2011 Arkansas Custom Knife Show - Pictorial Review

[RogerP]

Greetings all,

I'm back from Little Rock and still smiling about the great time I had at this terrific show. I've put together some pictures and commentary from the weekend that I hope will help convey the event to those that couldn't make it, and help them decide to rectify that situation next time around.

But first of all, I'd like to convey both my thanks and congratulations to the Arkansas Knifemakers Association, and in particular, to Chuck and Mary Ward, David Etchieson and Lin Rhea for all their work in making this a special event. There are a good many others most worthy of thanks - a successful show doesn't happen without a lot more people than this putting a lot into it - but these are the folks I deal with most directly. The warm, welcoming, easy-going atmosphere that defines the Little Rock show starts with people like them - they set the tone.

I'll be throwing in some collector tips along the way. Nothing that won't be less than obvious to knife show veterans like many of you, but hopefully of some help to newer collectors.

A link to the photo album for those with slow connections can be found here: http://www.fototime.com/inv/65DCC10F1CFFC10

Okay - on to the show!

Snowy Litte Rock?

In most years, a February trip to Little Rock provides as escape from the chill of a deep Canadian winter. But this year, I arrived to find that Old Man Winter had arrived on an earlier flight:

No worries though - a bad winter's day in Little Rock is the rough equivalent of a brisk spring day in Toronto, and that bright sun would soon banish much of the snow as both it and the show heated things up.

Awards Banquet

This is always a can't-miss event - a chance to get everyone together to chat, socialize, tell jokes and tall tales.

Here, Paul Long, Jon Klein and John White are doing some of those very things, while Kein prepares to embark on his signature knife-juggling act:

Jim Treacy, Jerry Schroeder look on as Les Robertson holds court:

The talk of Friday night, however, was all about the new awards format. Rather than makers submitting knives for judging first thing Saturday morning, a new approach was given a trial run: all knives were tendered for viewing at the banquet Friday evening, with all table holders casting their votes for the winners in each of 12 categories. Makers were limited to submitting three knives total, with each knife going into only one of the defined categories. It made for some interesting choices - particularly since all submitted knives in all categories were open to viewing by all attendees. This added a good deal of buzz and excitement to an already fun event. Predictably, it took a little bit of time to assemble and carefully count all those ballots - but when the dust settled, the awards shook out as follows:

Vernon Hicks Memorial Award: Jerry Petty

Best Hunter: Jerry Fisk

Best Fighter: Don Hanson III

Best Folder: Joel Chamblin

Best Art Knife: Ron Newton

Best Bowie: John Horrigan

Best Damascus: J.R. Cook

Best Miniature: Lee Ferguson

Best Pearl Knife: Ron Newton

Best Sheath: Brian Thie

Best Giraffe Bone: J.R. Cook

Best Historically Inspired Knife: Brian Thie

BEST OF SHOW: J.R. Cook

Congrats to all award winners! And in particular to Cookie for sweeping up a whole armful of lumber.

Predictably, when you change something from the way it has been done year in and year out for a great many years, it takes some getting used to. I really liked this new format for the purely selfish reason that it made the whole judging process inclusive, rather than exclusive - and really made for a visual spectacle. The judging tables were pretty consistently crowded as all looked over the submitted knives and chatted openly about submission strategies and personal favorites.

My suggestions for going forward would be:

1) Have a defined end time for submissions - i.e. - all knives on the tables by 7:00pm (or whatever time).

2) Have a defined start AND end time for judging (i.e. - judging commences at 7:00 pm and all ballots must be in by 8:00) - so that all judges are looking at the same closed class of submitted knives.

3) Don't make Best of Show a discreet submission category, but rather, what the judges feel is the best knife of ALL submitted knives.

Okay - on to the show itself.

My apologies in advance for the quality of the photos - you all know how it is with variable lighting and the ebb and flow of crowds. And speaking of crowds, it was THICK in there from mid-morning to mid-afternoon Saturday. Good job getting the word out, guys.

