My family have been blue-collar craftsmen since the stone age as far as I can tell, that's got to be a huge factor. I look at the guard/handle junction more critically than I do the polish, for instance. Which is not to say I don't love and appreciate a fine finish; I was just raised on "Form Follows Function." Shine lies, as they say.
At my favorite uncle's hunting cabin, there rests a Green-River-style sheath knife my grandpa made from an old file. That made a BIG impression on me, sitting in front of the woodstove reading a dog-eared paperback copy of "Mountain Man" (the book the "Jeremiah Johnson" movie was based on). Grandpa's been gone a long time now, I sure wish I had asked him more about that knife.
When I was a boy, being allowed to carry your own pocketknife was a serious rite of passage. My first was a dime-store stockman replica. Buying my first "real" folder, a Buck 110 (still have it, minus 1/8" or so off the tip
) was another big step. Carried it daily and could open it from under my wallet nearly as quick as a switchblade. Assembling a Ka-Bar from a blade, guard and Pakkawood from Atlanta Cutlery was another kicker; still have that, too. I remember being awful damn proud of handling that thing; no one, anywhere, has one quite like it. My first store-bought fixed-blade was a USAF pilot's knife; good grief, I hated that beast. Just could not get it to cut worth a damn, no matter how sharp I got the edge. But it taught me a lot about blade geometry real quick.
Read Bagwell's columns in SOF in the mid-80's; man, I admired him (still do). These kind of forums didn't exist back then... solid info was like a trade secret or something: pretty hard for a 15-yr-old punk to get. A custom was FAR out of my reach; SOG and Cold Steel and Al Mar were becoming big names, but they weren't quite what I was into. 440C was the be-all at that time and I just didn't trust it; I've revised my opinion somewhat since then, but I'm still leery of the latest "wonder-steel". I also did some reading at the public library: Bill Moran, Jim Hrisoulas ( I really need to re-read both of those), Buckskinner's Bible, stuff like that. Along with my dad and uncles, those sources formed my preference for fairly traditional designs and techniques. I quickly developed a life-long predeliction for carbon steel and flat grinds.
Learning to sharpen was a big step, too. I slowly reduced the width of a number of blades before really getting a grip on hand-sharpening. I eventually had to start charging friends to sharpen theirs, otherwise I would have been working a part-time job for free. I admit, it gave me a wierd sense of pride to see someone draw their fingernail across the "junk" Chicago Cutlery or Old Hickory butcher knife they brought me to clean up, and see their jaw drop when it cut right into their nail. Still does. Repeat "business" was brisk, because they couldn't seem to remember not to drag the edge sideways across the dang countertop
Still is.
First knife I ground from flat stock was a stainless (no clue what kind, scrap from the maintenance shop at work, likely not suited for a knife at all) 9" full-tang, integral-guard bowie. Age 19. Drilled the begeezus out of the tang looking for that perfect balance. Handled it with super-glue and stained oak. Came out OK, but of course without proper heat-treating, it was basically junk. I still remember the jeers from my friends when its edge folded over the first and only time I took it camping. Don't want to be there ever again.
Didn't buy any quality knives for a long time, but couldn't resist breaking out the ol' washita and putting the best edge I could on any knife I came across.
Years go by... still keeping that Ka-Bar-stein thang and whenever I used it, wishong I had something a step up... still carrying a Buck that friends/co-workers would ask to use because "it's actually sharp", still sharpening friends' knives. (If you've been there, you know you wanted to say "FFS just buy a stone and I'll show you how!"
)
Somewhere in there, guitars crept in and took over my life. Noon and night I was thinking about string guages, action height, bone vs. plastic vs. brass nuts, ceramic vs. alnico pickups, etc...I always loved tinkering with/building them almost as much as playing them. Once again, other players began to ask me to set theirs up for 'em... "How come yours plays and stays in tune so much better than mine?" ... "Case of beer and yours will play like this too
" So maybe I was onto something with all this attention to detail.
Fast forward a couple or more years... now I'm all grown-up with a little discretionary income... the rock'n'roll days are behind me. Need a hobby, something I can sink my brain and hands into. Getting into camping again, and stumble across BF one night and do a WHOLE lot of reading.
Decide it's about time to get a "real" bowie like I've always wanted. Bought an old satin TrailMaster, heck of a blade but GEEZ the handle sucks...Next thing you know, there's a dozen new knives in the house, not to mention a belt grinder...
Knifemaking is way cheaper than building a muscle-car or chasing trophy babes (or bucks!). More importantly, I revere the process of making a one-of-a-kind tool. Knifemaking includes about as many different skills/arts as you care to incorporate. You can start dirt-simple with pre-ground blades or go full-bore with a forge and/or CNC machinery, your choice. You can make a pure cutting machine, or a gorgeous art knife... which can still be a killer cutter. There's a certain Zen thing that happens when you feel the grind start to fall into place. It's all about the details... yet if the "big picture" isn't in focus, it all means naught.
It's challenging, frustrating, rewarding, fun, sometimes a real bitch... mostly I'd rather to grind on some steel than sit in a bar or stare at the boob tube.
Holy moly, I talk too much...
I have always wanted to try knife making but had no idea what was involved. I reciently purchased 3 different books. One being the $50 Knife Shop. I also purchased the H. Dean flat grind dvd, 30ft of O1 in various sizes, files, 40-2x72 belts, and a KMG w/motor. 
