Blade Show Texas 2024

x8VX6Ep.jpeg
 
Third year in a row going to Blade Show Texas.
Very glad they started running it here because I could never make the trip out to Atlanta or Salt Lake due to work and just overall cost.
Great show and it gets bigger every year.
 
I didn’t know this was the third one. I took my two teenage sons. We didn’t get to stay long as we had a prior engagement.
 
Some thoughts....a bit smaller than last year. Gripes: Getting annoyed at the explosion of "Custom" makers who are really just CAD programmers with an overseas knife MFG OEM...There were a lot of them, this year. If you are selling your knives, get off the phone and interact. Restrict the Balisong group, especially after the beef they had in their corner of the room. If you are a manufacturer, why display but not allowed to sell? This isn't the SHOT show. If you are a cranky dealer...be nice...and i quote, directed to me: "If you're just gonna look, and not buy, move on!" Um. ok. The Convention Center needs better internet. It was an issue for those taking online payments. The venue also needs to put out some tables and chairs to sit and eat, etc. Downtown Ft. Worth, at night, has turned into a shithole, which is a shame (but not nearly as bad as Salt Lake City)....

Goods: the contingent of slip joint makers have such an immense talent. There were several young makers with great looking pieces. Most of the big name folks were friendly. Crowd was good, not too obnoxious. I found a few fantastic knives from unknown makers, which is always a big plus for me. And i finally grabbed a Shay Butler Rhino, which is impossible to get, but one was just sitting on his table, thru Fri, into Sat...Score!

Overall, it's a good show and worth going to. MUCH better than Blade West, and without the manic showboating of Atlanta.
 
I was under the impression there were nearly 400 vendors this year compared to 300 last year.
As for the outsourcing brands, yes, there were quite a few of those.
Never ventured over to the balisong table, sounds like it was better that way.
 
I remember you! Thanks for stopping by, and thanks for the support. I hope you had a great show. The part about mentioning Bladeforums was a bit of a joke, lol.

Sam🔥🔥

WarrGo said:
I

I spoke to you briefly but didn’t join this forum until after the show. I asked if you were associated with Wilson Combat.
Click to expand...
 
If you have a "professional" conversation with some of these guys about what makes their knives cut, or feel good in the hand, OR actual good field use, their eyes start to dart around in panic.

My personal favorite is asking them what type of testing they've conducted on their knives personally. And how they fared in destruction testing. Then, for the icing on the cake, ask to see some of their handmade or custom knives, not just the stuff they get imported by the pallet load. Suddenly most of them are not so interested in talking about how great their knives are anymore and just want to run in terror.

I think it will be good for the knife industry if/when these "desktop designers" fade away some.

Sam⚔️⚔️

dano said:
Some thoughts....a bit smaller than last year. Gripes: Getting annoyed at the explosion of "Custom" makers who are really just CAD programmers with an overseas knife MFG OEM...There were a lot of them, this year. If you are selling your knives, get off the phone and interact. Restrict the Balisong group, especially after the beef they had in their corner of the room. If you are a manufacturer, why display but not allowed to sell? This isn't the SHOT show. If you are a cranky dealer...be nice...and i quote, directed to me: "If you're just gonna look, and not buy, move on!" Um. ok. The Convention Center needs better internet. It was an issue for those taking online payments. The venue also needs to put out some tables and chairs to sit and eat, etc. Downtown Ft. Worth, at night, has turned into a shithole, which is a shame (but not nearly as bad as Salt Lake City)....

Goods: the contingent of slip joint makers have such an immense talent. There were several young makers with great looking pieces. Most of the big name folks were friendly. Crowd was good, not too obnoxious. I found a few fantastic knives from unknown makers, which is always a big plus for me. And i finally grabbed a Shay Butler Rhino, which is impossible to get, but one was just sitting on his table, thru Fri, into Sat...Score!

Overall, it's a good show and worth going to. MUCH better than Blade West, and without the manic showboating of Atlanta.
Click to expand...
 
Probably true, sadly. Hopefully the younger crowd will take an interest in some of the history of the knife world and the way it used to be. A lot of the younger folks that I've spoken with (including at shows) know folding knives as essentially fidget toys.🤦‍♂️🤦‍♂️

Sam⚔️⚔️

Synov said:
Don't worry, next year they will be replaced by AI-designed knives.
Click to expand...
 
How the turn tables.🤦‍♂️🤣

I've spoken with a number of these guys at different shows across the country in the last year. I don't believe they're doing anything wrong at all, they're obviously free to approach the business the way they see fit. But the ones I've spoken with sound like they could not care less about knives. This is just the next product they're using their CAD skills to design.

And I don't think that's really good for the industry long-term, but that's just my opinion. As mentioned, hopefully there's a shift soon.

Sam⚔️⚔️

Matthew Gregory said:
I remember a time when knifemakers actually wanted to make knives.
Click to expand...
 
Sam Wilson said:
If you have a "professional" conversation with some of these guys about what makes their knives cut, or feel good in the hand, OR actual good field use, their eyes start to dart around in panic.

My personal favorite is asking them what type of testing they've conducted on their knives personally. And how they fared in destruction testing. Then, for the icing on the cake, ask to see some of their handmade or custom knives, not just the stuff they get imported by the pallet load. Suddenly most of them are not so interested in talking about how great their knives are anymore and just want to run in terror.

I think it will be good for the knife industry if/when these "desktop designers" fade away some.

Sam⚔️⚔️
Click to expand...
Post of the week!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top