Kohai999
Second Degree Cutter
- Joined
- Jul 15, 2003
- Messages
- 12,554
The Evening of the Cutlery Arts and the Plaza Cutlery knife show are, in reality, two different shows, so I will do separate write ups about them.
My good friend Thomas W. from Kershaw, and I decided to make this show together earlier this year. This would be my second, and Thomas' third.
Thomas rented a Pontiac G6, which he delighted in smoking the tires, and tearing around parking lots. The drive up was quick, smooth, and uneventful. When we got to the Huntington Beach Hilton parking lot, at 3:30 pm, the lot was almost full, and we were directed to park in the fire lane, which caused me a glimmer of concern.
The room was ready when we checked in, and luckily, staff provided two beds(we were told that only a single king was available, and would require a rollaway). The hotel charges around $8.00/drink, so we brought up three bottles of wine, a Riesling, and two decent Chardonnays, which we set to chilling, and got ready for the show. The room had a balcony, and we had a great view of the Pacific, a dirt lot being graded for construction and a trailer park.
Ocean was beautiful, though.
We got to the show room, and looked around. The way this show works is that each maker displays 4-8 knives, and can designate up to two I believe, as open bid. The other knives are in front of a numbered box, and have a numbered corresponding ticket in a booklet that you are given when you check in(entry price was $75.00 for this years' show). The viewing period is from 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm, at which point the names are drawn from the box, and collectors scurry around the room to see which knives they have the opportunity to purchase. If the first collector drawn does not wish to purchase, the next person drawn can opt in, and down the line. During the drawing/purchasing phase the character of the show takes on a VERY intense and fast pace.
Dinner was a stand up buffet, with roast beef, turkey carved to order, pasta station, vegetables, and a very nice dessert table. This is included in the cost of entry to the show.
Per my usual, only the makers that I talked with and had buying interest at THIS show will be discussed. If the person is a regular Forumite, editorials about personality will not be noted:
Todd Begg-Todd had some nice stuff, and it was a pleasure to be able to chat with him, and his wife Tanya again. I was specifically interested in the integral hunting knives that Todd had brought, but he also had a VERY large integral recurved bowie that started out as a 9 lb. billet of D2 that was open bid. Also got to see the Megalodon model, which was a recurved bowie bladed folder, extremely large.
Phil Boguszewski-Phil had 7 knives on the table I think. King Cobra with sheep horn(?), spear point with horn, and some other models not sure about. Dropped slips on all of Phil's knives. "Won" knife number 1, the spear point, which I didn't even take delivery of, I sold it to a friend of mine off of the table. WANTED the King Cobra with horn, and if I had been selected for it, would have kept it. Phil is a really good person, has maintained a very grounded sense of self through the many years of crafting knives, his wife was extremely kind, and seemed very much to enjoy being there.
Bailey Bradshaw-Bailey had a SUPER wakizashi on his table with awesome hitatsura hamon, and a double habaki. It was the nicest Japanese style piece that I have seen him do yet. He also had a big bowie with maidou handle that was very nice.
Tim Galyean-Tim had six knives on the table. Really wanted his Lahar model, but got drawn instead for his mini Proto JYD. Very nice knife, but someone else wanted it more than I did, so that got sold, too. If had been drawn for the Lehar, PROBABLY would have kept it, but that is a tough call. Tim is hot right now, and has made less than 50 custom knives in the last two years, so the demand is driving the prices up into the stratosphere.
Don Hanson-Don had a stag handled slim trapper for me at the show, just a wonderful carry piece. He had a big bowie that is featured on his website right now, and it won best of show, as voted by his fellow makers, stunning knife! Don also had a gorgeous folder with his excellent mosaic damascus that was very tempting, but not inexpensive, had to pass.
Wally Hayes-Wally had a number of very nicely done damascus knives on his table, but his "Ninja Tanto" was the one that I liked the best, and dropped a slip on it. Was drawn third, but 1st person took it. Wound up ordering a san-mai constructed model for down the line. Wally is a really nice guy, and extremely passionate about his craft, while remaining eminently approachable and humble.
Rick Hinderer-Didn't really stop to talk with Rick on Friday, but it looked like he had 6 XM-18's on his table. Beyond that, not much to say.
