Finally broke down and bought a knife I had as a kid with a sad backstory.
My dad was a USMC sniper in the 60's, member of the USMC pistol team, and bunked with Carlos Hathcock in sniper school. I was a fan of the Marines as a kid. I got a paper route and saved my dollars until I could afford a genuine Kabar USMC Fighting Knife.
I paid some crazy amount back then, which was around 1981 or so, I think it was around $35. My dream BMX bike was $89.
So I get my Kabar, and I fall in love with it. The smell of the leather handle and sheath, the enormous heft in my 12yr old hands, the ominous presence of the blood groove on the blade, and the official-looking seal of the USMC on the sheath. It was the coolest thing I had ever owned.
My mom hated it. I would strap it on my belt and go riding around town on my BMX bike, Sons of Anarchy style, with a giant Kabar dangling down my leg.
Not sure what happened, but mom decided enough was enough and seized my Kabar and hid it in a tool shed on our small ranch, promising to return it when I was old enough.
Unfortunately, the shed was not environmentally friendly to a knife and it was destroyed by the elements.
A few months ago, I was on Amazon and for some reason, a genuine Kabar USMC Fighting Knife appeared in my search results. $80. Stupid amount of money for a knife I didn't need and was inferior to my $60 Ontario Knife Company RAT 5.
But, nostalgia got the better of me and I ordered it.
Nearly as good as the one from 40 years ago, but the sheath was thinner and cheaper feeling. Knife itself was perfect and brought back a ton of warm memories...
Applied some leather treatment to the handle and sheath and it is almost perfect.