Randall "mystique" question from an Ignorati..

L

Lavan

Joined
Nov 8, 2000
Messages
2,301
What precisely is the attraction of the Randall knife? Yes, I like the looks of the Randalls. No, I don't have one. Yes, I can afford one.

I am simply mystified by the phenomenon. Will a Randall outperform ..say.. an old Buck "General" or its style in actual use?

I admire the Randall "store of value" aspect and the exclusivity of the brand, but am just ignorant of the REASON for it.

Any "teachers" out there?
:)
 
I had one quite some time ago & wasn't overly impressed by it. I sold it PDQ. It was on par with the Kabar 1095 knife. JMHO
 
I also had one in carbon steel and was not impressed,,,,traded it off.

Regards,
FK
 
You get a very good knife and very good sheath for a fair price. You can customize them in almost anyway you want. this is what people want. In the beging randall had to make a name and they did with their product not their good looks or bullshit talk like Emerson and other "tactical brands"
 
Great quality, fair price, unlimited configurations...............

They have been used and proven on battlefields from WWII to the present and in the hunting field for even longer; from weekend hunters to 4-Star Generals to movie stars and Presidents. Whatever you need a knife for they got one for the job. If their stuff wasn't quality they wouldn't still be in business.
 
What makes anything collectible? What causes some items to catch on with the public, and not others?

With Randalls, good quality, forged blades at a time when most of the main companies were moving away from them, common enough to aquire, yet rare enough not to be completely common, hold their value, etc., are all valid reasons.

Are they better than the next blade? Define better.

Personally, I don't think they stack up to a Joseph Rodgers exhibition knife of the late 1800's, for looks or quality, but then again I can't order a J. Rodgers 1800's knife anymore.

Better quality than some of the best custom makers today? Maybe not, but less risky as an investment. I know when I buy my pair of Smithsonian Bowies in elephant ivory from the factory I will be able to sell them today, or probably any day in the future, for more than the purchase price. Or my children will, after I am gone (if they want to)

Will they outperform a Buck general, to answer your original question? Or, in other words, are they more functional than some of the better factory blades? Doubtful. We are not talking a Chevy versus a Lambroghini here. Given modern steel technology and all the rest, most quality blades will outperform anything we want to throw at them and then some. They cut, they don't break, and if used as designed they last for years.

In short, for whatever reason, they have aquired that intangible quality of "collectable".
 
I don't personally own a Randall, and there is NO WAY I would wait 5 years for a knife from anyone... That being said, I used to collect pre-64 Winchester rifles and shotguns. Most were a very nicely made firearms and the early lever guns were interesting to me because of the history that they may have had, which a lot of it is documentable. However I can't say that they were the best or would outperform other firearms, but there is a mystique with them that has made them very collectable and some worth outrageous prices. I don't know if this makes any sense or not, but I can understand why people want Randalls and will pay the price for them.
 
How do you explain the mystique of Harley Davidson, the M1 Garand, or phonograph records? I've owned lots of knives in my years, some custom, some production, and carried them through 23 years of Army service. My favorite was the Randall #14 I carried for about seven years. I gave it to my son who is in college and an ROTC cadet. He wants to branch Infantry and go to Airborne School and Ranger School. Gee, I wonder where he'll end up in a couple of years! ...but at least he'll have a good blade on his web gear.

Are Randalls "state of the art"? Probably not. Their top of the line stainless steel is 440C. ...but they are forged while most other knives are made by stock removal. They are well made, the first one I got was a Model #16 set up more like a small Model #14 than a diver's knife. When I set it down hard on a table, the sound it made was like closing the door to a bank vault -- no hollow ring, no loose guards, just a solid thunk. All the 30 or so Randalls I've owned over the years have been the same.

They have a following, you can't define it, or stop it. You can only jump on board, or not, your choice. If you don't get it, or don't want one, move on. There are lots out there that are glad to have one or more in their stable -- me included.
 
Well said Bruce, well said...

My wife and I collect Randall's almost exclusively; hitting roughly a half dozen shows a year for the last half dozen years, we're getting known as the 'Randall folks' now...

Being heavily into knife collecting usually brings about friendships with other like minded cutlery enthusiasts via clubs, shows, and forums...invaribly we get asked "Why Randall's, aren't there better knives out there, knives such as this one made by xyz..."

Randall's are what we collect is usually the response...and ya know what, usually within a year or two, our friends will come by with a Randall knife they just acquired, and big smile on their face...:D

To me, that says it all....

-S
 
I just bought my first 2 Randalls and I can understand why it has such a following

Make that 3 as of tonight 12/3/06
 
When I was a boy, I saw a movie titled “Iron Mistress” with Alan Ladd. Ever since then, I wanted a knife “like” the movie knife. When I was in a financial position to order one I did, a model 12 Smithsonian direct from the Randall shop, a 15-month wait.
At the time, I was working in the laser industry as a product support engineer. My eyes were quite accustomed to working with very tight tolerances.

After 15-months it arrived and I opened the box with anticipation, 15 months worth. When I cast my eyes upon it “WTF” went through my head. I picked it up and could not miss the a-symmetrical lines in the knife. After all I had heard about Randall, just spent a large some of money AND “Waited 15 months “FOR THIS” OMG I was upset.

