Tommy Thompson And The Randall Made Knives Model 11 Alaskan Skinner

At the conclusion of my last article about Ward Gay and his Randall Made Knives Model 20, I alluded to my writing today's article about the Model 11 that was designed and basically "commissioned" by Tommy Thompson.  

I think you might find this little tid-bit very intriguing.

How do two men who were both bush pilots and hunting/ fishing guides, designed two completely different styles of knife.  Each was a seasoned professional and passionate about the reasons behind their design requirements.  Yet when you see the two knives side by side, you would never fathom that they were both designed for the exact same purpose.  

What is even more interesting, is that Thompson and Gay knew each other.  Thompson's knife was designed and already being sold to Alaskan hunters a decade prior to Gay's knife being conceived.  

Do you think it is possible Mr. Gay had ever seen a Model 11?

Surely Mr. Gay had seen a Model 11.  Maybe he even used a Model 11.  We know he was familiar with Randall Made Knives.  If the two men did not have such differing opinions about what a hunting knife should be, then this would be a very short article.  Ward Gay would simply have purchased a Model 11.  The End. Thankfully for Randall Knife collectors and users, that was not the case. 

Here is a little known fact:

Back in the late 40's and early 50's, the Randall Made Knives catalog included an option for a customer to order "Custom Made Knives" to their specifications.  Randall even encouraged it.  Tommy took full advantage of this offer and submitted his proposal on September 29, 1950.  At the time his idea was only labeled as "special".  On December 11, 1950, Randall shipped Tommy his knife.  Tommy lived in Anchorage Alaska.  This knife he designed as it turns out, is not the predecessor to the Model 11.  The drawings for that knife were either not preserved, or never found by Mr. Gaddis during his exhaustive research for his book.  Mr. Thompson was so impressed with the knife he received, he traveled to Orlando to meet Bo and the two of them became friends.  In the Summer of 1952, he returned again to Orlando during the off-season in Alaska and carried with a sketch of a knife he wanted made.  After a final design was agreed upon, it was named the Thompson Skinner, which morphed into the Thompson Alaska Skinner which was then morphed yet again to the Alaskan Skinner, adding an "n" to Alaska and squeezing out Tommy's name altogether.    

Below is an excerpt from the book Randall Made Knives: The History of the Man and the Blades, by Robert L. Gaddis, pages 126-130.

Tommy wanted a blade shape that not only was good for skinning but also would greatly reduce the chances of cutting into the intestinal cavity while making an initial cut up the animal's belly... The idea of having the top of a hunting knife blade slope down slightly from hilt to point was not totally new.  Bo himself had made a "special"  of this general type for a customer in the late 40's.  What was unique at this date of February 1952 was a drop-point [sic] style on a handy-size knife with only a 4- or [sic] 4 1/2 inch, relatively thin blade.  All this and a contoured area on the top for thumb placement equaled a major breakthrough in the practical hunting knife field.

You may find this very interesting:

Ever notice how closely the Model 11 blade, not handle or guard, resembles a Bob Loveless Hunter.  I repeat, I'm specifically referring to just the blade.  Bob started making knives in 1953 after he went to Abercrombie and Fitch to buy, of all things, a Randall Made Knife, only to learn that there was a nine-month wait for one.

So what does an enterprising young sailor do?

He decided to just make his own knife.  The Randall Made Knives Alaskan Skinner was introduced to the world via a revised edition of the Randall catalog in 1952.  My guess is that even by 1953, the Alaskan Skinner had not made it into Abercrombie and Fitch.  Even if it had, there would not have been one in stock to see.  Bob was a Merchant Marine and had been at sea, so he probably had seen other Randall Made Knives being carried by his shipmates, but not the Alaskan Skinner.  And additionally, the Model 11 would have been the first and only dropped point made by Randall.  I strongly believe that Bob Loveless came up with his own Dropped Point knife out of necessity and years of experience hunting and using knives that just did not suit him completely.  

Do you think Bob started from scratch or was he "inspired" by Randall? 

It was Mr. Loveless who revolutionized the Dropped Hunter.  That is the name of the blade.  The point of the blade is dropped below the center line of the blade.  That is what Bob called it,  and since he is "The Man", I'll also refer to it that way.  And, just as an aside, Bob made his first knife while on the ship at sea.  When he returned to dry land, he took that knife to Abercrombie and Fitch and walked out of the store with an order for several of them.  He eventually wound up being most popular and highest selling knife maker in the store.  

Some cool features I like about the Alaskan Skinner:

What I particularly find nice about the Alaskan Skinner is the thumb ramp with notches cut into it.  The one I currently own has a nice subtle/gentle ramp.  Because these are all handmade and no jigs or patterns are used, there are always going to be variances.  That is a part of the appeal in my opinion.  So, therefore, some 11's that come out of the shop have too much of a lift at the point closest to the spine, which sort of jams the thumb, but most have a nice gradual rise that is very comfortable.  The high flat grind creates a nice thin cutting edge, yet remains beefy enough at the tip to not be fragile, and the dropped point, in my opinion, makes a better skinning knife than the Ward Gay Model 20.  Perhaps Mr. Thompson had previously owned a Randall Model 3 or 4 and got tired of piercing the guts of deer.  If you have never experienced that, then the next time you gut a deer, after you get the gut sack out, if you are feeling adventurous, poke a nice hole in it and take a whiff.  Yowza, now that's a good reason to get a Dropped Point!!

How many Model 11's have you owned?  Ever find the right one?

I've had a half dozen of the Model 11.  Some come with nice robust blades, and others have a very thin edge combined with thin grind all the way up to the spine of the blade.  After reading more about what it was that Tommy wanted in a knife, I believe that the really thin grind is more in line with what he wanted.  However, from a practical standpoint and personal preference, I do see an advantage to a little thicker grind.  It reduces the chances of taking a Chicklet sized divot out of your blade should you encounter bone.  I've read horror stories about that.  

How close are today's Model 11's to the original drawing?

In Tommy's sketch, although he does not make a big production out of it, you can tell he clearly wants a very small choil, similar to the design Mr. Gay wanted.  I find that interesting how the Model 11 and Model 20 share that one very vital design similarity, yet the two knife designs are polar opposites.  

I've seen examples of the older Model 11's with an almost non-existent choil, which I personally prefer.  But, again, it seems that a "standardization" of the blade grinds, especially where the blade meets the guard, has cast aside of the completely utilitarian reasons for the absence of a sharp point where the choil stops and the blade begins.  For those of you who have not read my article about the Ward Gay Model 20, then shame on you.  However, as a refresher, the reason behind not wanting a sharp point at the very beginning of the blade, is it has a tendency to get caught on the hide of the animal.

  

Model 11 top, Model 20 bottom.

It was a tough decision!

As much as I like the Ward Gay Model 20, I prefer the blade of the Alaskan Skinner.  I find it a much more versatile blade shape.  With the dropped point and more accessible spine, it gives your left hand a nice place to push down on if you need to force the blade through something tough.  Even though I do not condone this for any hidden tang knife, you could use the knife for light bushcrafting in a survival situation if you found yourself in that situation.  If you want a Randall Made Knife for that sort of activity, I suggest you get the Fireman.  More on that knife in an upcoming article where I will discuss how you could easily field dress a Buick, and then come home and slice carrots for your Deer Goulash.  

Tommy Thompson

Photo credits: Randall Made Knives: The History of the Man and the Blades, by Robert L. Gaddis.