CKG 2012 Show Review

[RL]

Intro

I always look forward to the Canadian Knifemaker Guild show to see great knives, connect with knifemakers, and catch-up with my friends and fellow knife enthusiasts. I was saddened to learn that my friends Greg Lightfoot, Kirby Lambert, and Neil Ostroff would not be at this year's show but i knew that i would still have an enjoyable experience.

As per my usual routine, i took the day off work to drive up early...lots of traffic and intermittent snow on the way

I did get an awesome parking spot next to the door..

Yes, this is another cheesy way to plug my new ride

After checking in, i headed down to the resto and met up with Brian Tighe, Wolfgang Loerchner, and Ron Post. Eventually we were joined by Mike Mossington, Murray St. Amour, Steve Vanderkolpf, and Craig Wheatley. It didn't take long for the show and tell to start.

Murray showed us an ultra-cool "bracer", a leather protective sleeve for bow-hunting but this one had a twist of doubling as a knife sheath!

We passed around a few knives before having a quick bite and heading down to the Friends of the Guild pre-show.

Friends of the Guild Pre-Show

First stop was to check out this year's collaboration knife...the blade was forged by Dave MacDonald and the handle was made by Murray St. Amour...nice touch on the cap

Next i was anxious to see Brian Tighe's new Tighe Rod, a variation of his Nirk Tighe lock with a more persian shaped blade..it felt great in the hand, but i was really blown away by his Twist Tighes, especially the dressed-up one! The one with glow in the dark carbon fiber (VERY cool material) sold right away!

Speaking of knives getting sold, you never can predict what i will find or buy at a knife show! Steve Linklater showed a great selection of folders, including three traditional Japanese utility friction folders. The handles are made of one piece of folded steel...and the one i bought has a traditional shaped blade made of a very modern S90V.

Back to Murray St. Amour to get another look at that bracer and his other knives on display for Friends of the Guild.

And a look at Murray's neighbours...

Mike Mossington

And Steve Vanderkolpf, who had some nice little folders made in steel over titanium frame.

Some nice utility knives from USN brother Craig Wheatley (thanks for joining me for dinner!)

And John Grimsmo

Moving around the room...Paul Savage, who recently did his ABS testing

Paul Bold...I like the finger grooves

James Emmons

All in all some cool knives but not the biggest turnout so far...hopefully the show will be busy!

 

[RL]

The 18th Annual Canadian Knifemakers Guild Show

New for this year, the CKG introduced "best in..." awards voted on by Friends of the Guild. I think an award based on collector's opinions rather than fellow knifemakers is a great idea! Here are most of the entries for..

Best folder

Best fixed blade

Best hunter

Best art knife

There was also an award for Best in Show. Next year they should also add one for Best tactical. I will get to the winners as i cover the individual knifemakers.

I have organized past reviews by knife type and given the volume of pictures i am posting here, that seems to be a good way to go. Art and "dressed up" knives appeared to be more popular at this year's show so let's cover those first and what better way to start than with Paul Savage!

Not only has Paul passed his ABS Journeyman Smith test, he won Best Art Knife and Best in Show at this CKG show!

Some stunning pieces from newly elected CKG President Wolfgang Loerchner

and Elizabeth Loerchner

Not surprisingly, Brian Tighe's stunning folder won Best Folder. Not only do the inset stones look great, they feel great in the hand too!

Cristophe Derringer with knives forged out of ball bearings

In addition to his fine knives, Steve Linklater had a photo-tent set up for anyone who wanted to take pics of their knives under better lighting.

Nathan Knowles unconventional designs are right along my taste and remind me of Randy Doucette's work.

My personal favourite was this karambit

A nice range from Steve Vanderkolpf

Including this entry for Best Art knife

I am a sucker for skeleton knives as well

 

[RL]

Next up, hunters and utility knives. James Emmons has been making knives for nine years but this was his first CKG show. And what a first show! James won Best Hunter and Best Fixed Blade!

In addition to making pure hunters, Joe Arnold makes knives for re-enactment such as this "tainted" blade. The copper colour is applied through a special paint process that does not actually contain copper or bronze.

Craig Wheatley puts his background as a machinist to good use in his utility designs. Craig has always been a hard user of knives so he designs his own knives with robust use in mind.

A huge selection from Murray St. Amour. On a personal note, i'd like to commend Murray for his constant positive enthusiasm about the Guild, it really shows that Murray wants the Guild to be successful!

David Sylvester is one of the few Canadian knifemakers to pass the ABS Journeyman Smith test.

