Newest Aquisition

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Sep 2, 2001
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Guess I am heading to divorce court.

Before i divulge the maker, let's see if anyone can guess who it is.

Yeah, that's it: November is Bali Quiz Show Month.

Edit: Bali is in transit, so I don't have all the vital on hand.
 
Well, I don't have a clue who could have done them, but I do know that I like them! Looks like a bali to have around the cabin. :D Very cool!
 
They look like they where influenced by the old French "Laguiole" knives, but I don't recall them ever making a bali, plus they don't look exactly like a "Laguiole". But those are VERY nice!:D Thanks for sharing.;)
 
I'm curious though, are those Hammon Lines (temper lines) on either side of the blade, or is it just dirty?
Thanks :D
 
Clues to help this along:

It's not a factory piece.
The maker is known for forging Frontiersman style Bowies.

So chances are thoses lines are harmons.

A few more guesses.
 
Only George Sweeney comes to mind..., but it doesn't have enough of a colonial look ~~~> I GIVE :( !

Haha....I see you got a nice leather sheath with that Tony :rolleyes: .., meaning you can donate one of those Bali-Sheaths you viciously ripped from my clutches on Ebay <~~ teasin' ya! :)

Anyway.., wanta trade it for a 1628 "Gypsy" with a deeply pitted blade and broken blade-tip?

Good find!! Let us know all the details!



"Hunters seek what they [WANT].., Seekers hunt what they [NEED]"
 
Nope...darn...Sweeney is a stock removal guy...now I'm curious. Tell now!!! We are not good at waiting.., although we are improving by force! :cool:


"Hunters seek what they [WANT].., Seekers hunt what they [NEED]"
 
I know who it is. It should be obvious, his name is right there on the blade. Just kidding, (but his name is there), I took a pass on this knife a while back. It is interesting to hear other takes on it.
 
I know
A person made it!! Definetly definetly.
Ver nice kife. Has that so of simple/outdoor look to it.
 
No more guess. Although Winkler was a damn good one. The maker is Wendell Fox. Yes, that was a hard one. Guess we'll need to add him to the ever growing list of custom bali makers.

Wendell Fox has been making knives for a long time. From what I was able to gather, Wendell doesn't do bali's often. He does however, make some wonderful forged Frontiersmen styled bowies. His work can be seen at Bladeart, where this one came from.

Either case, the bali is in the mail, and I'm having a hard time explaining to the wife why all these little packages are showing up at the door. :( :( Once I receive it, I'll post more pic's and a better description.
 
hehe, seems like some of you guys are having some lady problems :D
nice bali. interesting tang pin solution. but is it really that strong and steady, when it's just on one side? :confused:
 
I, too, wondered about the tang pin configuration. The liners look to be anodized and must be titanium or some alloy in that family. The handle construction being wood and micarta(?), ti liners, and 1/8" blade stock should make this piece very light. I kind of doubt if Mr.Fox forged the blade, unless he 'packed' the edge, but I'm sure he would've heat-treated it himself. The latch itself is a little different than I've seen before with the angle that it's set at and all. You've got a fine example of what some of these guys can make if they are so inclined to get away from their 'ordinary' blade work.
 
Thanks all for the comments. Once I get the bali in hand, I promise I will post pics and evaluation. There's just too many different things about this bali for me to pass on it. And if for nothing less, it'll add a unique factet to my collection.
 
Well, the bali is in. Although my fingers are still healing from the 49-01's, this bali needs special mentioning.

Construction: Sandwich constuction with filed brass liners and dyed wood inserts. Even a rudimentry latch gate.

Dimension: Closed, 6". Open 10.25". Blade, 4.5" long, by 1" at it's widest, by .125" thick. Weights about 11 ozs.

Handles: I'm suspecting oak dyed a honey golden oak for the bottom 2/3 portion, and a deep black for the top. Held together by 3 brass screws for each handle.

Blade: Forged. Steel unknown, but is sharp and nicely filed around the tang.

Latch: Small forged brass t-bar. Barely works on available friction. Latch is in the Manila style.

Tang assembly: Handle pins are held together by torx screws with the recieving end nicely filed. Single tang pin is also held in place by a countersunk torx screw, and the tang pin is knurled.

Swings: Since I'm not a fan of the Manila style latch, it was a little awkard. But the brass handles are heavy and the pivot pins are very smooth.

Overall impression: As mentioned by Blasto, I can see a Frontiersman with this in his rig (assuming he was able to travel to the Phillipines and knew about this style of folders). It at once old style and new (torx screws and knurls aren't found in the old knives). A very unique piece, of which I'm told only 4 exists.

But the knife isn't perfect. Two of the handle screws are too long and it scratched the blade, so that'll need to be address. The knurled tang pin is harder than the soft brass liner, and it's imprinted on the tang cup. The balde is high carbon, so I'll need to maintain it to prevent pitting.

Aside from that, again, it's a very unique piece. Although I'm, still not sure if it's me (given the bali freak that I am, that's pretty incredible).

More photos at this link:

http://members9.clubphoto.com/tony457839/556373/owner-e48b.phtml
 
wow, only 4 of its kind?! that's awesome! that's even better than the 49spl! :p

congratulations. i'm sure it was worth the investment. :)
 
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