What to ask a knife maker?

Ed Fowler

Ed Fowler

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Jul 21, 2001
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This form appears to be an excellent place for a question like this one since it is about using knives as they were meant to and must be used when a man needs a knife.

You as a customer searching for the ideal survival knife find a custom maker that offers knives that look like they will serve you well.

What questions should or would you ask to determine if his knives are what you need?
 
Hi Ed,
I for one feel honored for your visit. Many posters on this forum already have preferences in terms of steel, edge holding/ease of sharpening, shape, guard vs no guard.

That said, my questions are grind related; can the do a convex or scandi or convex-scandi, or flat with a convex edge, etc. I ask if they can make a handle a bit longer, more or less contored, thicker or thinner. I ask about heat treat and pretend like temps and quench times inform me :o. I ask about warranty. Most importantly I ask if they're the kind of maker that will get together and camp! Oh yeah price is of concern as well.
 
I don't typically have an awful lot of questions for a knifemaker, but it is important for me to have open communications. If a knifemaker wants my business, he has to be as good at listening as he is at talking. I won't name names here, but there have been a few guys who have failed pretty miserably at this over the years, too. That's a shame, because I really love their knives.
 
I don't know what particular question I'd ask but I do think it's important that the knifemakers test their knives out doing the kind of practical tasks that we would need them for. I have bought knives that have arrived plenty sharp for shaving hair but once trying to cut wood making fuzz sticks or notching wood making traps etc it becomes obvious that there is a problem with the edge angle or grind.Often these blades are easily rectified but we should not have to mess with a knife as soon as it arrives !!!
 
Most important to me is flexibility in blade length.

I see many "bushcraft" knives out there that I really like with 4" and slightly above lengths.

But...By law any knife I wish to carry must have a sub 4" sharpened edge unless I am hunting or fishing. Camping,hiking, or general woods bumming won't cut it.:(

If a maker doesn't do "orders" or imply in their website that a customer has some flexibility with their designs I pass them by.(I have a custom 3 7/8" bushcraft type knife that a maker here was willing to make up for me. His standard model is 4")

Not everyone is allowed to carry a 4"-5" fixed blade. Even in the woods.
 
Hey Ed,
I also like to ask about the time they felt the most honored giving or selling someone a knife, or a good story about someone who purchased one of them. Sometimes you get makers who tell you about movie stars that order a knife, others may have a whole team of trail workers that like 'em. I also make sure I ask about how long it takes to make a knife in case I should order two ;) Trying to figure out what the maker thinks is abusive too, just so you don't void their warranty.
 
First, I'd ask if they had a three-legged elk on their ranch.:D

Seriously, I would be curious whether the knifemaker was an outdoorsman/hunter/fisherman/etc. If so, I'd expect to do less explaining of my needs in a custom knife.

DancesWithKnives
 
Mainly I want to know what their favorite pass-time is. I want a knife made by a knife user with similar interests more so than an artist....though it is nice when you run across one that is both.
 
Todd A said:
But...By law any knife I wish to carry must have a sub 4" sharpened edge unless I am hunting or fishing. Camping,hiking, or general woods bumming won't cut it.:(
Click to expand...

Some states have an exception clause to laws like that something like 'while peaceably moving ones possessions from one dwelling to another'

I wonder how that would fly if you were camping.
you try it first though :p

"Of course I have my knife officer, I'm moving it to a new camp site." :rolleyes:
 
Thank you for the welcome!
I like your questions, and will provide some thoughts - naturally, but want to give time for more to reply. Already I like it here!
 
Good materials, a maker that stands behind his knives, and a nice guy to deal with are tops on my list.
 
The only question I would add that hasn't already been brought up would be regarding guards. If I were to order a knife from a maker like yourself that puts a guard on every knife I've seen, I would ask if they would be willing to make one without a guard.

If not, then I would not likely buy from that person. Not because of any fault of the maker or his product, but I personally would not buy a knife with a guard on it. In fact I've always admired your knives, but the guards are like a giant eye sore to me, because I just think of how much it would get in my way. Obviously not everyone feels the same as me, put it is a personal thing that would prevent me from purchasing any particular knife.

One other question I might ask is, what knife does the maker carry and why. First of all, it gives me an insite into why the maker makes knives and subconsciously to what purpose. Also, I have seen makers that do not even carry there own product, and that would automatically stop me from buying one of there knives.
 
