Meet J. Loose! Introduction and shop tour

[Wulf]

I recently had the privilege of visiting local Vermont bladesmith Jonathan Loose at his home in Moretown, where I got to tour his shop, watch him work, and ask lots of questions.

By way of introductions, Jonathan Loose is a fulltime knifemaker currently specializing in Damascus fixed blade hunters and daggers of a distinctly Scandinavian influence. A true artist and craftsman, Jon has both practical and academic experience in metalwork, having earned a BFA degree at Maine College of Art, where he specialized in jewelry and metalsmithing. He is currently very active in the local blacksmithing community as a member of the Vermont Blacksmiths’ Group and Secretary of the Green Mountain Blacksmiths’ Association.

His knives have recently been featured on the cover of A.G. Russell’s “The Cutting Edge” January 2000 catalog with several of his hunters for sale.

Most of Jon’s Damascus is 1020/1095 that he forges in a self-built propane forge similar in design to that featured on Don Fogg’s website tutorial.

Here’s a thumbnail link to a picture of Jon’s forge. To the right you’ll see his coal forge as well. You’ll also see two quenches (Jon uses a brine quench for his 1020/1095 blades). In the forefront are his hammer and anvil.
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Here’s a picture of the self-built press Jon uses:
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And here’s his anvil:
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It was truly fascinating watching Jon work. From forging to folding to hammering and shaping, the entire process is one any knife enthusiast would be thrilled to see. Here are some pictures of Jon at work:
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With his knowledge and experience in making jewelry, Jon is no stranger to finishing work. He forges his own mokume and outfits his hunters with sterling silver fittings. He can proudly claim sole authorship on all his knives and his skill shows in every detail. Here is a picture of his finishing bench, with plenty of small diamond files, jewelers’ files, and even a few small anvils

. Some of his current works in process can be seen as well.
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Jon’s friendly nature and his enthusiasm made it a truly memorable visit. He’s a wealth of information, a skilled bladesmith, and a great guy to deal with overall.

I encourage you to check out his website, or if you wish to contact him you can do so by e-mailing him at jloose@jloose.com. And for those of you who live in or near the NorthEastern US, you can look for him at the New England Cutlery Collector's Association Knife Show in East Windsor, CT on Feb. 17th.

Hope you enjoyed the tour!
-Wulf


[This message has been edited by Wulf (edited 02-05-2001).]

 

[Gus Kalanzis]

Wulf,
Thanks for taking the time to post the pictures and to write up your tour.
Way too cool.
Gus

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" The real art of living is to keep alive the longing in human beings to become greater versions of themselves." Laurens Van der Post in memory of James Mattis

 

[Paracelsus]

Thanks very much Wulf!

I met John at the NYC custom knife show last November. I was impressed by his knives and his attitude about his work. He is one to watch, I think.

Great to see his shop. These shop tour posts are some of the neatest things on the forum. I wish there were more of these sort of threads.

Paracelsus