Went to a gun show this weekend.....

panch0

panch0

Joined
Jun 16, 2008
Messages
3,415
There were about three or four guys selling "handmade" knives. I stopped by and asked one guy what the steel was on his knives. He said he didn't know because he just put the handles on. He had a sign saying "handmade" and thought about the thread on here a few weeks back. None of these knives had a tang stamp, or etching showing who made the knife. One guy had it scatched or dremeled onto the blade. I thought to myself that if these guys could sell these knives as "handmade" then I could probably sell some real hand made stock removal blades, and have work in progress photos to show that they are handmade. And also have some poster boards with the steels being used and their properties, along with a brief description on what the Rockwell Hardness is. Anyways this was my first show I have gone too with actually knowing a thing or two about real handmade knives.:rolleyes:
 
And you know what? 99.9999% of the people there wouldn't care a bit. They'll tell you how their pawpaw made the best knives on the planet using an old broken file, fence post and spit. They'll gripe at you about a $150 drop point hunter with SS guard and ironwood handles while they tote newly purchased Zeiss scope, binos and $120398787039487 in Scentloc products. They'll spend $200 on a new arrow rest, $300 on CF arrows, $999 on expanding super ninja deer slaying broadheads, $100 on super stealth NASA string silencers but won't spend $2 on mole skin to silence their stupid shelf and riser.

Oh yeah, they'll wonder why you charge more than the guy in the next row with his "handmade: kit knives.

You'll deal with this type of person every 7.733 minutes on average for about 20 hours and you'll sit and wonder why in the hell aren't you in your shop. Still you saddle up 4 times a year for the abuse and every afternoon you wonder why you did it and vow never again.

ARRRRGGGHHHHHHHH never mind :barf: :mad: :barf:
 
That's when you take one of the kit knives, and do stress tests compared with your knives. Then keep the kit knife as an example to show what handmade DOES NOT mean
 
I have been thinking about hitting the local gun show and show some of my knives. but i know i will get those questions like man i can get a knife from wallmart for 15 bucks and yours are 200. then i just tell them the panther piss i quench my blades in is very expensive and i have to have it specially collected for me by a special panther piss collector :D
 
I've done three gun shows over the years. I never sold a knife, but I did trade a knife for a nice Marlin 22 rifle with a scope. Wasn't actually too bad a trade, because I still play with it from time to time, plinking cans, etc.

One guy picked up one of my knives and said, "I can buy a decent scope for that amount of money." I asked him if he could field dress three or four deer without sharpening his scope in between deer. He said, "There isn't a knife made that could do that." I offered to let him use it during deer season, and if he liked the knife, he paid for it then, with a written testimonial. If he didn't like the knife, he only had to give it back to me. He said he'd be afraid of ruining the knife and declined. Oh well, I tried.
 
Will Leavitt said:
And you know what? 99.9999% of the people there wouldn't care a bit. They'll tell you how their pawpaw made the best knives on the planet using an old broken file, fence post and spit. They'll gripe at you about a $150 drop point hunter with SS guard and ironwood handles while they tote newly purchased Zeiss scope, binos and $120398787039487 in Scentloc products. They'll spend $200 on a new arrow rest, $300 on CF arrows, $999 on expanding super ninja deer slaying broadheads, $100 on super stealth NASA string silencers but won't spend $2 on mole skin to silence their stupid shelf and riser.

Oh yeah, they'll wonder why you charge more than the guy in the next row with his "handmade: kit knives.

You'll deal with this type of person every 7.733 minutes on average for about 20 hours and you'll sit and wonder why in the hell aren't you in your shop. Still you saddle up 4 times a year for the abuse and every afternoon you wonder why you did it and vow never again.

ARRRRGGGHHHHHHHH never mind :barf: :mad: :barf:
Click to expand...




Will,
You hit it on the nose, ah man I have done my share and I laughed at your reply, because you are so dead on.
Thanks for the laugh, and for reminding me why I don't do gun shows.
Del
 
Panther piss is really hard to find these days. You know, there were only so many people that had the gumption to collect urine from militant African American social activists in the 60's. By the time the trend caught on in the mid 1970's, panthers were a dying breed.

So I use cougar piss now. It's a whole lot easier to convince a single, amorous, 50 year old woman to pee in a cup than it is to hunt down a panther.

--nathan
 
Will Leavitt said:
And you know what? 99.9999% of the people there wouldn't care a bit. They'll tell you how their pawpaw made the best knives on the planet using an old broken file, fence post and spit. They'll gripe at you about a $150 drop point hunter with SS guard and ironwood handles while they tote newly purchased Zeiss scope, binos and $120398787039487 in Scentloc products. They'll spend $200 on a new arrow rest, $300 on CF arrows, $999 on expanding super ninja deer slaying broadheads, $100 on super stealth NASA string silencers but won't spend $2 on mole skin to silence their stupid shelf and riser.

Oh yeah, they'll wonder why you charge more than the guy in the next row with his "handmade: kit knives.

You'll deal with this type of person every 7.733 minutes on average for about 20 hours and you'll sit and wonder why in the hell aren't you in your shop. Still you saddle up 4 times a year for the abuse and every afternoon you wonder why you did it and vow never again.

ARRRRGGGHHHHHHHH never mind :barf: :mad: :barf:
Click to expand...


wow that was incredible. I just went to my first gun and knife show last weekend, and your description was near perfect. except I never had to deal with the guy who's pawpaw made knives, I had the guy who made the end all be all knife from an old bed frame, and was convinced that it was a self-hardening steel.

seriously, I wasted my weekend.

