Randall Made Knives, usually referred to as Randall, is an American custom handcrafted knife manufacturer founded by Walter Doane "Bo" Randall, Jr. in the U.S. The knife making shop and showroom is located in Orlando, Florida. Randall began making knives as a hobby in 1937.Randall Made Knives; Orlando - Handmade knives November 2013 Florida Trend magazine page 87. His son and grandson continue the family trade along with 20 staff producing about 8,000 knives per year in South Orange Blossom Trail.

Randall offers 28 models of knives for different applications, each customizable at the factory based on customer specification.Randall Made Knives. "Catalog" , Randall Made Knives website. Retrieved on October 25, 2007. Randall hand forges nearly all models of knives instead of using factory stampingRandall Made Knives. Randall made Knives brochure, 33rd Printing, page 5. or stock removal, one of few manufacturers to do so. Randall uses a 17-step process for making knives, which usually takes over 8 hours to complete.Coulbourn, Keith. "A Cut Above The Average", Florida Accent, February 12, 1967. The waiting list for obtaining a Randall from the shop is typically six years."Custom Randall Made Knife Order". Randall Made Knives website. Retrieved August 31, 2020.

Two examples of Randall's Model 17 "Astro", designed for the use of astronauts, are on display in the Smithsonian Institution. The company operates its own museum containing more than 7,000 knives and other edged weapons, including one of the world's largest collections of pocketknives.Tucker, Tim. "Randall-Made: Craftsman Shapes Hobby Into World's Most Famous Knife", The Palm Beach Post, November 15, 1984, page D2.

History

Bo Randall first became interested in making knives after he purchased a Bill Scagel knife that was being used to scrape paint off of a boat without showing any signs of wear or damage. He made his first knife in his garage at Lake Ivanhoe, Florida using an auto spring.

He founded the company in 1938. Although Randall originally designed his knives for outdoorsmen and sold them at sporting goods stores, demand from military customers initially provided his biggest boost in business and launched his company nationally.Randall Made Knives. Randall made Knives brochure, 33rd Printing, pages 3–4.

In the early 1940s, Randall knives significantly increased in popularity after receiving good publicity during World War II. Several noted war heroes and GIs on all fronts carried Randall knives with them into major battles, including top American Ace Richard Bong, Lieutenant General James M. Gavin, commander of the 82nd Airborne Division during the Normandy invasion. Army Air Force Captain Ronald Reagan, future U.S. President, owned a Randall knife in World War II.Randall Made Knives. Randall made Knives brochure, 33rd Printing, page 1.Gaddis, Robert L. Randall Made Knives: The History of the Man and the Blades (Boulder, Colorado: Paladin Press, 1993), pages 93–94. Randalls were so popular that GIs from overseas ordered through the mail by simply addressing letters to the "Knife Man, Orlando".Hayes, Joseph. "Precious Metals", Orlando Magazine.com, January 2010. Retrieved on June 03, 2010.

Shortly after the war, the popularity of Randall knives increased among non-military users, and Randall developed additional models specifically for expanding markets. In 1956, Randall received a United States design patent for models 14 and 15.United States Patent and Trademark Office, U.S. Patent US0D0177,590 , "Knife", May 1, 1956. In 1957, bestselling author James Jones mentioned Randall knives in his book Some Came Running, and subsequently helped Randall to design a diver's knife. In the Vietnam War, General William Westmoreland, Commander of American military operations in Vietnam, was often photographed with a Randall. Pilot Gary Powers of the 1960 U-2 incident, and herpetologist Ross Allen, carried Randalls. In 1982, Randall was inducted into the Blade Magazine Cutlery Hall of Fame at the Blade Show in Atlanta, Georgia.

Bo Randall died in 1989 in Orlando, Florida, at 80 years of age. His son, Gary Randall, currently oversees production at Randall made Knives.

Bo Randall was inducted into the Blade magazine Cutlery Hall of Fame at the 1983 Blade Show as an inauguree. In 1997, Randall was inducted into the American Bladesmith Society Hall of Fame. In 2001, Randall's knives were listed as "Best Sheath Knife" as part of Forbes "50 Best List".

Randall in space

As the U.S. began its space program, NASA needed a survival knife for its astronauts, and Major Gordon Cooper worked with Randall on the design of the Model 17 "Astro".Wolfe, Thomas C. (1982) Knives Of The Astronauts, Blade. October 1, 1982 These first astronauts carried their Randalls into space. In 1999, the Liberty Bell 7 Mercury space capsule was recovered from the ocean with astronaut Gus Grissom's Randall knife inside. Despite having spent 40 years at a depth of underwater, the knife was still serviceable after a good cleaning. The Smithsonian Institution has two Astros on display.Randall Made Knives. Randall made Knives brochure, 33d Printing, page 8.

Randall Made knives museum

The Randall Made Knives Museum is located at the shop facility in Orlando and contains more than 7,000–knives and other edged weapons.Randall Made Knives. Randall made Knives brochure, 35th Printing, page 38. It has one of the largest collections of pocketknives in the world and home to the world's largest collection of Bill Scagel's knives. The museum contains many historical pictures and documents related to Randall knives. Randall plans to move the museum to a larger facility.

Models

Various models of Randall knives are listed below, along with years of introduction (in parentheses).Wickersham, Sheldon, and Edna Wickersham. Randall Made Knives, a Timeline. The Quick Reference Guide, 3rd Edition. Sheldon and Edna Wickersham, 2008.

Bowie knives Model 6 "Steak Knife" (also called "All-Purpose Carving Knife") (1945) Model 12 "Bowie" (also called "Smithsonian Bowie") (1953) Model 13-12 "Arkansas Toothpick" (1953)

Military style knives Model 1 "All Purpose Fighting Knife" (1943) Model 2 "Fighting Stiletto" (1944) Model 14 "Attack" (1954) Model 15 "Airman" (1954) Model 16 SP#1 "Special #1 Fighter" or "Diver's Knife", slightly modified Bowie pattern that is designed for use around water.Hughes, B. R. "Anatomy of a Combat Knife: SOF Interviews Experts", Soldier of Fortune, volume 6, number 1, January 1981, page 52. (1959) Model 24 "Guardian" (1979)

Outdoorsmen knives Model 3 "Hunter" (1944) Model 4 "Big Game and Skinner" (1945) Model 5 "Camp and Trail Knife" (1945) Model 7 "Fisherman-Hunter" (1945) Model 8 "Trout and Bird Knife" (1946) Model 9 "Pro-Thrower" (1947) Model 25 "The Trapper" (1988) Model 26 "Pathfinder" (1993) Model 27 "Trailblazer" (1999) Model 28 "Woodsman"

Saltwater knives Model 10 "Salt Fisherman and Household Utility" (1948) Model 16 "Diver's Knife" (1959)

Skinning and hunting knives Model 11 "Alaskan Skinner" (1952) Model 19 "Bushmaster" (1963) Model 20 "Yukon Skinner" (1963) Model 21 "Little Game" (1967) Model 22 "Outdoorsman" (1971) Model 23 "Gamemaster" (1972)

Survival knives Model 17 "Astro" (1963) Model 18 "Attack-Survival" (1963)

Notes

External links

Websites Randall Made Knives (official Website)

Web Articles "The Randall Story" , Knife World, April 1999 by Jim Williamson