What is your grail knife?

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DustyGmt

DustyGmt

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Just thought I'd share some photo's of my new Chris Reeve Sebenza. I have lusted after one of these for a very long time and its finally come. I know there are many gun guys on this forum (obvious), but I wonder sometimes how many here also have the same love and admiration for edged weaponry...

I have a decent collection of knives and guns, as far as my grail knife goes up to this point it was a toss up between a Rick Hinderer XM 18 3" and a Matt Cook modded Alpha Beast, but right now my CRK Sebenza sits atop the pyramid. It's just a beautiful piece of craftsmanship and probably the highest quality knife I will ever own. S35VN Polished Blade. Canvas Micarta Inlays, Bead Blasted Ti handle slabs w/ Ti pocket clip.

I dont own any Customs but I still consider these knives to be top tier, "Grail Knives". What "Grail" Knives are on your list to get or do you own. They dont have to be super fancy. Let's keep Baer Gryls out of it if we can help it....;)

IMG_20200924_222358.jpg IMG_20200924_222811.jpg IMG_20200924_222906.jpg IMG_20200924_222713.jpg
 
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The Sebenza is a truly wonderful knife, but when opened, the blade tended to not be “naturally” centered, In my right hand, which was simply a personal fit issue. Plus, it seemed to be a bad-luck knife; I kept cutting my thumb while opening the blade right-handed. It works well for a nephew, so I let him keep it. I may order myself a lefty Sebenza, from a favored dealer, because I actually am naturally left-handed*, but it is just a to-do-someday thing, not a grail quest.

I scratched my hand-made Bowie itch, already, with some decent representative samples, in the 2018-2019 time frame, after I retired. That is one quest that no longer occupies my mind, I may well acquire another, if an opportunity presents itself, but it is no longer a quest.

I reckon my current “grail“ knife may be a yet-to-be-determined dagger. With daggers no longer being prohibited for carry, in Texas, I have acquired RMJ Tactical Raider knives, and Spartan Blades Les George V-14 knives, which are high-end production daggers. The former is just under 5.5”, so legal everywhere, in Texas, and the latter is subject to a few specified location prohibitions.

So, I will probably get the itch for a just-right-for-me, dressier dagger, or dagger-like blade, eventually. Some of the historic blades, that were extant as the Bowies were becoming popular, may influence the decision process.

*I use small tools, for detailed-oriented tasks, better in my left hand, and most larger tools, for most heavier tasks, involving the whole arm and shoulder, right-handed. When I bought my Sebenza, it may well have been before left-hand-specific Sebenzas were generally available.
 
Pie in the sky.

Original Fairbairn-Sykes V-42 pattern.

I think the closest I will ever get to it though would be for me to make one myself.

I know Case produced some replicas a bit back. That could be an option. Not really a knife guy though so it is low on my list of items but as far as knives fo, it is my grail knife.
 
Edit: Got my knife makes confused. I'll remember who I ment and repost.
 
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I've been wanting a Matt Cook Fat Lady for a long time, I talked with him on the phone at length about the work he was doing on my alpha and got into his head a little bit about his process and he offered to sell me one, it was a good price too. One of his original 12 people that have his entire series of fat ladys backed out and he offered me his spot. It was just too rich for my blood at the time...

Getting my hands on a BRS Mid Tech of ANY kind would be an accomplishment.

Also a Benchmade 42 Springer, I had a 43 but stupidly traded it off.

I had the opportunity a while back to purchase a Benchmade 43-01 with the "Singing Handles" (think Tibetan Singing Bowls) from the brother of Serj Tankian, the former frontman of System of a Down. I wished I'd bought it, would have made a great conversation piece, lol.

My grail Knife aside from balisongs for the longest time was the Sebenza w/ Black Micarta but now I have it so I can scratch that off the list... The knife is just beautiful, I cant wait to get through the honeymoon phase and actually start using it. I always baby them until one day I just dont care any more and decide it's a tool that should be used.... I obviously still want to care for it because of its value but it needs to be used, it definitely wont go into my work knife rotation, I have my ZT 0566 and 0550 for that. Unfortunately discontinued now so if any of you guys ever see one grab it, it's a heck of a user knife. My 0566 is the Elmax version so sort of a rarity....
 
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Don't laugh but a Swing guard lever lock switchblade by Eichorn or another big German manufacturer from the late 60's or early 70's with stag horn grips.

And also the "postwar" German paratrooper's gravity knife, flat and carriable and locked better than the WWII or current knives.

And yes trying to relive some "miss spent youth" in ****** Land... hey GI barracks only had showers!

(****** means shower in german)

(hey that other word for rinse get auto asterixed on THR!)
-kBob
 
My CRK Inkosi was my grail. When I went back to finish my degree after 17 years, my mentor told me to reward myself with something when I graduated. It didn't have to be big, but it had to be something I wouldn't normally purchase.

I had always wanted a CRK but never pulled the trigger. I thought about a Sebenza, but im a contractor and the Inkosi spoke more to me.

