Designer recognition time

Al Mar for his ingenius front lock and also for pioneering relations with the talented craftsmen in Seki Japan. :)
 
Sal Glesser said:
Who are your favorites and why? Let's take some time to appreciate and give credit to our "idea folk" and "artists" in our knife arena.

I'd like to kick it off with a toast to Ed Schempp. Designs in the Spyderco stable include the "Persian designs" both large and small and the Kris folder. We also have others in the works. He also is one of the mosaic damascus gurus, always sharing his knowledge.
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You're so right about Ed Sal. His damascus is outstanding and his designs are both beautiful and unique.

Here are pics of a Tanto by Ed with a 5.5" blade of what he calls: "Spirit Damascus", which contains Yin-Yang symbols, Chinese Calligraphy characters, and some "W" patterns thrown in, amazing stuff.

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Chris Reeve, for the Sebenza and integral lock; Warren Osborne and Ken Onion for the sheer beauty of their knives. Of course Karl Elsener for the incredibly useful SAK, although I don't know if he actually designed them.

However Sal, your designs are what got me into knives. My first "real" folder was a Spyderco. You're the reference by which I compare the others.

Guy
 
Great thread Sal!

Ignoring present company, (like a knife nut and knife maker could do that!) here are my sources of inspiration.

I arrive at my list as a hobby maker striving to do better and better:

Kit Carson. When he speaks, I listen. A huge source of information, and he is so generous with it too.

Mike Cooper. Mike has decided to exit knife maing, but he has helped many folks out here. I have many of his knife patterns, some small tools, a folder "kit" he made and sent me to work on, and much advice to help me out. Thanks for your generosity Mike.

Jerry Hossom. Again a maker I have got a lot of help from. I also love how Hossom knives have such great curves, and Jerry's nto afraid to do things liek grind ina real goofy way or make swords out of stainless steel, which everybody knows jsut can't be done! HA!

Trace Rinaldi. I love how Trace's designs are composed of simple lines that WORK. I strive for 100% function and aesthetics, and I really look to Trace for improving the function of my knives. My first design of my own ended up Rinaldi-ish, and I sent him an e-mail about that. He was kind and supportive, and still is when I shoot him an e-mail.

Neil Blackwood. I love Neil's designs for the play with color and shape that he does. His Neck Ninja blades blew me away, with colored titanium under black wrap. I have since made a knife in that style and look forward to making more. I look to Neil for that aesthetic kick that he puts into his super tools.

Mick and Duane of Strider Knives. They have shared a lot of their information with makers on forums and I know I have got a lot of info on working titanium from Mick. I even got a reply from an e-mail to Duane Dwyer concerning a deba hocho I made. Busy guys who are still ordinary knife maker willing to help out. I also think they are great at the marketing and other business sides of knives.

Brian Van Speybroeck. He is a member here though does not post too often (thoug he is more active at Don Fogg's board and elsewhere.) Here's a guy who makes fantastic results, but always doing them HIS way! I love that! He is also very giving of knowledge and has always had a half a dozen unique solutions to problems I have had. For constantly reminding me to find my own path in knives I have Brian Van Speybroeck to thank.

Keith Larman. Keith is a polisher of Japanese/Japanese style swords in the US. He has a philosophy background and I see it in his work. I have a Masters in Philosophy myself, and I find that philosophy helps me make knvies as much as my files do. So I look to Mr. Larman's work for inspiration.

Don Fogg. Again, here's a maker willing to share what he knows. I have lurked on his board a lot and learned much. His blades look so damned good and his hamon sometimes just look on fire!

Ed Fowler and Wayne Goddard. For a gazillion artickes and many more beautiful knives, who couldn't help but be influenced by these two great smiths. Also, from Ed and Wayne I have learned to test my work and strive to always imrove in what I do.

I could go on and on and on. Thanks to all that have inspired me and given so much.
 
RH said:
Blackie Collins, for the original bolt-action lock, and some nifty sheaths.
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Got to second that, Gerber, when they were still a quality company, put out tons of BC's designs. I like his work because it is minimalist in ornamentation and always focused on utility. Something I try to do in my own knife designs.
 
There are actually two designers who have earned my respect through their creations, and consequently, most of my disposable income as well.;)

Ed Schempp - For all the reasons already stated. His prodution pieces by Spyderco seem to inevitably grab my attention. The Persian is currently dominating the EDC slot, and will not likely be budged anytime soon. It's the perfect blend of performance and aesthetics. His custom knives are on an entirely different level, one which has me picking my jaw up off the ground whenever I see one. One day I will own one, but first there will be copious saving involved.

David Mosier - I've purchased two knives from him (so far, more to come if my finances permit) and both have far exceeded all the expectations I had for them. They outperform every other comparable knife I own. The fit and finish on his knife is flawless. The grinds are perfect, and the balance is right where it should be. His craftsmanship is unparalelled, and rivals that of makers who charge far more than he does, for knives that perform half as well.

Two excellent designers and craftsmen who will likely be seeing a large chunk of my money in the future.:D
 
Well Sal, that'd be you.

