i joined the ABS... now what?

Knifemaker87

Knifemaker87

Joined
Jan 2, 2006
Messages
1,073
okay plain and simple...
i filled out an ap;lication, and i paid my $60 for the yearly dues.

now what?! i havent gotten a confirmation or anything. i want to be able to be a ABS smith... but if i have to be one for 2-3 years before being tested... how can they tell? so it isnt a "card carying" society?

thanks
~Chris
 
Chris, Don't worry, communications from the main ABS office can be a little slow, but your start date will be recorded correctly. I believe the person who mans the office is a part time volunteer. My membership was renewed in December, and I just received my new card in the mail a few days ago. Don't worry, be patient, it will arrive. :)

-Darren
 
thanks for the reasurment!
i just hoped i had done everything i was supposed to
*grins*
i know all about volunteering
~chris
 
Its just as Darren said. Dont worry you are a member now if you paid your dues. They are slow to respond but there is no hurry I guess. Its good to join right away so you can test sooner. Three years go by fast and the last two years go by even faster.

welcome aboard!
 
I've been wondering about this too. Other than getting in line to take your journeyman's test, what are the advantages of being a member? Do they make info available to you?

I'm not disparaging ABS in any way, but from a newbie's point of view, it reminds me of Scientology or something... "send us the money, then we'll tell you what's in it for you... sometime in the next couple months." I suppose they do that do discourage wannabe's and people who aren't serious? Maybe it's just me, but I have trouble sending in cash without knowing what the heck I'm getting for it.

I don't mean to be a smart-alec, these are honest questions.
 
Well, for me being a member of the ABS is being a member of an organization which furthers the art of Bladesmithing in a professional manner with performance tests and peer reviewed qualification levels to work towards. Their members also host hammer-ins all around the country and hold demonstrations at these events to teach the art, mechanics, and science of forging. With your subscription you get a nice quarterly journal which spotlights various aspects of our craft and people in the forefront of the bladesmithing community (who are members of the ABS). Have a look at their website:

http://www.AmericanBladesmith.com

There are probably other things that I am forgetting, but those are the primary reasons I am a member.

:)

-Darren
 
Chris,
Now it's time to start making knives and going to hammer-ins and if you can swing it get down to the school!:D Go to the ABS website and try and find a Master that lives near you.
Ask questions.:confused:
Forge.:D
ask more questions.:confused:
Sand stuff:barf:
ask more questions:(
forge more.:D
????'s:eek:
grind:cool:
get Pissed.:mad:
more ????
You get the idea.
Good luck
Mace
 
Now check out in BLADES 2007 who in the ABS is near you. Give 'em a call.
Talk....ask opinions, ask suggestions, ask,ask,ask...
NO sincere question is a wrong question...there are no "dumb" sincere questions.....99.9 % of the ABS membership and about the same percentage of the Knifemakers' Guild, and about the same percentage of the Professional Knifemakers Association, don't believe there are any "dumb" questions if they are sincere.
If you are gonna be a "metal mangler"..."steel beater", some of the finest steel forgers in the world are ABS members.....a number of them are also Knifemakers'Guild members which includes some of the finest forgers and some of the finest stock removal makers there are.....
In my entire career as a kinifemaker, only one maker ever said, in response to my sincere question, "that is a trade secret"..... no-one else ever said that B.S. to me....and I'll bet you hit the same percentage.
I have been in this craft for 10 + years, and I am still a bit more nervous or leary, or whatever you would call it, to ASK as compared the willingness of other makers to answer.....After all, what stronger compliment could you give, even the best makers in the world, than to ask their advice?.......
 
After being a full time maker since 1990, I became a member of the ABS 7 or 8 years ago just to support the organization, with no intention of pursuing my JS or MS, I was only making folders at the time. The ABS has done a lot for the world of custom knives, especially in the education and bringing in new makers. I wish they/we would do more to educate the public and bring in new knife users/collectors but this is another story. The ABS is very good for what we do.
 
If I was a gambling man, I'd wager ABS is going to have a couple more lotsa-questions-asking members :)
 
Many years ago, shortly after I joined the ABS I had the opportunity to talk to a man who was in one of those positions to know this entire bussiness inside and out, and handle more of the finest knives that almost anybody alive, while still not being involved and biased by any group. After watching things come and go, he said that of all the current organizations to join, the ABS would do the most for the new guy wanting to be a member of a group. He was absolutely right. There are so many good guys in that organization that you can spend a lifetime meeting them all before encountering one of the characters.
 
Thanks for the good input in this thread. I've been thinking about joining the ABS myself but there is always something else to hop up off the ole wallet for in this business. PLUS..spring property taxes, car registration, fed and state taxes, Blade Show coming up, blah blah blah, yakety schmakety, ad infinitum.
 
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