Bladsmth (Stacy Apelt) in latest issue of Blade!

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sunshadow said:
Stacy,
Thank you for your well worded letter. After I heard "Blade" Magazine's editor's response to a well known smith who asked why they publish such balderdash when they know it is misleading and wrong, and they responded "He is popular and it sells magazines" (I wish I still had the exact verbiage at my fingertips, but that email is not on this computer) I let my subscription expire and stopped buying the magazine, so I had to wait until yesterday to read it. I really hope that it provides a wakeup that reins in certain authors in their belief that they can print mystical tripe and claim it as fact, but I do not think that will be the end result. I hope that at least it fosters a beginning of people requiring a fact check of some of the more absurd claims regardless of the "star power" of certain smiths

-Page
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whoa.....
I understand marketing, but I think they should be shooting for a bit more integrity than "because it sells"
 
bladsmth said:
Rick,
Lets try and keep this thread on subject about the letter and not a calling out for Mr. Fowler to defend himself.
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I can see how my post can be taken that way. I apologise. It was not my intent to incite a response from Mr Fowler (or anyone else) within this thread. I simply wanted to agree with what you felt was misinformation(without getting into detail) and foreshadow what would be a potentially good article from Ed in response.

I can edit or reword my post if you feel it is pushing this thread in a different direction?

Rick
 
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Rick,
No need to redact the post. I just didn't want this thread to become a flame war, or a free-for-all of personality bashing.
Thanks for understanding.
 
Here in So Cal we only have 1 bookstore left "Barnes and Noble". And they never have Blade Magazine in stock.

I wish they had an online version to subscribe to. I had about 20 years worth of Blade Magazine I gave away last year because it just took up to much room.
 
I thought I would give a heads up since after I saw his letter Stacy and I had a chuckle at how we both thought the same things at the same time, continue being kind to Stacy as he is certainly not alone. Same goes for Ed as he certainly is not alone either.

I personally cannot keep track of all the things published in knife magazines that I have been quite disappointed in over the years, but this last was obviously a doozy, since Stacy the only one with a reaction to it. But please keep this clean guys as it is not over yet. I have no problem with Ed's opinions when they are presented as such, and when they are clearly opinion pieces about the societal aspects of knives I do indeed find his articles a most valuable and entertaining asset to that magazine. My objection, and where I hope we all can agree, is a problem that all of media struggles with these days - that there is a responsibility to clearly label opinion vs. fact, and that in order to label something as fact there is an obligation to provide sources and supporting data. That should be journalism 101, and when people feel they are getting technical guidance in how to do things this is doubly important.


james terrio said:
... "KC or SA or EF said so, it must be true, why should I bother finding out for myself?" is a lot more romantic and appealing, and a heckuva lot easier....
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I couldn't agree more James, we have an obligation to ourselves, our peers and our craft to request clear and factual explanations from people providing us information, but we also have the same responsibility to verify it with our own research. I hope I have never failed to drive that home in any of my contributions, and the tomes I tend to write hopefully display my desire to fully explain what I present. Steel really doesn't give a rip how much we like or admire the person making claims about its behavior, it is going to behave according to the laws of physics or chemistry governing it, so if we want to work with steel we need to devote our attention to our favorite steel not our favorite people.
 
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Thank you ,Kevin. Well put.

I also agree that no one should do things just because someone else says so. You should seek to understand the process that controls the task you wish to do. Then you will understand what affects the process and how to vary it.

In Ed's defense, to a degree, I believe he has done his testing and varying of his procedures and reverse engineered the metallurgy to form his opinions. The process may well work, it is often in the terms and ways he explains it that there is a problem.
This is sort of the way knifemaking and blacksmithing was done for centuries - trial and error.....and when you find a way that works - swear by it. The modern knifemaker has the advantage of modern metallurgical science to guide him that would have been considered almost wizardry when my grandfather was born.
 
