Integral Turkish Twist Damascus Gaucho with Fluted Ebony and Twisted Silver Wire
Best Handle Design, Blade Show 2025

Product Description for Integral Turkish Twist Damascus Gaucho with Fluted Ebony and Twisted Silver Wire
Best Handle Design, Blade Show 2025

Maker: Pedro Fornari (click to see more by this maker)
Item num: 112774
** This is handmade and one-of-a-kind **
Blade length: 8.00 in.
Cutting edge length: 7.90 in.
Total length: 13.30 in.
Blade height (at heel): 1.32 in.
Blade thickness (near bolster): 0.19 in.
Blade thickness (at midpoint): 0.15 in.
Blade thickness (near tip): 0.06 in.
Item weight: 9.60 oz.
Shipment weight: 23.8 oz.
Blade: Five bar Turkish Twist damascus forged from 1095 and 15N20 carbon steels
Handle: Integral Turkish Twist damascus inlaid with fluted ebony
Sheath: Ostrich leather sheath and premium zipper case
Description: Pedro Fornari is part of the growing and highly skilled community of bladesmiths coming out of Brazil. Years ago, Jerry Fisk went to Brazil and trained bladesmiths like Eduardo Berrardo who then passed this knowledge onto others. Now the knives coming out of Brazil are exceptionally amazing. Pedro's work is almost in a class of its own. The flawless execution of his designs and damascus is a level of work even many mastersmith knifemakers aspire to. He specializes in forging integral knives using a homemade hammer and anvil. He is certainly one of the rising stars in the industry!
This incredible knife is among Pedro's masterworks to date. It is no surprise that it won Best Handle Design at the 2025 Atlanta Blade Show. This entire knife is created from a single piece of Turkish Twist damascus with an incredibly difficult and meticulously done inlay.
Cuchillo gaucho is a generic term for a style of knife characteristic of the gauchos, horsemen of the plains of South America -- principally Argentina, of mestizo (mixed Spanish and Indian) heritage. Analogous to the cowboy of the American West and the Mexican vaquero, the gauchos were mounted cattlemen initially living and working in vast undeveloped areas at the fringes of "civilization". Aside from its obvious potential as a weapon in duels, which were to mark rather than kill an adversary the cuchillo gaucho has a reputation as a truly multi-purpose tool and was used for tasks as diverse as slaughtering and skinning cattle, working leather, cutting wood, and making adobe bricks. In the wilderness, the gaucho could listen for distant approaches by sticking his knife into the ground and pressing an ear against its hilt. The knife was the gaucho's primary eating utensil: a large chunk of meat would be placed in the mouth and the excess cut off with an upward stroke of the knife, stopping short of amputation of the nose. Afterwards, it would serve as a toothpick. And, of course, in the gaucho's twilight in the 20th century, its use as a can opener was inevitable.
The 8 inch blade was hand forged from Fornari's own Turkish Twist damascus, combining 1095 and 15N20 carbon steels to ensure excellent edge holding. An incredibly complex pattern, this Turkish Twist combines five separate bars of alternating twist pattern damascus into a mesmerizing blade that will have you staring at it for hours! The pattern is extremely tight and controlled, showing tremendous skill at the forge. The blade is flat ground and razor sharp. Pedro's touchmark is engraved into the right side of the blade. We recommend using camellia oil to protect the blade from rust and oxidation.
The handle is integral to the blade, ground from one solid piece of Fornari’s damascus. To do this in a custom setting is extremely difficult and shows Pedro's skills at his best. Very few makers could pull this off successfully. Both sides of the handle are meticulously inlaid with hand fluted ebony, which was then wrapped with twisted silver wire. This is among the most dramatic handles I have ever seen! The balance is fantastic and it has an excellent tactile feel in hand.
To keep the knife close at hand, a hand stitched ostrich leather sheath is included. A premium leather zipper case is also included to keep the knife close at hand.
Excellent work throughout!


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