- Joined
- Jun 17, 2004
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Well, its gonna take some time before I manage to get pics posted, but I thought that I would jump in with the others and give a Blade show perspective from a first-timer. I am writing this in transit and will upload later. (Note that this will be mostly about people, and only a little about knives. So if you dont care for this sort of thing, better quit now.) I have been to a couple of smaller knife shows, including one in New York, but obviously nothing like Blade. I could only be there on Friday and Saturday, so I knew that I would have to be careful about time. So I made my little map of the makers and companies that I especially wanted to visit with, and tried to leave some time for my little boy at the candy store routine of wandering around seeing what goodies are out there.
First on the agenda was the Thursday night dinner organized by Gus. I had never met any of the forumites before, so I was looking forward to this. Gus is a great guy, and obviously put a bit of effort into getting this organized, so again, thanks Gus. Got a ride to the restaurant with Ray Kirk and his wonderful wife, both of whose company I enjoyed a great deal. I only found out later that Ray would be testing for his Mastersmith rank on the morrowI never would have known from his demeanor. Mr. Cool, indeedand congratulations. Other people I met at that table included Steve Freund, Danbo, and RogerP from the Forums, from whom you can read a REAL report on the Blade show. All very nice people.
Friday morning I had arranged to meet Ed Schempp, who had flown in on the redeye, for breakfast. Ed has made a couple of knives for me, and I consider him a friend. Nonetheless, this was the first time we had met in person, and it was great. Those of you who know Ed know how much fun he isand how interesting he is. Truly a man of many talents. We hooked up with Butch Vallotin (uh, did I mention that I love autos) for breakfast, and I managed to persuade Steven Garsson (who actually had a nametag with his name on it), aka Kohai999 on the forums, to refrain from smoking long enough to sit with us. Great guy, real enthusiast.
Next on the list was to have a look at the folders that Ed had brought. Now its really too bad that I dont have pictures. One is a beautiful folding bowie with Eds wonderful Damascus blades and bolsters, with scales of really sweet ivory. When open, the entire knife has a bit of a curve to it (if you have seen Eds designs for Spyderco, you will know what I mean) so that it fits very comfortably in the hand. The other is a tiny little Persian with abalone scales, and blade and bolsters of the Damascus that Ed is righteously famous for. Couldnt resist, got em both before the show opened. (Hey, I may be new at this, but I am not entirely stupid.) I also picked up a nice knapped obsidian blade done by Eds sonsuitable for framing, in my opinion.
Into the Blade show, with Ed as guide. First stopAl Mar, where Gary Fadden and I had a long conversation about the Shiva, and also about Al himself. Unlike some other companies that I can (and shall) mentionthe people at Al Mar are friendly and knowledgeable. Gary most of all. And I doubt that I need to say anything about Al Mar knives.
Stopped by a little to talk to Dan Burke, who makes wonderful little slipjoints. Didnt pick one up this trip. That area seems to be slipjoint city, but I couldnt get near the Bose table, folks were threedeep around it.
On to Spyderco, where I spent a considerable amount of time talking with Sal, Eric, Joyce, and everyone else there. I saw all the new designs, including the Kris and mini-Persian, as well as the big cutter designed by Ed. A number of really great new ideasand I sure hope that they all get into production. Spyderco is another company where everyone is knowledgeable, and willing to talk. I bet that its a great place to work.
Ok, onward to the custom guys. First stop, Bailey Bradshaw, from whom I have a knife on order. I know it wouldnt be at the show, but I wanted to meet him and see his other stuff. He had a great folding bowie that I would have bought on the spot if some other @#%& hadnt beaten me to it. Chatted quite awhile with Bailey and Courtenay, and had a great time. Truly excellent people.
To the Vallotin/Diskin table! Talked to Butch about a design for a custom. What a guy! I love autos, and its thanks to him that I can choose from so many great designs. But I want a custom one from him. So we talked about that for awhile. Meanwhile, Matt was screwing around somewhere---I dunno, maybe testing for journeyman status? I dont quite understand the ABS, but what the hell, Im only a consumer.
Time now for the production pieces. Went to Case to see what they could tell me about their new knives with BG-42 like for example, who does the heat treat? Nobody could answer mebut they were polite. Went to Microtech to ask about a couple of things, nobody really wanted to talk to me. Went to Benchmade to ask a number of specific questions about the damascus in their Gold series knives---the guy who has the answer to that isnt here right now. Stop back later. Yeah, right, like Im gonna keep coming back there. Like I got nothing to see at this show. What the hell, how come none of these guys want to talk to meIm just asking questions, and its not like Im not a customer or anything. Is it my breath? Usually I would have said that it's because I dress like a slob, but I looke reasonable in that crowd. OK, I can take a hint.
