What are you in real life? Does that help your knifemaking?

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I'm just curious.
What is your real life job or background and is it something that relates to the work involved with knife making?

When people buy handle materials I am curious how it will be used and tend to ask a few questions.

I run into a few machinists who use the skills the have developed at their day job and use it to make good knives. Same thing with Jewelers.

On the other side of the coin...
There have been a surprising number of physicians that make knives. My guess would be as therapy to wind down from the day job.

How about you?
 
I owner a computer repair shop. Absolutely no help whatsoever. But, understanding soak times has helped me on the BBQ grill. I no longer use high heat, I now give it a nice long soak at medium.
 
I'm a human so as a tool user and maker that kinda helps :p

Hunting, Soldiering and helping out in my brother's barbeque shop helped define what I think are requirements of knife design.

Working at my godfather's shop cutting wooden model airplane kits (he's also a knifemaker) and Soldiering helped me with attention to detail.

Working in a cabinet shop and building model airplanes helped with my fit and finish.

Quality control at Hyundai gave me access to some neat instruments in the materials lab, the former head guy was a knife knut and a metallurgist. He's moved on so I don't have access to the instruments any more :(
 
I'm not a real jeweler by any means but until recently I sold stones I cut and jewelry my wife makes. I slowly got into knives this way because I wanted to do stone scales. I think all the time I have spent at the rock grinder helped me a lot when it came to grinding metal. I'm also used to shows and customer relations because of this. With my rock business I no longer advertise or do shows because I have enouigh repeat customers to focus on knives, I believe this is from being honest and selling a quality product at a fair price. I make almost all of my money selling things I produce on my own from scratch, you have to be self motivated to keep that up, I guess that helps too.
 
I'm a plumber, working mostly in the service dept. It helps me financially first, :D because I have quite a few tools at my disposal so I don't need as much in my home shop I'm setting up.
I can go to my companies shop and get empty R-22 canisters free at any time to build a forge, and was able to piece together my Zoeller Zburner from extra parts, including the SS flare.(BTW, anyone in the Portland Metro area that needs R-22 canisters), just PM me....I'll be at the OKCA show and can bring a few...
Conversely, working on knives has helped me on the job as well. I used to bust taps off and burn up drill bits like crazy until I started learning how you're supposed to tap thread vs, the way I'd been doing it.:)
 
I have worked in a machine shop and tool rooms for 33years. Using a variety of machines, steels and heat treating ovens. When it came to wood knife handles and leather sheaths that was a new and exciting field for me.
 
loussharp1 said:
I have worked in a machine shop and tool rooms for 33years. Using a variety of machines, steels and heat treating ovens. When it came to wood knife handles and leather sheaths that was a new and exciting field for me.
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Dave, You are one of the guys I thought of when I started this thread. You don't fit the stereotype I would have placed you in though.

I would have thought a machinist would make tactical knives with man made materials for handles. Instead, your knives show an artistic flair with really nice natural handle materials. What's up with that?
 
IT with Cisco emphasis. It helps in that when I get home from work, I want to work on anything as long as it's not in front of a computer.
 
Im a corpsman so it helps in the fact that I can be around lots of knives and get input on a daily basis of what people want in a knife. other than that its really no help but to pay the bills .

-Josiah
 
Well the Bureau of Prisons (Max, USP prison) is who I get my paycheck from..Third prison system Ive worked in..Officer then factory supervisor, SORT and DCT team...Worked SEG units for years..
Seen plenty of homemade knives but they were ugly and cause terrible looking wounds:( Until you have seen someone killed in a knife fight you never really know how much blood is in the human body) Screw knife fight'n, plain and simple.Thats why I carry a sidearm.
Anyway I had also welded since I was 15 and welded for the gov't . What really helped is that I had been a Blacksmith for at least 5 years before I ever made a knife..
 
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I started working at age 12 at an egg ranch for a couple hours a day everyday of the week until I graduated from high school. Fed several thousand chickens there but there was nothing learned from there about knives however at age 14 I made a half dozen knives with a little help from my dad. Worked part time in the stock room at Sears until I got drafted into the army. Worked several handyman jobs after that. Got into the carpenter trade and did that for 30 years. I did learn how to swing hammer from that. Got re interested in knives at 47 and have been doing it since. No formal training, just learned as I went.
 
I'm a country boy. I started blacksmithing when building a log cabin off the grid, then got hooked. Now I do this for a living, although I occasionally still moonlight in the construction field- I've been a roofer, cement laborer, log builder, fire sprinkler union apprentice, and other stuff too. I find that knifemaking actually helps these occupations- attention to detail is an asset that knifemaking forces one to learn.
 
I am a minister and do find knife making very therapeutic and relaxing after spending most of my time in the office. It is tough when I have to move (4 times in 3 years) because I have to explain why I have so many heavy tools. Making and showing knives is a great way for me to meet new people as well as get kids to learn how to forge knives
Jason
 
jawilder said:
I am a minister and do find knife making very therapeutic and relaxing after spending most of my time in the office. It is tough when I have to move (4 times in 3 years) because I have to explain why I have so many heavy tools. Making and showing knives is a great way for me to meet new people as well as get kids to learn how to forge knives
Jason
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There are a few different Ministers I know making knives. Really nice ones too!
I would think the day job requires a lot of patience that would be helpful when making knives.

Who would have thought of Ministers and Doctors as knifemakers. Knife making seems to be an area where stereotypes just do not apply.
 
In real life I am a manager of engineering programs. My job involves managing the team that is working at the intersection of two technology companies and making sure the combination of their products in a specific space produce optimum results for both companies.

In some sense, my project management skill guides me in how I approach any project, including making knives, just as they guide most of my life (how I organize a trip, how I cook a meal, etc.)

- Greg
 
I'm a software engineer (been programming computers for over 40 years now).
Knife making is a chance to make something concrete, appealing and understandable
to other people. Since I'm not naturally handy, it takes me quite a while to learn
hands-on tasks.

I don't use computers at all in my knife making. In particular, I've never felt any
desire to use CAD tools, etc.
 
federal trapper. It helps because i am poor .I had to learn and make my own stuff. When you use knifes daily like a tool it will teach a guy about corners on handles and how important good grinds are.
 
I'm a mechanical engineer that works as a roofing/waterproofing consultant. The first part of that helps alot, the second...not so much.
 
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