Hey Ed,

The few I've sought out are folks whom I've watched develop and evolve from skilled amateurs to craftsmen to artisans...and maybe, at times, to artists.

I'm pretty much a utilitarian user of tools, so "lovely" isn't enough for me. Huge doesn't do it either. I want a basis of extremely high quality control, a theme of integrity in design (if that makes sense to you), and a love of the steel and the product that often surprises the knife-maker himself.

Without specific examples, seems pretty vague. Hope you get an idea of what I mean.
 
Ed Fowler said:
Thank you for the welcome!
I like your questions, and will provide some thoughts - naturally, but want to give time for more to reply. Already I like it here!
Click to expand...

Mr. Fowler, I think you'll love it here. These gentlemen are a great source of inspiration and honest, realistic feedback. Thank you for starting this thread, and thank you VERY much for all you've written and shared over the years!

Todd A said:
If a maker doesn't do "orders" or imply in their website that a customer has some flexibility with their designs I pass them by.
Click to expand...

:thumbup: To me, meeting the client's needs is the whole point of making handmade knives. The wide variety of options is what got me interested in custom knives in the first place, and that's what makes it fun!

Let's face it, the average outdoorsman these days is blessed with many choices of decent factory knives that perform fairly well. Many of which are available for under $100. So why the heck would a guy spend more for a custom/handmade knife?

It seems to me that an independent maker must do two things: offer superlative materials, craftsmanship and performance, and offer many options to suit the individual customer. That's what I aspire to do, anyway.

The giants of the knifemaking field, such as Mr. Fowler, have perfected their own styles and techniques to such a high level that they command a premium for knives that are distinctly their own, and have waiting lists to prove it. Bless 'em! I'm no expert but I can spot a Fowler, Loveless or Goddard knife from a mile away... y'know what I mean?

As a new maker, I simply could not, and would not turn away an interested customer if he/she wanted a blade a little shorter/longer/wider/narrower than what I might prefer. Same goes for handle materials/design. Hidden tang/full tang, guard/no guard, bolster/no bolster, etc. I have certain preferences, naturally, but I welcome the challenge of providing a customer with what THEY want or need.
 
What I'd ask of a knife maker is testimonials, what crowd of people buy from you, what materials can you work with, is blade thickness an option, what kind of grinds are available.

and of course, how long is the wait list. :D
 
Nice thread, excellent topic.

I am payin attention.

Maybe I should like, collect testimonials. maybe even put them on the website :)
 
G'day Ed

Ed Fowler said:
What questions should or would you ask to determine if his knives are what you need?
Click to expand...
Firstly, I would like to know what kind of outdoor experience the maker has (especially if it is still current). Since you have highlighted a search for a "Survival knife", I would be particularily interested in the amount of genuine wilderness time the maker had under their belt.

Secondly, I would want to know how the handle felt "in hand" when used for extended periods of time.

Q's about heat treat, steel, geometry etc have already been raised so I won't repeat them here.




Kind regards
Mick
 
first n foremost for me is

will you deal with a guy in Australia ?
 
One of the first things I look for is their philosophy on knife use. If they say that ALL knives are for cutting ONLY, I would not look to them for a Survival knife because I would assume they make brittle knives or at least have never tested their steel and heat treat themselves. Which would be my second question. If I get that so and so special ops ninja warriors are happy so I don't need to test my own work for an answer then I know to look for a different maker. I want to know if they expect their knife to bend before it breaks and if so how much. I expect them to know the properties of their steel and heat treat and to be able to explain it to me. If a maker has never made sure one of their own survival knives could drill a hole in a tough old fire board without the tip breaking or chopped down and split apart some hard dead limbs to get to the dry parts without ending up with two pieces or made some fine curly fuzz sticks with it then I wouldn't want to spend my money on their wall hanger "survival" knife. I don't buy knives in general for their fit and finish or their collectability or to up my status, least of all a survival knife.
I would then ask them how hard is the knife to sharpen to a razor edge after becomeing pretty dull. If you have to use a diamond stone to bring back the edge in a decent amount of time I would look for a different survival knife.
I would also ask them if they have used their knives for extended periods and if their handles were still comfortable after extended chopping and hard use. Also if they find it comfortable to choke up on their handles, if they get slippery with sweat, and if people with large hands find their handles comfortable too.
 
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