Tony Bose, Bob Loveless ~ Who Will Change The Game Next?

Interesting to speculate about but very hard to say. I concur with Jeff.

Sometimes, improvement/game-changing cannot occur if a plateau has been reached, the influence of Bose & Loveless is axiomatic. Innovations are only possible in response to a need and then carried forward by the creative ability of individuals. The spinoff is imitation of 'masters' and it is no surprise as imitation is a form of flattery or even homage.

One other poster mentioned makers who may not be connected to SM very much or who are not English speaking, this too is important as there are many innovative makers in France, Italy, and Japan in particular whose influence may yet to be felt.
 
supratentorial said:
I'd like to see modern knife makers go back to the old catalogs and collections of old knives (that's how knives are reborn, not copied from another modern copy) and rebirth those old patterns like the R1306, barlow, eureka jack, etc. Bring them back in the same original proportions with modern construction and steels.
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Forgive me for potentially steering the thread off topic but I'm hoping to see Buck head in this direction in the not so distant future. One can hope.

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1472688-Buck-and-Remington-in-today-s-paper
 
Great Eastern has definitely set the bar high for knife manufacturing. Case set the bar high for custom makers with their Bose collaborations, the annual versions.

I've had knives from Tracy La Rock, Rick Menefee, Ken Coats and others, great knives but I have the trading bug. I've had knives from Andy Roy, who seems to be very innovative with his traditional fixed blades, but you can always spot his design.

I have two blades from Jared Oeser, I want to get one from Enrique Pena eventually. I have one from Brent Cramer, one from Gene Wiseman, two from Dr. Taber. All made great knives, but by Facebook standards, it looks like Jared is definitely the favorite amongst the masses.

Fixed blades, I've gone through quite a few. I can't take the fact that the man is my friend and freely shares his woods knowledge and blade knowledge, and just basic life knowledge, out of the equation, but I think that Scott Gossman has had a huge impact on fellow bladesmiths that make blades specifically for woods use. I've seen many move on to knife making after spending time with the man. Scott is a very unassuming man, and if he shares his thoughts on something, you better stop and listen, because he doesn't talk just to hear himself talk (I need to shut the heck up when I talk with the man). His traditional designs, bringing back the Kephart pattern, the puukko pattern, his giant bowie interpretations (Tuskers). His blades are used by lots of woods runners, I see him having an impact like Rudy Ruana or a similar maker. I have about ten or so of his blades, and regularly use four of them. Great knives. Clean knives, great steel choices.

Right now I've got a barlow order in with Manuel Saldana. There are plenty of makers out there, and Manuel makes some mighty nice knives. The most expensive knife I've bought is one from Jared Oeser, he made his Native design for me. Before that, he made his Zulu interpretation for me. I was really hoping for Ray Laconico to go down the path of slipjoints, he made a few. Now he makes some really nice modern folders, he even has collaboration folders with Kizer. Jared, based on his popularity and specific interpretation of designs, you know his work right away before you spot his makers stamp. Out of all of the makers currently out there, J's group and lotto sales etc. are amazing. Every single knife the man makes makes me :eek:.

I see Jared getting a collaboration, hopefully they'll get the look of his knives down...
 
Personally I feel that Bob Dozier should be up there with the two mentioned in your op, Brett. His heat treat for D2 completely changed , imho, people's expectations of what it's capable of doing performance wise. His regular line of knives, the Arkansas made, his repros and stick tang knives, and his folders, have earned him a place with the giants of the industry. He's influenced AG Russell, and had any number of people (read knifemakers) study or work for him. Yet his knives remain attainable for most, with no loss of performance for lesser prices. If anything, that's what he built his reputation on. The way he used kydex, while standard now, was completely innovative at the time he first began to use it. I don't know that I'm right, just my opinion. I think Tom Krein is someone to watch. I recently had an opportunity to visit with him, and was privileged to see some of his design book. Without giving anything away, there will probably be opportunities to display his work in this forum.
Thanks, Neal
 
Silent.-me too! He's been getting requests for awhile now, and, well shouldn't say...but I'm hopeful! Forgot to mention he's going to open a school too, week long courses, teaching folks how to grind knives, well make a whole knife. Saw the designs he's tentatively planning on starting with, and they look like real winners. Price for the school sounds pretty good too. Well worth the investment.
Thanks, Neal
 
Will Power said:
Interesting to speculate about but very hard to say. I concur with Jeff.

