Knife Of The Week Rick Bowles Special!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mr. Rick Bowles will step in later with a full description of his own guarded design Dealer Special knife but until he dose lets show of some of those Bowles Specials

My Rick Bowles Dealer Special first hit the streets in 1991. The first ten had different examples of exotic wood, ivory inlay and scrimshaw. The Greg Gutcher custom basket weave sheath has a stone pocket made to accommodate the mini leatherman tool. These ten were numbered RBS #001 thru RBS #010 and were etched “Ten Years Of Scrim ’81-’91"
There is also an RBS #000 and RBS #XXX prototype as well as an ivory RBS with just “Rick Bowles” etched where the number would be. Serial numbers RBS #101 thru RBS #110 do not exist. I reserved this block of numbers for an edition that never materialized. To avoid any confusion in the years to come, the last RBS will be etched “RBS THE LAST ONE”...clever huh. If I have the math right the total number of Rick Bowles Specials is 331.
The RBscrim was a series of 50 knives with Australian Ringed Gidgee wood, a special handle shape and a scrimshawed ivory inlay in the rear of the handle. Greg Gutched furnished a custom Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake sheath for this limited edition. These knives are numbered in their own range RBscrim #001 to RBscrim #050. Lastly the Bowles Hunter. Though these knives are newly crafted from Randall, the blades were forged in 1991. These are actually a subspecies of my popular guarded design, dealer special and are different in grind and profile from the current RBS. The thinner profile is distinctive and unique to these carbon blades. All of the Hunters featured stag, a nickel silver hilt and a compass in the butt with the exception of Bowles Hunter #001 which featured ivory and full coverage scrimshaw. The total production of the Bowles Hunter is 82 knives with the last one being etched “Bowles Hunter THE LAST ONE.”
I do know of at least one counterfeit RBS of but I don’t count that one. I’ll post images of all varieties tomorrow after I get’em all together.
This brings the total production...in every flavor to 463.

One of mine & Dale's Custom made Back ground.
Crown & Pure Silver!

See Ya, Chief

Ivory with David Perdue engraving.

See Ya, Chief

Here's mine

I just got these!!

Jesse, those are really great knives brother.

Tell us a little about them please.

Dubie Baxter

Beautiful knives Jesse!!!!!

Two of...463...and more to come...



My best compliments to this great American Artist.
Best
Guido

Those are great looking knives guys. Beautiful work all the way around.

Outstanding knives Guido !!!

I like black and white scrimshanding much more than colored.

Dubie

Thanks for the compliments guys I just received the crow stag hunter its RBS 266 and scrim #953 I really like it. This is the first piece of crown stag that I have ever owned and it will definitely not be my last!

Here's my personal Skinner.

My Bowles Dealer Special



Part of the article I wrote on Rick.







Ciao Rick!

BEAUTIFUL BOWLES SPECIALS Guys!!!!
Tony

Here is another one with desert ironwood handle and brass fittings.

[image][/image]

Hi guys! I have been very busy at my new job and had thirty minutes to an hour off a day to my self and had only my phone internet for most of it. Here are some cool knives that I have picked up and would like to contribute to Kevin’s GREAT THREADS!
Best,
Jesse Egnew

Somewhere along the line I know I posted this knife before but it has mysteriously disappeared from this thread. Whatever the case, this is a RB Skinner with a #22 Ironwood Burl handle with all the options.

Best,
Warren

Wow!!!!!!!!!
Warren, first a Snakewood handle and now Ironwood. You get all the good knives.

Kevin

That may be the prettiest Ironwood burl I have ever seen.

I thought Kevin always got the nicest handles.

Was this shop supplied or Bowles supplied wood?

Dubie Baxter

Warren,
Nice!! I certainly don't remember seeing that one before. I think I would have remembered. I'm kind of a freak (translation: "sucker") for nice exotic wood. Of course...Maybe I'm just gettin' old!!
Best, Capt. Chris

Captain,

At 60 when you have good wood hold on to it!!!!
It may be better than a lottery ticket.

Best,
Warren

Warren,
VERY NICE!

That Ironwood burl is really sweet!

Thanks guys for your kind remarks.

