Back in 1982, at the tender age of 14, I witnessed what would be one of the most epic and influential movies of my life. Sylvester Stallone starred as the Vietnam vet in the movie First Blood.
Like most young men my age, I was so smitten by that feature, the first thing I did was rush right out and buy a hollow handle survival knife. Of course, all the cheap Chinese knockoffs out there didn't satisfy my appetite, so I thought I would buy the real deal.
Let's talk about that iconic knife for a moment. It was like it's own character. Kinda like John Wayne's big loop Winchester in True Grit or Steve McQueen's Mustang in Bullitt, the knife just had such an on screen presence.
So anyway, as a kid, I saw the movie credits, the knife was designed and built by Jimmy Lile the Arkansas Knifesmith. So I somehow found a phone number for Mr. Lile, and gave him a call. A very pleasant southern gent. We talked for a few minutes and then he hit me with the price.
$799.
There was no was no way in hell a teenage boy could afford anything near that, so I thanked him for him time and hung up.
Fast forward to present day.
Now that I'm older, I still think $799 is to much to pay for a knife, but I'd still love to own one. So I hoped on the Googler, and looked them up...$1995.00!
I reckon it's just not meant for me to own one.
Like most young men my age, I was so smitten by that feature, the first thing I did was rush right out and buy a hollow handle survival knife. Of course, all the cheap Chinese knockoffs out there didn't satisfy my appetite, so I thought I would buy the real deal.
Let's talk about that iconic knife for a moment. It was like it's own character. Kinda like John Wayne's big loop Winchester in True Grit or Steve McQueen's Mustang in Bullitt, the knife just had such an on screen presence.
So anyway, as a kid, I saw the movie credits, the knife was designed and built by Jimmy Lile the Arkansas Knifesmith. So I somehow found a phone number for Mr. Lile, and gave him a call. A very pleasant southern gent. We talked for a few minutes and then he hit me with the price.
$799.
There was no was no way in hell a teenage boy could afford anything near that, so I thanked him for him time and hung up.
Fast forward to present day.
Now that I'm older, I still think $799 is to much to pay for a knife, but I'd still love to own one. So I hoped on the Googler, and looked them up...$1995.00!
I reckon it's just not meant for me to own one.