26th Annual - Knives 2006

SharpByCoop

SharpByCoop

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Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
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Oct 8, 2001
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I got my copy yesterday. Joe Kertzman & Co. really raised the bar on display again this year. Last year was the first with color on the display pages and this year is the same, and with REALLY good clarity. :)

"1000 blades in vivid color" on the front cover. I am proud to have about 60 of my clients represented. I found (8) of my images in there with no credit given to me, but the *more* important thing is that the makers got exposure.

Worth every penny. I got mine from the Annual 2006 magazine site.

Coop
 
This is a book that I always order. The one thing that I wish they did was to list email and website info for the makers.
 
Thanks for the reminder Coop...I had received their promotional brochure in the mail last week and had been meaning to place my order (BTW-The brochure showed pics of a handful of knives, two of which were by my good friend Kelly Carlson!). :)

And my thanks to Joss for the heads-up about Amazon...I went ahead and placed my order through them...With shipping included the total came to very reasonable $20.48... :thumbup:

On a down note...I forgot to send Joe (Kertzman) my info so that I could be included in the listing of knifemakers in the back section of the book. Oh well, there's always next year.


Dennis Greenbaum :cool:
 
The pictures are great-so much better than the old black & white.Is it just me or does'nt anyone else miss Ken Warner.I do'nt know if its nostalgia or what but the older articles(when Warner was there)seemed better writtin,more informative.I know change always happens but it would be nice if he could write a few articles.Also-Mr Kertzman please update that directory.Almost everyone has web sites-please include them.And get rid of the one's that are'nt in the buisness anymore.Ex.Tommy Thompson in Oregan has under his name-he is not making knives due to family obligations.I believe this was the 5th or 6th Knives edition that gave this info for Tommy Thompson.Sorry to single out Tommy but there are quite a few others that are not up to date.I know its a lot simpler to just copy last yrs.directory.But the Knives annual is famous for having the largest and best directory.A little proof reading could solve a lot of things.;)
 
I looked and found a BUNCH of makers whose email and addresses are included. But, it's a minority. I suspect that these are makers who are proactive in letting Joe Kertzman know all their current details.

My own business, website, and email are solidly included in the directory. I sent all of this in myself.

In regards to defunct makers, I don't have an answer. Calling each and every number to see if they are current? Hmmmm....

I don't have a bad word to say about what Joe has done for the publication. in fact, the results are fantastic! But, I did have a soft spot for Ken Warner's writing.

Coop
 
Good reminder thread! For some reason I completely forgot about this book this year. I will order one today.

Last year was the first year that I bought one and was very impressed with it.

Sean
 
Unless it's changed, the maker has to send his info in to them. Each year Joe will send out a letter, showing the current information and a place to make changes.
IMHO, Joe can't purge the list without the maker sending him an update. In the past, the deadline was around the Blade Show time and I know I've forgotten to update it a couple of times.

It should be one of the first things a new knifemaker does. Get your profile and some pictures to them. Even with the Internet, there are many people that still read the Knives annuals.
 
In the past I've considered sending in my info, just to say my name is in the book. But I'm really not looking for orders right now, so I haven't gotten around to it.

How does a person go about getting included in the directory? Is there an online form or something, or should I just give him a call & ask him to mail one out? Does it cost anything? Can you just send in some pictures & see if they include them, or is that a whole 'nuther process?
 
the possum said:
In the past I've considered sending in my info, just to say my name is in the book. But I'm really not looking for orders right now, so I haven't gotten around to it.
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You can always say no. You never know who might be looking for you of value.

How does a person go about getting included in the directory? Is there an online form or something, or should I just give him a call & ask him to mail one out?
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Call or email Joe Kertzman with your info. His contact is listed in the book and online and he welcomes your input.

Does it cost anything? Can you just send in some pictures & see if they include them, or is that a whole 'nuther process?
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Photos? Doesn't cost a thing other than YOUR time, or paying a pro. They don't charge you anything.

FYI--Believe it, that about 30% of the time involved in my client's work is the time spent printing extra images, including printouts of the makers specs and contact information taped to the back of each photo, and then packaging and mailing these off to four-five different publications, including the Annual.

It is work, but work that is irreplaceable in value, if the images get published. I say *if*, because I don't have any control over the final editing process. That's their choice. (Given the choice of a mediocre image and a top-quality image, you can be sure which one they will pick first. You can do it yourself if you work at it.)

Coop
 
It is good to see that there are more makers that have included email and website information in their bios. Last year there were almost none. I was thinking that it wasn't something being asked for by the publication.
 
