Understanding the ABS Cutting Competition

Interesting discussion--guess my feeling is that cutting competitions are to bladesmiths what racing is to automobile designers. As a collector/enthusiast, joining the ABS introduced me to a fantastic part of the knife world including cutting competitions. I have begun to focus more and more on ABS events (hammer-ins, shows and the Moran School of Bladesmithing) and this has in turn given me a super education and boosted my "fun factor" as a knife hobyist. And now for some cutting contest photos:
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Just a point of interest here, but was the cutting contest at Blade called "The World Cutting Championship" or was it called "The ABS World Cutting Championship"?
 
Keith
Since it is only ABS members we call it the ABS World Cutting Competetion. The buckles given out as prizes by Glendo Corp has that in the engraving.
 
Well then I guess the ABS has the right to run this competition in any way they see fit. They are not intending it to be an all encompassing world championship, nor are they advertising it is as such.

It is very interesting to find out about sll the things thst go into one of these competitions. It sounds like a heck of a job to set one up. My hat is off to all those that put in the time and effort that this requires.

By the way Jerry, are you home yet?
 
Hey, that ABS cutting contest drama ranks right up there with the WWF! I heard there's such a thing as cutting contestant groupies and I seen with my own eyes some of the biggest of 'em strip down and dress up like girls--dancin' fools, I call 'em. Legends in their own minds! Here's Bill Moran's workbench:
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Originally posted by HTMD
... I heard there's such a thing as cutting contestant groupies and I seen with my own eyes some of the biggest of 'em strip down and dress up like girls--dancin' fools, I call 'em ...
Click to expand...

You mean like this?

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Photo by Brion R. Tomberlin

You won't meet a finer bunch than the ABS boys and girls. They'll do pretty much anything for a good cause. Pictured above, left to right are, Jimmy Crowell, John Fitch, Jerry Lairson (in the smilie shorts), and Dickie Robinson.

In this shot the dress wear is actually kilts rather than dresses. They were doing their famous "River Dance" routine.
 
I won't speak for anyone else but I am not trying to criticize the cutting competitions as they exist.

On the contrary I am excited about them and anxious to see more of them because they improve the quality of knives.

While I recognize the educational aspect for the makers who participate please don't overlook the educational aspect for the spectators.

Can you imagine a two day ABS Style cutting competition open to all knives that met specific size and safety criteria on Outdoor Life Network or ESPN. As each event is set up the MC gets to describe what qualities are being tested in the knife by this event and why those qualities are important. Talk about a unique opportunity to educate the masses.

I realize that for now this is only a dream but I hope that you recognize that cutting competitions have the unique ability to capture the interests of Non Knife Knuts and educate them at the same time.
 
Grapevine, I lost some weight in that picture above.....the whole bottom part of that door mat!
Mace
 
I wanted to add something about cutting comps. other than my above post. Someone mentioned before about how it would be great to see something like this on ESPN much like the Lumberjack comps. are. Yes it would be kinda neat, but keep in mind all those guys chopping trees on TV did not make their own axes. Also all those axes and saws are made to cut one thing...Wood. That is the nice thing about the ABS cutting comps. .... You never know what you are going to have to cut.....for me thats like a good 50% of the fun of it.. I would never in my wildest dreams thought I could cut a door mat in half, but now thanks to the ABS and Jerry's "evil" mind I know that I can, and the next time I happen upon a dangerous door mat hagging from a tiny piece of twine I know I'll be able to cleave it in two with all the confidence in the world. I've also learned that the next time I'm approached by some large, boisterous rawhide bone I should just try and avoid all confrontation and get away as fast as I can.(untill I build my next knife!)......All in all It would be great to see the competitions grow, but in my opinion things should be kept in perspective, and these events should be kept fun and friendly.
Like someone said before it's not so much that we are competing with each other as much as its us against them. For me it's even more than that, it's between me and the knife I made. It's always nice to place in an event, but the real winner is the guy that walks away with ideas and advice on how to make a better knife for next time. Points are nice, but I think every person in the competition is a winner for that reason.

These are just my thoughts, not meant to offend anyone, especially any of you Rawhide boneheads out there.
Can't wait for the next cut/comp.
Mace
 
By the way if any of you are curious about the ESPN thing, I checked last year. They would charge us $100,000 for one hour to have it televised. Least that is what they told me when I called them then, could be different now.
 
Jerry,

If I remember correctly, PBS was going to record one of the Hammer-Ins up in New York last year. It didn't happen, but it seems on the surface like it would have been a great thing if it had happened.

This brings me to another subject concerning the New York Hammer-In. When I heard that a Hammer-In was going to be televised I was pretty excited. I was actually going to be able to afford to go to one, so to speak. When I found out that PBS had cancelled I was disappointed, but it gave me an idea. I ran this idea past Jim Batson but he never replied to it. Maybe you can see what you can do if you think it's a good idea....

