My 1st Randall

Defiantly clip point carbon steel. The reason im ordering direct from them is i want to get it engraved. I dont mind the wait, this way it is exactly what I want. Iv never been a bowie knife guy, iv always been more of a fighting knife type but when i saw the modal 12 in person i had made my decision. My moms boyfriend has a modal#16 and a #12 clip point but he uses his 16 so its not mint, I could tell right off the bat he wasnt a knife guy because the brass is dull and green in some spots and he keeps them in the sheath. He knows what they are but hes an old militery guy and his way of thinking is why have em if your not gonna use em. As i look at them from a collectors point of view.
 
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Time was I trusted Randall to use great stag on their knives. Since the Indian ban on Sambar stag, that is no longer true.

If you want an heirloom quality Randall with stag grips, find a great piece of Sambar stag and send it to Randall with your order. It will cost you $20.00 extra. That is cheap insurance against receiving your family treasure with disappointing bland stag.
 
Raymond1000 said:
Time was I trusted Randall to use great stag on their knives. Since the Indian ban on Sambar stag, that is no longer true.

If you want an heirloom quality Randall with stag grips, find a great piece of Sambar stag and send it to Randall with your order. It will cost you $20.00 extra. That is cheap insurance against receiving your family treasure with disappointing bland stag.
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Absolutely not true. I buy or sell a Randall knife almost every day of the year, including 36 so far this month. About half of those have Shop supplied stag handles (that are just fine); on the smaller knives, those with blades of four inches or less, the stag is matched in proportial size and is usually less textured. As to Customer supplied Sambar Stag; yes, it may be nicer in appearance, but you're paying for the material, paying to ship it to RMK where in will be installed, with no warranty btw, for an additional $50 (not $20). For a presentation piece, this ~$100 upgrade might be worthwhile. For a user, IMO, not so much...
 
Great crown stag is just hard to find, that doesn't make it a shop problem exactly.

EDIT:

Shel, I am one of those weird guys that is just as picky about a user as he is about an heirloom piece. They all have to have the right balance, appeal, and character that I seek out in pretty much all my blades.
 
ron_m80 said:
Shel, I am one of those weird guys that is just as picky about a user as he is about an heirloom piece. They all have to have the right balance, appeal, and character that I seek out in pretty much all my blades.
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Ron, I'll let you in on a little secret - I have some very nice Randall knives stashed away, some never photographed or shown, that meet the standard outlined above. Whodda thunk it, I actually keep a few for myself... ;)
 
Melvin-Purvis said:
Absolutely not true. I buy or sell a Randall knife almost every day of the year, including 36 so far this month. About half of those have Shop supplied stag handles (that are just fine); on the smaller knives, those with blades of four inches or less, the stag is matched in proportial size and is usually less textured. As to Customer supplied Sambar Stag; yes, it may be nicer in appearance, but you're paying for the material, paying to ship it to RMK where in will be installed, with no warranty btw, for an additional $50 (not $20). For a presentation piece, this ~$100 upgrade might be worthwhile. For a user, IMO, not so much...
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Melvin,

I started buying Randall knives in the seventies. Almost all of them had stag grips. It was uniformly great stag. I loved every one. I knew Randall would always put great stag on their knives.

Then India imposed the Great Sambar Stag Interregnum.

Of the last four knives I bought, one had acceptable stag. Not great, but acceptable.

One had marginal stag, in the category, “Sigh. It’s okay for a user. I guess.”

One I unwrapped and thought, “It’s a great knife and I hate it. This stag makes what should be a fine blade into an ugly knife. I’d be embarrassed to use Randall that looks like this.” I never have used it.

The last one I bought because I had a standing order. I asked Garry Randall if I could pay extra to have him pick me some good stag. He said no. I asked if they could redo a handle with better stag? He said no. Garry said my best option was to supply my own stag. I wasn’t happy to pay extra to buy the stag, and ship it to Orlando. I wasn’t happy to pay extra to Randall to use the stag I supplied. I wasn’t happy that the handle wasn’t covered by warranty. On the other hand, I wasn’t willing to buy another Randall that I hated. So I paid extra to end up with a Randall that has great stag. That’s a knife I love and use.

Eric is talking about buying a presentation piece. Given my experience, I thought the warning worthwhile.

His other option is to buy from a dealer who has enough leverage that he can insure great stag. That’s even more expensive than Eric buying his own stag. But at least he gets what he is after.

Or he can chose a different grip material.
 
Raymond, thanks for taking the time to share your experiences; they are obviously different than mine. :thumbup:
 
Melvin-Purvis said:
Raymond, thanks for taking the time to share your experiences; they are obviously different than mine. :thumbup:
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To be fair the knife I got before that group—still post Interregnum—has stag as nice as any Randall I’ve owned.

But it’s not something I want to gamble on.
 
Raymond,

Here are some of the RMK's I picked up last weekend at the OKCA show - it's raining and overcast here, so I took photos with and without flash; neither is great. All are brand new RMK's except the two shown at the upper left; those two are from the early to mid 1960's. I'm only posting this because I hear on an almost weekly basis that the Randall Shop is putting out sub par stag handles; but I buy a ton of these things, have owned hundreds over the last dozen years, and have never found that to be the case.

And just so's ya don't think I'm pushing an agenda, I've included a group photo taken a few minutes ago. Another box is still in transit. And yes, I do have nicer examples of both old and new in the safe, including some with Customer Supplied handle material, but as to your specific comment above, again, I think the shop supplied stag is fine. We are in agreement, however, that it's best to supply your own material if uncertainty is a concern, or if the buyer wants a specific look.

Stag Handles 1.jpgStag Handles 2.jpgOKCA12 Booty 2.jpg

Now, to get them put away until the weather clears... :thumbup:

Again, thanks for your input.
 
Melvin,
which model is the knife in the photo on the right, in the middle row on the left?
 
DB, it's a #5-7, stainless, brass, standard spacers, nice textured stag. I bought a box of new, original sheaths from a guy and a friend parcel up all the knives and ship 'em home - I think that one should be paired with a standard brown sheath, not the black sheath shown.
 
My first Randall, 1-7, apparently from the 90's, probably incorrect/switched sheath? Some brown leather dye applied to the stag.

img20120425183807.jpg

img20120425183822.jpg

img20120425183649.jpg
 
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