Who's your Daddy GAW (Part 2) *Winners announced*

[glennbad]

A few years back, after my father's death, I posted a giveaway. It was very simple, tell me about your dad. It was so wonderful, and helped me to get through that tough time. People shared their memories and pictures. I am remiss that I never did something similar with my father-in-law, who had passed before my dad went.

My father-in-law (Al) was as close to another dad as a person could have. He was a very upbeat person, always full of energy. He was not tall in stature, but he was larger than life. The hardest working man I ever met, he would people half his age to shame with his work ethic. He'd be the first one to show up when you had a project to do, and the last one to leave.

He served in the Army, I think he was a lineman. As a civilian, he worked as a machinist for WH Bagshaw Co., the oldest pin maker in America, for over 40 years.








In cleaning out his house, we found a wide array of interesting things. He had some pocket knives, but nothing flashy. As I had mentioned elsewhere, he didn't baby his tools, they were tools to him.





Here are the types of things his company made


Okay, so now to the giveaway. Gonna do this one a little different. This time, I have 4 pocketknives that need new covers. The 4 winners will have the chance to pick the covers for the knives, from my available cover choices. Keep in mind that these knives are not new, but are in good to very good condition.


Small Kutmaster 3-blade


Small Imperial jack with tipped bolsters (it will clean up much better than it looks now)


More on next post...

 

[glennbad]

Small Utica 2 blade jack with tipped bolsters


Interesting Schrade Walden Stainless with Keen Kutter blade etch



The rules are very simple, tell us about your dad, stepdad, father-in-law, uncle who was like a father. Pictures are always welcome.

Anyone is free to enter, even if you participated in the previous one, but only if you did not win.

Also, if small knives aren't for you, I'm sure I have something bigger that will suit you, so don't be shy about participating!

Good luck!

 

[Hickory n steel]

Sorry for your lost, he seems to have been a real great man.
I cant cant help but take you up on this generous offer.


Here's probably the best picture of my dad I have, because we're just not big on being photographed.
My dad joined the ARMY in 1978 where he had many MOS from driving a missile tank, to his time as an orthopedic technician before he got out in '86.
He then joined the reserves shortly after where he was an SGT and a cook before his unit shut down in '91.
He was initially supposed to drive a supply truck during dessert storm, but an eye injury kept him from going.
From him I learned basic marksmanship, how to fry chicken, and to always try to repair something before you go and replace it right away ( though I tend to go for the best repair possible while he just wants it to work )

 

[WhittlinAway]

Glenn, I remember the GAW for your father and it was touching. This one, too, is a wonderful tribute to another outstanding man who clearly touched you and had an impact on your life. Thank you for sharing a bit about him with us and for this very generous GAW.

I'd like to enter, please, if I may, with a bit about my maternal Grandfather. Grandpa passed away when I was in my mid-twenties. I'm 45 now and to this day he remains the finest man I've met and continues to be my role model for what it means to be a good person.

He grew up on a farm during the great depression, served in the Coast Guard and the Navy, and was an elder in his church. He helped develop RADAR systems after WW II, and, in his post-service civilian life worked as an electrical engineer for the same company for 35 years. During that time he never stopped learning or improving himself. He worked hard and was kind and compassionate towards everyone, regardless of gender, race, creed, or station in life. I don't recall him ever saying an ill word about anyone.

I don't know what pocket knives he carried, but I'm quite certain they would have been unassuming but hard-working knives like the ones you're offering in this GAW. Despite not knowing what he carried, I do have a few knives in my collection that make me think of him:

The Hess Whitetail on top was one of my first fixed-blade purchases and I selected it because I remember Grandpa having a small stacked leather fixed blade in a sheath in his toolbox and the Hess reminded me of it. I later picked up the Western Bird and Trout below for similar reasons and it must be closer to what he actually had. I also have a stacked leather Estwing Hatchet because that's what he had and when I went to buy my first hatchet it just felt right.

Grandpa didn't have a Puukko, but when I refinished the handle on the one shown, I inadvertently (subconsciously?) picked a stain that strongly reminds me of the knotty pine paneling that covered the walls of his family room. It reminds me of him when I look at it.

I wasn't thinking of him when I purchased the WW II era Camillus Engineer knife on the bottom, but I have since wondered whether he was issued something similar during his time in the Navy.

Thank you, Glenn, for this GAW and prompting me to sit down and write a bit about my grandfather. Good luck to everyone who enters. I look forward to hearing your stories.

 

[Campbellclanman]

Touching Thread Glenn, man was your Dad a cool Dad Corvette 'n all!!
I think its great that you have some of his older Knives and tools, I hope you got to rehandle them!
I dont have too much to add to this, but thank you Glenn and wish all good luck!

 

[B.F.U]

Very nice post and giveaway. Not an entry, good luck to all.

