The Bladesmith
| Making Your Knife | The Materials I Use | Shop Tour |
Making Your Knife
Damascus:
I start by forging the steel. In the case of Damascus blades, the metal is heated, in the forge, to over 2000 degrees and the layers are forge welded together layer upon layer until the desired amount is reached. The patterns consists of 40 layers (larger patterns) to over 400 layers (fine detail).
How I Work:
After forging, I use a few small machines to clean up the scale and remove metal from my knives. I use machines such as grinders, a drill press and belt sander. After grinding, I use file and sand paper to finish shaping the blade and handle. Each knife is hand finished to at least 400 grit and some up to 1500 grit. Each knife has many hours put into it.
I also put time into studying knife designs. I learn new techniques to make my knives better and find ways to make the steel perform better, stronger, longer. I am ever learning.
I strive for performance in my knives. I don’t claim my knives are the best in the world. I will say, my knife will probably be the best many have owned . I use quality carbon steels and heat treat them to perform well. I do cut testing and practice cutting with my knives to bring you a knife that will work hard for you in your daily tasks. My knife will be one that you will be proud to own and carry. A knife that will serve you a lifetime and pass on to the generations that follow you.
My Bio
I was born and raised in Montana. The simple pleasures of country life with its wide open fields and broad horizons provided a great backdrop for my childhood. I always found different hobbies that caught my interest. In shop class I learned wood working and a little welding. My dad would take me on three day fishing trips into Glacier Lake. Flies seemed expensive for a teenager so I learned to fly tie. I enjoyed art in school. Pencil drawings were my favorite medium. In college I took some architecture classes and learned the relationship between “form and function.” I was a “Jack of all trades” but master of none.
While at college, I also discovered a love of photography. My passion for nature and the beauty of God’s creation fueled my desire to click the shutter. A moment captured on a 4×6. I found that photography could be a visual vocabulary, telling others what you see and how you see it. Good perspective in photography means stepping back and taking a look at what is really there. One can change the angle, strip away all the distraction, and capture the essence.
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After a two year stint at college I moved to Washington, where, during a vacation I was fortunate to meet a knife maker. Before that day I did not know the world of custom knife making existed. The maker told me that I could get blanks and design handles for them. Wood working, I thought, “I can do that.” About a year later my wonderful wife found a knife maker at an art show that forged his own blades. I visited his shop and took a class in forging from him. He introduced me to metal and its properties, and the tools of his trade. Then it happened. I forged my own blade. With the first hit on that cherry red carbon steel, my world exploded into sparks on the anvil. Some people say, once you try it, you catch the “knife bug”. For me, a FIRE ignited from those sparks that day. Knife making became a passion that consumes thought and action. It burns away distraction, brings focus. What rises, from this refining fire, is not just a tool, pure in form and dependable in function, but also a companion to be shared with generations.
Why do I make knives?
“A boy and his Stick”
A knife… There is a certain element of a knife; it draws like metal to a magnet. A good man once said;” there is always a use for a knife if you are a man.” Of course there are a number of uses for a knife, but it all starts when one is a boy.
I loved knives as a boy. I would make them out of wood or sticks, gluing guards on them and rasping them into shape on the side walk. Oh, the feeling of shaping them just right.
I have seen how thrilled my three year old son gets when he finds the perfect stick. (Usually the closest stick is the perfect stick!) How devastated he is if he loses or breaks it. 
I have seen how excited he gets when I get a package. “What’s in it? Get your knife Dad!” Then we open it together, his hand in mine, and my knife in his. It is truly good to be a Dad!
I have demonstrated forging on a few occasions, pounding useless metal into a creative, if only rudimentary, knife. A small boy watches in wonder to see what will be made, the dawn of recognition in his eyes as the blade takes shape. I witness the perfect blend of shock and disbelief when I ask him “would you like to have this?”
Why do I make knives?
I remember the boy. I stand by my anvil just waiting to see what will be made. I am looking for the perfect stick. When I find it, I will pass it on to my son. My knife in his hand, his son’s hand in his, “Your Grandpa made this.”
The Materials I Use
One thing I enjoy, about custom knife making, is the hunt for materials. Knife making in by-gone years was limited to local materials. I, however, enjoy a virtual Global market. Internet and suppliers open up worldwide resources. With their aid I find treasures in far away quaint villages, without the expense of traveling there.
My quest is for the most beautiful, most unusual, highest quality that I can bring to my work.
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My Choice of Blade Material
Straight Steel blades
- High carbon steels
1084, 1080, 52100 (ball bearings), W-2, precision ground 0-1 - Damascus steel blades
1080 and 15n20 (the 15n20 has 2% nickel content which gives it a little contrast from the 1080 when etched)
I like using high carbon steel because it is a great for holding a good edge and sharpens relatively easy. It has been a staple throughout our countries history. Because of its dependability and strength it is still prevalent today. Railroad lines run on it. Car and truck springs take endless abuse from our roads day in and day out. It is used in cables that hold up bridges and elevators.
Hi carbon steel also forges well. This coupled with its strength and edge retention makes it the steel of choice by many knife makers. It takes minimal care to maintain your Hi Carbon steel blade.
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Knife Care
Like most good tools tell a story by the marks of their use, so too does a Carbon steel knife. High Carbon steel takes on a natural patina when it comes in contact with certain elements. Foods such as tomatoes, lemons, blood from meat, and mustard will turn the blade a natural brown. This is normal.
DOs and DON’Ts
(very important) Be careful with the tip of the blade. It is the finesse part of the knife, meant for starting a cut. Do not use the knife to pry with. You will snap the tip and end up with a shorter knife.
(also, very important) Do not store your knife in your sheath. The leather naturally holds moisture and will rust your Blade! It is alright to pack your knife in its sheath while in use, but store it in a clean, dry place out of direct sunlight.
After each use wipe down the whole knife with a clean cloth. Clean with acetone (acetone is alcohol base and evaporates leaving no moisture). Coat the whole knife with a light coat of vegetable oil or oil made for knife care and then wipe off the excess. Instead of oil I use a product call “Renaissance wax.”
If your sheath is looking a bit dry, wipe on and then buff a light coat of paste wax. Do not use oil as it will soften and uniform the sheath.
Use the knife for what it was built for. My blades are built to be used and even pushed a little. Use common sense. Remember “NOT a Pry bar.”
My Blades are sharp!! They will cut you if you get in their path. If you let someone else use your knife be courteous and tell them “it is SHARP!!”
With a little bit of care my knife will last your life time and beyond.
Shop Tour
Click on the picture to see some of the tools at work in my shop.
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A Maker’s Word is His Bond
Truth is what we all seek. When we find the Truth it sets us free, free to let go and trust.
I read about a maker that made military knives. He had made a prototype that a soldier had carried off to war. He and his fellow soldier became trapped by the enemy. To escape they had to cut a high voltage wire to shut down the lights that revealed where they were. The maker had guaranteed that the knife was insulated and would not conduct a current. The soldier did not hesitate and cut the hi voltage wire that would have taken his life if the current reached him. The Maker had given his word. The knife performed as it had been promised. The two soldiers lived to tell their story. They contacted the maker and thanked him for his honesty and their lives.
Many times Truth is what gets sacrificed for momentary gain.
My Guarantee
My knives are guaranteed for my life (as long as I am able to make knives) unless abused. If you have any problem with the knife I will either fix it or replace it. I also will re-sharpen my knife for free (you pay shipping).