Kevin,

It's a Chameleon, and it changed colors.
--------------------------------------------------
Dubie,

It was neither, I supplied the wood. SOMETIMES Kevin gets all the good handles!
----------------------------------------------------
Captain,

Thought I posted this before but apparently it's lost in cyberspace somewhere. Yeh, exotic wood is nice if you can find good blocks with highly figured grain. Sometimes you find a nice piece only to realize it's not large enough. I got lucky on this one.
---------------------------------------------------
Tony & Steven,

Thanks for your comments

Best,
Warren

Hi Tom,

May I ask, what is the type of wood that was used on the handle material of this knife??


Michael Mason
RKS # 4382

I had posted my Bowles Specials before, but I just noticed not here. I have two, a knobby stag with compass, and my left-hand finger grip Elephant Ivory.

Peter

Peter, stag like that is very hard to get these days! Nice knife!

Thanks Don
I saw it on Rick's website, and couldn't resist. The color and texture are hard to find. I generally prefer to buy stag knives that I can see, rather than ordering them since you take your chances when you order.
Peter

I like skinners, the link is to a ablum of my Bowles skinners. I just got a new camera and am trying to take better pic's to post more on this forum. You have been warned :P

http://s72.photobucket.com/albums/i167/jamesri/Skinners/

James A. Moscatelli

WOW, what a great set of Rick Bowles specials. Keep posting those pictures.

This one just in.

Nice looking knife Tom.

Tom, that's as good as gold. You ARE the Micarta man.

Dubie Baxter

Well done Tom.

Thanks for taking the time to post on The Knife Of The Week.

Kevin

Tom,
That's a real beauty! Congratulations!
Tony

Hi Tom
Great knife except the finger grips are on the wrong side.
I have #224 coming shortly in crown stag, here is Rick's picture of my incoming knife

Peter

Great knife Peter but I hate to tell you that's left handed crown stag.

Tom
That is why I got it, I am a lefty and it should fit my left hand great.
Is yours the antique gold or is it a different gold micarta?
I received my first AGM last year and I really like it.

Peter

Peter,

It is not shop supplied antique gold micarta. It is a completely different micarta that is somewhat darker than the shop A/G.

I just noticed on your knife that the place where the brow tine was removed is not visible.

Hi Tom
It is a very nice micarta indeed.

Don Hedrick was able to do his magic work on the spot where the brow tine was. He has a technique to convert the spot so it looks like it was never there.

Peter

I received my crown stag special #224 on Wednesday and learned how to change the white balance on my camera thanks to the good folks here on the forum. This is my first crown stag and my third Rick Bowles special.
This is a huge stag made for left-hand use and the brow tine spot was magically worked by Don Hedrick. Here it is from different angles.

Very nice, Peter. Much better white balance.

Thanks Ken
The quality of your photos is always superb, and I hope to improve mine. The white balance really did the trick. I am using a small tripod too. My battery in the camera went so I will do a group shot of all my RBS later
Peter

I entered this in the EDO contest, but am placing it here also

Peter

Outstanding!

My first Rick Bowles Special may arrive as early as Monday.

My first Bowles Skinner, #178 with the "new for 2010" Ivorite handle material in Single Finger Grip shape:









Many thanks to Rick for offering such an outstanding Dealer Special!

Here are more photos of Bowles Skinner #178 using the blue background, better lighting, and my Nikon D300 with Nikkor 60mm Micro lens:

I see that I neglected to post photos of my Don Hedrick "mini" version of the Bowles Skinner, which has Nickel Silver furniture and a Desert Ironwood handle:











It has a very special sheath made by Chuddy Bear Leather:

Ken, while we're on the subject, this example, #251, should be in house Monday; can't hardly wait.

Pic courtesy Rick Bowles.

Ken,

Great example! I love the sheath. I may have to get one for my new Hedrick-Bowles replica. It has Nickel Silver hardware and Ivory handle. Don did a matching set with a Gambler replica also.

Jim

Beautiful...All of 'em!
Best, Capt. Chris

Beautiful set, like the stand, too. Don Hedrick, like the RMK Shop, is a Master Knife Maker.

Does anyone have Don Hedrick's contact info? Thanks-

Pap

PM sent.

Jim,

That's yet another example of Don's superb handiwork. Like Tom, I have another Bowles Skinner on the way, hopefully arriving tomorrow. It is #264 (the photo is courtesy of Rick):



Don is making me a "mini" version with the same options. I can't wait to get it.

