Al Gerhards is one of America's most famous boomerang manufacturers. Al started making strip laminated boomerangs in the 1970s and only made boomerangs until the mid 1980s. Al would spend up to a year test throwing and tuning a single boomerang. He never sold or gave away a boomerang until it was perfect. Al taught himself to tune completely from scratch. Al was my tuning mentor and everything that I contributed to tuning of the MTA boomerang in the early 1980s was a direct result of what I had learned from Al. The Classic weighted hook was the most popular Gerhards boomerang. The Boomerang Man sold a few in his early 1980s catalogs as a regular stock item. They were bought up by eager long distance throwers as fast as they were supplied to Rich. Supply was always a problem. This model had a typical flight range of 77 yards. A few, made out of heavier woods or with added weights, had ranges out to 100+ yards.

This particular boomerang was made in August 1981. It has a single weight in each blade tip. The earlier hooks had an extra half weight on the underside of the elbow, but this was often the source of delamination, so Al abandoned the extra half weight for reasons of durability about the time that this hook was made. Most hooks had a serial number stamped in the lead weight on the lift arm. This one has three wraps of red tape with one wrap covering the lift arm weight, so I cannot tell you the serial number. The buyer will have the option of removing the tape on his/her own discretion. The tape is not structural. There is no damage and the tape is simply there to add visibility in flight. This boomerang is signed and dated Aug 1981. It is a very rare collectable, especially since it is in almost new condition. Gerhards hooks are not indestructable. In fact, the majority of these hooks have been thrown until broken or delamination occured. The buyer must be very careful with this one because of it's age.

This boomerang is from the estate of Brother Brian Thomas. This is a boomerang that Brian would never let out of his collection before his death. The sales of this boomerang will benefit one or more charities that provide relief to the victims of the 2004 Tsunami Disaster in South-East Asia. The price will be slowly reduced every week until it is sold.