I built this knife a while back, intended for Governor Abbott to celebrate the passing of HB1935 which legalized bowie knife carry. Unfortunately hurricane Harvey literally rained on our party, so it took a while to close the deal. Because of the governor thing, many different people had a part in this project. Since this was a bowie, going to the governor of Texas, by a Texas knifemaker, I went with a collection of Texas historical materials.
The blade is forged W2, donated to the project by Aldo Bruno.
The handle is sycamore wood, spalted, from the grounds of the Texas Capitol building in Austin. My brother was friends in college with a guy who worked grounds crew and brought the wood home as firewood. It was ultimately dyed and stabilized by Terry Dunn, of LaVernia, TX. Terry is a TBH member, rubydog.
The guard and spacer are wrought iron, blued. The material was given by Will Frary of Grapevine, TX, and came from the rail of the first railroad into Dallas, TX in 1872.
The coined spacers are 1836 capped-bust half dollars. Texas won its independence from Mexico in 1836.
The stand includes mesquite from Abilene, given to me by my cousin, also a 6th generation Fry Texan. The wrought iron square nails forged to shape for the stand are from the house of 1840’s settler Allen Urquhart, who founded Jefferson, TX. The nails were donated by Don Millhouse of Fredericksburg, Tx.
Thanks to all who contributed to this project!
We met with the Governor on Tuesday last week. He was genuinely interested in the knife's different elements. Left to right, here is Rep Frullo of Lubbock, Doug Ritter of Knife Rights, me, Todd Rathner, and the governor. My instructions were to "dress like a knifemaker, not a lobbyist."
To get this second picture took some shenanigans. We were sitting in the parking lot of the Governor's Mansion about 45 minutes before our appointment, with the Capitol just across the street. That portrait of Jim Bowie is the only known picture of him when he was alive, and was purchased by the State of Texas a few years ago for nearly $300K. It hangs inside the chambers of the House of Representatives. As you might imagine, one does not simply walk into the House chambers inside the Capitol with a giant knife. Even though this wasn't on the agenda, I asked Todd and Doug if we could make it happen. After a couple of phone calls, a laptop bag, and the secret squirrel entrance, we were able to get the photo. No laws were broken, but strings were pulled for sure.
Thanks for letting me share the story with you all!
The blade is forged W2, donated to the project by Aldo Bruno.
The handle is sycamore wood, spalted, from the grounds of the Texas Capitol building in Austin. My brother was friends in college with a guy who worked grounds crew and brought the wood home as firewood. It was ultimately dyed and stabilized by Terry Dunn, of LaVernia, TX. Terry is a TBH member, rubydog.
The guard and spacer are wrought iron, blued. The material was given by Will Frary of Grapevine, TX, and came from the rail of the first railroad into Dallas, TX in 1872.
The coined spacers are 1836 capped-bust half dollars. Texas won its independence from Mexico in 1836.
The stand includes mesquite from Abilene, given to me by my cousin, also a 6th generation Fry Texan. The wrought iron square nails forged to shape for the stand are from the house of 1840’s settler Allen Urquhart, who founded Jefferson, TX. The nails were donated by Don Millhouse of Fredericksburg, Tx.
Thanks to all who contributed to this project!
We met with the Governor on Tuesday last week. He was genuinely interested in the knife's different elements. Left to right, here is Rep Frullo of Lubbock, Doug Ritter of Knife Rights, me, Todd Rathner, and the governor. My instructions were to "dress like a knifemaker, not a lobbyist."
To get this second picture took some shenanigans. We were sitting in the parking lot of the Governor's Mansion about 45 minutes before our appointment, with the Capitol just across the street. That portrait of Jim Bowie is the only known picture of him when he was alive, and was purchased by the State of Texas a few years ago for nearly $300K. It hangs inside the chambers of the House of Representatives. As you might imagine, one does not simply walk into the House chambers inside the Capitol with a giant knife. Even though this wasn't on the agenda, I asked Todd and Doug if we could make it happen. After a couple of phone calls, a laptop bag, and the secret squirrel entrance, we were able to get the photo. No laws were broken, but strings were pulled for sure.
Thanks for letting me share the story with you all!
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