Jerry Fisk

You can choose to believe one of two things. 1) Jerry wasn't at his table when I came by for a pic. 2) I recognized that Bob presented a serious elevation in the beautification of the shot, and went with it.

You can always count on some outstanding knives from Jerry - and this year was no exception. But an interesting addition to each was a custom built display stand - very nice!

John White

A superb selection right across the board, and a good mix of knife styles and prices. John had a damscus / blackwood hunter on his table that was an absolute STEAL. And I kept hoping someone would buy that sweet stagalicious fighter shown below and save me from myself. Someone did. Whew.

In addition to the knives, John also had a fine selection of hand-made jewelry by his talented wife - Jill White. Perfect for show on the eve of Valentine's Day.

End, Part 1 of 10

 

[RogerP]

Brion Tomberlin

I always look forward to a chance to catch up with Too Tall and look over his great selection. The Koa-handled fighter and the stag bowie shown below were definitely my kind of knives, but I really fell for that little stag wharncliff in a big way. It went fast, though.

Mike Ruth

Mike is shown above holding just a fantastic hollow-ground, engraved fighter / bowie. I'm always hesitant to describe a particualr piece as a maker's "best work" - as it is quite premptuous to assume such close familiarity with a given maker's ENTIRE body of work - but Mike himself described it as such and I won't argue. The big ivory West Texas Wind bowie below ranked pretty high up there with me as well.

Ron Newton

Collector tip 1: Knife shows are not just about the knives of today, but the knives of tomorrow. They provide an unequalled opportunity to place an order for future delivery. Or, as here, to firm up the details of an existing order. Talking on the phone and exchanging e-mails certainly can work, but when you are face to face and have the chance to discuss design elements with the help of examples of the maker's work right in front of you, there is no doubt in the mind of either maker or customer that you are both on the same page.

You can look for more on this project just after Blade 2011 - Ron has kindly agreed to do a WIP and I have told him I'm willing to post up as many pics of the process as he is willing to take.

Getting pictures of Ron's show knives isn't easy, because the tend to fly away. Fortunately, we saw a good many of them in the excellent show preview thread. Here is a selection of hunters. The knife at the bottom is the one that inspired the larger camp knife of our project.

Reggie Barker

It was good to see multiple World Cutting Champion title-holder, Reggie Barker, in fine form at the show. The chopper below was a bit lighter and faster than I remember of his competition knives, but also a lot more easily portable. No doubt it cuts just as viciously.

End, Part 2 of 10.

 

[Lorien]

ah, Roger...you know how to start off a week right!
Thanks man

 

[RogerP]

Thanks Lorien. Feel free to jump in with comments, guys. It is going to take a little while to get everything posted.

Mike Williams

Mike has been turning out exceptional knives for a long time. But since going full time, I have certainly seen an elevation in his game. If you're a bowie fan and Mike's table didn't stop you in your tracks, it's time for a new set of eye glasses.

The ivory-handled bowie above was clearly Mike's most elegant piece, but the big, bold curvy bowie below was one that really spoke to me. Eye-popping damascus, vibrant golden-orange ivory and a spoiling-for-trouble blade profile were the reasons why.

Gordon Graham

Really solid designs. Really clean execution. The ironwood and damascus piece felt every bit as good as it looked. And it looked way better than my poor pics can convey.

Kyle Royer

This guy can exhaust your list of superlatives right quick.

You've seen Caleb's excellent pics of Kyle's show knives. I'll get right to that Persian - it's everything you think it is and a bag of chips as well. There pretty much was never a time that I walked past Kyle's table and didn't see someone - often a fellow maker - holding that knife in one hand and scratching their head with the other.

Kyle decided to make one of his knives the subject of a draw Saturday afternoon - a decision I applaud. The knife was that elegant and darkly sinister integral. More than a couple names were in the ballot box, including that of yours truly.

Kyle's Mom held the draw box while his sister reached in to select the lucky winner.

