Sgian dhu II

[David Thornton]

Sorry Mike, not many in KY will own up to being Scottish. Well, that's not true, they just aren't very vocal. Glasgow (June 1-4) and Carrolton (May12-14) are about all we have. Lexington & Louisville societies have some pretty good Burns diners, especially Louisville. June 3 the new Highland Renaissance Festival starts in Emminance. I'll be kilted at our awards dinner Saturday in Paducah, but I'll be the only one!

Now back to the subject at hand. Yep, gonna cost betwen $200 and $2000 to get what I want. Trouble is, I haven't found exactly what I want, that's why I asked here. So don't be shy, send leads. Especially my brothers in Scotland, would be nice to have info on a custom maker in Scotland.

David

[Bob C]

I got a new sgian dubh from Matt Newsome's Scottish Tartans Museum gift shop today. It's a day knife and it looks great.

It's not one of those mortgage-your-house blades that some of you insist on, but the blade is good and the handle will look good sticking out of my sock.

[David Thornton]

I hope our historian types are still looking at this one. What defines a sgian dubh? Shape of the blade? Shape of the handle? Size?
I havent found a satisfactory answer.
I have found several guys in the US making absolutly gorgeous boot knives and daggers that look amazingly like sgians.
Thanks again
David

[KiltedKnight]

I have a lot of different types of knives that I call a collection and the sgian dubhs that I got from http://www.scotyard.com/shopping/browse.php?cat=37 are all I ever needed, I have a number of sgian dubhs but 'A' and 'D' look great and are all I really ever wear and the prices aren't that bad. they don't have the Damascus steel of course but the blades here still hold a good edge. Sally at The Scotland Yard is a wonderful lady to work with.

Chris.

[KiltedKnight]

I think that would look really nice with a modern kilt, like a UK.

The problem is that one will get you a real nice jail cell for the night in most states. It is not a sgian dubh and has two full cutting edges which is illegal in most states, I have three like it but they never leave the safe.

Chris.

[djweso]

The problem is that one will get you a real nice jail cell for the night in most states. It is not a sgian dubh and has two full cutting edges which is illegal in most states, I have three like it but they never leave the safe.

Chris.

I had no idea that two edges made a difference. Nick any idea if this is true in Michigan, I know you had talk about the laws here.

I know it is not a traditional sgian dubh but I thought it would cover generally the same functions. I am not a knife guy. I don't know that much about them. But I would like one that when I pull it out I don't have to worry about breaking it (yes I have done this and yes it was a cheap blade). However, I am also fairly price sensitive.

[Mike S]

Nearly every state forbids the public carry of double edged blades, even swag or false edged ones as found on the typical Highland Dirk. The reason being that these types of blades are in reality meant for one thing and one thing only, hand to hand combat (the double edge is designed for deadly efficient thrusting of the weapon).

Highland games etc. aren't usually policed with such scrutiny however, as one typically finds all kinds of weapons that would typically be considered a no no for public display/carry, such as Broadswords, dirks, Lochabers, Claymores, spiked targes etc. Some sympathy must be felt by the police, after all, don't most major police agencies have their own pipebands?

[David Thornton]

I'm not going to let you guys off the hook yet, can a sgian be white?

http://cgi.ebay.com/DAGGER-DAMASCUS-...ayphotohosting

[Mike S]

I'm not going to let you guys off the hook yet, can a sgian be white?

http://cgi.ebay.com/DAGGER-DAMASCUS-...ayphotohosting

That is what is known as a "coffin handle" boot knife. It has a nifty, 19th century style grip and fittings (although the orignal 19C. versions were usually much larger daggar or bowie sized knives) etc. but has two strikes against it if you wanted to use it as a Sgian:

One, the size is just a wee bit too small. Although it is double edged, it's blade is little bigger than what Blackpowder shooters would call a patch knife.

Second, as discussed above, it is indeed a double edged "stabbing" knife unlike most modern Sgian Dhus.

To answer your original question, although it tangles with the term Dhu (so does a stag handled Sgian for that matter, and some debate that the term dhu (or more properly dubh) in this case meant to secret or hide, rather than the color black (same with "Black" Watch), I would have no problems at all wearing an appropriate Sgian with that pattern grip/handle, in fact since I make blades myself you've given me some ideals!

[auld argonian]

The problem is that one will get you a real nice jail cell for the night in most states. It is not a sgian dubh and has two full cutting edges which is illegal in most states, I have three like it but they never leave the safe.

Chris.

Actually, that one has only one cutting edge...they do make the same thing with two but I imagine that they make the "single" with exactly that legal restriction in mind.

Best

AA