The Sunday night before Bladeshow I was on Gunbroker watching a knife auction. In the auction was a Blackjack Halo, and Parker Tanto and a Spec Plus blade.
I've wanted the Blackjack Halo for around 27 years. By time I REALLY wanted one, they were selling upwards of $200 and sometimes nearer to $300. The Blackjack Halo is an iteration of the Randall 15 Attack. It's not a direct copy, but has similar lines.
So I was watching the auction and with 16 minutes left, placed a bid. I was winning it and at two minutes left got nervous and decided to bump my bid by another $10, so that reset the 15 minute clock...
! I forgot that there's no sniping on GB, so only delayed my winning the auction. 15 minutes later, the auction closed and I won.
I was a bit nervous because the photo on GB was crappy, and the knife I was after might have been trashed. I decided if it was used hard at all, I'd just make it a backpack knife and be glad I had one, even if I overpaid.
I made payment on the auction on 5/31 and the shop was closed on Memorial Day. The guy said they'd ship Wednesday or Thursday by two day UPS. I was hoping to have it/them by Blade so I could take them with me. My hope was to sell the Parker and the Spec Plus to reduce the overall cost of the auction. On Thursday I called back and they said they had delays in shipping due to the holiday and it'd go out on Friday, so no Bladeshow fun.
So I arranged for pick up at my local UPS hub and grabbed the box at lunch. Just like Christmas, I pulled the knives out of the bubblewrap bag one by one, saving the Blackjack for last. The Spec Plus is a neat little knife with that Randall style blade profile, the thing weighs near nothing. I couldn't identify it before, but it's an SPC 23 Ranger model. It, like the other three are unused, new condition less having been stored in the sheaths. The Parker is another that I could find almost nothing about. I finally found one photo from a sales post on knifeforums from back in 2010 or maybe earlier. Again, it's new with a weird black oxide finish on a "surgical stainless" blade from Japan. From what I've read, the "surgical stainless" is an indicator of AUS6A. The sheath has never been on a belt and is unmarked and decent, thick leather. So finally (all of about 30 seconds of dragging it out on the road back to work), I pulled the Halo out of the bag. The thick brass cross-guard is gleaming in the summer haze around the chicken plants. I hear the faint chorus of angels singing to God Almighty about the awesomeness of this culmination of steel brass and micarta wrapped in an Eagle Mfg cordura sheath. I click the "Pull the Dot" snap on the strap. and with hopeful anticipation, withdraw the flawless five inch blade. Drool puddles, a boner throbs, fingers caress the perfectly executed finger grooves, a smile grows wide enough to make my ears hurt- but alas, I'm driving and wielding a weapon of mass decapitation and am coming to a green light. I must return it to it's abode until I get off work.
It's gonna be a long day. I bought one knife at Bladeshow. I mentioned it in the thread. It's a 4.5" Vulture Equipment Works Talon. I've since found out that they're made by TOPS for Vulture. I figured I could flip it if nothing else. Turns out it's an awesome knife and cuts/chops like a much bigger knife. As my index finger can attest, it's very very sharp. Tip to self- don't try to hone extremely sharp knives- there truly is such a thing as too sharp.
I'll put up pics of the goodies from today. I just had to share the thrill of conquest in winning an auction that turned out to be a great deal.
I've wanted the Blackjack Halo for around 27 years. By time I REALLY wanted one, they were selling upwards of $200 and sometimes nearer to $300. The Blackjack Halo is an iteration of the Randall 15 Attack. It's not a direct copy, but has similar lines.
So I was watching the auction and with 16 minutes left, placed a bid. I was winning it and at two minutes left got nervous and decided to bump my bid by another $10, so that reset the 15 minute clock...
! I forgot that there's no sniping on GB, so only delayed my winning the auction. 15 minutes later, the auction closed and I won.I was a bit nervous because the photo on GB was crappy, and the knife I was after might have been trashed. I decided if it was used hard at all, I'd just make it a backpack knife and be glad I had one, even if I overpaid.
I made payment on the auction on 5/31 and the shop was closed on Memorial Day. The guy said they'd ship Wednesday or Thursday by two day UPS. I was hoping to have it/them by Blade so I could take them with me. My hope was to sell the Parker and the Spec Plus to reduce the overall cost of the auction. On Thursday I called back and they said they had delays in shipping due to the holiday and it'd go out on Friday, so no Bladeshow fun.
So I arranged for pick up at my local UPS hub and grabbed the box at lunch. Just like Christmas, I pulled the knives out of the bubblewrap bag one by one, saving the Blackjack for last. The Spec Plus is a neat little knife with that Randall style blade profile, the thing weighs near nothing. I couldn't identify it before, but it's an SPC 23 Ranger model. It, like the other three are unused, new condition less having been stored in the sheaths. The Parker is another that I could find almost nothing about. I finally found one photo from a sales post on knifeforums from back in 2010 or maybe earlier. Again, it's new with a weird black oxide finish on a "surgical stainless" blade from Japan. From what I've read, the "surgical stainless" is an indicator of AUS6A. The sheath has never been on a belt and is unmarked and decent, thick leather. So finally (all of about 30 seconds of dragging it out on the road back to work), I pulled the Halo out of the bag. The thick brass cross-guard is gleaming in the summer haze around the chicken plants. I hear the faint chorus of angels singing to God Almighty about the awesomeness of this culmination of steel brass and micarta wrapped in an Eagle Mfg cordura sheath. I click the "Pull the Dot" snap on the strap. and with hopeful anticipation, withdraw the flawless five inch blade. Drool puddles, a boner throbs, fingers caress the perfectly executed finger grooves, a smile grows wide enough to make my ears hurt- but alas, I'm driving and wielding a weapon of mass decapitation and am coming to a green light. I must return it to it's abode until I get off work.
It's gonna be a long day. I bought one knife at Bladeshow. I mentioned it in the thread. It's a 4.5" Vulture Equipment Works Talon. I've since found out that they're made by TOPS for Vulture. I figured I could flip it if nothing else. Turns out it's an awesome knife and cuts/chops like a much bigger knife. As my index finger can attest, it's very very sharp. Tip to self- don't try to hone extremely sharp knives- there truly is such a thing as too sharp.
I'll put up pics of the goodies from today. I just had to share the thrill of conquest in winning an auction that turned out to be a great deal.
