Another great Bark River Grind-In!!

[Tony8179]

A few times a year Mike Stewart and his family invite the "Average Joe" to go to the Bark River factory to design and then create their own knife. From bar stock to finished product, you create your own knife with your own two hands.... and a whole lotta help from the fantastic Bark River crew. :thumbup: As a knife junky, this is hard to turn down. This past weekend was the BRKCA Grind-In sponsored by Jerzee Devil. A few dozen Knife Knuts from all over the country showed up in Escanaba, Michigan to roll up their sleeves and make some knives. This was my third year in attendance, and I can tell you that it is an amazing experience. Not only do you get to make your own knife, but you get to meet some really great people and have a really good time. Mike and Leslie Stewart welcome all as if they are family. Their warmth and courtesy is beyond belief. You would be hard pressed to find any company that would even let you take a tour of their shop, let alone invite you inside, make you feel at home, feed you, and then let you play with all of their toys. If you ever have a chance to make it to one of these amazing events, I promise you that you will not be disappointed. Details can be found at the Bark River homepage under the Mission & Events link.

All of the knives that were made this year were very impressive, they always are. The crew at Bark River assures that you will be proud of what you make by lending a helping hand whenever needed.

A big thank you to Mike, Leslie, Jim, Jacquie, Crystal, Abby, Alicia, Skittles, and the rest of the entire Bark River crew.

Dyed Camel bone with mosaic pins and red liners. About a 5.5" blade.

 

[jkwithawave]

Dude, I had no idea they did that. What a cool story. I need a Bark River now. Oh and that is a great looking blade you made! What steel is it?

 

[Tony8179]

A2 steel.

 

[jimnolimit]

that's real awesome of bark river :thumbup:

great job on the knife tony :thumbup:

 

[Dan57]

How much does it cost to attend?

 

[Nasty]

There is a major drawback to attending.

From that point on, you will judge *every* other knife you come across with a new attention to detail.

Overground blades...poorly fitted or shaped handles...*DULL*...wavy grinds...poorly cleaned delivered knives...just plain unfinished knives...every detail of what many other makers work will suddenly jump out at you.

Even I am amazed at the quality of fit and finish BRKT puts out on so many hand done knives every week.

No...I am *not* on their payroll.

 

[Tony8179]

How much does it cost to attend?

There are quite a few factors to the overall cost of the event. If you live close to or in Michigan then the cost of travel is obviously going to be less than if you live on one of the coasts. There is a dinner after the actual Grind-In that you can choose to attend or not and that adds a bit to the cost. By the way, I suggest attending the dinner. It is always a good time, the food is always good, you get to check out all the knives that were made that day, and then vote for the best overall knife in your opinion. The hotel everyone stays at is about $60 a night so that cost depends on how many nights you stay or you might be able to find someone who is willing to share a room and split the cost.

This is a quote from Mike from the 2011 event. The costs have gone up ever so slightly I believe.

Cost of the Event:

The Basic cost is $175.00.

This Covers all of the Supplies needed to make your knife with standard pins and any Micarta or G-10 handle material.

You can choose fancier handle materials like Burled Woods or Horn/Antlers or Mosaic Pins as an up charge.

This Basic Fee also covers the Food Friday Night and Lunch on Saturday

The Banquet on Saturday Evening has a selection of usually four different entrees and is $30.00 per person that includes the Food - Non-Alcoholic Beverages and the Tip.


Thanks,
Mike

The total cost for me this year with the event plus the banquet, airfare, rental car, hotel, food, drink, and cigarettes cost me about an even $1K, but I eat, drink, and smoke a lot. Personally, I usually sell a few knives throughout the year and that money goes toward the trip. If I didn't have to fly out and get a rental car I would save about $400 - $450. If I didn't drink and smoke so much that would save me another $200 easily.

It is more than worth it because it is so much fun and you meet so many great people. Oh, and did I mention you get to make your own custom fixed blade with whatever type of blade shape, size, and handle material you want? Just the pride of ownership and using the knife that you worked hard to make with your own two hands is worth every penny. I've seen guys bring their own steel blanks like W2 and damascus. I believe there were a few S35VN Santokus made this year.

 

[Dan57]

The Basic cost is $175.00.

This Covers all of the Supplies needed to make your knife with standard pins and any Micarta or G-10 handle material.

You can choose fancier handle materials like Burled Woods or Horn/Antlers or Mosaic Pins as an up charge.

This Basic Fee also covers the Food Friday Night and Lunch on Saturday

The Banquet on Saturday Evening has a selection of usually four different entrees and is $30.00 per person that includes the Food - Non-Alcoholic Beverages and the Tip.

Wow! Way less than I was expecting, he can't be making much money on this, if any at all. Maybe the publicity increases sales...?

 

[habaz72]

Is the event by invitation only or can anyone register?

Found the answer myself.. anyone can attend, about 30 people per event. I'll be keeping my eye out for the next one.

 

[Tony8179]

I'll put it this way. If you like knives, talking knives, learning a lot about knives, meeting other very cool people who are into knives (there's never been one douchebag at any of the events I've been to), good times, good food, good drink, all while being able to go back home with your brand new knife that you made with your own two hands, then this is the type of trip you owe to yourself. As I said, Mike Stewart and his entire family and crew welcome everyone with open arms to make you feel at home. I think that it is something that anyone on any of these forums would enjoy.

 

[gooeytek]

Man, I need to do this. Sounds like a blast! With souvenirs!

 

[Tony8179]

Man, I need to do this. Sounds like a blast! With souvenirs!

Esactly! The way it was described to me by a fellow knife enthusiast was like this.

Imagine you love crack. Now imagine that the place that makes and sells crack says "hey, want to come inside and check out all the crack?". Then they say, "hey while you're here, do you want to make some of this crack?". Then they say, "now that you've made all this crack, you might as well take it home with you and do whatever you want with your very own handmade crack!".

It's wasn't exactly poetic, but it made sense. I booked a flight when I got home that day. Oh and for the record, if there isn't a ton of people and you have the time you can make more that one knife. The first year I went I made a Santoku for the kitchen and a PSK for my pocket.