-Josiah
 
Reminds me of a time a few years ago, when I had a table at the Tulsa gun show. You folks know me, I don't buy junk knives, be they factory or customs. So, when an old gray headed man picked up one of my knives and held it up to his ear and flicked it with his finger, I had no idea what to expect. Certainly, I didn't expect him to THROW it on my table and state, "that one's no good". When I questioned him as to how or why it was no good, he simply said, "I'm an Indian; we know these things". :rolleyes:

Ahhhh, good ole gun show crowds! :D
 
J-siah,
It wasn't a total waste, because you got a chance to meet Will Crump there.
Give me a call some time, I know you aren't that far away and maybe we can meet up for some serious knifemaker conversation.
Thanks,
Del
 
J-siah said:
wow that was incredible. I just went to my first gun and knife show last weekend, and your description was near perfect. except I never had to deal with the guy who's pawpaw made knives, I had the guy who made the end all be all knife from an old bed frame, and was convinced that it was a self-hardening steel.

seriously, I wasted my weekend.

-Josiah
Click to expand...

Just about every knifemaker ends up learning this lesson the hard way. If you like guns and have trouble with your will power, you end up spending more money on guns, plus your table fee, plus all of your time than you could ever make on your knives. It's a money losing proposition, unless you find a great deal on a gun. The problem is, you don't need a table to find that great deal on a gun. Very few gun folks are knife educated.
 
Down here in Bama, EVERYONE"s pawpaw apparently made knives. Apparently everyone in Bama is born with knifemaking in their genetics. They're often ready and willing to identify handle material to their children, spouses and anyone not fast enough to escape their barrage of knowledge, ironwood, "what type of walnut is that?" redwood burl "that's some nice maple", curly maple "what'd you stain this oak with?" stag "don't you know it's illegal to use deer antlers."

When they rub their damn catsup and mustard coated fingers over your 1000x or better handrubbed finish and critique your choice of steels cause it ain't stainless like his Buck 1103434 he got for free at the truck stop when he got a new set of tires. When you carefully rub some flitz on the knife they just dropped onto the table they'll knowlingly turn to their brood and declare "that's why the best knives are stainless steel, them Chinese know what they're doin." When you try to explain why you use the steels you use based on your processes and knowledge levels you'll get the "uh huh.... well you need to use some good knife steel like an old saw blade or file. Everyone knows a file makes a great knife because it'll cut other metal so it'll dang sure cut something softer."

Iffen you think I'm just making stuff up, I wish :( these are comments that I've heard across the table.
 
silver_pilate said:
Panther piss is really hard to find these days. You know, there were only so many people that had the gumption to collect urine from militant African American social activists in the 60's. By the time the trend caught on in the mid 1970's, panthers were a dying breed.

So I use cougar piss now. It's a whole lot easier to convince a single, amorous, 50 year old woman to pee in a cup than it is to hunt down a panther.

--nathan
Click to expand...

Laguhing my a$$ off, that is the funniest thing ive read in a long time!:D:D
 
After reading Wills post, I think I will stick to just going and poking fun at all the "handmade" knifemakers.:D There was this kid who was showing his buddy a knife he spent $90 on. The steel on the knife had like a glittery design on the whole blade:confused: He told his buddy that it was handmade and you get what you paid for. I was thinking "not this time kid".
 
Mike, you obviously were not born knowing everything there is to know about knives like most of the people at Alabama gun shows... maybe you should move down here so your children will have a chance to succeed. :p
 
Will Leavitt said:
And you know what? 99.9999% of the people there wouldn't care a bit. They'll tell you how their pawpaw made the best knives on the planet using an old broken file, fence post and spit. They'll gripe at you about a $150 drop point hunter with SS guard and ironwood handles while they tote newly purchased Zeiss scope, binos and $120398787039487 in Scentloc products. They'll spend $200 on a new arrow rest, $300 on CF arrows, $999 on expanding super ninja deer slaying broadheads, $100 on super stealth NASA string silencers but won't spend $2 on mole skin to silence their stupid shelf and riser.

Oh yeah, they'll wonder why you charge more than the guy in the next row with his "handmade: kit knives.

You'll deal with this type of person every 7.733 minutes on average for about 20 hours and you'll sit and wonder why in the hell aren't you in your shop. Still you saddle up 4 times a year for the abuse and every afternoon you wonder why you did it and vow never again.

ARRRRGGGHHHHHHHH never mind :barf: :mad: :barf:
Click to expand...

Will, thanks for the laugh man! You are absolutely right. I used to talk myself silly telling people how I forge welded the damascus blades on my knives. They would just stand there and stare like "Why go to that much trouble? Why dont you use files?"

Knife shows are so much easier to do. Everybody there knows what damascus is and I dont have to explain it over and over and over and over and.........:yawn:
 
delbert ealy said:
J-siah,
It wasn't a total waste, because you got a chance to meet Will Crump there.
Give me a call some time, I know you aren't that far away and maybe we can meet up for some serious knifemaker conversation.
Thanks,
Del
Click to expand...
thats true, he was pretty cool too. I will be sure to give you a call, probably this week.

I also got to meet the best black smith I will ever meet in my life, he told me so himself. he said, I quote " I'm pretty damn good, probably the best you will ever meet" how long have you been a black smith, I ask " almost 10 years ". 10 years is a long time, but I have me people who have been doing it longer than my father has been alive, so I was a little under impressed. he would be best off to adopt some humility before he meets some old timer who will rock his world.

-Josiah
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top