I would like to know just how and when bladesmiths went from being the cutting edge(pun inteneded) metallurgists of the time, to playing a game of pin the tail on the heat treat. I wish someone had the resources and intestinal fortitude to trace back to where it all went wrong(I suspect evolving technology in warfare, collonization and the industrial age had something to do with it) and provide hope that someday, the majority can be among the leaders in the field of performance steel, once again.

That... and I want a new bicycle.
 
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Rick Marchand said:
I would like to know just how and when bladesmiths went from being the cutting edge(pun inteneded) metallurgists of the time, to playing a game of pin the tail on the heat treat. I wish someone had the resources and intestinal fortitude to trace back to where it all went wrong(I suspect evolving technology in warfare, collonization and the industrial age had something to do with it) and provide hope that someday, the majority can be among the leaders in the field of performance steel.

That... and I want a new bicycle.
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Say what?...
 
That’s funny Kevin but,… I want to say it’s more about the person,… but only because I’m a human being. :D LOL
 
Rick Marchand said:
I would like to know just how and when bladesmiths went from being the cutting edge(pun inteneded) metallurgists of the time, to playing a game of pin the tail on the heat treat.
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Some great cutlery has been coming out of Japan for centuries. If you watch those guys work their forges and heat treat I think they get that the tail exactly where it belongs on a daily basis. The Randall Shop seems to be doing it well for decades as well.
 
Will you shut up for a sec "Anvil Jaw" Rick?, let me say something:

Is knife making more about the person or the product?

In the end, I think they’re the same thing,… “IF”, it’s a hand/eye “human” made knife.
 
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Rick Marchand said:
I would like to know just how and when bladesmiths went from being the cutting edge(pun inteneded) metallurgists of the time, to playing a game of pin the tail on the heat treat. I wish someone had the resources and intestinal fortitude to trace back to where it all went wrong(I suspect evolving technology in warfare, collonization and the industrial age had something to do with it) and provide hope that someday, the majority can be among the leaders in the field of performance steel, once again.

That... and I want a new bicycle.
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Rick, from our many chats I suspect you posted this to tempt me into posting more, but I know exactly what direction that topic will go on this forum. Let me just say this before the “fun” begins- alloying changed everything. Trial an error built a strong tradition of bladesmithing excellence over a 2,000 year period when steel was as simple as iron and carbon. But two to three centuries before the advent of alloy steel the bladesmith was moved by the military from the number one guy with steel to a quaint anachronism. Other industrial and military engineers kept up with the explosion of metallurgical complexity, the lone blacksmith having to make the odd blade now and then didn’t have to. It is interesting to note that the guys in Japan who get the most credit for making excellent blades with traditional techniques are using them on traditional steel. It is also worth noting that as soon as you convince yourself there is no room for improvement, you are pretty much done improving. Industrial applications push cutting beyond most knifes users imagination, yet we whittle some wood and cut some rope and tell ourselves we are still the leaders you describe.

I probably should have just e-mailed you this but you and I have chatted about it before, and you know I prefer to stick with the facts when possible, so I will let you take this specific topic from here, and good luck!

P.S. I want an old bicycle, I hate the new styles and just keep rebuilding the one I have been riding for 20 years:)
 
I've also worked part-time in a bicycle shop, Kevin... I'll see what I can do. Thanks for humoring me. I'm afraid I was being a bit facetious:o but I'm glad you took the time to expand on it so I didn't look like some babbling crackpot... or at least, less of one.:p:thumbup:

I'll stop being me in this particular thread.
 
Which one of you is the expert?

Instead of talking, why not focus on improving your own skills. Ed Fowler has promoted the performance aspect of knives. This has been a goal, and making the performance of knives a topic of importance. Why not just say "thanks" Ed! Take a look at the latest "Best Bowie" thread in the customs subforum. Where do you see any aspect of blade performace and testing discussed? I'll save you the trouble. Its Nowhere. I would suggest those of you who would like to voice your
objections, ask what you have done to advance the performance aspect of knives today? Most of you are either
obscure smiths who have never been out of your comfort zone or have never conclusively or substantially proven anything to anyone but yourselves. Go ahead and explain it to me how everything is mixed up thanks to Ed Fowler.
 
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