What's your unicorn!?

Casinostocks said:
Nathan Carothers 10" Integral Dagger, specifically this unique one which is owned by Jo Carothers:

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Damn.. that is classy! That’s a true unicorn.
 
McFeeli said:
Damn.. that is classy! That’s a true unicorn.
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Yes it is because Nathan only made one in that finish for his wife Jo. AFAIK, there are 3 Carothers Integral daggers in the wild (all owners are current forum members) plus one which Nathan himself owns, making the total in existence 5, but Jo's Dagger AKA the Queen-Dagger is a true unicorn because there will not be another quite like it for the very obvious reason ;)
 
Therom said:
I consider the Garett bull shamwari to be a kind of unicorn for me

I would like to get one one day but they are hard to get

Maybe at a time I will get a front flipper just for fun
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Be careful the ones I have come across have all been quite poorly made. Beautiful awesome design but very much like owning an extremely cool but extremely finnicky foreign gun.

That’s why he never answers anyones emails because the guy probably gets nothing but a mountain of repair requests.

Usually there is one way the knife goes together that it functions well. Things like the rotation of the pivot barrel and standoffs affect the fit because the knife is built by hand and fit by hand. Actually alot of custom knives are like this.
 
Lapedog said:
Be careful the ones I have come across have all been quite poorly made. Beautiful awesome design but very much like owning an extremely cool but extremely finnicky foreign gun.

That’s why he never answers anyones emails because the guy probably gets nothing but a mountain of repair requests.

Usually there is one way the knife goes together that it functions well. Things like the rotation of the pivot barrel and standoffs affect the fit because the knife is built by hand and fit by hand. Actually alot of custom knives are like this.
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Sad to here that, may be ont is time to let my unicorn go

Actually I feel like my large sebenza 21 already gives me everything I need from a knife.
Maybe I already got my unicorn ;)
 
Therom said:
Sad to here that, may be ont is time to let my unicorn go

Actually I feel like my large sebenza 21 already gives me everything I need from a knife.
Maybe I already got my unicorn ;)
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I know where you’re coming from. My 3.25 inch Shamwow is probably one of my absolute favourite knives because it is sort of a “medium Sebenza front flipper.” The design is definitely Sebenzay. Sebbie look but not build quality which one sort of expects at the shammy’s price point.

That said my experience is with his earlier Shammies so maybe he has improved by now. I hope so because the design is gorgeous.

Large Inkosi, Shamwari 3.25 inch and small 21,

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Thickness comparison
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I definitely have a few, I want a Benchmade Axis AFCK, preferably the M390 version, I'm sure I'll find one eventually, but they seem pretty rare now. A Bob Terzuola or GTC custom would be awesome too, they're currently out of my price range.

As for knives that don't currently exist, I'd like a Hinderer XM-18 no choil Bowie, and some more skinny 3.5 inch XM-18's as well, even a no choil skinny XM.
I'd also like a good manual action flipper knife with the axis lock. Basically a larger version of the Benchmade 300, but with a good action.
 
Chris Reeve Umfaan. Had a choice of two at a Gun Show about twenty years ago and let them pass. Been mentally kicking myself since then. Never willing to pony up the money for what they bring on the secondary market, and now since I moved away from Chris Reeve knives, the itch isn't as acute as it used to be. Still, the Umfaan will always be the one that got away.

For those that aren't familiar, the Umfaan is like a mini small Sebenza. 2.25 inch blade. Made from 1997 through 2002 or so. Displaced in the line up by the Mnandi.
Grizz
 
Lance Leon said:
Brian Nadeau/Sharp by Design (Arch) Nemesis dagger. I've tried to grab one a couple of times, but they seem to sell milliseconds after he puts them up for sale on his site and I've never seen one come up for sale on the secondary market.

I don't generally like daggers, it'd be my first, but I Brian's designs really appeal to me. I wouldn't mind one of his Chicane folders either, those are probably just as rare.
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I second that the Arch Nemesis is definitely a Unicorn/Grail, I couldn't justify (to myself) dropping the amount of coin on a single folder. It's a shame he said he'd never outsource it, otherwise a Reate made Archnemesis would be a definite purchase :D
 
https://imgur.com/a/cZW19Rg

THIS!
That knife is the sebenza my buddy has that made me want to get into knives. The way it feels and operated....

It’s an attainable unicorn, but I have never seen one, other than my buddy’s.
 
Philippe Jourget FIF 20
NCC BBM
Richard Rogers Slim Utility (or any of his locking knives)
Scott Cook Lochsa (Yeah, right!)
Any Michael Raymond knife (No chance)
 
Strange that it's a unicorn as the basic models cost $25 when they were still made but...

Victorinox Settler. In red alox. NIB.

I made this out of an old Settler to keep me going cause although the Unicorn exists, it's price is about 1000% what it once was. If I'm lucky.

sakmod_6.jpg
 
XM-18 3.5" Skinny Sheepsfoot w/ Tri-Way pivot
 
My unicorn is a 1914 Case Brothers, Springville, NY small gunstock with bone or wood scales and full blades. I have looked high and low for 15 years and I have bought everyone I have seen. These are the 2 I own. Neither have full blades.
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Cosmodragoon said:
Nothing special but there is a sub-$50 fixed blade that I missed. I ordered it from Optics Planet when they were still available. They biffed the order. They asked me to wait.........
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This is the kind of dirty trick that Optics Planet is famous for. They advertised a ZT 0452Blu on their website at a dynamite price, with delivery alleged to be in a couple weeks, so I ordered one. They then pushed the estimated delivery time back--first to a few weeks, then to a couple months and then further and further and further--until it was unknown, and then they finally removed the item from their dishonest website. They cancelled out the “on hold” PayPal payment they had in place from me without ever notifying me they’d done so. When I sent them messages via their website, they never responded to me. When I sent them direct email questions, they never responded to me. When I called their 800-504-5897 tel# and asked for an explanation of why they’d treated me the way they had, they jerked me around and never game me a straight answer. When I asked them (by website message, direct email and telephone conversations) for the name and direct mail address of the President or CEO of their company so I could send him/her a letter asking for an explanation, they jerked me around even more and refused to provide the name/address I requested. In my personal experience, Optics Planet is the scum of the earth. They treated me in a fashion that could only be described as dishonest, dishonorable and utterly devoid of any form of integrity or credibility. They make AliBaba and AliExpress look good by comparison. You now know better than to deal with them, so deal with them at your own risk.

And now, back to our regularly scheduled programming... My “unicorn” is a Shirogorov F7--straight from Sergey’s personal workbench to me. Needless to say, that’ll never happen unless I hit the Powerball Jackpot.
 
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My unicorn is a Ray Appleton folder. Any will due...but specifically a model called "the Tulip".

I don't have a pic...and I can't even find one on the internet. Saw Ray and the knife in person at the NY Custom Knife show around 1998. Just an absolute gorgeous piece of metal. Took my breath away.

I am an engineer and the design was unique and outstanding. Execution was flawless. Back then it was $27K

Today I mostly carry a Shadley or a Thorburn
 
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