Matt Lerch-Did not talk to Matt, but the knives looked very slick, with a flipper on them. Problem with the flipper was that it was very stylized, and when open, did not have an appealing look to me. Had that not been the case, I would have JUMPED all over these knives, they were smooth, priced right, and worked awesomely!
Ken Onion-You guys all know that Ken got his knives stolen. I like Ken, have known him for over 9 years, and can tell you, would not wish for what happened on my worst enemy. Ken is really devastated, he almost didn't want to come to the show, and the loss of income from the knife sales is only part of it. Ken had to pay for materials and engraving costing well into 5 figures, that is lost as well.:grumpy: Ken is an AWESOME person, you just have to get to know him, and if you don't make the effort, neither will he. He has offered excellent and heartfelt advice on my wife's back problems, and I will be eternally grateful to him for that.:thumbup:
Darrel Ralph-I have met Darrel before this show, but made a specific point to chat with him. He had a number of Gunhammer knives on the table, with some excellent pearl, and filework. We had a nice chat, but I will get more into it in the next installment.
Chris Reeve-Had one knife on the table, a big dagger. Total piece of functional art.
John Young-John had about 6 knives on the table. I dropped on two of them, didn't get them. John is a really nice guy, working hard to be himself, and the best maker he can be. Not full time yet and still putting out some highly sought after work. The one I wanted the most was a double edged fighter with snakewood scales, but it went to a friend, so that's all good.
After the show was over, I went up to my room, and the lock wouldn't work. Went to the front desk, and got a new key. No dice in the lock. Then called down to let the front desk know that the lock was not working. Long story short, me and Thomas were locked out of our room until 11:30 pm, the way they got the room open was an employee crawled across the balcony, and went in through the patio door, which was open. This was on the 7th floor.
If that sounds exciting, in addition, the police were called, by an overly zealous hotel employee who overheard something minor, and subsequently, two well known knife personages were patted down. Rumor has it that when asked if he was carrying any weapons, the friskee responded "only the one in my pants", hah hah!
Spent some time in the hotel bar getting faded, and passed out at 1:00 am. Got to meet Forumites Win Heger, J. MacDonald, and Commodore Wheeler, as well as Mr. ebosshoss, Jon Ukmann(sp?).
Good times!
Best Regards,
STeven Garsson
My good friend Thomas W. from Kershaw, and I decided to make this show together earlier this year. This would be my second, and Thomas' third.
Thomas rented a Pontiac G6, which he delighted in smoking the tires, and tearing around parking lots. The drive up was quick, smooth, and uneventful. When we got to the Huntington Beach Hilton parking lot, at 3:30 pm, the lot was almost full, and we were directed to park in the fire lane, which caused me a glimmer of concern.
The room was ready when we checked in, and luckily, staff provided two beds(we were told that only a single king was available, and would require a rollaway). The hotel charges around $8.00/drink, so we brought up three bottles of wine, a Riesling, and two decent Chardonnays, which we set to chilling, and got ready for the show. The room had a balcony, and we had a great view of the Pacific, a dirt lot being graded for construction and a trailer park.
Ocean was beautiful, though.We got to the show room, and looked around. The way this show works is that each maker displays 4-8 knives, and can designate up to two I believe, as open bid. The other knives are in front of a numbered box, and have a numbered corresponding ticket in a booklet that you are given when you check in(entry price was $75.00 for this years' show). The viewing period is from 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm, at which point the names are drawn from the box, and collectors scurry around the room to see which knives they have the opportunity to purchase. If the first collector drawn does not wish to purchase, the next person drawn can opt in, and down the line. During the drawing/purchasing phase the character of the show takes on a VERY intense and fast pace.
Dinner was a stand up buffet, with roast beef, turkey carved to order, pasta station, vegetables, and a very nice dessert table. This is included in the cost of entry to the show.
Per my usual, only the makers that I talked with and had buying interest at THIS show will be discussed. If the person is a regular Forumite, editorials about personality will not be noted:
Todd Begg-Todd had some nice stuff, and it was a pleasure to be able to chat with him, and his wife Tanya again. I was specifically interested in the integral hunting knives that Todd had brought, but he also had a VERY large integral recurved bowie that started out as a 9 lb. billet of D2 that was open bid. Also got to see the Megalodon model, which was a recurved bowie bladed folder, extremely large.
