I've talked with him a few times at Dallas shows. My overall impression was that the knives are sort of like those by Ralph Bone or G.W. Stone, but the workmanship was less consistent. Still, it was pretty good for the money, and I've seen Randalls no better made.

I think he uses 440C steel, but don't know anything about his heat treatment. G. W. Stone used 440C but had a unique heat treatment that he developed. G.W. had been in the aerospace industry and had learned some things about heat treating steels. I published a profile of him in, "Blade" and spent time in his shop and knew Stone fairly well. His knives were very tough and held an edge well. I didn't like most of his designs as well as I do equivalent Randalls, though. That, of course, is subjective.

I think that if the model appeals to you, the DeLeon knives are sound values and will perform well.