Oh, and if you'd like to contact Chuddy Bear Leather, here is the website: http://www.chuddybearleather.com/

If you contact Chuck, be sure to mention my name. He knows me well. Heck, you might as well mention Tom's name, too.

Please, no more orders to Chuddy Bear until he finishs the stack of mine.

Tom, you wrote:It's not so much a stack as a steady stream.

Well done, Ken.

Thanks for taking the time to post on The Knife of The Week.

I just picked up Bowles Skinner #264 from Rick, and it arrived yesterday. It has a gorgeous Desert Ironwood handle in Tear Drop shape, along with Brass Furniture to match. Here are a few quickie snapshots:

Ken
Nice knife and pictures, and my favorite wood too.

Peter

Ken,

Awesome knife, it's a real looker. I like Ironwood better with every knife that I see it used on. Rick always has some of the best handle materials-Snakewood is also one of his best handle selections.

Regards,

Tom Flynn

Here's an example of shop supplied Ironwood on my Skinner. Sometimes you just get lucky!

Very nice ironwood Rick
I can hardly wait until I see mine

Peter

I thought it'd be a good idea, and appreciated, to post this quickie snapshot of Bowles Skinner #264 and its matching Don Hedrick "mini" version to Kevin Lough's "Knife Of The Week" thread:

Ken, beautiful knives.

Thanks so much for taking the time to post on OUR Knife of the Week Thread.

Beautiful knives Ken. But as a point of clarification Jesse Egnew started the dealer and non catalog portion of The Knife Of The Week.

Kevin

Wow, you meet the nicest people on this forum.......thanks lough.

http://www.knifetalkforums.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=viewmessage&message=7000&gonew=1#UNREAD

Just in case you cannot open my private message from lough, it states: " Tom, I started the knife of the week. That's how it is. You, Bowles and Lunde can all crawl back into your respective bottles. Have another margarita and shut up. Kevin"

Nice, isn't it?

Wow. You wouldn't expect such harsh and anger-filled words from a supposedly Bible-carry fellow, or from someone who enoys quoting Bible versus (Genesis 27:3).

I think I'll shut up and enjoy an adult beverage. I "appreciate" Lough's suggestion.

Ken, it gets even better. lough's second message: "You can't post a PM. The P stands for PRIVATE. Have another drink and muster up the courage"

I'm lovin' this kinder and more gentle forum.

OK, Guys,
I got no dog in this fight..."BUT"...(There's that word again)...This "is" off-topic concerning a really nice pair of "Bowles" knives. Let's get back on it please.
Best, Capt. Chris

In the spirit of getting back on topic, I need to take a much better photo of Bowles Skinner #264 with its matching Don Hedrick mini, along with separate photos of the mini by itself. Don's handiwork is absolutely stunning. The craftsmanship and attention to detail are both remarkable.

I'll drink to that.

I am already drinking to that. I need to start my third drink soon.

Thanks to everyone for posting these images on my dealer special thread but of course it isn't actually my thread except to the extent that it's my dealer special. The knife of the week was a popular thread that was initiated in the RKS section of another forum six plus years ago.

I'll tell you what, Rick. If I could get shop-supplied ironwood like the Bowles Hunter you posted...I'd never pay upwards of $75.00 for a piece of it again! That is simply terrific!
Best, Capt. Chris

http://www.knifeforums.com/forums/showtopic.php?tid/296420/

Well, well, well.

This was already covered and credit given to Ron by me on page 1 of Knife Of The Week Tom. So take your well, well, well and, well...

Kevin

Thanks Mitchell, that clears it up for those that weren't around back then.

Rick,

I don't see what there is to clear up.




It is quite clear that the Knife of the Week Thread was originally started on a totally different forum by Ron Mathews and was continued on this forum (with credit given to Ron) by Kevin Lough and continued even further by Jesse Egnew (Non-Catalog Knives & Dealer Specials) It is also a fact that the thread for each model (Models #1 thru #27) was initiated by Kevin Lough.

That all seems pretty clear. What is the confusion?

The Knife of the Week Thread is a fantastic resource and many members have contributed but Ron, Kevin and Jesse (and possibly others) kept it going through the years. That doesn't seem too confusing.

