Tell Me About The Pheasant Tail Regular Sebenza...

[pnsxyr]

TLDR:
I would like to know a bit about the Pheasant Tail Sebenza!

Story Time:
When I started high school, there was this shop at the mall near where I lived that sold knives, flashlights, Zippos, and other similar items. They were, upon others, Chris Reeve and William Henry dealers, and they sold every single knife in their system for wayyyy above retail (like, picture a $100 FRN Delica...in 2003!) It's where my fascination with CRK began, and the first one I saw was this knife. There were multiple CRKs in the display case, but my eyes focused on this one...perhaps because I have been fishing since I was a young boy (full disclaimer - I've never done fly fishing but I've made some pretty badass shad darts in my day.)

At the time, I knew little about anodizing, but the rainbow coloration was simply fascinating. I knew nothing about CRK but the employees spoke very highly of it, and it felt pretty special when handling it. Not surprisingly, as many of their prices approached double that of online retailers, this company went out of business around 2005-ish. I wanted to buy one of these during the going out of business sale, but these were sold before I got there, and this was the case across all of their stores (as there were several locations in various different malls.) Subsequently, my first CRK wound up being a wood inlay Small Classic...a great knife, but definitely not as cool as an anodized knife with a fishing lure on it.

With limited knowledge on the knife and not a lot of historical info available on it that I can find, I would like to learn a bit more about this model and I turn to the collective expertise of forum members!

My Curiosity:

1. Was this one a design made by Lisa?
2. How many years were these made?
3. I've seen only S30V...are there any BG-42 or damascus variants?
4. In regards to the Large Regular, I know they had two blade styles...are these seen in factory configurations with both blade styles?
5. Has anyone purchased a heavily-used one and sent to back to CRK to have the factory anodizing redone?
6. Was this a more commonly-produced CGG or was this relatively rare?...and is this a high-demand CRK compared to other CGGs of the era? (Would finding one be a grail of an undertaking?)
7. Finally, if you own one, do you feel it has made you a better fisherman?

Many thinks for the insights!

 

[aleforme]

1. Not a Lisa Design
2. Not sure how many years they were actually made? Good question.
3. Almost certain there are older BG42 versions out there
4. The BG42 blades have a bit more belly on them compared to the S30V models.
5. They can be Spa's but the anodizing can't be redone per my knowledge.
6. Yes, they are rare. It would definitely be a "grail search". Not many out there and lots of people want them.
7. Yes. At least that's what I told my wide to justify the purchase
8. Didn't ask but, best CRK design ever IMO.
9. Not selling mine, ever.

Pretty sure the above is accurate but not 100% certain except for 8 and 9.

 

[pnsxyr]

1. Not a Lisa Design
2. Not sure how many years they were actually made? Good question.
3. Almost certain there are older BG42 versions out there
4. The BG42 blades have a bit more belly on them compared to the S30V models.
5. They can be Spa's but the anodizing can't be redone per my knowledge.
6. Yes, they are rare. It would definitely be a "grail search". Not many out there and lots of people want them.
7. Yes. At least that's what I told my wide to justify the purchase
8. Didn't ask but, best CRK design ever IMO.
9. Not selling mine, ever.

Pretty sure the above is accurate but not 100% certain except for 8 and 9.

Thank you! And that is a beautiful knife! There is something about it that attracted me to it then, and to this day it still immediately catches my eyes. When a huge CRK fan says "best CRK design ever IMO"...well, that's when you know it's going to be a big dig. How much time did it take to find yours if you don't mind my asking? Is that the standard blade profile of the Small Regular?

I'll trade you some shad darts for your Pheasant Tail...

 

[Peter Hartwig]

it is one of the high demand low supply CGG's-who wouldn't want one They rarely come up for sale, but keep your eyes open, you may get lucky. though likely not inexpensive.

 

[nyefmaker]

Hello There.... hope I can shed some light on some of your questions and perhaps even give you some answers.

I am Lucky Enough to have 2 pheasant tails. Both eBay steals of you will. BIN OBO. Needless to say. I did not haggle prices. And Also neither is for sale, so everyone can save time pming me.

The pheasant tail was made in both large and small regular sebenzas. Damascus, BG42, S30V. Was also the only one I can think of at the moment that was offered in 2 groups of CGG. CRK offers 5-6 CGG for a couple years and then discontinued them. Once they are discontinued, they will not redo them. Numbers back then are definitely far more limited that what they make now. So the pheasant tail made the first 2 groups of CGG. First group was mainly BG42, second was S30V.

