. i would even have a buddy rockwell test it just to find out for sure.
 
Last edited:
Right Now? Gil still does and a maker named Steve Voorhis does make them on occassion. A maker named Dennis Friedly makes them also. Original Draper(father and sons) older knives sometimes show up on the secondary. They are expensive though, I'd expect a plain version to start at $500 and move up quickly.

United does make a lighter production version as thier H.T.F knife for about $50, if you just want to see if you like the style. They're not really bad knives from most accounts.

Here's a super fancy Friedly version with a little less guard-


http://www.friedlyknives.com/gallery/hunting_gallery/images/hunter.jpg .
 
I hate when people call Unitet cutlery production Hibben knives! Those are not Hibben knives!!! only design! call them "fake Hibben" please!
 
SENGVIN said:
I hate when people call Unitet cutlery production Hibben knives! Those are not Hibben knives!!! only design! call them "fake Hibben" please!
Click to expand...

So much so that you felt need to drag up a year+ old thread, apparently.

Most people 'round here know the difference between the Gil Hibben designed fantasy crap made in China by United Cutlery and a real Gil Hibben made knife.
 
About that diamond hard stainless... could be 420J SS cut by flame or laser. I've never machined flame cut martensitic stainless but I did mill a lot of flame cut 4140 pistol frames. Man were they hard at the edges, and 4140 ain't exactly high carbon. Ate inserts like candy. Something about the process makes a wicked heat affected zone.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top