Joe Kertzman

Feature Article Names BLADE® and KNIVES 2015

Featured Knives
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January 23, 2015

Feature Article Names BLADE® and KNIVES 2015

A December 2014 feature article by staff writer Phil Perry online and in the Lincoln Times-News of Lincolnton, N.C., mentions BLADE® Magazine and KNIVES 2015. A knifemaking feature on ABS journeyman smith and commercial pilot Steve Randall, it starts:

Often, when a craftsman pursues the road to independence through a business venture, they are inspired by a lifetime of collecting or being exposed directly to the craft. That wasn’t necessarily the case for Lincoln County’s Steve Randall, who has made an international name for himself crafting custom hand-forged knives from his workshop on the eastern end of the county.

“As an avid survivalist, I have used knives all my life,” he said. “I never collected them or thought a whole lot about it. Once I was bitten with the bug I have been obsessed with it ever since.”
Things changed in 2009 when Randall started “KSR Blades” and built an extension onto his garage to house the vast amount of forging equipment needed to facilitate his burning passion to produce high-quality hand-forged knives.

“I made my first sale on eBay and I was pretty excited,” Randall said. The ABS journeyman smith doesn’t sell his product on auction sites these days. Having been featured in national magazines like “Knives Illustrated,” “BLADE® Magazine” and four of his creations featured in “KNIVES 2015,” Randall has a one-year backlog on special orders and also ships to Germany, Sweden, Australia and Canada.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

Recommended:

Stay abreast of the latest developments on this and many more knife rights issues with a subscription to BLADE.

Knife Trends—Flipper Folders

Joe Kertzman's Blog
The BLADE Blogs

Joe Kertzman

January 14, 2015

When it comes to big flippers, one of Darrel Ralph’s Madd Maxx 5.5-inch MGB bearing models fills the bill. In this instance, Ralph outfits his big flipper with a blade of PD1-core san-mai damascus forged by Chad Nichols. The knife comes in a run of 25 numbered pieces.

Flipper folders are wildly popular. Aside from adding an interesting visual element to any knife, the flipper serves a few key roles, including as a one-hand opening device, and as a guard.

Just like innovation and technology drive any industry, the same can be said for the knife industry. What’s neat about knives is that they’re often designed by handmade knifemakers, craftsmen, really, and innovations often take the form of folder locks, assisted opening devices, and in this case, flipper folders.

While the Strife, a collaboration between Brous Blades and Dustin Turpin, is a big flipper, Jason Brous said size is not so important as design execution.

There are some monster flipper folders today. As Dexter Ewing writes in the March issue of BLADE®, “Flipper folders, aka flippers, continue to be wildly popular. Aside from adding an interesting visual dimension to the knife, the flipper—a simple protruding lobe at the bottom of the blade’s tang—serves a few roles. One is as a quick and convenient one-hand opening device. Clutch the closed knife’s handle, give the flipper a swift tug with your index finger and the blade has enough inertia to propel itself to the open and locked position. The flipper also serves as an integral hand guard when the knife is open, providing a physical obstruction to prevent your hand from sliding forward onto the blade.”

At 8.5 inches long open, the Camillus Jolt designed by Will Zermeno is a big flipper in every sense of the word. The 3.25-inch blade is hollow-ground D2 tool steel and the scales are a carbon fiber with a subtle pattern designed to enhance the frame’s curved shape.

To read the rest of the story, see the March issue of BLADE.

Recommended for You:

Making Tactical Fixed Blades DVD

Learn both basic and advanced knife making techniques with expert instruction from Allen Alishewitz in Tactical Fixed Blades. Allen demonstrates how to craft a double-edged tactical fixed blade knife from start to finish, and creates two knives in order to fully illustrate the knife building process. You’ll learn:

– Profiling and Drilling the Knife
– Tang Tapering on a Grinder
– Tang Tapering on a Mill
– And more!

Order here

A Knife Company Anniversary Extravaganza!

Joe Kertzman's Blog
The BLADE Blogs

Joe Kertzman

December 12, 2014

A Knife Company Anniversary Extravaganza!

2014 will go down as a year that marked some noteworthy knife company anniversaries and milestones. On top of the heap is Puma, celebrating its 245th anniversary! Yes, you read that correctly, Puma Knife Co. is nearly two and a half centuries old.

Other anniversary milestones: Boker (145th); Case (125th); Gerber (75th); the Buck 110 folding hunter (50th); Frost Cutlery, Kershaw and Plaza Cutlery (40th); Lansky and Masecraft (35th); Outdoor Edge (25th); CRKT and Microtech (20th); Benchmade McHenry & Williams 710 AXIS™ and Pro-Tech (15th); and Canal Street Cutlery (10th.)

That’s a lot of anniversaries, and a lot of cool, quality knives. For more, click here.

Knifemakers Share Techniques

Knifemaking

Joe Kertzman

November 21, 2014

Good for the Topeka Capital-Journal and journalist Carolyn Kaberline for covering the “Heartland Bladesmithing Symposium,” which took place in Kansas this past October and is sponsored by the American Bladesmith Society (ABS) and the Kansas Custom Knifemakers Association.