And.... she did not draw my name. Bless her little heart anyway. She did draw the name of my good buddy Jon Klein and I couldn't have been happier for him.


J.R. Cook

Speaking of Jon Klein - here is is with the J.R., as they jointly display the knife that won Best of Show, and the award itself:

Congrats to maker and owner both.

You don't need me to tell you the level to which J.R. has elevated his work. The acclaim of the voting body of table holders did so far more eloquently.

End, Part 3 of 10

 

[RogerP]

Handle Material

Collector tip 2: Make the most of your opportunity to select handle material for existing and future projects. Make use of the makers' expertise to pick the right piece of ivory, stag or wood for a piece you have on order and stock up on select pieces for future projects.

I'll admit - it's advice I am better at giving than taking, but at this show, I couldn't help but dig right in.

Here's why.

Jerry Kochheiser of Alaskan Fossil Ivory showed up with a selection of ivory that was just mind-blowing:

And if you managed to cling to your sanity after looking at the ivory, his stag selection would pretty much finish you off. Best selection I have seen. Ever. A whole bunch of makers said the same. I tipped off Kyle early that there was stag - GOOD stag - and in abundance - at the far end of his row. I didn't know the kid could move that fast. I sent Tad Lynch elbow-deep into that same stash for an upcoming matched hunter and bowie set.

And of course, DH III can smell good ivory a mile away. What unfolded at Jerry's table was something perhaps best described as a polite and well-manered feeding frenzy. Here - Don makes some lighting-quick selections from the ivory table (and the three BIG boxes of like quality under the table), while Kyle loads up on premium stag:

More on Don and his knives and ivory haul later. For now, have a gander at this piece that I picked up:

Bud Richards

It wouldn't be Little Rock without a big smile, hearty handshake and some excellent knives from Bud Richards. Bud impressed me last year with his damascus - it has that super-chatoyant 3D shimmer that really floats my boat. He had some more of that good stuff this year as well.

Roger Massey

Here's a maker I have known and admired for a long time. He doesn't have the web presence of many, but the cleanliness of his work can go toe-to-toe with anybody.

Roger had something new this year - his first subhilt - and a sweet stag honey of a knife it was. He also had just a terrific little sheep horn fighter that felt so good in the hand it was hard to put down.

I was walking with Les Robertson over to Roger's table and telling him about this piece while simultaneously reaching for my wallet. As we approached, a customer stepped up and picked up that knife. Uh oh. "That knife feels fantastic, doesn't it?" I said. Well, he didn't need me to tell him that. And he didn't need me to tell him not to put it down, but to drop cash on the table instead.

End, Part 4 of 10

 

[D lisch]

Roger Thanks for the close up look It seems it was a fine show. I hope there is some ivory left over for Blade Man that is some good looking stuff.

 

[RogerP]

John Horrigan

What an excellent new addition to the Little Rock line-up. And all the new guy did was walk in and take the Best Bowie award - which is arguably THE award to get right here in the very heart of bowie country.

I had a great time chatting with John in and out of the show proper. And his knives are just terrific. Loved that smaller laminate bowie in particular.


Allen Newberry

This young maker is improving by leaps and bounds. I've liked his designs and execution very well to this point, but the wire-inlayed maple bowie below was a step up.

Bill Buxton

Bill views his MS stamp not as a past accomplishment, but as a continuing challenge. It shows in his work. Best table from Bill I have seen to date. Very good across the board, but the stag bowie, ivory bowie with the fighter guard and the ivory hunter were all just KILLER pieces.

It was real nice catching up with Bill and his delightful wife.


Michael Ruth Jr.

This young maker is just doing TERRIFIC work. Superb damascus and elaborate and well-executed fittings are an early trademark. As is the ability to produce a BIG blade that is also perfectly balanced and lighting quick. I am pleased to say that I have a damascus piece due in from Michael in the very near future. In the photo below, Ruthless I and Ruthless II bracket slick stag fighter:

Lin Rhea

Lin's damascus subhilt fighter was one of my favorite pieces of the show. I own a similar carbon steel model and really need to get a matching piece in damascus. And speaking of matched sets - that pair of stag hunters was rather sweet as well.