Why hasn't anyone (meaning the ABS) video taped any of these Hammer-Ins and offered them for sale. They wouldn't have to be a first class production, just an inexpensive educational recording for the folks that would love to come and learn but can't afford the time or money. It seems like a good way for the ABS to make a little extra spare change too. Win - Win! I'm sure that it would take a little effort to coordinate the recording and then the editing. I would be happy to volunteer my services for the editing portion if we can get an event recorded in digital format. I'll also volunteer to tape one if I'm ever lucky enough to attend one of these events.

Rick
 
Rick, I would certainly defer to Jerry and his response to your idea. I think it's a great idea! In fact it's already been done. I recently purchased (from the ABS) the following 3 DVDs:
1. The Making of a Knife by Bill Moran, 1 hr. 30 min.
2. Bill Moran Presents Handles, Guards and Sheaths, 2 hrs. 20 min.
3. Damascus by Bill Moran, 1 hr. 30 min.
These are available in VHS format as well. Use the following web address http://www.americanbladesmith.com/store/s-pages/ABS_SMainframe.htm and check out what the ABS store offers. You can also get Knife Care by Jerry Fisk, Hollow Grinding by Johnny Stout, Flat Grinding by Harvey Dean and Forging and Finishing by Charlie Ochs, etc. Go to the book section and check out Build Your Own Hydraulic Forging Press by Jim Batson, Introduction to Bladesmithing by Jay Hendrickson, Basic Forging and Pattern-Welded Damascus Steel by Jerry Fisk, a great collection of articles written for the ABS Journal by Bill Moran covering Blade Forging, Heat Treating, Blade Finishing and Forging A Damasacus Billet, a Handbook of Management and Organization for the Knifemaker by Jerry Fisk and a very cool set of hand-drawn notes and illustrations taken from Bill Moran's classes at the Texarkana College/Bill Moran School of Bladesmithing in 1985 covering Knifemaking and Damascus Steel. Thankfully, there's no need to re-invent the wheel here. These materials are terrific and well worth the cost.
One additional thought: A good video and even a professional PBS or ESPN doccumentary would be unable to convey the thrill and satisfaction of actually attending an ABS Hammer-In. With that in mind I'll pass along some advice that was once given to me when I said I couldn't afford to go to a Hammer-In: Sell something! Have a garage sale or whatever. Yeah, it pissed me off too when those words were said to me. But I found out it was good advice! Once I figured out how to get myself to a Hammer-In the first time, oddly enough the next one and the one after that were a piece of cake. Looking back I can say with confidence that luck had nothing to do with getting to my first Hammer-In. It's all about desire. Set the date, write it down on paper, tell yourself it will happen, and a way will appear where there was no way!
 
Mace was the guy that had to grind his handle down to meet spec. He also went first on (nearly?) every event at the competition in MD. You did great, Mace! What a good sport! Shows true class to come here and post what you did - when you could have carried on about being "picked on" by the ABS, etc.


The Moran Hammer-In was my first. The cutting competition was the 2nd I've attended. During the day of the cutting competition, Jerry asked me if I would be interested in participating. I said "No" because I had only learned how to forge that very day. Jerry probably knows this already, but that lit a fire under my butt and I was the first one in line the next morning hammering out a blade out of 5160 so I could have a knife that would qualify for a future competition.

I don't pretend to think I'll get it right the first time, but after a few more tries, I'll be ready to enter.

Thanks to Jerry & Charlie (winner of the cutting comp.) - for sharing what others have kept to themselves: hard-earned tricks of the trade.

Dan
 
Dan,
Thanks for the kind words. It was all my fault that my knife was too long, thats what you get for trying to finnish a handle at 4:00am before having to leave for the hammer-in. I ground out the handle to 50 grit till it felt OK in my hand, put a fresh edge on it, cut the rope I have outside, tossed it in a bag and left. Never put a tape up to it to see how long it was! I had the knife all planned out, but ended up using a different guard at the last minute.(actualy, that was at about 2:00am), and it was 3/8" bigger. I'm just glad they gave me some time to fix it.
Can't wait to see the knife your making.
Mace
 
There was also a tape out that was made of the cutting contest. The ABS had it for sale at the Batson Bladesmithing Symposium a year and half ago. I bought one and there was also a Little Rock TV station that had a show on the hammer-in and cutting contest about 2 years ago. Both were cut short to fit the program time but they did show quite a lot in the short time.
You might check with them and ask if they still have any left for sale. My wife taped one of the cutting contests and as you probably figured out, I was the star of that one :).
We didn't plan to well and the battery ran down and we ran out of tape so a lot of it was missing.
If enough people request the tape, and they haven't any on hand, they may find it feasible to make more copies. You would just have to ask them.
 
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