Off to see the Japanese companies. Seki-cut makes wonderful laminated VG-10 folders, and their new Mcusta line is terrific. Nice people as well. Had to pick up a couple.
A couple of companies were selling knives made out of Hitachi laminated blue steel, in bark-wrapped sheaths. I got a small kukhri-shaped chopper for the yard, but the handle was cordwrapped. So I had to get a nice piece of spalted maple to make a handle.
Then the loudspeaker goes off, throwing everyone out of the show.
Saturday was a great day of chatting with some makers (again, nice introductions from Ed Schempp). I dont do money transactions on Saturday, but I convinced a couple of makers to hold stuff and bring it by that evening. Jim Rodebaugh is a great maker (he did win the Moran awardsometimes the ABS apparently knows what they are about), and he agreed to reserve his beautiful small bowie for me. Quite a find, and I put Danbo on the spot by asking him what he thought of it. Of course, Danbo had no problem, and he and Jim went into Marine mode for awhile.
Finally found Matt Diskin, from whom I have wanted a knife for awhile. Great guy! He had passed his journeyman test, of course. He had one of his Searles-inspired folding bowies on the table. Not my type of thing at all. Why would I want something like that? Its beautiful of course, and itll cut, but its not really a carry piece---why did it appeal to me that much?
Anyway, Matt agreed to build a knife for me, and I cant wait.
Talked to a few other makers, then the show closes again.
Later that night, meet some folks in the pit. I was sitting in a group that included off-and-on Ed Schempp, Christoph Deringer, Matt Diskin, Jim Rodebaugh, David Mirabile, and (gasp) Darryl Meier. We managed to almost kill off a bottle of 13-year old Highland Park before the hotel staff came and yelled at us. I spent a couple fo hours talking with Darryl, who is a really great person. I dont think that I need to say anything about his mind or hands.
Bought a little dagger form Christoph, who also amused me and everyone else by making little origami figures. Great guy.
Got my little Bowie (ok, maybe its too small to be a real bowie, so call it a hunter with a bowie-shaped blade) from Jim. Beautiful knife. Also convinced Matt to part with his folding bowie, which I still am not sure why it appeals to me so much. But it does, and I am extremely pleased with myself for getting it. Not to mention Matt, for making it.
In short, I had a good time, and met a lot of good people. Bought a few knives, and laid the groundwork for ordering more. Now that I am back into my routine, I look at these knives, and I do not regret buying a single one of them. I really feel that I started some really good friendships based, not on business, but on common interests. So, yeah, I had a great show. Hope I can post some pics soon.
--shaldag
First on the agenda was the Thursday night dinner organized by Gus. I had never met any of the forumites before, so I was looking forward to this. Gus is a great guy, and obviously put a bit of effort into getting this organized, so again, thanks Gus. Got a ride to the restaurant with Ray Kirk and his wonderful wife, both of whose company I enjoyed a great deal. I only found out later that Ray would be testing for his Mastersmith rank on the morrowI never would have known from his demeanor. Mr. Cool, indeedand congratulations. Other people I met at that table included Steve Freund, Danbo, and RogerP from the Forums, from whom you can read a REAL report on the Blade show. All very nice people.
Friday morning I had arranged to meet Ed Schempp, who had flown in on the redeye, for breakfast. Ed has made a couple of knives for me, and I consider him a friend. Nonetheless, this was the first time we had met in person, and it was great. Those of you who know Ed know how much fun he isand how interesting he is. Truly a man of many talents. We hooked up with Butch Vallotin (uh, did I mention that I love autos) for breakfast, and I managed to persuade Steven Garsson (who actually had a nametag with his name on it), aka Kohai999 on the forums, to refrain from smoking long enough to sit with us. Great guy, real enthusiast.
Next on the list was to have a look at the folders that Ed had brought. Now its really too bad that I dont have pictures. One is a beautiful folding bowie with Eds wonderful Damascus blades and bolsters, with scales of really sweet ivory. When open, the entire knife has a bit of a curve to it (if you have seen Eds designs for Spyderco, you will know what I mean) so that it fits very comfortably in the hand. The other is a tiny little Persian with abalone scales, and blade and bolsters of the Damascus that Ed is righteously famous for. Couldnt resist, got em both before the show opened. (Hey, I may be new at this, but I am not entirely stupid.) I also picked up a nice knapped obsidian blade done by Eds sonsuitable for framing, in my opinion.
Into the Blade show, with Ed as guide. First stopAl Mar, where Gary Fadden and I had a long conversation about the Shiva, and also about Al himself. Unlike some other companies that I can (and shall) mentionthe people at Al Mar are friendly and knowledgeable. Gary most of all. And I doubt that I need to say anything about Al Mar knives.