Tom,
Since you asked, I have never had any confusion regarding the origin of this topic, I was there at the time. You summed up the appropriate attribution in your first sentence.
"It is quite clear that the Knife of the Week Thread was originally started on a totally different forum by Ron Mathews."
An idea is only "original" once. From Wikipedia: An original work is one not received from others nor one copied based on the work of others. I will confess that I'm not sure why taking credit for something is so important. Ralph Waldo Emerson said "The reward of a thing well done, is to have done it." I've never seen Ron ask for or take credit for the creation or success of the thread either here or on the other forum. I certainly don't speak for Ron but my guess is that he recognizes the success of this thread is directly attributable to the many members that take their time to photograph, edit, size and post images of their Randall knives.... it wouldn't be a thread without them.

Back on topic, here's a nice example with exceptional,shop supplied stag!

Rick
That is very nice stag, but unfortunately, the shop put the fingergrips on the wrong side

I hope to be posting my new Rick Bowles Special here before the end of the year with the finger grips on the "right side"

Peter

Peter,

I suggest that you append the following to your signature:

I have been quoted here (see below) but that quote was in error. The knife of the week was started by Ron Mathews and Sheldon Wickersham on our old Forum.

In any case, thank you to all on these great threads.

Please stop all this petty BS and talk about Randalls. Childish indeed are some of the posts. I do like the one about the dead horse though.

Regards,

Rhett

THE FOLLOWING IS WRONG: "This program was suggested and started by Kevin Lough. This program will be continually posted by Jess Egnew in the future. Thank you Kevin for the original idea and thank you Jesse for continuing same. Thanks also to Thomas Welch for his input to this project. --- Rhett Stidham"

Beautiful stag Rick and the fingergrips look perfect to me.

AMEN!
I'm willing to bet that a Large Majority of the members here agree.
Thanks Rhett.

Peter, you have two hands, don't you?

Could't agree more. Adults only.

Kevin..

Thank you for the great job you do on this thread...and to the seldom seen or heard from..thank you Ron Mathews, and let's not forget Sheldon Wickersham...damn, I miss his wit and RMK knowledge.

Rhett,
Thanks for setting the record straight.

Here is a better snapshot of Bowles Skinner #264 and its Don Hedrick "mini" version:



Here are some additional views of the Don Hedrick "mini":

Here is the most recent addititon to my fledgling collection that showed up yesterday... I contacted Rick last week about ordering one of his Skinners, and I told him what I was looking for. As luck would have it he had something that came pretty damn close to meeting my "needs" in stock (I'm thinking about adding finger grooves... More on that later) and he was able to oblige w/ this:

Mike, very nice Bowles Skinner! Love the stag.

That's a great looking knife. Thanks for sharing.

This Skinner is the first I've had that features Afzelia burl. This is some gorgeous stuff!

Great looking handle material Rick. Very unique. Thanks for sharing.

Please place a towel over your keyboard so that the drool doesn't ruin it

My slot with Rick Bowles came due this year and we discussed some ideas of what would be an exceptional knife. As you might imagine, I wanted ironwood as I am trying to obtain all of the current dealer specials that let you specify that handle material. Rick suggested silver hardware, and since I had no knives with that material, I thought it a great idea. Being left-handed, I wanted left-hand finger grips and a left-hand sheath. I thought through various options and this is how it ended up.
I want to thank Rick Bowles for his guidance and the design of this guarded design, the craftsmen at the shop for turning my ideas into a masterpiece, Doug Cream for providing the fine silver,and Capt. Chris for helping me find this great ironwood at the Blade Show.
It turned out that the correct sheath wasn't shipped with the knife, so that will be shown after Greg finishes it.
It is a heavy knife and weighs just over 13 ounces as silver is about 1.24 times as dense as nickel silver. Spacers are thicker also.
These are quick pictures and I hope to take some better ones this weekend. So here is Rick Bowles Special 277

Peter

Exceptional Peter! Thanks...
Best, Capt. Chris

That's a superb Bowles Skinner, Peter!

Is the inlayed plate made out of fine or sterling silver, and what are you planning to put on it?

nice knife

Peter that is one great looking knife. Will this be a safequeen? I would hate to use one that nice and get it skinned up.

I think you should enlay "Pappy" on it for posterity......haha.

Pap

MINI...but still RBS's

Thanks for the nice comments

I didn't think about the plate in the handle until later. I put nickel silver in the order for the plate, but it seems whiter than the nickel silver and matches the silver well. I may have the hilt and butt cap engraved with dog paw/wolf tracks but I was going to leave the plate blank for now.
From my understanding the silver is soft compared to brass and nickel silver, so it could get dinged up if a user, so it will stay a safe queen. I have other RBS that I can take to the field.