Yes, also Damascus as I have one, and it’s a large lefty to boot. Probably one of the few in existence. Bought it from the original owner who was a righty but liked to carry it off hand and ordered a lefty. It also has the most beautiful ladder Damascus you will ever see. Has been lovingly carried by that gentleman and mostly admired by me.

My small is the more standard righty with BG42 blade steel. Carried but still beautiful.

As you stated, the colors in the fly are just amazing. A Facebook group voted on the best CGG and I am pretty sure the pheasant tail won.

Will add pics for you to enjoy.

 

[aleforme]

Thank you! And that is a beautiful knife! There is something about it that attracted me to it then, and to this day it still immediately catches my eyes. When a huge CRK fan says "best CRK design ever IMO"...well, that's when you know it's going to be a big dig. How much time did it take to find yours if you don't mind my asking? Is that the standard blade profile of the Small Regular?

I'll trade you some shad darts for your Pheasant Tail...

It took me about a year to find mine. Got lucky and someone I bought another regular from here in BF happened to have it so I jumped on it. Like nyefmaker, didn’t haggle on price. Mine is a Small in S30V so it has the blade shape that is more similar to the 21/31 blades. The large BG42 blades have the fuller blade shape with more belly. Small BG42 blades are more like the S30V blade shapes. Not sure why there was a difference between the Small and Large BG42 blades?

 

[BeaverTail_Hunter]

Here's my thoughts for the fun of it (I used to chase these older ones):

1. Was this one a design made by Lisa? No, unless she did a very early variation of it. Most were computer generated graphics, not unique graphics.
2. How many years were these made? Earliest I have seen was the "decorated fly" naming convention and I think it was dated 98 or 99
3. I've seen only S30V...are there any BG-42 or damascus variants? Yes and Yes
4. In regards to the Large Regular, I know they had two blade styles...are these seen in factory configurations with both blade styles? I believe so.
5. Has anyone purchased a heavily-used one and sent to back to CRK to have the factory anodizing redone? Yes, they can do wonders.
6. Was this a more commonly-produced CGG or was this relatively rare?...and is this a high-demand CRK compared to other CGGs of the era? (Would finding one be a grail of an undertaking?) -- I think, in comparison to the other CGGs of that time period, it may have been produced in higher numbers due to demand. My personal opinion is that people do not sell them often and thus, it gives the illusion that they are in very low numbers. I think there are more than you might imagine. Of the older CGGs, I have seen this change changes more than many of the others.
7. Finally, if you own one, do you feel it has made you a better fisherman? It has been scientifically provide that you must own both the Pheasant Tail and The Catch in order to increase your fishing skill.

 

[willard0341]

I bought this small off the bay (knife only). Had a minute amount of side to side play and I sent it in to Idaho (had a nagging feeling it may be a fake). They replaced the washers and she is as good as new. BG42

 

[pnsxyr]

View attachment 1369352 View attachment 1369353 View attachment 1369356 View attachment 1369357 View attachment 1369358 Hello There.... hope I can shed some light on some of your questions and perhaps even give you some answers.

I am Lucky Enough to have 2 pheasant tails. Both eBay steals of you will. BIN OBO. Needless to say. I did not haggle prices. And Also neither is for sale, so everyone can save time pming me.

The pheasant tail was made in both large and small regular sebenzas. Damascus, BG42, S30V. Was also the only one I can think of at the moment that was offered in 2 groups of CGG. CRK offers 5-6 CGG for a couple years and then discontinued them. Once they are discontinued, they will not redo them. Numbers back then are definitely far more limited that what they make now. So the pheasant tail made the first 2 groups of CGG. First group was mainly BG42, second was S30V.

Yes, also Damascus as I have one, and it’s a large lefty to boot. Probably one of the few in existence. Bought it from the original owner who was a righty but liked to carry it off hand and ordered a lefty. It also has the most beautiful ladder Damascus you will ever see. Has been lovingly carried by that gentleman and mostly admired by me.

My small is the more standard righty with BG42 blade steel. Carried but still beautiful.

As you stated, the colors in the fly are just amazing. A Facebook group voted on the best CGG and I am pretty sure the pheasant tail won.

Will add pics for you to enjoy.

This was just a delightful read...thank you very much! The ad brought me right back to high school as they had quite a few of those CGG designs in this shop! I thought my Mnandi had a nice piece of damascus but yours takes the cake. That looks so much more vivid than the other Ladder damascus blades...heck I think it looks better than the zebras even! Is yours one of the elusive carbon damascus blades that CRK offered before going all stainless? It really, really pops unlike other damascus blades I have seen.