Stopped by a little to talk to Dan Burke, who makes wonderful little slipjoints. Didnt pick one up this trip. That area seems to be slipjoint city, but I couldnt get near the Bose table, folks were threedeep around it.
On to Spyderco, where I spent a considerable amount of time talking with Sal, Eric, Joyce, and everyone else there. I saw all the new designs, including the Kris and mini-Persian, as well as the big cutter designed by Ed. A number of really great new ideasand I sure hope that they all get into production. Spyderco is another company where everyone is knowledgeable, and willing to talk. I bet that its a great place to work.
Ok, onward to the custom guys. First stop, Bailey Bradshaw, from whom I have a knife on order. I know it wouldnt be at the show, but I wanted to meet him and see his other stuff. He had a great folding bowie that I would have bought on the spot if some other @#%& hadnt beaten me to it. Chatted quite awhile with Bailey and Courtenay, and had a great time. Truly excellent people.
To the Vallotin/Diskin table! Talked to Butch about a design for a custom. What a guy! I love autos, and its thanks to him that I can choose from so many great designs. But I want a custom one from him. So we talked about that for awhile. Meanwhile, Matt was screwing around somewhere---I dunno, maybe testing for journeyman status? I dont quite understand the ABS, but what the hell, Im only a consumer.
Time now for the production pieces. Went to Case to see what they could tell me about their new knives with BG-42 like for example, who does the heat treat? Nobody could answer mebut they were polite. Went to Microtech to ask about a couple of things, nobody really wanted to talk to me. Went to Benchmade to ask a number of specific questions about the damascus in their Gold series knives---the guy who has the answer to that isnt here right now. Stop back later. Yeah, right, like Im gonna keep coming back there. Like I got nothing to see at this show. What the hell, how come none of these guys want to talk to meIm just asking questions, and its not like Im not a customer or anything. Is it my breath? Usually I would have said that it's because I dress like a slob, but I looke reasonable in that crowd. OK, I can take a hint.
Off to see the Japanese companies. Seki-cut makes wonderful laminated VG-10 folders, and their new Mcusta line is terrific. Nice people as well. Had to pick up a couple.
A couple of companies were selling knives made out of Hitachi laminated blue steel, in bark-wrapped sheaths. I got a small kukhri-shaped chopper for the yard, but the handle was cordwrapped. So I had to get a nice piece of spalted maple to make a handle.
Then the loudspeaker goes off, throwing everyone out of the show.
Saturday was a great day of chatting with some makers (again, nice introductions from Ed Schempp). I dont do money transactions on Saturday, but I convinced a couple of makers to hold stuff and bring it by that evening. Jim Rodebaugh is a great maker (he did win the Moran awardsometimes the ABS apparently knows what they are about), and he agreed to reserve his beautiful small bowie for me. Quite a find, and I put Danbo on the spot by asking him what he thought of it. Of course, Danbo had no problem, and he and Jim went into Marine mode for awhile.
Finally found Matt Diskin, from whom I have wanted a knife for awhile. Great guy! He had passed his journeyman test, of course. He had one of his Searles-inspired folding bowies on the table. Not my type of thing at all. Why would I want something like that? Its beautiful of course, and itll cut, but its not really a carry piece---why did it appeal to me that much?
Anyway, Matt agreed to build a knife for me, and I cant wait.
Talked to a few other makers, then the show closes again.
Later that night, meet some folks in the pit. I was sitting in a group that included off-and-on Ed Schempp, Christoph Deringer, Matt Diskin, Jim Rodebaugh, David Mirabile, and (gasp) Darryl Meier. We managed to almost kill off a bottle of 13-year old Highland Park before the hotel staff came and yelled at us. I spent a couple fo hours talking with Darryl, who is a really great person. I dont think that I need to say anything about his mind or hands.
Bought a little dagger form Christoph, who also amused me and everyone else by making little origami figures. Great guy.
Got my little Bowie (ok, maybe its too small to be a real bowie, so call it a hunter with a bowie-shaped blade) from Jim. Beautiful knife. Also convinced Matt to part with his folding bowie, which I still am not sure why it appeals to me so much. But it does, and I am extremely pleased with myself for getting it. Not to mention Matt, for making it.
In short, I had a good time, and met a lot of good people. Bought a few knives, and laid the groundwork for ordering more. Now that I am back into my routine, I look at these knives, and I do not regret buying a single one of them. I really feel that I started some really good friendships based, not on business, but on common interests. So, yeah, I had a great show. Hope I can post some pics soon.
--shaldag