Paul Bold's work keeps getting better and better. Again my favourite was the upswept hunter with finger grooves.

Jim Downie's table...i love the minatures

 

[RL]

Last but not least, tacticals! With the absence of Kirby, Greg, and Neil, tacticals were not quite as prominent as in past shows but there still some great pieces. Fairly new to the knife scene E.D.C. is already making a mark as a Prestige Emerson Dealer and authorized dealer for Zero Tolerance, Kershaw, Spyderco, and Esee knives, among others.

I read about some of the knives BigJay was bringing to the show and i was most anxious to see the Emerson Super Karambit and Persian. In the end i decided on the Super Karambit and bought an Emerson hat for good measure. Thanks for the Emerson cup cozie E.D.C.!

I also made a total impulse purchase with an Esse Izula in pink!

John Grimsmo and his brother (both USN brothers) make some incredible scales for Spydercos and Emersons, including a USN anniversay addition (in aluminum and titanium). John also brought some prototype folders of his own design.

Best known for his unconventional designs and use of different materials, William Nease had axes, swords, and laminated blades. Some examples include this axe, custom made for wyrm

This one had a pure carbide edge

While this one was aluminum with a fused carbide edge

Hard to believe Peter Rassenti has only been making knives for a year...his work was SOLID!

More production tacticals on sale at Steve Stuart's table

Russ showing some of his incredible collection, including original drawings for the Iron Mistress bowie from the Alamo!

And a movie prop knife!

and more from his collection..

 

[RL]

Always a huge assortment of knifemaking supplies from Mike Mossington, including a grinder and heat treating oven

Finally some generous giveaways courtesy of Mike Mossington, E.D.C. and Steve Linklater

After the show, we headed down to Lonestar for a USN Get Together..big thanks to Bigjay for organizing a GTG with a HUGE turnout of about 30 people!

RAYE told us the touching story of the commemorative knife made by Kirby Lambert, Wally Hayes, Maker, and a few others presented to him at Gathering 3 in remembrance of his son Andrew Miller, who was killed while serving in Afghanistan.

John and RAYE said some words about USN and then generously handed out some tags!

Next a very generous giveaway with something for everyone! I scored some Larue Tactical steak spice, straight from the SHOT show!

The resto asked us to keep show and tell to a minimum, still i did get to see some cool stuff like...

Mcgoo7's Marathon

A Warren Thomas regrind of a Strider RC

not sure what you call this...a glow ball?

So there you have it, great knives, great knifemakers, and great fellow enthusiasts...mission accomplished!

RL

 

[Calhoon]

Thank you for posting those fine pics and giving us a run down of the show! Very interesting indeed...

 

[betzner]

Always great to see show pics, and to check out some really gorgeous knives, thanks!

Bob

 

[Lorien]

love your show reviews man!
can't wait to come back and check out your great pics when I have some time

 

[Loups]

Great Review!

 

[JamesPEmmons]

Robert,

Thanks for the review and I really enjoyed meeting you along with the other collector and makers. I am already looking forward to next years show.

James

 

[Doug C]

RL,


Have been enjoying your CKG threads for a while now.
Thanks, man.
Great images & review of some really nice knives.

Doug

 

[knifenut880]

thanks for sharing it looks like a great show

 

[RL]

thanks all..glad you liked the review.

RL

 

[SharpByCoop]

Hi Robert,

THANK YOU! I enjoyed every photo and read every word. Nice to spend time in Canada this evening.

Much appreciation for your hard work.

Coop

 

[Kohai999]

ALWAYS a passionate writeup with great photos.....well done, Robert!

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson

 

[RSD100]

Wow, very nice review, great pictures! Thanks

 

[wnease]

Thanks Robert,

There is some great stuff at our show, very creative, and some incredible finishes (I think my own finishes have been a little slack... oh wait, you get what you pay for... but next year I'll have something nice to be judged).

It takes all my willpower to not spend money buying knives myself!

 

[Hyde_me]

Hi, great show as usual! Great selection of makers and products. I won one of Steve Linklater's Japanese utility friction folders as a door prize. I look forward to the show each year! Thanks!

Grant.

 

[CKE2]

It was a great show this year. Thanks Robert for doing the review again, excellent as always.

Thanks to everyone who attended.....next year will be even better!

Craig

 

[Idlewild]

Thanks Robert for putting together this review post. I've attended many CKG shows in the past and wish I had been able to make it this year. Hopefully I'll make the next one.