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In MemoriamPermalink Reply by John McCain on December 21, 2014 at 18:55

Tommy Goff was a noted Texas knifemaker who unfortunately passed away last year-- His speciality was accurate reproductions of period authentic Bowie knives-  Knives actually made by him  have gone for a couple thousand dollars.Unfortunately there are many knives out there, that state " customized by Tommy Goff" or designed by Tommy Goff." Some are , alas, cheap knock-offs made in Pakistan or elsewhere overseas.--- That is why you will see them on ebay, etc. going for $24.99. A Tommy Goff actually made by him, you would not come close to buying for that kind of price----

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Permalink Reply by David Patrick on December 21, 2014 at 22:00

Thanks for all the helpful info. I just got home from the gun & knife show that I set up at this weekend and I did end up buying the knife. I hope to get pics posted soon. Again, the knife is just tang stamped "GOFF" in block letters. It is not a new Tommy Goff knife supposedly designed by Tommy Goff but mass produced in a factory in Pakistan, the one with the "tg" inside a star etched on the side of the blade. It was probably made by someone else named Goff, not Tommy Goff. I would like to find out who made the knife or at least rule out the possibility of it being a real Tommy Golf made knife. I had a couple of knifemakers look at it to give me their opinion of the workmanship and they basically said it was well made and the maker knew what he was doing, not a beginner. They said it was probably made to be used and not made to be so expensive that you would just collect it. I'll post pics soon. Please continue to reply with your ideas. Thanks.  

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Permalink Reply by David Patrick on December 21, 2014 at 22:46

I think the knife has the wrong handle material to be a period reproduction bowie.

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Permalink Reply by David Patrick on December 23, 2014 at 22:37

I was hoping to find out who made this knife, someone named Goff I suppose. It is 10 inches overall with a

6 inch blade and micarta handles. 

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In MemoriamPermalink Reply by John McCain on December 24, 2014 at 9:52

Just found this-- It MIGHT be knife maker  Peter Goff of Minneapolis, Minnesota. Here is a link to an article about him. His knives sell in the $45 to $500 range. As stated in the article, he does often use micarta as handle material.

http://www.midwesthomemag.com/core/pagetools.php?pageid=7095&ur...   

BTW, his father Harold, was also a knife maker.

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Permalink Reply by David Patrick on December 24, 2014 at 11:34

Thanks a lot. I will try to contact him and will post the results here.

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Permalink Reply by Jan Carter on December 24, 2014 at 17:42

David, 

Cant wait to hear the results.  Excellent work John McCain!!

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Permalink Reply by David Patrick on December 30, 2014 at 16:05

I'm not having any luck contacting Peter Goff knifemaker from Minneapolis. It looks like the framing shop he owned at the time of the 2007 article at http://www.midwesthomemag.com/ has gone out of business. He called his knife business Harborg Custom Cutlery so his knives may have been marked that way. I will keep trying.

I have not had any luck finding an example of a knife made by Tommy Goff. I can only find those new factory knives made in Pakistan. If he was a knifemaker for more than 30 years there ought to be at least one of his knives on line. I would like to see how Tommy Goff marked the knives he made.

If anyone knows how Tommy Goff marked his knives or finds any of the knives that he made on-line, please let me know. Thanks.

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