Some of mine!

[Sharpnshinyknives]

I agree w/ Willy, that is one very good looking dagger. Nice sleek design to it.

[Madmarco]

Thanks Willy and Mark! I figured you'd like this one Mark, cuz it's so sleek looking! And Willy, I can just imagine a Knight from olden days slipping this between the layers of armor to penetrate the victim's heart, after knocking him off his horse with a jousting pole! Ahh, the good old days!

[Quick Steel]

Madmarco, The knife is certainly a fine and impressive piece. A superb collectible. As to the "good old days," you are welcome to them. The fighting was just too up close, personal, and oh so bloody. Definitely not for me.

[Madmarco]

Thanks Q.S.!

[Madmarco]

Morning guys! This knife today is the last of my Gil Hibben models, and is 1 of my favorite bowie knives. It's called a "Highlander" bowie, and that title may be a reference to the movie "Highlander", or, to something Scottish, although those are strictly assumptions and might not have anything to do with either. The knife is 13 3/4" from tip to pommel/SS clip-point blade with a swedge on the top section, solid SS bolsters and pommel, and wire-wrapped handle. It has the usual G/H markings and logo, as well as the model number "GH627" etched on both tangs. I don't have a scale big enough to get an accurate weight, but my best guesstimate would be around a pound and a half. This thing is a beast! It arrived shaving-sharp with a satin-finished blade, and mirror-polished bolsters and pommel. Although this bowie would tackle anything one could throw at it, it's far too nice a piece to use and abuse, so mine proudly hangs on my wall waiting to be admired! One beautiful bowie knife!

[WillyCamaro]

Wow MMarco! No wonder why it's your favorite... It's just, .

[Madmarco]

Thanks Willy, it's a beauty isn't it! My name is Mark, if that makes it any easier for you!

[Madmarco]

I thought I'd show you this item today guys, cuz it's kind of a novelty piece, but still pretty cool! It's an Arabian Scimitar that was purchased on Amazon, is completely unmarked,(see edit below)and measures 25" from tip-to-pommel/SS 4mm clip-point? blade with blood grooves on both sides and some kind of cheesy design painted on it. The perfectly round hilt-guard is SS, and the handle is also SS/black pakkawood inserts. Weighs in at 2 grams shy of a kilo(998 g.). It came razor-sharp, and I can certainly see why this thing would have been used to chop-off the hands of thieves in olden times! It came with a shoulder sheath, but I bought an aftermarket stand for it, and it looks very menacing in it propped up against the wall. Gets plenty of ooohs and awwws when my friends see it!

[Quick Steel]

Lots of drama in that big scimitar Mark. Do you have any more information on it? Who made it; where was it made; steel; handle (ebony?);age?
Even if little info is available, it still makes for an attention getter.

[Madmarco]

Nope, just what I stated Q.S., can't remember anything else since I got it so long ago. An Amazon search might produce more info, if they still sell them. EDIT: You actually peaked my curiosity with your questions Q.S., so I went back to Amazon and found some info. It was made in China(big surprise!), made by "Fantasy Master"(never heard of them), and sold by "Sharp Knives". When reading one review, the reviewer stated that he wished it didn't have "China" on the blade, so I went over mine again, and sure enough, in very faint letters on the rear tang is "China"!

[Quick Steel]

Thanks for the additional info Mark.

[Madmarco]

YW!

[WillyCamaro]

That's just plain ole' cool Mark .

[Madmarco]

Thanks Willy! It seemed kindda quiet around here today, and then I remembered it's the 4th of July, so I guess everyone's celebrating the holiday with family and friends. I was curious as to where your hometown is, so I Google mapped it, and we're but a few hundred miles apart! Cool!

[Madmarco]

Good morning fellas, hope all you US'ers enjoyed your holiday and stayed safe! My offering today is another very nice quality bowie knife! This is the Browning "Battle Bowie", and is 13" from tip-to-pommel/5CR SS full-tang hollow ground drop-point blade/top-swedge, SS bolsters and pommel, SS screws, and G-10 scales. It was available with carbon fiber scales at a higher price, but I much prefer G-10 for durability and visual aspects. Has "BLACK LABEL" and "TACTICAL BLADES" as well as their logo etched on the front blade, and "BATTLE BOWIE" etched on the front tang. On the back blade it has "MODEL 16DBL" etched, and the dreaded "CHINA" etched on the back tang. Weighs-in at 658 g. or, 1 lb. 7 oz.'s. It came with a quality Blade-Tech Tech-Lock molded-polymer sheath. This sheath is so well thought-out that it comes with detailed instructions on how it works. Chinese or not, this is one sweet bowie knife! The finger grips fit my hand exactly like a glove, and it's very comfortable when I'm holding it. Out-of-the-box it was razor-sharp, although, since my days of spending time in the bush are long gone, this one sits in it's display. A great knife from Browning!

