Canal Street Cutlery D’Holder Hunter

Although the name may be new to some readers, we’ve already reviewed a few knives from the Canal Street Cutlery Co. (CSCC) of Canal Street, Ellenville, in the foothills of the Catskill Mountains, New York State.  Canal St. Cutlery are making a good name for themselves by making 19thC and early 20thC style knives, assembled and finished by American craftsman using best quality modern steels with traditional handle materials including bone, horn, mother of pearl, and hardwoods. The model we are looking at this month is a bowie style hunting knife designed by D’Holder in collaboration with CSCC.

D’Alton Holder (almost always referred to simply as D’Holder) is a Texas born custom knife maker (and custom gun maker at one time) who since 1966 has been designing and building very individual knives; first as a hobby, and then professionally. In a long and distinguished working life in custom blade making, Holder has been a member of (and served with) several Knife Makers Guilds and Knife Collecting Associations, as well as being inducted into the Knife Makers Hall Of Fame in 2003 and receiving various prestigious awards and recognitions from the knife and sporting gun industry. In short; this guy knows his stuff.

The test knife has a total length of 9.25”, with a 4.75” mirror polished clip point blade, giving the classic ‘bowie’ profile but in a sensibly sized hunting design of around 9.25” overall length. The blade is well proportioned – not too slim and not too stubby - being 1.62” at its widest point. The blade construction is full tang with integrally cast single point guard, made of 19C27 Sandvik speciality steel (hardened to Rockwell 60-63) and highly polished to give a superb mirror finish.

The grip scales are of black Buffalo Horn with nickel silver pins and a coined nickel silver custom D'Holder/CS shield inset into the left hand side. Heft is good, with the substantial weight of over half a pound balancing well; not surprising really, when you consider the extra concentration of weight at the guard.

This is a Limited Edition knife of 400, with each one being individually numbered on the spine edge of the bolster – this particular knife was No.124.

Although of a relatively uncomplicated design and simple choice of handle materials (compared to some other D’Holder knives), the pure quality, strength and finish of this knife elevates it to the status of a collector’s piece. Proudly made in the USA, the D'Holder Bowie Hunter comes packaged in an ‘antiqued’ Canal Street gift box complete with a good quality leather sheath.

PRICE:
£198.95 (on test)
£195.95 (drop point version #179315)