- Joined
- Dec 20, 2000
- Messages
- 871
With the Blade Show almost here, I thought I'd provide the following link and offer an update as to what has happened since then:
http://www.bladeforums.com/ubb/Forum64/HTML/000836.html
Howard Viele is one of my knifemaking "idols." I have mentioned his influence many times to many people. Because of our past interactions, both public and private, I also consider Howard a friend.
When I discovered this series of posts, I was unaware that there was a problem. Since then, I have talked to Howard and we have come up with the following agreement:
1. I will no longer produce knives with thumb opening slots in the blade.
2. I will no longer produce knives with holes in the pocket clip.
I have sent drawings of all my models to Howard to make sure nothing I am building will copy features which he considers his trademark. He has approved all of these drawings and has agreed to review upcoming drawings of any of my future designs.
He also gratiously allowed me to finish any knives that I had started that had slots in the blade or holes in the clip. (Therefore, you might still see a few floating around for a little while. In fact, I will have a few at the Blade Show.)
All of my designs have been registered with the U.S. Copyright Office.
Please understand that, because of this situation, I remain very sensitive to issues concerning design integrity. I apologize to anyone whom I may upset by bringing this issue to light and hope this clarificaton will avoid future embarassment for Howard or myself.
Thanks in advance for your understanding.
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Tom Anderson
Hand Crafted Knives
www.andersoncustomknives.com