Sometimes, improvement/game-changing cannot occur if a plateau has been reached, the influence of Bose & Loveless is axiomatic. Innovations are only possible in response to a need and then carried forward by the creative ability of individuals. The spinoff is imitation of 'masters' and it is no surprise as imitation is a form of flattery or even homage.

One other poster mentioned makers who may not be connected to SM very much or who are not English speaking, this too is important as there are many innovative makers in France, Italy, and Japan in particular whose influence may yet to be felt.
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Will, this is where I am at as well.

Several post have mentioned some great makers who are already known. I am curious to see if they have hit their peak, or if they have a next level. Has Dozier, Oeser, Pena hit their height of their craftsmanship? I know they can become more popular, but can they become influential?

Im more curious in those that are not known just as Will and David have posted on. Take for example the time period Bose and Loveless started, thry had no modern social media to mass market their work. Who today is fly under the radar and has the potential to influence? Think Bill Gates working in garage way before blowing up the technology world.


Silenthunterstudioes you have mentioned a few names I need to study as well. Thank you for the post. I need to read it again when I dont have screaming kids running around me. :D
 
brownshoe said:
Tony Bose's successor is his son, Reese.
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This is true, but I do not see him falling into the category Im trying to discuss. He certainly is not the undiscovered maker who will one day change the hobby as he has already made a name for himself and his knives are alrwady pushing $3,000.
 
Railsplitter said:
Forgive me for potentially steering the thread off topic but I'm hoping to see Buck head in this direction in the not so distant future. One can hope.

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1472688-Buck-and-Remington-in-today-s-paper
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deltaboy said:
Me too.
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As long as FREEDOM GROUP stays out of it all and does not do to Buck like they did to Remington, I agree. Remington has never been the same since Freedom Group bought them and I really hope Freedom Group stays out of the knife industry.

Freedom Group would certainly change the hobby, but not in a good way, in my strong opinion.
 
Not to worry. It's a licensing agreement, not a joint venture or a buyout.
Buck licenses the Remington Brand; they sell "Remington" branded knives; and they pay a licensing fee. No input from Remington on how Buck runs their plant.
 
Loveless and Bose - yes, iconic........game changers for sure.

They did it for me because of their designs - Loveless, because he made knife designs look so elegant yet they're wonderfully practical and just work.......and Tony Bose because he took the basis of old slippie design and created a revived and new generation of pocket knives.

With Bose, not just his creations, but their fit n finish too.

A game changer, such as you may be seeking, is not necessarily going to be the maker with flawless fit n finish, or the guy who creates a commercially viable set of knives........for, to me, the biggest game changer of late is (are) the Chinese bringing their value for money to the marketplace.

Sheffield in England was a game changer many moons ago, but imho, so locked were they in their slave-trade quest to make more for even less, they lost sight of the way forward, never re-invested, got left way behind and what little remains, still make folders using the same equipment from the late 1800's....!

In our world of traditional folders and fixed blades, perhaps we've had our time for innovation and game changing, and as stated, new ideas and moves forward will be smaller and incremental...?

Stainless steel has been a game changer for me, because I prefer to keep my blades looking as pristine and perfect as the day I first bought them - virtually no need to worry about rust and patination now - though many simply love it :) - and Loveless, as we know, was the inspiration of RWL-34.

Regulations governing knife carry has been a game changer in itself in UK, now creeping in to parts of USA too. Non-locking and blade length restrictions are here to stay, and perhaps, the clever and neat double-detente folders (eg Richard Rogers) are something more will come to appreciate and embrace...?