End, Part 5 of 10

 

[betzner]

Roger, you are one of my three favorite reviewers, you never let us down. Thanks for all you do.

Bob

 

[peterinct]

GREAT review Roger!

Thanks for taking the time to post it,
Peter

 

[John White]

Roger,

Great seeing you again, great show, and a really great review.

Thanks and a huge shout-out for your photos and comments bringing the show to life for all those poor souls who couldn't go!

John

 

[Allen Newberry]

That was a great show and thanks for putting this together to show those who couldn't make it a bit of the fun that occurred. There was certainly an incredible density of talent in that room!

 

[lwrhea]

Thanks for the review Roger. It was pleasure to be around you again, besides we need folks like you to class us up a little.

Your pictorial gives me a better look at how it looks from other's eyes. We appreciate your suggestions and promise to make it even better next year.

Here's hoping everyone made it home safe and sound. Lin

 

[Deweyknives]

Thank you, Roger. I enjoy your reviews as you do an outstanding job of bringing the shows to us.

 

[Allen Newberry]

Another comment on the voting the night of the banquet. I really liked it. It was great to see so many of the best knives of the show together the night before. Many of which I am betting were sold early on the next day.

 

[RogerP]

Thanks gents.


Cutting Demonstration

This was a neat add-on to the show this year, with Lin Rhea and Jim Crowell giving a brief demo with rope, 2 by 4 and paper cutting. Jerry Fisk was MC and there is no-one better in that role.

Rope was flying:

And wood got chopped right quick. This wasn't a timed event, but man, Jim made short work of this board:

Want to know why? Well, did you catch just how deep that blade bit?

Don Hanson III

This isn't Don's first Little Rock show, but it is his first in a while. I spoke with him about it at some length and I'm pretty sure we'll see him back more often, which is VERY good news indeed.

There wasn't a knife on Don's table that I didn't want - like - BADLY.

The ivory / damascus fighter was stunning and captured the Best Fighter award for Don. That little ivory / carbon piece that was SO very well received in the preview thread, made even more of a positive impression at the show. John White couldn't stop raving about it - and it's not like he's really easily impressed.

I was extremely taken with this stag personal carry piece - with the entire blade profile forged to shape - zero profile grinding whatsoever. Sharp little sucker, too:

Having arranged for the big stag and damascus cutter to head north, I had to sit on what was left of my wallet. Hey, when Don goes ahead and puts a butt cap on a gorgeous piece of stag and pairs all of that up with a beautifully balanced foot long damascus blade, I'm almost obliged to buy it.

Oh - remember Don rifling through the ivory pile? Check out that which will grace some future knives:

And rounding out Don's table was a fine example of some scrimshaw work by his talented wife:

End, Part 6 of 10

 

[BRTATCK]

Roger as always it was great to see you and thank you for the pictures and the comments. Great review of the show and pictures of the beautiful knives. This show is real winner and has always been my favorite. Amazing amount of talent in one room and great people too. Thank you again.
Brion

 

[ptgdvc]

Thanks Roger! Outstanding report!

 

[norcalblacktail]

Roger thanks for taking the time to post this. Great pics and looks like it was a great show.

 

[B . Buxton]

Thank you Roger for the review, lots of knives I missed seeing at the show as they did seem to get picked up by buyers pretty darn quick as soon as the doors opened.
I'm glad you were able to make the trip, your a true gentleman and its always a pleasure to visit with you. Look forward to seeing you in Atlanta.

Bill

 

[sheathmaker]

I made it home safe and sound (even though you could still see snow along the roads at a distance). I had quite a nice load of many of the knives pictured here come back home with me for some leather. I'll post some pictures later as the work is finished.

Thanks, Roger for your dedication in photographing and writing the review. It was certainly a high point for me to see my Canadian buddy and spend some quality time with you.

Paul