 

[abcdef]

Not an entry, but thanks for sharing.

 

[r redden]

Not an entry Glenn as I recently won a couple of great knives from you just wanted to say thanks for another round of your generosity.

 

[Icky Thump]

Not an entry

I'm in on your forum knife related GAW..Just wanted to say thanks for another generous give away..very cool..

Good luck to all!

 

[Bigfattyt]

My dad was raised farm boy. Although he went to college (received a Doctorate in Education). He is always still a farm boy at heart. It shows in his work ethic, and the way he raised us.

Here he is with my youngest, teaching him to fish

He taught me to fish, hunt, shoot, ride a bike, and a motorcycle. Taught me to drive a stick. How to sharpen a knife. How to work hard. He had his doctorate in Education, and was the Vice President of a community college, and the athletic director for over 30 years, but grew up on a farm. So he taught me how to swing an ax. Cut down massive trees, and make them into fire wood ( he worked as a logger in his younger years).

When I was a kid, he allowed me to spend my money on guns and knives!!!! He started us out with a Ruger 10-22, and a lever action 30-30. Our gun starter kits.
He let me start buying pistols at 12 years old with lawn mowing money. Let me buy a .30 carbine AMT pistol and .30 caliber M1 carbine before I was out of JR high, and would let me go spend the night at friends farms to go huntin and shooting. My best memories of childhood are times in spend in the mountains with him. Hiking, camping, riding motorcycles........sitting in a high mountain meadow watching the sun come up... while hunting Elk.....tooling around in his old 1973 FJ40 Landcruiser!!!


Thanks for the entry.

 

[rishma]

Glenn,
I was the first to respond to the thread after your dad passed. I lost my dad in 2013 and still think of him everyday.

Today I’ll post about my father in law. A couple months ago my in-laws moved in to my house due to financial difficulties. It’s an unspoken move-in, more like a visit without an end date. My father in law is very self conscious about it. He doesn’t want to be a burden.

I honestly enjoy him being here. I miss my dad and he is the next best thing. My kids only have one grandpa and I am glad they are getting time with him.

My father in law enjoys pocket knives as much as I do. I gavehave him an old pen knife when they arrived, and he has carried it every day since.

We have not always enjoyed each other, typical son in law-father in law issues, but I appreciate him more since i lost my dad. He loves my kids and my wife and I love him for that.

 

[chivaceae]

Thanks for the GAW and all for sharing about your dads.
I am very grateful for still having the joy of having our dad. While dementia has its challenges on him and us, the fact that we can still communicate and reminisce with him about his and our childhood/adolescence with him is certainly a blessing. Here he is contemplating the Rio Grande (lower Rio Grande Valley), that part of the world that we dearly call home.
Raul

 

[glennbad]

Great stuff so far, lets keep this going!

 

[Sacto]

I feel like I’ve entered too many of these lately, but how can I pass up a chance at a glennbad modded knife or a chance to talk about my dad? So, I’m in. Thanks for the opportunity.

My dad was born and raised on a farm in Iowa, but ultimately settled in California, where my parents raised me (and my brother and sister). It was from my dad that I got my dry sense of humor and my strong work ethic. He was always working, whether at his job or working on a project around the house, yet somehow he always had time to play catch or throw batting practice, and he was always at my games, track meets, etc. I also got my love of fishing and hunting from my Dad. He taught me to fish as a young child and fly fish when I was a little older. There were always plenty of fishing excursions and camping trips and pheasant hunting in the fall.

I suppose he passed on his love of knives to me also. He has lots of nice knives but always seems to carry a cheap beater around. One knife of his that sticks out in my mind is an old black marlin spike he used to always have when we would go sailing. Not sure who made it. I should ask him about it.

He’s now 75 years old and still working, not because he has to, but because he wants to. Although, just a couple weeks ago he was making noise about finally retiring. I’m fortunate to live 30 minutes from my parents so I can see my dad regularly. I like that now I can take him on some fishing excursions like he used to do for me. Sometimes it’s bass fishing in a pond at work. This summer we got to catch some small native trout on fly rods together on my company’s ranch up in Oregon.

Wow, that got a little long, but for good reason.

Bart

 

[JaxBaron]

Im in. Thank you for the chance. My dad has taught me most of what I know in regards to working with my hands. He is also the reason for my passion in pocket knives ( he always carries a small Buck stockman) and fishing. Hes now retired and spends most of his time in the garage, doing what he loves best piddling. Lol

 

[Fodderwing]

Thank you Glenn for this. You are always generous and discerning. It has been wonderful viewing the post on this special subject. Please count me in.
Dad had a blackbelt in monk. His bedroom contained a bed and a dresser. Half of the drawers were empty. Half his closet held his clothes, air occupied the remaining half. One picture on the wall (a framed magazine page). His arsenal, a 20 ga. side by side, a Ruger Bearcat and a WW2 army issue fixed blade. I know for a fact he had an affinity for pocketknives but he seldom carried one and only late in life accumulated a few (read one layer deep in a shoebox).
He was a minister, high school teacher, bush pilot, authored two books, and he and mom have been married 67 years.
I write in the past tense.
Sadly Alzheimer’s has ravaged his mind and body. It is a dark time for us. While he yet remains in the flesh, the spirit is all but departed.
I love you dad.