[Sharpnshinyknives]

Many of the Chinese made Browning knives are pretty good quality, some are pretty poor, I have one that was a freebie and it’s a POS. That looks to be one of the better ones. Very nice blade design on that and the handle is pretty nice too.

[Madmarco]

Thanks Mark, I like it!

[Madmarco]

Today I have this pretty cool dagger to show you! I got this one on ebay, and was from 1 of very few auctions that I participate in. It came from a seller in the U.K., and arrived exactly as described, although, his description really didn't provide much information, so I'll describe it as well as possible. It's exactly 14" from tip-to-pommel/a full-tang file-worked 1095 high-carbon duel-edged dagger blade, SS bolsters and pommel, mosaic pins, and walnut burl scales/yellow pin-strip accents. There's "C.F.K. CUTLERY COMPANY/1095 HIGH CARBON/HANDMADEKNIVES" etched on the blade just above the tang, and is otherwise unmarked. Both edges came razor-sharp, and it weighs-in at about 9 oz.'s. When I first saw this dagger I thought it looked pretty cool, and when I received it that thought was confirmed. This knife is very comfortable to hold, and has perfectly placed finger-choils on the tang. A nice addition to my collection!

[Quick Steel]

Marco, unless I missed some newer development in steels (entirely possible) 1095 steel is not stainless. It needs extra care to prevent rusting.

I make this comment because I assume the SS refers to stainless steel.

[Madmarco]

Yes Q.S., I use SS to denote stainless steel, and I'm sure you haven't missed anything, as I am not up at all on the different kinds of steel, and simply assume that if it doesn't have the appearance of Damascus that it's stainless, since the only steels I'm aware of are stainless and Damascus. I realize that there are many grades of steel, but thought they all referred to stainless, if it wasn't Damascus. Thanks for the correction and I'll edit the post!

[Quick Steel]

I know knife steels can be a bit confusing. There was a time before I was born when carbon steel was used on most pocket knives. When stainless steel was produced there was a lot of resistance to it. The common thought was that carbon steels could be sharper and retain their sharpness longer than a stainless blade. Today stainless steels have won out, much more common on pocket knives.

What is the difference between stainless, which will still have some carbon in it, and a high carbon steel, non-stainless steel.

The most basic blade steel is a blend of iron and carbon. It will easily rust and stain so it needs extra cleaning and oiling.
Things begin to change when other elements are added into the steel for the purpose of achieving different attributes. Steel becomes "stainless" when at least 10.5% chromium is added. I have seen other percentages given such as 12% or 14%. Stainless would be more accurately called rust or stain resistant because over time and with neglect they too can develop rust. Just not as easily as high carbon.

There is a significant population of traditional knife users who still prefer carbon blades. There are also custom knife makers who favor high carbon over working with stainless.

Today, there are many different kinds of steel that have been developed for sharpness and endurance. Some of these are priced at a stiff premium.

Marc, I suggest when you have time you visit the AG Russell web site. There you will find a comprehensive article giving an overview of the steel scene.

[Quick Steel]

Marco, just to add a bit more confusion to the topic. There are stainless steels that are identified as high carbon stainless. This is legitimate because manufacturers have learned how to add more carbon while pumping up the chrome. So there are now certainly stainless blades that can be incredibly sharp.

[Sharpnshinyknives]

I like the file work on that one. I’m usually not a fan of firework on backsprings, but on a fixed blade it looks great and makes more sense to me. And Garry is correct about the steel. 1095 should be a lot easier to sharpen than stainless steel. 1095 and D-2 are really popular right now, I think that GEC has made it popular again. People, like me, find that they are better at sharpening when it’s a carbon steel blade. It can take a lot of work to get stainless to sharpen correctly. So if you were using that one it would be the one you would find a joy to resharpen.

[Madmarco]

Thanks for the info Garry! So if I know that 440B steel is, 0.75%-carbon + 13.7%-chromium, then it would stand to reason that 0.95%-carbon + 18.0%-chromium is a better steel, right? I'll mosey over to A.G.R. and read about it, thx again!

[Madmarco]

Thanks Mark, I've never been a fan of file-work either, but on the fixed blades it does add to the character of the knife. And thx as well for the sharpening info, since I don't actually use any of my knives I've never been concerned about what steel they are, or how sharp they are, or for how long they stay sharp, but for someone who does use their knives I can see those factors being very important. Good to know though so I can accurately describe the blades.