On one hand, I am glad to know I so happened to pick a CRK that happens to be so loved...I mean, it shows I got good taste, right?! On the other hand, the budgetary part of me is screaming NO NO NO NO NO!

 

[loon#r]

How hasn’t a comprehensive, photo heavy coffee table/bar book of Chris Reeve knives not been produced yet? If it weren’t for my damn job and other responsibilities I would take on the task.

 

[pnsxyr]

Here's my thoughts for the fun of it (I used to chase these older ones):

1. Finally, if you own one, do you feel it has made you a better fisherman? It has been scientifically provide that you must own both the Pheasant Tail and The Catch in order to increase your fishing skill.

I feel like if I purchased both of these I might have to sell an organ to finance this...

 

[pnsxyr]

How hasn’t a comprehensive, photo heavy coffee table/bar book of Chris Reeve knives not been produced yet? If it weren’t for my damn job and other responsibilities I would take on the task.

This would be awesome. Breitling did this with a really nice hardcover book and it was a really cool presentation.
https://sansomwatches.com/product/breitling-the-book-coffee-table-book/

If CRK did something like this, I would be all over it. I imagine Breitling had to invest some serious time and resources into it, and probably had to even compile historical records, but the end product was just great and I imagine this sort of thing is probably a good means of generating sales in the long run.

I wonder how much historical data CRK has?...especially on things like Uniques and limited runs? I would LOVE for their book to have a presentation of every Lisa's Pick ever. Not only did I enjoy viewing them each month, but I currently own one Lisa's Pick so it means my knife would be totally famous!

 

[pnsxyr]

Woah...the Google likes this thread.

 

[Matt636]

How hasn’t a comprehensive, photo heavy coffee table/bar book of Chris Reeve knives not been produced yet? If it weren’t for my damn job and other responsibilities I would take on the task.

between nyefmaker and @Lone_Wolfe i feel like 95% of the book could be from their collections! that would be really cool though for someone to do, and agree that if CRK had data to put towards the book it would make it even better. There are several threads here on BF that i go back through and just admire the CGG's/UG's.

Is there not a thread dedicated to CGG & UG to show each one? If there is, I haven't found it yet. it would be neat to just have ONE photo of each as a virtual coffee table book.

A lot of people on here are quite the photographer as well.

 

[Peter Hartwig]

How hasn’t a comprehensive, photo heavy coffee table/bar book of Chris Reeve knives not been produced yet? If it weren’t for my damn job and other responsibilities I would take on the task.

We had a great source in the folder photo thread, until the photo's started disappearing. There were some amazing designs in there.

 

[bart1]

I too am lucky enough to have a PT.. used to have the Umfaan too, but it went to a better home for sure. So the time line would be late 90's to early 2000s? For the PT's?? View Sheldon Wickershams fine book: Randal Knives, a Refernce guide... I think it is the best format for a brand specific knife guide there is, with killer photos, of the knives that should be in the book.It also has an accurate time line , with tons of technical info, and minutia... Please , there is an obvious need for this book! I'll bet most forum members would be on board to contribute photos, and be buyers as well.
P.S. NM that Dammy PT is Off the Charts!!! Killer! Game over!!

 

[aleforme]

between nyefmaker and @Lone_Wolfe i feel like 95% of the book could be from their collections! that would be really cool though for someone to do, and agree that if CRK had data to put towards the book it would make it even better. There are several threads here on BF that i go back through and just admire the CGG's/UG's.

Is there not a thread dedicated to CGG & UG to show each one? If there is, I haven't found it yet. it would be neat to just have ONE photo of each as a virtual coffee table book.

A lot of people on here are quite the photographer as well.

I fixed that and started a thread. Included CGG models as well. Hopefully we will get some great photos of some of the lesser known UG and CGG examples out there in addition to the classic designs.

 

[nickpp]

All 3 Pheasant Tails are BG42.

 

[Ajack60]

between nyefmaker and @Lone_Wolfe i feel like 95% of the book could be from their collections! that would be really cool though for someone to do, and agree that if CRK had data to put towards the book it would make it even better. There are several threads here on BF that i go back through and just admire the CGG's/UG's.

Is there not a thread dedicated to CGG & UG to show each one? If there is, I haven't found it yet. it would be neat to just have ONE photo of each as a virtual coffee table book.

A lot of people on here are quite the photographer as well.

https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/ug-cgg-picture-thread.1069158/

 

[pnsxyr]

View attachment 1369766

All 3 Pheasant Tails are BG42.

I dig it! Your fishing skills must be through the roof. If you carry all 5 at once, do all fish like just start jumping in the boat like those silver carp do?