Warren Osborne

I will miss Warren greatly, spent many an evening at knife shows bs'ing with the Texas Mafia (Warren Osborne, Joe Kious & Tom Overeynder) and proud to call them friends. A great artisan and gentleman, R.I.P.
 
Kohai999 said:
CRAP!!!!

Warren was greatness.....and as Joss said, he was that good. He is in my permanent collection ,and I carry one of his knives, engraved by Bruce Christensen.

My wife has a two blade Duster he did in Gold lip pearl with Julie Warenski engraving.

Tell you all a little story.

First SHOT show I ever went to was maybe 1998. Warren had just come out with a version of a knife through Benchmade that I thought was......weak.

Les DeAsis introduced me to Warren and in my delicate and chipper way, proceeded to let Warren know what I thought of the knife design(It has to be said here that I was in awe of his designs and knives by and large at the the time), and ask him if he wouldn't mind sharing whatever he was smoking with me. He says...."do you smoke cigarettes"?....I say yes. He says "Let's go outside and have a smoke".

I wasn't sure if he was gonna punch me or what, 'cause Warren was a sturdy, vaguely scary individual...no nonsense for sure, but he pointed to a skinny guy walking across the street after we smoked our first cigarette, walking with a short woman who had to weigh close to 300 lbs.

He said "My friend, you and I might vomit at the idea of bedding that young lady, and that man might feel like he got the best bedmate on the planet, and that is the reason that there are different knife designs and horseraces."

I'll never forget the look on his face....We will not see one like him again, ever.

Smoke and prayers sent to his friends and family.

Best Regards,

Steven Garsson
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Great story Steven, thank you very much for sharing it.

Unfortunately I never met Warren, nor have I owned one of his custom knives. However, the very first knife I ever bought was one of his BM collabs. I ended up with several and always loved seeing that boomerang stamp.

Smoke sent, RIP Warren.
 
There are a lot of people who considered Warren a friend and who will miss him. I'm one of them. Rest in Peace, Mate. I know that Joe is happen to see him...
 
I never met Mr. Osborne, but I know that his work and teachings were prominent, prolific and very highly respected. His dedication to craftsmanship and his positive influence will continue to be appreciated by many, many knifemakers, collectors, and users of quality knives for a long time.

Rest in Peace, Warren Osborne, and thank you for making the world a better place.

We stand on the shoulders of giants.
 
I am sorry to hear of his passing. I did not know him personally, but in a way, through his work and designs, I felt a real connection to the man and his talent. My condolences to his family.
 
Thanks for the good stories. Very poignant and mindful. :)

Almost two years ago, I travelled to Solvang for the first time to work and visit the Solvang Knife Show. The recommended hotel was this 'charming' little bed and breakfast retreat with little pink cottages and old lady interiors. :barf:

However I wished it was better and wished I'd stayed somewhere else, I NOW know that there is a silver lining in many unexpected happenings....

Joe Kious, AND Warren Osborne were staying there, and late Friday afternoon before the next day of the show we all found ourselves out on a small veranda with picnic tables, enjoying a smoke and adult beverages.

We chatted and told stories for over an hour with a small group of collectors. :thumbup: Each of these guys were captivating and compelling in their honesty and likabilities.

I had the pleasure of doing work for both of them during that show. I'm sure I saw them both a couple of times later at other shows. We did a little bonding at that relaxing veranda....

Now, suddenly, they both are gone but not forgotten.

I won't stay at that little B&B again. However, I'm glad I did. There was unforeseen magic happening. :)

Coop
 
What a bummer, Warren was a true believer in quality. When I joined the guild he was clearly the guy that had the final say.

I was always in awe of his work which I never really caught a glimpse of as he was always sold out in minutes.

Rip
Bigjohn
 
I never met Warren personally. The last year emails communication started last Apr. he said he is not taking orders now as he had broken arm. In May, he said his arm is doing well and gave me some suggestions on ordering his knives. But in mid of June, he said he will probably not able to be back taking orders for another six to eight months.
It is really sad to hear this news.
Rest in Peace, Warren.
 
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