Roderick "Caribou" Chappel

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Well, I just spoke to Rod on the phone. Very nice gentleman. He's 77 years old, in good spirits, hanging in there with his health, and has been out of knifemaking for 5 years. He said that I should leave the crack in my handle alone since the mineral oil closed it back up. He told me walrus ivory that starts off with no cracks is female and that some buyers wanted cracks in their handles to prove it was real ivory. We also talked about how to properly sharpen his rolled edge. He said to start with a hard Arkansas stone and then finish with white compound on folded newspaper, which will polish the edge and remove any fine scratches caused by the stone.

At the end, I told him about this thread and he humbly appreciated all the kind comments and interest in his knives. :thumbup:
 
A friend emailed this article to me. Thought I would add it to the thread.


Idaho State Journal, August 1972 -

It Takes 200 Steps to Build a Custom Knife SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) _ Rod Caribou Chappel is a Tsimshian Indian who makes the "answer to the woodsman's demands" in only 22 hours. Chappel figures it takes that long to complete the nearly 200 construction steps to "build" a fine, custom designed knife. The 36 year-old Chappel opened his first knife shop about two years ago in Airway Heights, Wash. He soon outgrew the cramped quarters and moved his lathes, power saws, grinders, polishers and other tools east to Spokane. "You'd be surprised just how many steps and how much time and effort goes into building a knife," he said. "But when the knife is finished, it is worth every minute and all the effort that goes into its construction." "Watch," he said. Holding one of his knives in both hands, Chappel chopped through the length of a four-foot chunk of wood. Then he shaved his forearm with the knife. "Now there's an edge for you. I could still use this knife for quite a while without having to sharpen it. To begin with, I use surgical steel for the blades of all my knives. The general shape of the blade is scribed on a piece of steel and cut out on a band saw." But surgical steel can't be cut like a softer material, Chappel says. The band saw chips out the blade pattern. The knife craftsman then uses files to bring the crudely chipped piece of steel to the shape of a blade. The edge is hollow ground. After the blade is sent out to be heat-treated, Chappel welds an extension to the back edge of the blade to hold the handle in place. Material used in the handle is the buyer's choice. He has used many types of wood, ivory, bone and even whales' teeth for custom knife handles. The end piece of the handle must be turned 7 times round -- no more no less-- to complete the knife's balance, Chappel said. Once the handle is shaped to the customer's hand, Chappel puts a rolled edge on the knife, permitting the knife to be sharpened more times than a regular blade and holding an edge longer. Edging a blade requires nearly an hour of work, Chappel said. He said there are 128 knife smiths in the nation who are members of the American Knife Makers Guild. The guild annually selects its most outstanding members. In 1971, after building custom knives less than two years, Chappel ranked fourth.
 
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TAH said:
Dawkind,

Very interesting and unique piece. Thanks for posting the photos and telling the story. :thumbup:



"Rod named his business after his grandfather, Roderick Davis, who was a representative from Alaska to Washington D.C. for 27 years and who was known from Seattle to the Aleutians as one of Alaska's great boat builders." - Chappel catalog

ETA: For some reason in the early '80s, Rod stopped using the Davis name. My knife was made in 1984 and is stamped "CHAPPEL" on one side and his full name in script on the other. He eventually dropped the CHAPPEL stamp.
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My Dad lived in Mountlake Terrace, when Rod had his cave inside the gun shop. I've spoken with Rod several times over my life, but I fondly remember my introduction. I was on vacation, and my Dad used to hang out out with Rod a fair amount, so he asked if I'd like to tag along to see if he was in the shop. He was, and I remember he had a chess board set up on his counter. During the visit he must've seen me eyeing it and he casually reached out and scooted a pawn forward, going back to his conversation with my Dad. Well, I took the bait....and he promptly schooled me without mercy. I will remember it forever.

The way I hear it from Dad, Rod broke his CHAPPEL stamp, and never bothered to replace it.

I have four Chappels that will more than likely never leave my side.

-Mark

-Mark
 
Mark,

Thanks for sharing your experience with Rod and the information on the CHAPPEL stamp. Any chance you could post a photo of your four knives? If not, how about a description?

Thanks! :thumbup:
 
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Well, it appears that I have 5, not 4! A pleasant surprise when I opened the safe!

From top to bottom....S.A.S Combat made in Arlington (I have yet to see another with this one's size), Hunter's Bowie? with curved guard and micarta (not sure if it has a name all to itself) made in Spokane w/Davis stamp, Shadowfox #111 from Arlington, Otter from the Mountlake Terrace shop, and lastly an one-piece prototype Gray Fox from his Edmonds digs.
 
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Very nice collection, Mark. Thanks for the photo. Does the hole serve a purpose on the S.A.S.? Second knife is a Bull Elk Bowie. Love the Otter - I'd like to add one of Rod's small "guardless" models to my collection. Cool prototype!
 