Peter

A stunning specimen you've got there... Congrats !!!

Last addition to my RBS collection.
1-off Black Micarta #14 handle s# 244
1-off New Ivorite #14 handle s# 245

Peter, Guido ...
Beautiful knives!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tony

Guido
Great Bowles Specials and really neat photo composition, is that black and white?

Peter

Here's one in Amboyna Burl that rode in with Peter's Skinner.

Yes Peter; those'r Black & White:
Black is micarta and white is that new Ivorite
Best
Guido

That is a very nice one too.
Great wood is classically beautiful.
Someone will be very happy with that one

Peter

Just when I thought it couldn't get any better, Don Hedrick got some DNA from RBS 277 and cloned it. It is still a pup, but it looks great and it is the first left-hand mini
Thanks again Don

Peter

I think we need to have a thread for Don's knives on "Sharp Talk" as well. He's a great knifemaker and I think enough of our members own them to make an interesting presentation. What do the rest of ya' think? Thanks for showing your latest "goodie" Peter.
Best, Capt. Chris

Hi Capt. Chris
That makes sense to me. I have only seen his minis, but I see he makes other knives as well.
I think it would be great to see all of the minis in one place

Peter

I'll officially nominate "you", Peter, to open that thread...and this fine Bowles MINI is as good as any to get it started.
Best, Capt. Chris

DITTO !!!

The sheath arrived for my silver and ironwood left-hand Rick Bowles Special, and Greg has done a fantastic job on this.

Peter

Gorgeous sheath, Peter. It complements the Rick Bowles Special quite nicely.

Fantastic looking combination Peter.

Is that "ostrich" on the front panel and keeper strap? Whatever it is, it makes an incredible Randall look even more so!
Best, Capt. Chris

Hi Cap
it is stamped OST on the back, so I believe it is ostrich

It is one heck of a combination

Peter

Very cool sheath!

I've recently found a new wood supplier. Notice the custom Ostrich toe and keeper strap sheath.

Rick
Nice knife, wood and sheath. Does your new supplier have pictures of the individual wood blocks or do you buy sight unseen?

Peter

Rick,
Outstanding! Both the wood and the sheath!
Tony

Peter,
I'll post his info in the lounge. I got some Asian Ironwood from him that made me think of you. It's amazing stuff!

is this Dealer special still in production?

Wally
As far as I know, it is still available, send Rick an email and you can discuss how you want it configured.
Peter

Here are two Pink "Ivory" examples in two different iterations of the Bowles' creation.

P.S. If you sell knives with Pink Ivory on eBay don't use Ivory in the description or the auction may be cancelled!

Jim

Here are two pair of Rick Bowles 30th Anniversary knives I call "On The Rocks".

Jim

Those are beautiful knives Jim.

Steve

I just noticed that the Bowles on top (fossil walrus?) has a reduced hilt. I don't recall seeing that on a Bowles Special before. Pretty cool!

Jim, you have some very beautiful knives there - I especially like the Gambler with musk ox.
Very cool

RBS is the most crowded Dealers Special in my collection:
Here's the 25th Anniversary plus a AAAA Thuya burl handle.

Time goes by...and, after his 25th Anniversary, here's the 30th Anniversary pair...just close to be embellished by an Italian engraver!

Rick,

The reduced hilt on both the Gambler and Skinner are a feature of the Bowles' 30th anniversary set. However the single hilt on the FWI Skinner is an anomaly and may be unique.

Jim

Guido,

Very beautiful. Your Italian engravers are to be complimented.

Jim

Guido,

That is one of the classiest set of knives I've seen; awesome engraving!

Jim's Fossil with the reduced hilt looks great!

I ordered mine as a Narwal set; this was one that I wanted and it came out great.

Best Regards,

Tom Flynn

Tom, I do think your 30th Anniversary pair is the BEST among all other 29 sets.
Really superlative...!
Congratulations.

Very beautiful knives, gentlemen! I am deeply impressed

Guido,

Thanks for your comment, your collection is amazing with the variety of knives, handle materials and engraving. The collections within your collection continue to impress all of us; thanks for sharing. I too love Don Hedrick's Miniatures and your collection of Don's work is special and must have taken quite awhile to put together.