I carry the plain Jane Inkosi everyday to remind me of what I was able to accomplish.
 
I've got a couple of my grail knives, always been a fan of EK knives and have multiple knives of theirs.

Here's a few.
20190315_173153.jpg

Another was the copy of a SEAL knife from Vietnam that SOG did. The SOG scuba demo was the result.

20190315_175615.jpg

There are others, just takes time and money to get them. Also like the original cold steel knives. When they were made in Japan, the quality was definitely better.

There's others from BK&T, Timberline and Pacific Cutlery that I've picked up. This was when the companies were young and had people designing great knives for them.
 
Mk-211 said:
There's others from BK&T, Timberline and Pacific Cutlery that I've picked up. This was when the companies were young and had people designing great knives for them.
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Yes, like the late Jody Samson, the master and the man behind the Weehawk blade. It's a shame benchmade has gone in such a wayward direction, they used to make excellent knives, specifically balisongs. The 51 and 51 morpho is about the only thing left that benchmade has that is of any interest to me and if they havent already, I've heard rumblings about discontinuing the 51. The 87 was a flop, they could have made alot of people very, very happy with an updated 4x series reboot. Oh well...
 
DustyGmt,
I agree about Benchmade, they haven't made very good choices lately and I'll leave it at that!

I would like to see some of the old PC knives redone/updated. Don't know if they'll ever do it but it would be great to see it happen.
 
Fiv3r said:
My CRK Inkosi was my grail. When I went back to finish my degree after 17 years, my mentor told me to reward myself with something when I graduated. It didn't have to be big, but it had to be something I wouldn't normally purchase.

I had always wanted a CRK but never pulled the trigger. I thought about a Sebenza, but im a contractor and the Inkosi spoke more to me.

I carry the plain Jane Inkosi everyday to remind me of what I was able to accomplish.
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Excellent post!

In 6 short months God willing I will have completed 4 years of trade school and when I get my electrical license in hand I will probably mark the accomplishment with a knife or possibly a gun, sort of in the same spirit as your post. Problem is I just dont need any more of either....
 
DustyGmt said:
Excellent post!

In 6 short months God willing I will have completed 4 years of trade school and when I get my electrical license in hand I will probably mark the accomplishment with a knife or possibly a gun, sort of in the same spirit as your post. Problem is I just dont need any more of either....
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Oh I am a knife knut through and through. I was at "enough" during the Clinton administration:rofl:

But what I wanted was something "nice" but fully functional. Most folks don't think of the CRK line as work knives, but Mr Reeve designed the Sebenza (and pretty much all the locking folders there after) to be bombproof hard users, and they are. Despite the $400+ price tag, it not uncommon for them to be used every day and be as tight today as they were 20 years ago. The tolerances are just so tight that generating slop and blade play is not common.

Congrats on your near accomplishment!
 
Fiv3r said:
Oh I am a knife knut through and through. I was at "enough" during the Clinton administration:rofl:

But what I wanted was something "nice" but fully functional. Most folks don't think of the CRK line as work knives, but Mr Reeve designed the Sebenza (and pretty much all the locking folders there after) to be bombproof hard users, and they are. Despite the $400+ price tag, it not uncommon for them to be used every day and be as tight today as they were 20 years ago. The tolerances are just so tight that generating slop and blade play is not common.

Congrats on your near accomplishment!
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Funny you should bring that up, "Sebenza" is the Zulu (maybe, dont quote me on region) African word for "work".

Reeve himself is a white south African american.... But yes, the CRK's are meant to be hard daily users even though I'm sure alot of them are relegated to "safe queen" status. I love the other CRK models and would be happy to own any but the sebenza 21 has always been a stand out being the flagship model and all, I much prefer it with the dual inlay pattern over the newer Sebenza 23, the one piece inlay just doesnt look right to me.
 
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Production ones:
Benchmade AFCK
Benchmade Balisong from the 80's with the Weehawk type blade.
Ken Onion's semi-production Ripple.

There are so many appealing customs that choosing a handful is overwhelming. I'm happy these days to wander the knife shows to look or photograph them.
 
RA40 said:
Production ones:
Benchmade AFCK
Benchmade Balisong from the 80's with the Weehawk type blade.
Ken Onion's semi-production Ripple.

There are so many appealing customs that choosing a handful is overwhelming. I'm happy these days to wander the knife shows to look or photograph them.
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The benchmade 4x series knives you could get in the late 90's and early to mid 2000's for $80-$100 each are going for stupid money these past few years. $750 is not unheard of for a 42 Springer w/ box...
 
DustyGmt said:
The benchmade 4x series knives you could get in the late 90's and early to mid 2000's for $80-$100 each are going for stupid money these past few years. $750 is not unheard of for a 42 Springer w/ box...
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Agreed, it's crazy. Back in the day spending $90 I was reluctant even though I was already a custom knife collector. To me $90 I could buy a handmade $350 liner lock in those times. That missed opportunity stuck and I went looking last year for those...yeah high prices that were more than a custom knife, that's an even harder swallow. LOL.
 
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