A nickel silver guard makes sense, if less colorful than the usual brass. Might need less polishing.

My Fallkniven NL-2 has a stainless guard, the best of all, I think. I certainly prefer Randall's Micarta option to his leather, especially for humid areas. My NL-2 has a leather handle, which is standard on the NL line, which resembles Randalls. I keep it well polished. www.fallkniven.com

What was the matter with your Beretta? Back then, it wouldn't have had the device to catch a slide that separated and blew off, but that mostly happened with guns shot a lot with high pressure ammo. The latest locking blocks are much more durable than the the early ones, too. I like my M-92FS a lot, and often rely on it for defense.

Anyway, nice avatar! The Model 14 is one of my favorite Randalls. Unfortunately, Texas law limits us to 5.5 inch blades unless on our own land. I have several Pumas with five-inch blades and a Fallkniven S-1, which I think is a superb outdoors knife.