Yeah, sadly that's what happened with the Micro Bowie. The original 18 with the shorter handle were perfect.
The big hands requested the inch longer handle and it hasn't been the same since.
Wish I'd kept 3 or 4 of the originals instead of giving them away. But mine will undoubtedly outlast me so guess it's not a big deal after all.
That's drop dead gorgeous. Makes me want to break out the oil and steel wool and stop that rust though. Don't store it in that sheath anymore if you do so now. That leather attracts moisture and helps that rust.
Looks about 9 or 10'' long overall?
Beautiful thing and very very special.
There's two schools of thoughts for this one. A) Make it shine and look like new again, use it and give it another life. Or B) Just do the minimum to slowdown the corrosion and preserve it as is with all its history and previous life marks.
It's yours now and very precious. Think of what Yvsa would do with it.
Some clues about that might be found in this thread:
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/657908-Lots-of-thanks-to-Yvsa!
Here is a very small example of the fun we use to have
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/262504-Yvsa-What-Have-You-Done-with-My-Bowie
[/URL][/IMG]
[/URL][/IMG]
[/URL][/IMG]
[/URL][/IMG]
This is Yvsa's very first custom knife. Whatcha think? It is the most special knife I have.
Your Grandfather was a "friend",& that says quite a bit! Look around his knives & you will find something special...you will find a large HI pocketknife! I think HI only made one,LONG AGO & I bought it.I gave it to your Grandpa as a gift.I wish I had kept his response,I thought I was going to have to fly out & make him keep it. He would do for others ,but he had a difficult time believing he was blessed enough to recieve gifts .He was a very humble man .However,he did have a timper!LOL!
I would call & set him off on purpose.He swore "payback".I would laugh & hang up.There were a number of us that were real close.That time has come an gone.
Not a bad thing,it's just life.
THE DUCK!
... The Bura Folder!
"This is one of the "make what you want" projects and Bura has demonstrated once again why he holds the title of Royal Kami and is BirGorkha foreman...This folder is ten inches overall, 5.5 when closed. Blade is excellently done, marked with HI and Bura's mark. Handle grips are beautiful deer horn and excellently executed. And they are gray, not blue like my lousy photo equipment shows. The fit and finish are impressive, about 99%, just enough to let you know this is a hand made knife and not something pumped out by a machine."
-- Bill Martino 01-18-2002, from http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/186058-Folder-by-Bura-Pix-amp-sign-up-time
...
"Yup!!!! You read it correctly!!!! Tsimi sent me the Bura Folder!!!! Tsimi likes to mess around with my head, (doesn't he everyone's?) and sent me Bura's folder just as he got it. No sharpening the burr off the blade, nada, nuthin, zilch, it's in absolutely pristine condition. Now I can't deny that I'm kinda surprised at Tsimi's actions in one way, but it does show he knows how to get it sharpened by me without sending it to me asking me to put one of my edges on it... Tsimi told me to keep it a while and I'm gonna do just that. I pick it up, look it over a bit, put it back down, and in an hour or so pick it back up and do it all over again...
I haven't even began to think about putting an edge on it although what ever I do it will probably wind up a Moran or Convex edge before I send it back to Tsimi as it's my favorite edge no matter the grind on the blade. I don't have any chisel ground knives nor do I ever expect to. That would be my only concession to Not using a convex edge.
When/If I ever get any Japanese cooking knives that will be the day I have chisel ground edges in my house...
I will get a review and some pix up, but don't expect anything anywhere near soon. I've been pretty busy lately and a decent review takes time....
I will say at this time that the fit of the blade against the back spring when the knife is open is as accurate as I could've done with a precision grinder well and carefully set up to grind perfectly square!!!!
That in itself is absolutely amazing!!!!
Not all of the fit is quite as good as this, but under the conditions Bura made this folder in I find that equally absolutely amazing!!!!
Under further examination by Tsimi and resulting correspondence by Tsimi with Uncle Bill it has been determined that the handle slabs aren't buffalo horn.
Uncle Bill, I think Tsimi told me, told Tsimi that the handles are deer horn and they do appear to be that on 1st couple of looks and probably may well be, I'm not ready to dispute Bro on that but to me they also have the appearance of bone that's been well sun bleached.
I have some well aged Deer, American Buffalo, Cow Shoulder, Turkey, Eagle and maybe even some Horse bones laying around a circle in our backyard that looks real similar when worked.
Only one side of the slabs makes me think it could be bone from the end and side grain, But then I'm kinda wondering if Pala didn't get some of the Elk Antler that Rusty had given him to make handles from and took it back to Nepal.
The slabs look more like that Elk ANtler than anything else and would explain everything...
What gets me is that I was under the understanding that the Nepali Deer aren't all that large and these slabs are really big, but I've seen documenteries with the little Sambar Deer in India and they have some pretty large racks, perhaps the Nepali Deer do as well? Bro?"
-- Yvsa, 02-02-2002, from previous thread
Steve,
Just saw this,brings back some old memories of close friends.That folder in your pic I gave to THAT NDN!!I know he loved it....don't think he ever posted....didn't give it to him too post....it was something one friend does for another!
THE DUCK!
That's evidently the only surviving photo of the Bura folder on the whole internet. As for "that NDN" (Yvsa), I'm lucky to have made his acquaintance while he was still here.