Cool Sgian Dubh on ebay

**scotchmaster** · 21st January 09, 11:14 AM

Spied this ebay. I have 4 decent Sgians. But thought someone might want to grab it.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Scottish-Highlan...photohostingon

**piperdbh** · 21st January 09, 11:15 AM

Nice knife, but not for $85.

**Howard Clark** · 21st January 09, 11:34 AM

It's about half price at that.

**Leprechaun 91** · 21st January 09, 12:31 PM

Sort of makes me want to take up knife making.

**Scot01always** · 21st January 09, 12:34 PM

It's a Rab Gordan. I have 2 of his. They are really nice!
Cheers, Leslie

**ehiker** · 21st January 09, 01:12 PM

How much time did this person spend making the sgian dubh? A couple of hours? Probably three, maybe a little more or less...

If you spent three or four hours making something, material costs aside, what would YOU consider to be a fair price for that object?

At $85, you'd be paying that person about $25/hour (plus material costs). If this is a business, then that isn't pure profit - it also covers any overhead they have to pay, like rent and utility bills and equipment costs. (Honestly, if it isn't a business, they're still making something to try and help pay bills, so they still have to pay rent/mortgage, utiltity bills and equipment costs.)

So if you want to make it yourself, then that's when I as you, "What is YOUR time worth?" How long would it take you to make it, and would you be saving yourself money by doing it that way?

For some people, it is simply easier to pay another person for their time and materials.

If you wanted to make it yourself, you would have to pay $12 (plus shipping) for the blade, then you have to get the wood, then you have to be able to properly work the wood (cut, shape, carve, glue, etc. with woodworking tools) and mount the blade, then you have to get the leather, cut the leather to shape, stitch it up and add details like carving or burning... how much time and money have you invested in this object now, especially if you don't have some or any of the necessary tools and you have to buy them?

If you have a full woodworking shop full of wood and leather scraps and tons of equipment, then you wouldn't be out much but the cost of the blade and a few hours of time and it wouldn't be a big deal for you.

But if you don't have the skill or time or materials or equipment to do all of the above in a convenient and easy manner, then the easiest and most ecconomical solution would be to buy it from someone who does.

Just the opinion of someone who makes things and prices them according to how much his time is worth...

**ehiker** · 21st January 09, 01:26 PM

Oh, ho! I honestly didn't even look at it closely enough to see it was a RG sgian. Thanks for the info, Leslie.

So add to all of the above the fact that any silver on the sgian is going to be hallmarked sterling and the quality is going to be top notch. And I'd say the time investment is probably more than three hours.

A used RG Sgian for $85 (plus not having to pay overseas shipping) is a bargain.

**Howard Clark** · 21st January 09, 02:52 PM

Any Rab Gordon sgian dubh for that price is a real bargain ! The handle is worth the price, with no blade at all.

I have made a living this way (making knives/blades/steel/swords) for twenty years. Nobody gets rich at it. It is a lot of work, and requires a good bit of investment in equipment and skills.

**BEEDEE** · 21st January 09, 02:53 PM

Originally Posted by Scot01always

It's a Rab Gordan. I have 2 of his. They are really nice!
Cheers, Leslie

Good eyes. At the current price, that's about 30% off. Not bad.

Brian

**Adam Pound** · 21st January 09, 04:37 PM

Originally Posted by Howard Clark

Any Rab Gordon sgian dubh for that price is a real bargain ! The handle is worth the price, with no blade at all.

I have made a living this way (making knives/blades/steel/swords) for twenty years. Nobody gets rich at it. It is a lot of work, and requires a good bit of investment in equipment and skills.

Am I mistaken or have I seen some of your pieces in "Knife" magazine?