THE LAST LARGE "P" Sebenza? or JUST A MISTAKE?

mikepapa1

mikepapa1

Joined
Jun 8, 2013
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So, I acquired this knife several months ago right after I became a member here on the forum. It is my other favorite CRK. As a long time collector of Military Firearms I understand a few things about collecting production weapons.. and that there is no set in stone rules. As an example I have seen M1 Carbine Collectors change the flip sight on a Carbine because it was not "correctly" marked. Not realizing that they have just destroyed a piece of history. (During production the many manufactures of the Carbine would run short of parts and acquire parts from other manufactures) another proven rule in collecting production weapons and I think this may apply to knives no matter who the manufacture is the "First in last out Rule" Which of course means that when assembling a product be it a firearm or a knife in this case a Chris Reeve knife.. especially when in the process of making a major change (Going from the "Original" to the New Design "Regular") any extra parts in the shop would be utilized. I of course can not prove any of this when it comes to this particular knife. And it is a theory. But a theory in this case that deserves exploring. As you will see if you take the time to view the pictures I have provided this knife appears to be an Original Sebenza manufactured in September of 1996 with the original box and paperwork but it has the "P" designation.. The Last Large "P" Sebenza? or Just a mistake? I welcome, no I encourage any and all comments from those who have vastly more experience than I do. Thanks again for taking the time to view another of my very long and boring threads!!:)
And as always, all the best!!
Dave
P.S. GO NINERS!!:D

http://www.flickr.com/photos/105937865@N07/sets/72157639899685986/
 
Lol... No not another boring thread. I enjoy reading all your threads. I have nothing to add or help. I'm just here to read....
 
Thanks tactical45!! I appreciate you taking the time to peruse my thread!! :thumbup: And especially for your comment!!
All the best, Dave
tactical45 said:
Lol... No not another boring thread. I enjoy reading all your threads. I have nothing to add or help. I'm just here to read....
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I appreciate the comment double gun!! But I have owned close to 60 CRK's of all variety's in the short time I have been collecting these fine knives.. And I can tell you that although some have been sold off to make room for other's I have never been ashamed to have owned any of them.. Yes, some are nicer, or rarer and they are all different.. they are all fine tools to be admired and if you have the balls (sorry) like some of our other friends here used. But never something to be ashamed of.. IMHO. Enjoy your "P" Sebenza and remember that it is a fine tool manufactured by one of the best knife makers in the industry. :thumbup:
All the best, Dave

double gun said:
I too recently got a "p" and after seeing yours, I am ashamed of mine.... Nice find!
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Zaan Man, I'm no expert but I can tell you that is a counterfeit. Now just so you don't come up on the short end of the stick I'll give you 50 bucks and pay the shipping to my door for it. That way you'll have some cash to invest in a new Zaan. What do you think... deal? :p

Sorry, couldn't resist brother... That truly is an interesting specimen. I only wish I knew half of what you folks know about these fine knives.
 
Thanks Steve!! I too wish I knew more about this thing of ours! But one thing is for sure this is the place to go if you're looking for information! !
All the best,

Cowboy1629 said:
Zaan Man, I'm no expert but I can tell you that is a counterfeit. Now just so you don't come up on the short end of the stick I'll give you 50 bucks and pay the shipping to my door for it. That way you'll have some cash to invest in a new Zaan. What do you think... deal? :p

Sorry, couldn't resist brother... That truly is an interesting specimen. I only wish I knew half of what you folks know about these fine knives.
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Buddy, you are probably close to the mark with your hypothesis. CRK had a pretty random parts storage system in those days, which mainly consisted of various bins and 5-gallon buckets. It's very possible that this P-marked front slab was at the bottom of a bin and wasn't utilized until the end of the run just before the design change. Given CRK's record keeping at the time, I don't know that absolute proof will ever be possible, but it's a great theory!
 
Thanks for chiming in Steve!! Yea unless I drive up to the mother ship and show the complete package to Chris and Ann I probably will never be able to verify my theory. But from the looks of the knife and the complete package it appears to be the real deal. Again, thank you for chiming in!! I really appreciate the input from one of our more experienced CRK enthusiasts!!
All the best, Dave

DallasSTB said:
Buddy, you are probably close to the mark with your hypothesis. CRK had a pretty random parts storage system in those days, which mainly consisted of various bins and 5-gallon buckets. It's very possible that this P-marked front slab was at the bottom of a bin and wasn't utilized until the end of the run just before the design change. Given CRK's record keeping at the time, I don't know that absolute proof will ever be possible, but it's a great theory!
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lol lol !! Thanks Andrew!! I have seen worse, but your right. Of course all that counts is the signature at the bottom!!:)
All the best, Dave

TheAndrew said:
The writing on the birthday card is pretty horrible. Nice knife though.
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Dave, dumb question but, have you ever got in touch with CRK? They should know for sure
 
I don't think thats a dumb question at all Alex!! But no I have not. I am planning on taking the knife with me the next time I visit my brother in Nampa Idaho about twenty miles from Chris Reeve Knives. But that won't be until next summer.:grumpy: God willing and the river don't rise.:)

Falco57 said:
Dave, dumb question but, have you ever got in touch with CRK? They should know for sure
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I'm with Dallas on this one. During the "change" I'm sure CRK cleaned up and inventoried their entire shop and instead or wasting any old products decided to do what they do best and make knives with them. Yours is a very rare example of one that slide through the cracks and it very well could be one of the last Large Ps in existence and until you are shown one that has a more recent date I'd stand behind your theory. We must also remember that only a very small percentage of CRK knives actually end up on the forums and at this time (1996) most of the boxes and birthcards were simply discarded as trash so with that said it would be very hard to ever prove if this is the "last" Large Original P but it is most certainly one of the last to ever be produced. ;)
 
Thanks for the comments Ryan! It's definitely a very interesting knife. And a good example of a late production Large "Original" Sebenza, the added mystery of the "P" designation makes it even that more interesting and maybe Unique!
All the best, Dave

Brendtech189 said:
I'm with Dallas on this one. During the "change" I'm sure CRK cleaned up and inventoried their entire shop and instead or wasting any old products decided to do what they do best and make knives with them. Yours is a very rare example of one that slide through the cracks and it very well could be one of the last Large Ps in existence and until you are shown one that has a more recent date I'd stand behind your theory. We must also remember that only a very small percentage of CRK knives actually end up on the forums and at this time (1996) most of the boxes and birthcards were simply discarded as trash so with that said it would be very hard to ever prove if this is the "last" Large Original P but it is most certainly one of the last to ever be produced. ;)
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This knife has a new home.

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HA! That's pretty awesome that you were able to track down a 3 year old thread about your new knife. I've gotten a couple knives second and third hand and wondered about the history and whether I might know somebody that previously owned it. Tracking that down would be near impossible with most knives, but the sloppiness on the card definitely makes this one identifiable. Couldn't beat that with a stick. Good on you.
 
Cory Hess said:
HA! That's pretty awesome that you were able to track down a 3 year old thread about your new knife. I've gotten a couple knives second and third hand and wondered about the history and whether I might know somebody that previously owned it. Tracking that down would be near impossible with most knives, but the sloppiness on the card definitely makes this one identifiable. Couldn't beat that with a stick. Good on you.
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I really like it when I stumble up on an old pic of something I have. One of mine has been through at least 6 owners here, quite the little hussy!
 
I miss Dave on this forum. His threads were usually long, but fun to read. I talked to him on the phone a couple three years ago.

He told me he wasn't collecting CRK's any more and was into custom knives.
 
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