Thanks, TAH. Steven Garsson and I talked about this last year. He said that the intent was that it would act as an emergency piton for rappelling. And, of course it IS a Bull Elk! Gotta pull my head out once in a while apparently.
 
TAH, thanks again for the info and thread.

About the sheaths... In many cases when in Spokane, Rod would deliver the knives in one of Jessie's Sheaths. In my opinion, Rods knives are complete when in a Jessie Smith Sheath. I send Jessie 2 knives last year. Jessie had them for about 3 months... and YES I was nervous the whole time. But they showed up... and Jessie's work was worth every minute of the wait and every jitter of my nerves. I have not seen a finer sheath maker

I happen to like the plane leather look without all the fancy etching. But he does both very well.

I don't have the knives with me but will get some pictures up next time I am home.

Cheers, Mike
 
I stumbled upon this belt buckle and had to share it. Forget what the description says, this buckle was modeled after either a Woodsman's Bowie or Hunter's Bowie. It appears there are 2 available and I thought it might be of interest to a Chappel collector.

Mods, feel free to delete the link if need be. I have no affliation with this auction,

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Vtg-HUNTING-KNIFE-Belt-Buckle-5-Dagger-MBCI-Rambo-3D-Brass-BUCK-RARE-VG-/201064685838?pt=US_Men_s_Belt_Buckles&hash=item2ed063a10e#ht_438wt_882
 
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What a great thread about one of our great knifemakers. I am so glad that Rod is still alive and in decent health and while I understand all too well how hard it is to make knives when past 75 I am sorry that Rod has given it up. NO BODY sculpted steel like he did.

all the best,

A. G.
 
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Gentlemen,

I just purchased this Rod Chappel sub-hilt combat leopard. As the photographs show, it also has thumb notches. Have any of you come across a Chappel knife with thumb notches before? Does it diminish the value of the knife? Look forward to your collective wisdom. By the way, has anyone come across a Combat Leopard with a sub-hilt like this before? Thank you.
Subhiltleopard_zpse02b8a4a.jpg
 
cire said:
Gentlemen,
I just purchased this Rod Chappel sub-hilt combat leopard. As the photographs show, it also has thumb notches. Have any of you come across a Chappel knife with thumb notches before? Does it diminish the value of the knife? Look forward to your collective wisdom. By the way, has anyone come across a Combat Leopard with a sub-hilt like this before? Thank you.
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Rod did some with thumb notches....I had one with them....no damage to knife value..seen a couple with the subhilt like that....Rod enjoyed mixing it up.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
cire,

Just wanted to say again, this is one of the finest examples of a Hunting Leopard that I have ever seen. Love the steel sub-hilt and thumb notches! Tell me again, how many individual pieces of material did it take to create the handle? That information made me appreciate this knife and Rod's talent even more. :thumbup:

Tom
 
TAH said:
cire,

Just wanted to say again, this is one of the finest examples of a Hunting Leopard that I have ever seen. Love the steel sub-hilt and thumb notches! Tell me again, how many individual pieces of material did it take to create the handle? That information made me appreciate this knife and Rod's talent even more. :thumbup:

Tom
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There are 21 pieces of material that make up the handle of this beautiful knife. It must have been very difficult to make all of them meet so precisely and become an integral part of the sculpted handle.

I do see the value of thumb notches on some knives, most clearly on a Randall Model #5 with single hilt. Maybe if someone has one they could post a picture of it in this string. I just think it is overkill on this knife. But I'm glad no one has said it takes away from it's value.

I have always admired Rod Chappel knives for their fundamentally distinctive design. I know some people have had their knives etched with very artful designs but to me they are not necessary when the shape and style are so unique. I just think the thumb notches on this knife are just that extra "thing" that is not necessary. Am I alone in thinking this way?

Cire

Cire
ChappelSubhilt21pieces_zpsbbf978df.jpg
 
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cire said:
I just think the thumb notches on this knife are just that extra "thing" that is not necessary. Am I alone in thinking this way?
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Most definitely.....classic example of overthinking, anal retentive.....ymmv....Relax....smoke a cigar, lol....and it blows me away that you have been signed up since 2010......and have three posts.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
cire said:
I just think the thumb notches on this knife are just that extra "thing" that is not necessary. Am I alone in thinking this way?
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cire,

Your diagram is well done. It certainly makes me appreciate the time and work that went into this knife. I understand what you are saying with regards to the thumb notches, but they are subtle and while they might not be "necessary", they do serve a purpose, so, IMO, that makes them acceptable. Besides, it was Rod's intention to add them and that is good enouogh for me. Enjoy your knife. It's a beauty! :thumbup:
 
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