 

[JD Bear]

I just spent the weekend with my dad and my kids. I haven't been able to spend as much time with him as I would like due to my schedule and things going on in my own house. He's always been there for me even when I don't know if I deserved it. My dad has taught me to be a man in so many ways and I can't thank him enough. He taught me patience, pride and most of all how to be there for others and put their well being before my own. He has always made me want to be better everyday as a father and husband and I hope I will always continue to make him proud.

My wife lost her father to cancer last Thursday and my heart aches for her. So please, please, if you have a chance call your dad and tell them you love them or if possible give them a hug when you see them, do it. It's easy to take the little things in life for granted. The men who shaped us and helped us become men ourselves should be held in the highest regard and loved for not only who they are, but who we are.

 

[JTB_5]

Thank for this opportunity, Glenn, and even more for the chance to talk about fathers.

My own father and I have an odd relationship. He loves sports and grew up grooming me to love them as well. I played whatever ball sport was in season (excepting soccer), and Dad was always there to cart me around, cheer me on, and give me tons of criticism and advice. I know I've always been the apple of his eye. At the same time, my Dad isn't a great communicator and has a short fuse, so we bickered a lot and couldn't always work out a common perspective on things, though I am glad to say we have always forgiven one another. My Dad had lots of little projects going on--some of which I witnessed and other which I participated in--whether transplanting grass in our yard, to gardening, to building our own backyard tennis/basketball surface--my dad would get an idea and just run with it for awhile. He wasn't a hunter or a fisherman--he didn't own a gun and had only cheap knives--and he had some basic handyman skills, but he usually sought help from people like my uncle or other men he knew. I always respected that my dad has always been humble enough to ask for help when he needed it from others, and he has always been a very generous man--in his later working years, he would go buy a big beef loin and cut it up into steaks so he could grill them for his coworkers--and my Dad isn't the kind of guy who has the money to just do that sort of thing on a whim. But he gets a lot more joy from blessing others with his time and gifts than he does in acquiring stuff. In that respect I wish I were more like my Dad than I am!

My father-in-law is quite different from my Dad. He was an F15 pilot for many years and then worked in cyber intelligence until his retirement. He still works in the cyber intelligence industry and is probably one of the most coveted experts in the field, having been part of cyber intelligence in the Air Force when it first got going. He is an articulate, proven leader of men, and spends much of his free time teaching and disciplining men at his church as an elder there. He loves guns, and we go shooting whenever I'm in town. He isn't into knives, though. One way in which my father-in-law is like my Dad is in his generosity. He also gives freely of his time, money, and genuinely looks out for those in his circle. I know lots of folks talk about "The in-laws" in ways that generate fear or anger, but I've been very blessed to have a second father, and one who fills a lot of the aspects of fatherhood that my own father lacked (and which I lack too).

My own Dad's health has been poor since I was young, but he seems to be slowly deteriorating in the last year--he's had heart surgery and lost a lot of energy. My father-in-law, on the other hand, has really become more active in recent years; losing weight and exercising and staying active. I hope they both have many more years, and quality ones, too; not only for my sake, but for their grandkids, who really love them a lot.

I don't have any good pictures of either, unfortunately.

 

[brownshoe]

My father in law gave me the love of my life...my wife. He was as different from my dad as WI is to NYC. He was more of a friend to me than a father. He was the only "welcoming" member of my spouse's family and I appreciated that more than I could tell him. His presence made it a pleasure to visit my inlaws, and his absence makes it difficult... He was a great man in small ways, kicking his alcoholism w/o any aid not even as a Friend of Bill. One small vignette stays with me...His glasses were always dirty and at home his wife would take them off and clean them for him, and when he was at the local pub, the barmaid would take them off and clean them for him too

 

[Prester John]

My father was my hero. He grew up poor during the Depression, and only had a 6th grade education, but he worked hard all of his life. He worked for Corn Products, wearing a hardhat and steel-toed boots, for 30 years, and continued working after he retired. Although we were relatively poor, he provided well for us, and was a great example. He also taught me how to shoot a rifle and to fish. He carried a knife at all times--a small pen knife with two or three blades. He was diagnosed with terminal cancer in 1986, and died January 22, 1989. He was 58, I was 28, and in law school. It was the hardest death I've ever had to deal with. I miss him very much, and hope to see him again some day. Here are a couple of photos:

In the second one, he has his hand on my shoulder.