Are You Experienced? --- 2015 Seattle Knife Show

The inimitable Bill Burke!

In the background, is the lovely Patti Burke, who was a fixture of last and this year's show. A truly lovely person and a welcoming presence at the show. I consider Bill and Patti to be the patriarch and matriarch of the show. It's just a feeling I have that I can't fully explain.

Bill makes a hell of a nice bourbon. Dude is truly multi faceted and highly proficient at seemingly everything, and certainly an inspiration to me and to the many close friends he attends shows with. I don't want to get too sappy, but I really feel like Bill is a social epicenter, who creates ripples of good vibes which reverberate meaningfully among people.

Their daughter, Jessica- a cutler with talent and skill- helps a lot, and is like her mom in that she's a gracious, welcoming presence at the show. She was working alongside Bhakti and the crew from Bladegallery processing guests to the show and she had a constant smile on her face. It's nice to enter an event where the registration folk aren't dour, cranky and disinterested. Walmart successfully employs greeters for a reason, and the Seattle show really grasps the importance of creating a great first impression. Jessica Burke plays an important role in that regard, and has done two years running.

Didn't get any photos of Bill's stuff because I was running out of time, but I got this;

[video=youtube;2FegNWlio5o]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2FegNWlio5o[/video]
 
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Lorien,

Thank you much for the kind words it was a pleasure meeting you also especial after seeing you so much on the forum finally putting a face to the name. Met a few others at this show that have only seen on this forum.
The show promoters would be money ahead to have you at there shows this is best review by far I have ever seen you are for sure knocking it out.

Cliff
 
Really stellar job on the show review Lorien

Shows the fun and the magic of such an event
 
Shane Taylor- I love this guy!
Gettin the Jessica Burke photobomb.

This knife is Shane's Batwing, which I think he told me he first conceived in '95 and has been building since. It's a brilliant defensive knife pattern that immediately proves itself when you pick it up. Very positive grip and handle traction- when shit goes down, you'd have to become unconscious in order to lose your grip on this knife.





This knife blew me away. Just like Shane's "da Vinci's Dream" of last year's show, (which I voted for!). In fact, I thought it was the same knife! I have no excuses:o




Gears and stuff always turn my crank. Lol. This knife was smooth like mercury- there was no resistance at all, even though it's a liner lock. Lock up was nice and positive. The mechanism worked flawlessly and I admire the dichotomy of its precision, the reference of mechanisms thematically, and the rough hewn, hand made finish. Really and truly a work of art. One of the finest knives of the show.




I should also mention the heft. Such a substantial feeling piece and it felt wicked in hand, with those burly bronze scales. Super comfortable. If i were able to procure knives the way I'd like I would like to, I'd absolutely have one of Shane's folders. So many fine details to appreciate;




...like the polished frames, which reflect the engraved backspacer and create symmetrical image...that I sadly could not capture with my camera.




That's a belt buckle I can appreciate! (I have a wee bit of an unintentional collection of belt buckles...) :D




[video=youtube;jI_MxiET7d8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jI_MxiET7d8[/video]





[video=youtube;1qWhBlCrUAg]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1qWhBlCrUAg[/video]
 
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added a little video to post #97
 
Gary House....This man is a human ray of sunshine.
Last year, Gary made a point to say hey to me and who I immediately knew was a guy I could always enjoy time with.






Wouldja look at that amazing pattern! I see UFOs, erupting volcanoes, ninjas...man, you could find anything you want in this damascus. Never seen anything quite like it.




This katana is forged from the tamahagane bloom you see it rested on. I hope someone fills us in on its manufacture. There were a number of people involved and it sounded pretty awesome. Gary? Care to chime in?




That is a heavy chunk of tamahagane- 25# worth




Gary made this from the various mosaic damascus billets he made over the years. He described to me how he made it, but I'm hoping he'll chime in again on this one because I will likely get it wrong. This was one of the neatest things I saw at the show. Super cool.









Wade Colter was unable, due to unforeseen circumstances, to attend the show. But Gary House served as his proxy and gave me a glimpse into what Wade's made, and not a lot of people got a chance to see. I was absolutely blown away by what I saw. Please enjoy the following pictures. What a treat!


















































 
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you guys are awesome. Best crew ever. You honour me, sir :)
 
Fantastic Lorien, Thanks for the pics. Looks like everyone had fun.
Cheers Keith
 
Thank you so much Lorien. The comments and pictures make you feel like you were there.
 
So much cool work! Some of these folks I will see in slightly over a month at Blade, others I won't. Thanks for sharing the people and their work with us, Lorien!
 
captions added. More pics later this eve
 
It's always good to visit with the Desrosiers, although I didn't get much chance to this time around. That said, I was able to snap a few pictures and get a couple of minutes worth of conversation in.

Here's a sweet blade by Adam. When I picked up this knife, I found it to be perfectly balanced and surprisingly light and agile for its size. I'd love to take this out for a little hike in the forest. That's what it was made for!
P4263811_zpsihgxsny9.jpg




Adam took home the award for Best Chef's and apparently, this was his first effort at a chef's knife! Such a thin, lazer edge, and the knife itself was so flexible and springy. The trend with kitchen knives, it seems, is to build them with a semi integral handle. Adam is a master of integral construction, and his skills were on full display here.




Haley's chef knife was also excellent. A little less highbrow due to the handle material, but no less effective. I saw a video of Haley slicing a freestanding grape horizontally with this knife. I didn't even know that was a thing!




Haley proudly displaying the Ladysmith collaborative knife. Instead of trying to explain it all myself, do yourself a favour, and check out Haley's thread here




Seeing this knife in person was another highlight of the show for me.
 
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I've never seen Jason Knight in his natural habitat. But I have seen him in Seattle more than once.

Unfortunately, I didn't get any photos of his table but hopefully I made up for it through some of the photos I took during the PreFunk. I did get this video, though.
I was really impressed with his kitchen knives. I think that they are innovative and thoughtfully designed, maybe a little ahead of their time even.
The most impressive knife was the one his son, Tristan, forged the day or two before. Such impressive forging skills.

There are some great pearls of wisdom in this video. I recommend you turn up the sound enough to hear them;

[video=youtube;b5ElQgUP8sw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5ElQgUP8sw[/video]
 
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The knives of Wade Colter are from my personal collection acquired over the years. The miniature goblin is the latest. Wanted to get them photoed. I will try to explain other things later or see me at Blade. Table 14 P.
 
d'oh! The memory ain't what she used to be...actually never was too great to begin with :)
 
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