Best Regards,

Tom Flynn

Wow, sorry that's all I can come up right now, awesome set Tom!!

Rob

Rob,

Thanks, Rick recommended the reduced hilts on the set and it looks great!

Regards,

Tom Flynn

Here is a 30th Anniversary set in Australian Queenswood with engraving by Jere Davidson.

Jim

Jim
You have done it again, some great knives, fine engraving and great photography.

Peter

JIm,

Great pair of knives and that Queenswood is outstanding!!!!
Plus the engraving is beautiful..

Ken Lambert
RKS #3610
NRA Benefactor
FOP

Thanks for the compliments. I forgot to mention the sheaths are Alligator.

Jim

A beautiful set of knives.

Jim,
Everything about those two Randalls is outstanding!
Tony

Will place these here for posterity.

30 Year Set number 27. Nickel furniture. Australian Gray Box Burl.

Sitting on Dale Dorris Redwood Stand.

Outstanding!!!!!

That's a beautiful set Doc.

Doug
Very nice set. I have quite a few of the Bowles specials myself and quite a lot of small and large Gamblers, but no matched sets. I love nicely figured wood like that.

Peter

Peter;

Also love the well figured wood. There is a Redwood 30 year set posted
in the EDO contest last time that is stunning.

Posterity Post:

Rick Bowles Skinner #136. Engraved by David Perdue. Perdue Randall Engraving #136 (interesting coincidence).

Close Up:

Montage:

Beautiful work Doc. Good luck with it.
Best, Capt. Chris
PS: Your CARE package is "in the wind"...CCS

Thanks Captain.

Your camera recommendation has worked rather nicely.

Looking forward to photographing the contents of the CARE package.

Great looking knife Doc.

Great looking knife, doc. While I was here I flipped back a few pages. WOW!! Just like starting out your day in an incredible art museum---what beautiful knives!

Super choice Doc ! Really sensational set up...
Bravo and...take good care of it.
Best
Guido

Thanks gentlemen.

Any more of these over in Italy needing a new home????

Doug

Edo has one he want's to sell........

Thanks Tune

Yes, I have one and you can see it here:

http://www.egplan.com/In_vendita.html

Have a nice day.

Posterity Post:

Time this rolled around to the top agin.

That's got some character.

Like Chief???

Not, owning a knife with character is as close as I get!!

Chief,

You get all the good knives with character. I remember when someone else used to say that

Man oh man Chief. You have some of the best looking FWI that I've ever seen. Keep the pics coming!
_____________
Doug

Doug,

Truth be told, one day Chief wanted to say "For what it's worth " and got FWI. He's never looked back. Damn that spell check

That's because Tune finds it and I haggle with him for it!!!
Like this one, "I said I'll take it"! He always says uhh we need to talk price!! LOL He is such a great negotiator!!!

Chief!

Fantastic knife with the emphasis on character!

I just picked-up a nice Ivory Skinner from Mitchell that will be scrimmed with African images and engraving.

Love Rick's work!

Tom Flynn

Now where did that Narwhal sculpture come from?
I've never seen anything like that!
Goes very well on the desk.

Nice to see the ivory one! Great knife, Tune told me that it got snapped up right away!
LOL should have known where it went. Who's engraving it if I may ask?

David,

Sorry it took so long to answer. I know that you also are fascinated by the Narwhal!

I saw that one when Rick photographed my 30th Anniversary Narwhal set with the sculpture as the backdrop. It took a while to find one, here is the link-http://store.captainscove.net/narwhal.html. Pretty inexpensive; but quite the conversation item. A lot of people know nothing about the Narwhal.

Tom Flynn

Now that is some really nice pieces of Narwhal!!
The way he had butt plates not caps put on them is a awesome configuration, hardly any of the tusk is ground away!
Sized just right as hardly any loss of tusk at the hilts either!
Great Get!!!

Thanks Chief!

Tom Flynn

Chief,

Do not know yet (perfect piece of Ivory); want to do an African Tribute Knife with Scrim & Engraving to compliment with similar details. A work in process, will take a while before it becomes a work in progress.

Tom Flynn

Who's doing the scrim & engraving?

Chief,

I would likely try Rick Bowles first, I have always admired his work; Don Perdue would also be my first choice for the engraving (I thought somewhere it was mentioned Don was no longer taking on work?). Would be open to suggestions on others.