(Carolyn Kaberline photo)

One of 10 ABS Hammer-Ins and events across the country, the Heartland Bladesmithing Symposium included demonstrations by renowned steel makers and knifemakers like Jerry Rados and Steve Culver, who conducted demonstrations covering such subjects as damascus pattern makng, tomahawk forging, creating wood-lined sheaths, applying metallurgical theory, ABS journeyman smith judging standards, and even a knife photography segment taught by Caleb Royer.

Click here to read the full story.

For more knifemaking how-to, click here.

Three Ways to Support Knife Law Changes

Knife News Wire

Joe Kertzman

November 14, 2014

The American Knife & Tool Institute (AKTI) sent an email blast detailing three ways knife enthusiasts can support good, solid, pro-knife law changes. They are:

1) Follow AKTI’s Legislative News and be prepared to act when asked. Here’s just a peek at what’s already happening:

Nevada – Sen. Don Gustavson is sponsoring AKTI’s bill to remove the prohibitions on autos, dirks, daggers, and make state law rule over cities.
New York – Clarifying gravity knives is a priority and will be re-introduced next session.
Texas – Legalize bowie knives (finally!) and include state preemption over municipalities
Federal – Interstate Transport of Knives (Knife Owner’s Protection Act) – Sen. Enzi has agreed to re-introduce AKTI’s bill to allow knife owners to travel from state to state without concern of violating laws.

2) Bid on AKTI’s online auction. Proceeds go to the AKTI Legislative Fund. Awesome Opportunity!! Buck 110 50th Anniversary Set

You have an awesome opportunity to own a limited edition four-knife set of Buck 110’s commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the iconic knife. Thanks to the generosity of Buck Knives, you can bid (until Nov. 30th) on AKTI’s online auction to own one of the few remaining sets. Help support AKTI’s Legislative efforts and bid today!

Click here for more iconic knives.

3) Encourage others to sign up for AKTI’s free Grassroots newsletter.

Knife owners, makers, retailers and others willing to contact legislators when asked by email are important for the knife community to be heard and change to happen. Ask your employees, customers, friends and contacts to visit www.SaveOurKnives.org for why it’s important.

Are Quality Knives Worth The Quid?

Joe Kertzman's Blog
The BLADE Blogs

Joe Kertzman

November 7, 2014

The following is excerpted from the KNIVES 2015 book.

By Roderick T. Halvorsen

One of the grandest campfire knife debates involves the age-old question of whether costly, premium knives are worth the buck paid. Are quality knives worth the quid? Arguments rage one way or another, with the debate oftentimes stalling due to a dearth of experience with the real pricey ones. Truth is, who wants to plunk down the big dough just to treat a cutting tool like a farm implement in order to find out if it was worth all the quid? And, well, what if it isn’t?

Mulling this over, I decided to dedicate myself to the exclusive use of a pair of “high enders” in order to see for myself. Where I use my knives in winter, I must have good faith they will serve well or I may be in it deep. Deep snow and ice that is, and far from home and hearth. I cannot afford failure, whatever the dollar price paid! My work and play take me into remote, high mountains where knives are not just helpful, they are essential.

So it was with a little trepidation I swore off my own handmade and well-proven knives in order to obtain a couple Fällkniven AB models. Fällkniven has earned high praise the world over, and is a thoroughly modern company. The finest Swedish iron is mined 140 miles from its headquarters in Norbotten, Sweden, whereupon it is shipped to Japan. There, Swedish iron becomes Japanese steel, and the knives are made. Some years ago, the company used Hitachi ATS-34 stainless steel, but now favors a VG-10 steel laminate for the toughest of its outdoors knives. Leather scabbards are made in Spain.

See the KNIVES 2015 book to read the rest of the story. Click here. And let us know your opinion. Are quality knives worth the quid?

Cheese Knives! Blades You Don’t See Everyday

Knifemaking

Joe Kertzman

October 24, 2014

Cheese Knives! Blades You Don’t See Everyday

A Chelsea Miller Custom Cheese Knife. — A Chelsea Miller Custom Microplane Cheese Knife.

We’ve all heard it said: “There’s nothing new in knives.” And maybe there’s not. It could be that’s a true statement, although the flipper folder, assisted-opening knives, Mokuti (mokumé and titanium combination), lightning strike carbon fiber and other materials and mechanisms may be considered new. Perhaps innovation could be considered a newness, or progression at least.

Cheese Knives!

Here’s a knifemaker, and a female knifemaker at that, which isn’t new, but not common, either, who makes some knives that are just a bit different—those you don’t see every day.

And maybe that in itself is a novelty, though maybe not new. Meet Chelsea Miller, and enjoy!

Click here for Chelsea Miller Knives

Click here for innovative knife resources.

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Joe Kertzman

Feature Article Names BLADE® and KNIVES 2015

Knife Trends—Flipper Folders

Flipper folders are wildly popular. Aside from adding an interesting visual element to any knife, the flipper serves a few key roles, including as a one-hand opening device, and as a guard.

Recommended for You:

A Knife Company Anniversary Extravaganza!

Knifemakers Share Techniques

Three Ways to Support Knife Law Changes

Are Quality Knives Worth The Quid?

Cheese Knives! Blades You Don’t See Everyday

Cheese Knives!

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