Gauging worth of a Philippines bali

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BTB0923
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Gauging worth of a Philippines bali

Post by BTB0923 »

Someone offered to sell this knife to me for $30 and I'm trying to decide whether or not to get it. The seller says that he bought it when he was in the Philippines. Anybody wager a guess as to what it might be worth or have any other information about this type of bali?

Thanks!
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natcherly
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Re: Gauging worth of a Philippines bali

Post by natcherly »

Thirty bux?? How far wrong can you go? Looks like a typical hand made bali from Mindanao.

Mabuhay bruddah!
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Re: Gauging worth of a Philippines bali

Post by Vagrant »

Full agreement.
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BTB0923
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Re: Gauging worth of a Philippines bali

Post by BTB0923 »

Thanks for the replys guys. So you think I should get it? Sorry, I'm not that familiar with balisongs....when you say "typical hand made from Mindanao" does that mean they are fairly common?
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Re: Gauging worth of a Philippines bali

Post by Vagrant »

More a statment about the region they were made in :idea:
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BTB0923
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Re: Gauging worth of a Philippines bali

Post by BTB0923 »

Ah, I see. Well if its distinguishable enough to be able to guess the region where it was made I suppose its worth $30 at least. I guess I'll get it. I'll try and get a little more history on the knife if I can.
Last edited by BTB0923 on Sun Mar 14, 2010 3:58 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Gauging worth of a Philippines bali

Post by Vagrant »

It was, similar, to looking at an old Chevy, amd guessing it was made in Detroit :wink:
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Viking45
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Re: Gauging worth of a Philippines bali

Post by Viking45 »

For 30 bucks I would buy it without thinking it to death. Some Chinese crap sells for 30+
Take a gamble for sure,the handle material makes it worth 30 and then some.
harimau
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Re: Gauging worth of a Philippines bali

Post by harimau »

Balisongs are not commonly made in Mindanao--that one was made in Batangas on the island of Luzon (several hundred miles north of Mindanao). It has jigged horse bone scales, and for $30, is a great deal, considering you can't bring them into the US anymore. :)
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Re: Gauging worth of a Philippines bali

Post by Chrisadamley »

30 dollars would be NO hesitation from me :)

I would scoop that baby us in an instant. I agree with viking, the look of the handles makes it worth it, and also im sure it will be a decent balisong.
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BTB0923
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Re: Gauging worth of a Philippines bali

Post by BTB0923 »

harimau wrote:Balisongs are not commonly made in Mindanao--that one was made in Batangas on the island of Luzon (several hundred miles north of Mindanao). It has jigged horse bone scales, and for $30, is a great deal, considering you can't bring them into the US anymore. :)
Thanks for the info!
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harimau
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Re: Gauging worth of a Philippines bali

Post by harimau »

I figured I'd answer your PM publicly in case anyone else wanted the info:

that balisong is very typically Filipino, and almost all balisongs in the Philippines are made in Batangas. I have a whole box of assorted ones next to me, including one a lot like yours (except brand new, and I picked it up in Batangas a few weeks ago). Balisong.com sells brand new balisongs for $100 shipped. You could sell yours for around $50--it's an ok example of a bali. The pins on the horse bone inserts are unevenly placed and the blade is slightly tarnished (or is that just grease), which makes it look older. Was the guy who sold it to you Filipino?
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BTB0923
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Re: Gauging worth of a Philippines bali

Post by BTB0923 »

harimau wrote:Was the guy who sold it to you Filipino?
No, he was a missionary in the Philipines in the 80's and bought it while he was over there. I actually didn't buy the knife, but the same guy has a much larger one in basically the same style that he is trying to sell me. Here are some pics, its 11 inches in length when open...
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harimau
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Re: Gauging worth of a Philippines bali

Post by harimau »

Definitely from Batangas. That's some serious patina on the brass, and the bone inserts aren't the best, but I'd pay $30-40 for it since it's from the 80s. 11" open is the classic size (29 cm) for a balisong in the Philippines. I'd check it for blade play and to make sure it latches open well both open and closed.
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