Tom Flynn

D. Baker did an African scene on an Ivory Handle I have. Not sure who D. Baker is, though.

Killer handle Eric!

Eric,

That's what I am thinking of; great knife. Awesome scrim & engraving. Never seen anything before from D. Baker, has anyone else? Any idea who did the engraving?

Tom Flynn

There is usually 2-3 scrimshanders at blade plus people who can give you a line on more. Same with engraving.
If you aren't going I'll get some leads if for you if you need.

Sexy knife Eric! Might have been engraved by whomever did the scrim, like Ron Skaggs does.

Thanks Chief! Please do so, unfortunately Blade is out for me this year.

Tom Flynn

Well that bites I was hoping to meet ya this year!
Tell ya what, I......(being the humble soul that I am), will do my best to buy all the Fossil and elephant ivory big blades that I see!
Just so I can post them here so you won't miss anything!!!

HUMBLE......

Glad you agree!

Hey... I'm not arguing...
I'm just explaining why I'm right

Tom,

You might try reaching out to Jim Gates. I believe Jim has some embelishment work by several talented artists. He'd give you good advice.

I got a 12-8 carved & engraved that I'll try to post up pics tomorrow for you to look at.

HUMBLE Chief!

Somehow that doesn't seem to fit together.

Counting on you to buy up everything that your heart tells you and that your wallet can afford!

Love to see pictures of big bad ass knives. The scrim'd and engraved ones are the gems.

I can see all the Vendors polishing them up for you now!

Have a great Blade Show; God willing we will meet there next year.

Tom Flynn

Thanks Warren,

That last one that Jim showed was fantastic; thanks for the advice!

Tom Flynn

Here is a couple of quick pics of a 12-8 that I had carved & engraved.

Chief,

Love the knife! Real nice; who did the carving & engraving?

Tom Flynn

RBS 253 0f 331

That's a pretty knife

Are these still being made?

Yes, you will need to contact the dealer, Rick Bowles, and order one.

David,
Mr. Bowles has been banned from these forums, years ago, and therefore any reference to his contact information is forbidden. (I know you didn't know this) Thanks to all for understanding and cooperating.
Best, Capt. Chris

Oops, Sorry!

I like that model better than the current one.

Wonder what the serial number was, when the change was made?

I was thinking, my RBS had a choil on it. I sold it years ago as I don't hunt often and the design didn't bode well with wood work. Cool knife and a very neat sheath.

This is a R B Hunter.#54 OF 82.Only a couple of Hunters were scrimshawed

Great knife!

My new RB Skinner. I really like the look of this Special Skinner.

Eric,

Sweet Skinner!

Tom Flynn

Had Sandra Brady do an African Tribute Scrim on a Rick Bowles Special I had to commemorate my African Hunt in 2016. Unfortunately, the Ivory had developed a crack a few months before I sent it to her. To help cover the crack we did scrim on both sides of the handle. Sandra is a great artist!

Tom Flynn

Very nice scrim work for sure.
Walker

Sandy has done several knives for me, she does great work. I also have one RB Special left I will get it out and take some pics later.

That’s stellar, Amazing scrim.

Very nice scrim!!!

Eric:

My Bowles Skinner is almost identical to yours.

Coach

Rick Bowles Skinner #500 with Dave Warther’s Resin Ivory-S grade.

Eric,

Great looking knife; love the finger grip.

Tom Flynn

Thank you, Tom. I really like the RI-S grade handle material. Which one is real elephant Ivory....TCS. They feel the same when gripped. Nothing had to die....win, win.

Great stuff and no cracks!

Tom Flynn

Eric that's a great looking Knife for sure.
Walker

Thanks, Walker. I have 8 more on order with this CW, so I will post as they come in....I should have them all by June.

Eric, what size Bowles is that? The angle of the pic makes it look like the original RBS...

#500 Skinner left you probably beginning of Feb. That photo angle makes the #4 8” look even more badass

Eric:

I like that same stuff too! It is beautiful!

I had a Randall Smitty done with it and just got it in yesterday.

I’ll take pictures and get them posted tomorrow.

Good get! Especially the #500.

Coach

Coach, Thank you. I would love to see that Smitty.

Sandra Brady tends to use darker colors then Rick Bowles.