Kit Carson said:
It should be one of the first things a new knifemaker does. Get your profile and some pictures to them. Even with the Internet, there are many people that still read the Knives annuals.
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Great advice! Because...as they say You can't steer a car that ain't movin ... It's just about options for the future. You never know, something might come your way as a result of someone seeing your work and reading a little about you ...a car, a beautiful woman... heck, you can't ever tell what might happen!:D

As for KNIVES 2006... Messrs. Kertzman editing, Price publishing, the parent company, the board and for all I know, the stockholders... must be happy. If they could get one of these in the hands of every person who bought a copy of BLADE magazine last year...wow! Probably the bottom line is that in reality the majority of people will throw away a magazine - and keep a book. So it's a win-win proposition all the way around. I'm not sure how common that is in the business world (not my world), but it seems to make some sense. :thumbup:
 
SharpByCoop said:
Photos?
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And - I'm thinking it goes without saying that having your work professionally photographed is the only way to go, unless you have the chops to do a bang up job of it yourself. Seriously, why bother if the images of your knives can't stand up to publishing standards .... I mean, does anybody disagree with that? :confused: :rolleyes:

Go Coop ... or, SuperCoop as I like to think of him. Coop has sure done his part to raise the standards around here. They also say "A rising tide floats all boats." The economy aside, whether it's up or down now or whatever - if people can't 'see' not much will happen. Coop and his fellow pros help people 'see' and the internet ...man, the internet is, like it or not, turning into the river of life very quickly for a growing segment of the population.

Thank you, and next time I will explain further the workings of the universe ...;)
 
HTMD said:
As for KNIVES 2006... Messrs. Kertzman editing, Price publishing, the parent company, the board and for all I know, the stockholders... must be happy.
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Is Krause owned by another company, Buddy?

I remember meeting David Kowalski when Krause purschased Blade from Bruce Voyles.

I would be interested in hearing more about the "parent company" What kind of info can you share?

Best Regards,

Steven Garsson
 
I received mine a couple of days ago in the mail and I love it. Most of my favorite makers are represented. Only one remark. I can do without some of the "witty oneliners" describing the knives. Instead of that a bit more technical info would be welcome.

Marcel
 
I know for a fact that last year, and this year have been good years for knifemaking and a fair amount of knifemakers have had banner sales.

This Annual is one of the biggest disappointments since Krause took over.

The Good:

-All knives in color.
-Nice, thick paper stock.
-Although not gone completely, typos and spelling errors seem to be missing in the profligate quantities of years past, a welcome relief.
-The "one-line zingers" still exist, but are not as dumb as before.
- A good many of the makers and photographers featured are Forumites, Coop, J. Neilson, Nick Wheeler, Don Hanson...

The Bad:

- Sizing of many pictures obscures important details, ie, the little knives up in the right hand corner of many pages, what up with that?
- Many trends have been ignored. This was a big, big year for trick knife mechanisms, and bowies, and you would not see this from the pictures, in general.
- The Wooden Sword recipient has got me scratching my head. I know why multi-blade slipjoints are a bear to make, but really, is this one piece that MORE exceptional than all others?
- Most, but not all of the articles sucked. I mean, really, is Greg Bean a college buddy of Joe Kertzman's, or what? I can just imagine the multitude of stainless steel "swords" that he must have a collection of

The Ugly

- I realize that ugly and crude are subjective terms, but a lot of the knives in this Annual are either a) ugly, or b) crude looking.

It is not the worst Annual, but far from the best.

I still think that it is a book totally worth owning, but my heart rarely skips a beat like it once did when I got the book, and consumed all that was in it.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
Kohai999 said:
The Bad:
- The Wooden Sword recipient has got me scratching my head. I know why multi-blade slipjoints are a bear to make, but really, is this one piece that MORE exceptional than all others?
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Say what? *24* blades with carved pearl and 7 fileworked liners, and you can't distinguish why this would be an entrant? You have me scratchin' MY head! :eek:

Other than this ditty, I follow your other points.

Thanks,

Coop
 
SharpByCoop said:
Say what? *24* blades with carved pearl and 7 fileworked liners, and you can't distinguish why this would be an entrant? You have me scratchin' MY head! :eek:

Other than this ditty, I follow your other points.

Thanks,

Coop
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Because the Wooden Sword was traditionally given to those who had proven themselves over time AND produced works of singular greatness.

Ie, Scott Lankton, and the Sutton Hoo sword, or Jot Khalsa, and his Tribute Sword.

I hope this makes my statement a little clearer.;)

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
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