Phil Boguszewski-Phil had 7 knives on the table I think. King Cobra with sheep horn(?), spear point with horn, and some other models not sure about. Dropped slips on all of Phil's knives. "Won" knife number 1, the spear point, which I didn't even take delivery of, I sold it to a friend of mine off of the table. WANTED the King Cobra with horn, and if I had been selected for it, would have kept it. Phil is a really good person, has maintained a very grounded sense of self through the many years of crafting knives, his wife was extremely kind, and seemed very much to enjoy being there.
Bailey Bradshaw-Bailey had a SUPER wakizashi on his table with awesome hitatsura hamon, and a double habaki. It was the nicest Japanese style piece that I have seen him do yet. He also had a big bowie with maidou handle that was very nice.
Tim Galyean-Tim had six knives on the table. Really wanted his Lahar model, but got drawn instead for his mini Proto JYD. Very nice knife, but someone else wanted it more than I did, so that got sold, too. If had been drawn for the Lehar, PROBABLY would have kept it, but that is a tough call. Tim is hot right now, and has made less than 50 custom knives in the last two years, so the demand is driving the prices up into the stratosphere.
Don Hanson-Don had a stag handled slim trapper for me at the show, just a wonderful carry piece. He had a big bowie that is featured on his website right now, and it won best of show, as voted by his fellow makers, stunning knife! Don also had a gorgeous folder with his excellent mosaic damascus that was very tempting, but not inexpensive, had to pass.
Wally Hayes-Wally had a number of very nicely done damascus knives on his table, but his "Ninja Tanto" was the one that I liked the best, and dropped a slip on it. Was drawn third, but 1st person took it. Wound up ordering a san-mai constructed model for down the line. Wally is a really nice guy, and extremely passionate about his craft, while remaining eminently approachable and humble.
Rick Hinderer-Didn't really stop to talk with Rick on Friday, but it looked like he had 6 XM-18's on his table. Beyond that, not much to say.
Matt Lerch-Did not talk to Matt, but the knives looked very slick, with a flipper on them. Problem with the flipper was that it was very stylized, and when open, did not have an appealing look to me. Had that not been the case, I would have JUMPED all over these knives, they were smooth, priced right, and worked awesomely!
Ken Onion-You guys all know that Ken got his knives stolen. I like Ken, have known him for over 9 years, and can tell you, would not wish for what happened on my worst enemy. Ken is really devastated, he almost didn't want to come to the show, and the loss of income from the knife sales is only part of it. Ken had to pay for materials and engraving costing well into 5 figures, that is lost as well.:grumpy: Ken is an AWESOME person, you just have to get to know him, and if you don't make the effort, neither will he. He has offered excellent and heartfelt advice on my wife's back problems, and I will be eternally grateful to him for that.:thumbup:
Darrel Ralph-I have met Darrel before this show, but made a specific point to chat with him. He had a number of Gunhammer knives on the table, with some excellent pearl, and filework. We had a nice chat, but I will get more into it in the next installment.
Chris Reeve-Had one knife on the table, a big dagger. Total piece of functional art.
John Young-John had about 6 knives on the table. I dropped on two of them, didn't get them. John is a really nice guy, working hard to be himself, and the best maker he can be. Not full time yet and still putting out some highly sought after work. The one I wanted the most was a double edged fighter with snakewood scales, but it went to a friend, so that's all good.
After the show was over, I went up to my room, and the lock wouldn't work. Went to the front desk, and got a new key. No dice in the lock. Then called down to let the front desk know that the lock was not working. Long story short, me and Thomas were locked out of our room until 11:30 pm, the way they got the room open was an employee crawled across the balcony, and went in through the patio door, which was open. This was on the 7th floor.
If that sounds exciting, in addition, the police were called, by an overly zealous hotel employee who overheard something minor, and subsequently, two well known knife personages were patted down. Rumor has it that when asked if he was carrying any weapons, the friskee responded "only the one in my pants", hah hah!
Spent some time in the hotel bar getting faded, and passed out at 1:00 am. Got to meet Forumites Win Heger, J. MacDonald, and Commodore Wheeler, as well as Mr. ebosshoss, Jon Ukmann(sp?).
Good times!
Best Regards,
STeven Garsson
