It has long been undisputed fact that Benchmade creates the best and most sought after Balisongs under heaven - custom, production or otherwise, and in defiance Custom makers and production companies have risen to the occation to try their own hand at their craft to make their own Custom Balisong creation and be remembered. In the field of production, Compass Industries and Taylor/Seto have made their own production Balisongs that rival BM, and in the world of Custom Balisongs, big names like Walter Erikson, Ron Miller, Salley and others have also left their mark in Balisong Urban history. The discontinuation of BM's Balisong line (and deep inside you know it, the ILLEGALITIES too) sparked an INSANE frenzy for these knives and now with the reintroduction of the BM42, many knifemakers have accepted the challenge to give rebirth to the Balisong. I am happy to review these Custom and Semi-Custom Balisong creations by these talented individuals.
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xxxxx Hermit (hermit@kynd.net), a good friend of mine is a custom maker who specializes in classic italian automatics and also does excellent rescaling jobs for second party knives. In his humble abode he ages his own dark brews and enjoys life in the peaceful outdoors per his namesake. For quite some time I have wanted to work with him and commission a job. Finally I have had my chance. I was truly ecstatic when I received his package today with that little goodie. I had sent him a Jaguar Model 259 copy and asked him to rescale the plastic inserts with Kamagong wood, a native wood of the Philippines used in the toughest Arnis sticks used in the art. The wood came from shards of my broken arnis stick. This stick is tougher than any wood I have seen and can really lower your IQ if it scores a hit.. not to mention put a dent in that real estate. How I broke my Arnis stick? Best you not ask.
Semi Custom Statistics:
# Kamagong wood scales with [industrial] screw lockdown.
# High polished bolsters with copper and silver two tone effect.
# Refurbished and polished Tang and Latch pins.
# OPTIONAL: blade regrind.
# Latch stamped , [H E R M I T].
xxxxx The scan (you can click on the pic for a larger image) does not do the knife justice. In specific, the pic doesn't show the cool two tone (copper and silver finish caused by the alloy) high polish on the bolsters. I should have thought about it earlier but I could have asked Hermit to regrind the blade to a Bowie (my fave) or aggresive Weehawk shape. Hopefully I can ask him to do that when his workload lightens up. The Kamagong scales are fastened to the handles with naked screws. Hermit chose to leave them uncapped to give the knife a look that I like to call [Raw Industrial] which I think matches the oval cutouts on the side of the handle. Hermit also removed the faulty out-of-the-box tang pins and latch pins, replaced them with stainless rivets and ground/polished them to a smooth finish. Due to the nature of stainless rivets they do not swell as effectively as finishing nails so there is a bit of wobble in the handle blade interaction but nothing that prevents the knife from being functional. I have addressed this issue with Hermit and it's pretty impressive for his first attempt at replacing pins. Although I do not plan to put this knife through destructive testing I plan to put it through the ropes on my yearly trip to Vegas with the family.
xxxxxOh how can I forget about the most important part!!! The rescaling of the handles with the Kamagong wood. The fit and finish is smooth and tight. The shaping of the scales are also professionally done, but I had no doubt that Hermit woud perform to mthe highest quality. in my eyes this Bali came from being a BM alternative to it's own as a statement of art. It feels amazingly comfortable and warm in the hand. A pleasure to hold and marvel as well as manipulate.
xxxxxWhile Hermit has his hands full with his custom Italian automatica, he has long expressed inteest in milling and grinding his own bonafide Custom Hermit River Balisong. (Consider this a kick to the butt Shawn >_<). I, as well as the rest of the old school familiar with his excellent work, are looking forward to it. Drop Hermit a line if you want an honest to Michealangelo Italian auto, a rescaling job or just to chat about.. say,,, Moose.
