- Joined
- Apr 30, 2001
- Messages
- 1,742
Well, I am back for good! Why? You will find out while reading the rest of this post.
Been looking forward to the Vegas show for months. I was not let down.
Left the LA area at about 5am on Saturday, picked up a good friend and was off. Got into Vegas around 11am. By the time I got into the show it was pretty packed. Stopped in the hall and had a good chat with Jimmy Rodenbaugh (he took Best Bowie award). Then into the show proper.
Had a long talk with Slobodian about hamons. He let me in on some great hints for adding alot more figure and character to my slighly wavy hamons.
Took about two hours but I finally made it over to Rinaldis' table. Had a short chat, agreed to meet back up for dinner and was off to the rest of the show.
Saw some fantastic modernized A2 Katanas. Wonderfull balance with a very pleasing look. He was only asking about $350. Forgot to get a card but he will also be at Expo. Talked him into replacing some of the Al parts with anodized Ti.
Trace caught up to me right at Tom and Jerrys' table. But this time he had a camcorder! I hate cameras
! Had a pleasant talk with Jerry. Finally got to handle some of Jerrys' knives. All I can say is outstanding. I had met Tom before but this was my first meeting with Hossom. Class act!
Then Trace had me by the sleeve and was pulling me across the show to another table. This time it was to meet Robert and his wife from Survival Sheath Systems. Great folks. Robert and I have similar back grounds so we had a good long chat. Out of nowhere I got a good hard smack across the backside. Turned around just in time to see Herndon walking away with a big ol' sheath in his hand and a huge evil grin on his face. So it was off to chase him down!
Talked with Bill for awhile. Showed him the damascus dagger I have been working on. He said it had a very good chance of winning at Expo. Finished up the rest of the show. Talked to alot of wonderfull folks and had a blast. Made a quick stop back at Traces', but this time he had Larry and Vince from Bladeart.com with him. Trace introduced me and we proceeded to have a makeshift meeting right then and there. Larry really liked the couple examples of my work that I had with me, and it led to some orders being placed. (I owe you Trace!).
Went back down stairs and wandered through an antique arms show. Found a couple from the east coast who had 1/2" thick slabs of MOP
. They harvest thier own shells and cut thier own materials. They said that they would be glad to supply me with all the super thick slabs I could use. They also do museum quality hand carving into MOP, Ivory and wood. So in the near future look for some high end art daggers with top notch carved handles.
Met back up with Trace. He had Rob Simonich with him this time. Rob is a great guy. So we all ended up going to dinner together. We stuffed ourselves silly, and then came the telling lies and jokes. Trace firmly scoulded me for leaving the forums, and Rob had some encouraging things to say also.
We ended up heading back to CA at about 10pm. This was only the second knife show that my buddy had been to, and he was suffering from severe overload.
For those of you who missed the show, you have to make it next year. I have been to alot of shows and this one was the best I have ever been to. It seems that it was just the thing I needed to snap me out of the funk I have been in as of late. Working day after day alone in a shop can really start to wear on a guy. Being able to let loose and have fun with old friends and alot of new ones really raised my spirits. Some times its hard to remember why I do what I do, then it hits you right up side the head. Its all about friends and having fun in life.
Sorry, no photos. I forgot my camera.
OH, I would also like to thank everyone for all the nice e-mails. They meant alot.
Been looking forward to the Vegas show for months. I was not let down.
Left the LA area at about 5am on Saturday, picked up a good friend and was off. Got into Vegas around 11am. By the time I got into the show it was pretty packed. Stopped in the hall and had a good chat with Jimmy Rodenbaugh (he took Best Bowie award). Then into the show proper.
Had a long talk with Slobodian about hamons. He let me in on some great hints for adding alot more figure and character to my slighly wavy hamons.
Took about two hours but I finally made it over to Rinaldis' table. Had a short chat, agreed to meet back up for dinner and was off to the rest of the show.
Saw some fantastic modernized A2 Katanas. Wonderfull balance with a very pleasing look. He was only asking about $350. Forgot to get a card but he will also be at Expo. Talked him into replacing some of the Al parts with anodized Ti.
Trace caught up to me right at Tom and Jerrys' table. But this time he had a camcorder! I hate cameras
! Had a pleasant talk with Jerry. Finally got to handle some of Jerrys' knives. All I can say is outstanding. I had met Tom before but this was my first meeting with Hossom. Class act!Then Trace had me by the sleeve and was pulling me across the show to another table. This time it was to meet Robert and his wife from Survival Sheath Systems. Great folks. Robert and I have similar back grounds so we had a good long chat. Out of nowhere I got a good hard smack across the backside. Turned around just in time to see Herndon walking away with a big ol' sheath in his hand and a huge evil grin on his face. So it was off to chase him down!
Talked with Bill for awhile. Showed him the damascus dagger I have been working on. He said it had a very good chance of winning at Expo. Finished up the rest of the show. Talked to alot of wonderfull folks and had a blast. Made a quick stop back at Traces', but this time he had Larry and Vince from Bladeart.com with him. Trace introduced me and we proceeded to have a makeshift meeting right then and there. Larry really liked the couple examples of my work that I had with me, and it led to some orders being placed. (I owe you Trace!).
Went back down stairs and wandered through an antique arms show. Found a couple from the east coast who had 1/2" thick slabs of MOP
. They harvest thier own shells and cut thier own materials. They said that they would be glad to supply me with all the super thick slabs I could use. They also do museum quality hand carving into MOP, Ivory and wood. So in the near future look for some high end art daggers with top notch carved handles.Met back up with Trace. He had Rob Simonich with him this time. Rob is a great guy. So we all ended up going to dinner together. We stuffed ourselves silly, and then came the telling lies and jokes. Trace firmly scoulded me for leaving the forums, and Rob had some encouraging things to say also.
We ended up heading back to CA at about 10pm. This was only the second knife show that my buddy had been to, and he was suffering from severe overload.
For those of you who missed the show, you have to make it next year. I have been to alot of shows and this one was the best I have ever been to. It seems that it was just the thing I needed to snap me out of the funk I have been in as of late. Working day after day alone in a shop can really start to wear on a guy. Being able to let loose and have fun with old friends and alot of new ones really raised my spirits. Some times its hard to remember why I do what I do, then it hits you right up side the head. Its all about friends and having fun in life.
Sorry, no photos. I forgot my camera.
OH, I would also like to thank everyone for all the nice e-mails. They meant alot.
), is the most gratifying aspect of a good life. You HAVE been in the workshop too much! Glad you got away and enjoyed your craft from the outside, instead of being immersed in it. Good break!