Greatly involved with the knife knut community, huge innovations, great history.

Not to mention great designs, by you and your son.


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I'm limited in the the area of experience, and kinda biased since all I collect is Spyderco:D. So I guess I'll have to say the Spydercrew and all their callaboration team-ups, IMHO it just doesn't get any better:cool:.
I gotta give credit to whoever designed the SAK as well, first knife I ever remember having, innovative as all get-out!
 
I really appreciate Og's original design, probably the oldest of all knife designers. You remember Og, the cave guy who first hit two rocks together and used the sharp edge from one to cut his meat into bite sized pieces? All others are copies of his design, some are just better than others.
 
Great thread! I have a huge admiration for designers because I'm not able to think outside of the box and come up with useful new stuff whithout "borrowing" from others.

I really like the Centofante designed Spyderco knives, a kind of gentleman's folder meets tactical. There aren't many thin bladed one hand openers around, these are great!

Viele is another favourite of mine, the old Spyderco Viele was my first quality folder, I love it and use it a lot. It has that same elegant feel as the Centofante designs.

I can't praise good old Mr. Elsener enough, after all his SAKs are one the knives I use the most and are pure designing genius!

Mike Stewart from BRK&T, in addition to been a great guy, puts looks and function together like nobody else! I love his knives.

Sgt. Mike (I don't know his last name!) from KF has designed some awesome knives for BRK&T, too (all the Mikros) and his work with Charles May is amazing as well (Fire Ant). As a pocket fixed blade enthusiast I really enjoy his designs.

Wegner's hunting folders are amongst my favourites, my first Wegner designed knife was a Spyderco Wegner and I then purchased one of his Pro Hunters, love the blade shape.

Dirk "Oupa" does some awesome knives, too. He is a very original "knife artist", with any luck I'll be getting one of his blades soon.

The guy who designed the Paramilitary, my favourite folder so far, is OK too.

There are lots more that I like, we are blessed with some great minds in the knife world that can design some high performance works of art!
 
I am far from an expert or scholar in this field, however I have thought of a couple others that were not mentioned here yet (and one that has).

R.J. Martin - he has a very "organic" look to his knives - especially his folders. Not sure if that word describes them properly, but the blades are contoured and textured and resemble something living...very interesting designs.

Graham Brothers - I thought of them simply for their razel. I am not generally a fan of stright lines and hard corners, but what an interesting idea. I don't have one, but I have not seen another design as bold in theory and beautiful in execution. Very creative.

Eric Glesser - For very similar reasons that I like R.J. designs. Eric has interesting ideas that translate into very curvy, very "sexy" execution. I have a Scorpius and Manix. Both knives are my most carried and both have curves in just the right places to make me love to hold them and use them.
 
I forgot about Scott "Razorback"! I really like his fixed blades a lot, if it weren't for the crappy humid weather in my country I'd have a few of them. I hope he starts working with stainless steels some time in the future.
 
I like Deryk Munroe,Todd Begg,RJ Martin's newer stuff & R.Hinderer.As for fixed blades Rick Palm and Velarde's intragals.:thumbup:
 
"David Mosier - I've purchased two knives from him (so far, more to come if my finances permit) and both have far exceeded all the expectations I had for them. They outperform every other comparable knife I own. The fit and finish on his knife is flawless. The grinds are perfect, and the balance is right where it should be. His craftsmanship is unparalelled, and rivals that of makers who charge far more than he does, for knives that perform half as well."

I totally,totally agree!! I LOVE David Mosiers' work! It is outstanding!! I coulodn't have said it better myself. He is sooooo right about his work. I soooo want that framelock of his, and some of his fixed blades...... Anyway, you get the point!! His work is amazing!!
 
How does anyone choose just one? I'd pick Ed Schempp. Bob Lum and Ken Onion, probably in that order. Schempp and Lum because of the beauty and aesthetics of their designs, and Onion because of that and his innovations in mechanics in his designs. Oh, and about a dozen or so more. This must be the place where I say 'What he said.' :)
 
WOW!! That is simply beautiful!! I also believe that Don Morrow makes some amazing slipjoints as well!! I fully intend on owning one of HIS knives!!
 
jim n said:
I really appreciate Og's original design, probably the oldest of all knife designers. You remember Og, the cave guy who first hit two rocks together and used the sharp edge from one to cut his meat into bite sized pieces? All others are copies of his design, some are just better than others.
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That wasn't Og, That is the common misconception, Og's brother Ug was the designer, Og was the first guy to create a marketing strategy for selling knives. Their situation was much like Simon and Garfunkel. Og was the better looking one and got all the attention. Ug like Paul Simon felt like he never got the credit he deserved and ultimately Og and Ug parted company. Og like Art Garfunkel went on to other things but never saw the level of success he had with Ug. Ug saw his career mirror that of Paul Simon in that he was successful but his work became more self indulgent and lacked the impact of his work with Og. Unlike Simon and Garfunkel, Og and Ug never colaborated again.
 
Ken Onion is way up there for me. I like Blackwood's stuff a lot. Terry Guinn has some fine balis. Kit Carson has one of the great tactical designs.
 
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