Not sure if it can be called game changing, but biggest single slippie attraction to me right now is Oeser's work........perhaps partly because, try as I may, I don't think I'll ever be able to buy a new one from him ;) But his level of finish and contemporary twist on traditional is bewitching.



Great thread, love it.......some wonderful posts
 
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neal70 said:
Personally I feel that Bob Dozier should be up there with the two mentioned in your op, Brett. His heat treat for D2 completely changed , imho, people's expectations of what it's capable of doing performance wise. His regular line of knives, the Arkansas made, his repros and stick tang knives, and his folders, have earned him a place with the giants of the industry. He's influenced AG Russell, and had any number of people (read knifemakers) study or work for him. Yet his knives remain attainable for most, with no loss of performance for lesser prices. If anything, that's what he built his reputation on. The way he used kydex, while standard now, was completely innovative at the time he first began to use it. I don't know that I'm right, just my opinion. I think Tom Krein is someone to watch. I recently had an opportunity to visit with him, and was privileged to see some of his design book. Without giving anything away, there will probably be opportunities to display his work in this forum.
Thanks, Neal
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I have enjoyed Dozier's work since looking for a deer knife a few years back. His work has always been just out of my price range but if you read several forums, not just this one, Dozier is in high regard, especially for hunters. So, I certainly look forward to see what is coming down the road for him.


knarfeng said:
Not to worry. It's a licensing agreement, not a joint venture or a buyout.
Buck licenses the Remington Brand; they sell "Remington" branded knives; and they pay a licensing fee. No input from Remington on how Buck runs their plant.
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I figured this much but I have been surprised to learn of the worst in some cases. Thank you for setting my nerves at ease Frank. :thumbup:


Paul, I enjoyed the post. You bring up several points that certainly influence the hobby. One of those points is one I rarley consider when talking "traditional" knives, the law. I mostly think of the law impacting those of the modern tactical style.

As far as innovations, I suppose I am just fighting an old voice from a college friend. He used to say, "I want to do something original but it seems everything has already been done." When tradtional knives are, for the most part, focused on the past and how things were done, it dos seem all has already been done. Then when you ask what can be integrated such as modern steels, technology, and more user focused pattern designs, it seems you are leaving the "tradtional" realm.

For example, is there a pattern of traditional knives that has not been made that would be more of a need in todays time as compared to that of the early 1900s. I think that could change the hobby a bit, but would it be consided traditonal?
 
Brett, I read through the responses here with great interest, and think this was a great idea for a thread. From what I grasped, and what I know, it seems that the traditional orientation resists innovation to a certain degree--though not totally. Modern-style knives are different, and sometimes so-called innovation unnecessarily complicates things. Thus the charm of traditionals, and the success of companies like GEC and, even more so, Randall Made Knives.

Ironically, to innovate (not sure if that is the right word) Lon Humphrey goes about making knives in "old ways" and (perhaps) effects an old time look/feeling of nostalgia with rough hammer marks. If that is innovation, it's accomplished contrary to the progressive spirit/ modernization that typically is associated with innovation.

Just some all-too-early Sunday morning thoughts. Once again, very interesting thread.
 
Great thread and conversation Brett.

I am relatively new to the modern knife community but have collected SAK and traditional French slipjoints since childhood thanks to my father. In the last year an a half I've been incredibly lucky to get involved with various makers and the community around them. as others have me mentioned oesers knives are off the charts. I've handled 5 and still hold 3 now and each are functional works of art. Top of the class, second only to a Pena that I currently have. LaRock, Jalomo, D.Taber are also personal fav's as well along with the French slip's. Recently I had a conversation with Thys Mead of South Africa and I quickly gained a lot of respect for his passion of work and dedicated level to detail. He was trained and mentored by Rob Brown who was inspired by Loveless. I have yet to handle one of Thys' knives but another collector I know grabbed an auction knife from Thys and says it's fantastic. I think Thys should be given a quick look to see what he is up to. Others to note, dowell, and wiseman.

Thanks -
Cheers
 
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