Looking for some guidance and direction from some of my heroes

[Eightleggedfreak]

Greetings everyone! I have a personal story and request from anyone out there who may be able and willing to help me.

My name is Dan and over the past few years I have battled against some pretty serious but thankfully non-life threatening medical issues. I got through them by finding ways to keep positive. Knife collecting and amateur making was a big part of that.

I am feeling better now and I am looking to take my knife making a step further and move from amateur land into the real world of knife creation.

The guidance and direction I seek is simple. How and/or where can I contact local knife makers who would potentially be willing to let me work with them to learn more about knife making? I would work for free if I had to, which is the likely scenario, so what should I say and how/where should I approach this?

Any advice or assitance is well received and thanks!

 

[james terrio]

Filling out your profile more completely would probably help.

Calling yourself "Eightleggedfreak" in correspondence probably will not help. The folks you need to learn from are pretty serious about what they do, and they're generally pretty busy. Use your real name when contacting such people.

Consult the member lists of the American Bladesmith Society and Knife Maker's Guild, and look for members in your area. There may well be other guilds/groups in Oregon, of which I am unaware. Google is your friend.

There may be a knife or gun show near you soon. Approaching makers who have tables at such shows is a great way to dip your toes in the waters... I have made friends and learned a huge amount from simply talking to makers I admire when they're exhibiting at shows.

When approaching such makers, in person or by email/phone, be prepared to show them examples of what you're already doing, no matter how basic or advanced it may be. They will want to see if you already have the drive to create something on your own, whether it's a finely-finished knife or a rough blade blank.

For goodness sakes, don't interrupt them when they're dealing with a paying customer.

It's more than a little intimidating to be a complete "nobody" and walk up to a MasterSmith or Guild member and say "Umm... may I have a moment of your time? I'd like your input on what I'm doing." Believe me, I know this from experience. But I was very pleasantly surprised to find that almost all of them will examine whatever you've got and tell you exactly what they feel is right/wrong with it.

 

[Kevin Casey]

What James said is absolutely great advice.

 

[Eightleggedfreak]

Thank you James and Kevin for your advice and support. I will take it to heart. Stay sharp and have fun!

 

[NickWheeler]

James gave some great advice.

I'd like to add that IMHO you need to rethink this a bit though... You mentioned you'd work for free if you had to.

If you want really serious instruction, you need to pay the maker. Unless you are already a seasoned knife maker that can walk into a guys shop, get some instruction from him on what he needs, and then get to work by yourself... you are going to slow him down.

That's not being mean, it's just the reality of it.

I've heard guys say things like, "I just want to watch, I don't want to take a class!"

There's no such thing... If you are watching a knife maker do things that you want to know how to do, you are going to ask questions. If he has to stop and explain things, that's slowing him down.

There are some excellent sources for hands-on knife making classes, like the ABS schools and hammer-ins.


None of this is meant to be mean to you! Just trying to help you better understand how a full time maker is going to look at this stuff, so you can be better prepared on how to approach the matter.

 

[Eightleggedfreak]

James gave some great advice.

I'd like to add that IMHO you need to rethink this a bit though... You mentioned you'd work for free if you had to.

If you want really serious instruction, you need to pay the maker. Unless you are already a seasoned knife maker that can walk into a guys shop, get some instruction from him on what he needs, and then get to work by yourself... you are going to slow him down.

That's not being mean, it's just the reality of it.

I've heard guys say things like, "I just want to watch, I don't want to take a class!"

There's no such thing... If you are watching a knife maker do things that you want to know how to do, you are going to ask questions. If he has to stop and explain things, that's slowing him down.

There are some excellent sources for hands-on knife making classes, like the ABS schools and hammer-ins.


None of this is meant to be mean to you! Just trying to help you better understand how a full time maker is going to look at this stuff, so you can be better prepared on how to approach the matter.

Nick this is a really good perspective. I originally thought I could sort of "work off' some training but the last time I did that was at a vineyard where I did know enough to get direction and go. Knife making is going to require more stop and go in my case so I will think about your advice. I appreciate it!