You see I was expecting “Perfection”, every aspect and line to be perfect. The type of thing you see in a “Machine” made knife, you know absolutely perfectly straight grind lines and contours.
This was the world I lived in so this is what I expected. Under the knife was a note I don’t remember exactly what it sad but it was something like this “Please excuse any inconsistencies in the appearance of this knife. It is hand forged and finished to shape with out any jigs or fixtures, no two knives are exactly the same” WOW.

You see my “Eyes” had become so accustomed to “machine” perfection that I had lost my appreciation for well-made “hand” made things. Well I look at the world “much” differently after my Randall. Thanks to Randall, I now have a renewed appreciation for things hand made.

As far as I know, Randall is the only maker that hand hammer forges to shape and hand finishes it knives while allowing the customer some choice in the knife configuration.

So you ask what is the “Mystique” about Randall made knives well, their hand made with heart and sole something that “perfect” machine made knives lack, and “only” hand made items can possess. Randall has managed to do what no other knife company has managed to do that is, produce “Hand” made knifes on a “production” scale.

Bors.
 
Bors,

I like to call the imperfections "Randall Character". There were less and less as time went by and today it's tough to find them. Here are a few examples of yesteryear:

Spacer irregularities:
standard.jpg


"Sloppy" solder:
standard.jpg


Excess pitch
standard.jpg


Grind marks in ivory finger grooves:
standard.jpg


Irregular butt chamfer:
standard.jpg


Unplugged blood groove:
standard.jpg


Casting imperfections:
standard.jpg


Irregular hilt rounding:
standard.jpg


Tang slot cut too long:
standard.jpg
 
tunefink said:
It's hard to put words to the answer.......

Try here..... click on the Randall Album.

http://www.tunefink.phanfare.com/album/61770

Play the slideshow and turn up the volume........

It says a lot.....
Click to expand...

That was great thank you.

I can remember the first Randall I ever saw was in 1988 I was pretty green to knives but could tell this was not your every day Buck knife, it was a standard
#1-7 no thrills but none the less a great piece.
I dealt with I'll dare say a lot of Randal's after that and got to hear some great stories from people that owned them over the years, from the guys who left them to friends in war time when it was their time to go home, to my dad has one of those and he won't let me touch it. The thing that got me was just the way some folks seemed to get lost in the blade you could feel the memories rushing by, I always loved the look of pride on a grandparents or parents face as they stood in front of a display case with a young man as I pulled out the style they carried some years ago.
Any way I'm rambling, I think there a great knife, and money well spent that you will get back if your ever in a pinch, and there is a lot of history ingrained with them and if other people aren't impressed that just leaves more for us, or are they trying to leave more for them?

Helle
 
ron mathews said:
Bors,

I like to call the imperfections "Randall Character". There were less and less as time went by and today it's tough to find them.
Click to expand...

Character, thats one of the many things that make Randall's special.


Bors
 
In a time of "space age" presicion isn't it great to see a human-made product? Especially when the product is of such quality.

It makes me proud to own some Randalls.
 
Those "rough men who stand guard in the night so that you and I can sleep peacefully in our beds" give the soundest reason for the reputation of a Randall made knife. Yes, there are many who make good blades, but few if any have sent knives to every war and combat zone the US has been in since 1941. That reputation is hard earned and harder to keep. Junk soon shows itself for what it is in combat areas.

:grumpy: Each knife is made by one man from start to finish. No mini assembly lines where errors can be passed of to the "other guy" The junkers are destroyed, not foisted of as 2nds as other makers do.

5 years of waiting should tell you something about quality, trust, and pride from both the makerand the buyer. Randall, Jim Behring, and a few-very damned few-select others have managed to maintain the word of mouth publicity that can destroy a business or build it, depending upon the maker's quality and subsequeint reliability of product.Those who have been unhappy with their knives should send them free to me-I never look a gift horse in the mouth.

When military men put such highstakes-their lives, that is-on a particular brand of knive, in this case Randall, a reasonable and prudent man would recognize it's not for beauty they covet them, but for what they are-the best combat knives around, bar none. And send me yours free if you're really unhappy-I'm always willing to help a man lighten his load.:)
 
Melvin-Purvis: you said it well. For some men there is an atavistic affinity for metal and the shapes that resonate with some inner core of our soul.It is similar to the particular woman that made you feel as if a bolt of lightening had hit you -and you still love her after 37 years. I had to wait 3 months in 1965 to get a matched set of #1-8" & #2- 8". Soon after a #14 SS, #2 -5", a 1959 #2-5" Ivory handle King Faisa, and #1-7" notched stag handle as in catalog. Just added this week a Tom Clinton, making it a total of 25. When asked why at 69 I am still collecting I answer "love" [grin]
 
Hi Y'all :) ,

The Randall is a knife of about medium quality that has managed to Market itself into a place way beyond it's true means.

In a way, it is similar to the Cutco knives in that respect. Cutco knives are average (crappy) quality but they use a multi level (pyramid) scheme to sell the knives for big bucks.

I don't give a rat's ass about it's collectibility or it's resale value. As a real knife for a user, Randall is medium at best.

Steve
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top