Your 2020 Retrospective

[Lorien]

Season's greetings to you all!

This year has been particularly rough, and we'll be seeing the fallout for some time to come.

That's not a pleasant reality, but it's what it is. I tend to think that pleasantness is something that we bring- it's not something handed to us, we have to work for it. The more collaborative we are in our positivity, the greater the chances we can shape our shared reality into a pleasant one.

So, with a positive outlook in mind, I thought it would be nice to have a thread where we can share our retrospectives of 2020. What did you make? What maker did you support? What awesome things did you do? What impressed the hell out of you?

I was thinking that anyone interested in posting would claim their post, and use the edit function to update your post as you think of cool things from 2020, that maybe you forgot. In fact, that's the whole purpose here- to remind ourselves and each other that we all bring something to the table.

Attaboys are encouraged, of course- consider this a KUMBAYA thread.

 

[JParanee]

Merry X Mas to all

Strange days that is for sure

Besides work which is always a joy

I’m blessed that my family is well and life is going on

Highlights for me was watching my kids do well in different times and so far succeeding

One is getting through nursing school the other one getting accepted in to all the colleges she applied to and my youngest 16 putting in as much effort she can to getting around me

My dogs are my buddies and I owe them more than I can ever say...they love X Mas

Lady



Max



This year i did a lot of firearms training

Ive always been a big shooter but i used the shut down time too get back up to speed

Lotsa drills and got acclimated to a red-dot even on my carry can ....old eyes suck and the dot is key

As for knives the its been the year of the WHARNCLIFFE for me really concentrating on carry pieces



A bunch from Mirabile





This spectacular piece from Mark Aldrich




I also got this very well done DEK1 as well





Only production knife i got was this SPYDERCO Canis



Nice knife but I prefer a Yojimbo over it

Bless you all and stay safe

Merry X Mas

 

[3fifty7]

This year on the farm has been the busiest year of my life, which I am incredibly thankful for. My family is healthy, which I am also incredibly thankful for.
I have cooked some good BBQ

Made my first Pho-I’m pretty much addicted now

Caught my first tuna

Found an OLD hatchet/tomahawk


I only finished one small knife, first time forging cable damascus. Hopefully I’ll finish the other by the end of the year.

 

[Win Heger]

2020 was definitely interesting, not always in a good way. The bad was not being able to travel safely, that meant me or my immediate family. Wedding plans got postponed, granddaughter making her first visit to Utah postponed! Fortunately I live in an area with lots of outdoors to play in, so glad I left NJ 16 years ago.

From a knife perspective, I've cut back substantially, too old to keep accumulating. The few I did buy all came from makers I met on here, Josh Mason, James Helm, Phillip Patton and Nathan. More than happy to support this community, I've learned a lot over my years here. My other $$ went to a couple of Ruger revolvers and a Henry, all in 327 Fed Mag.

 

[Lorien]

good stuff, guys!

I continued working with Greg Lightfoot and we introduced the Endorphin, one of which Greg sent my way

I also designed this front flipper for him, (the thumb stud was his idea) but unfortunately it just didn't catch on

Finally received my Boker+ Roundhouse production knives that got held up at customs, etc. Just in time for the model to be discontinued. Too bad, it's really a great knife, regardless, Bing would be proud and I'll never quite get over his abrupt departure from this mortal plane. I miss him.

I also started doing some sheath work with a mind toward making some money, so I invested in this nice round knife by Black Cat forge

this is a sheath I made for a Gryphon M30 I picked up

for the foreseeable future, I won't be buying any more knives, but last year I was able to snag this awesome piece in Elmax by the inimitable E. Russ Andrews. I suppose I concluded, (hopefully short term) my knife buying on a high note!

this little khukuri I designed finally made its way to me this year after several years' wait. It's a long story, haha

Stuart Branson made a sheath for me, and traced my drawing onto it

and, as usual, I've been hard at work on the trails

and puttering around the yard

looking forward to working with Sam Taylor @Mecha next year, and have been diligently putting his titanium through the paces!

seems like 2020 was a year when a bunch of deals finally concluded. These Loriendesign'd hatchets by Ryan Weeks finally showed up!

One of the biggest highlights for me of 2020 was the long awaited release of Carothers Performance Knives newest pattern, the DEK1. That project started 3 years ago, and we did it right by taking our time and working it out. Of the various designs I've come up with over the years, it's about as distilled as I was capable of at the time. No frills, 100% performance and utility. I think I've gotten better, and am looking forward to the new khukuri that Nathan and I are working on

Completed my first commission in 2020! I think it took five years. There was a shit ton of shit going on during those five years, so it's what it is. But I finished it, and that's what matters

Looks like I'll have ended 2020 with the tools I need to navigate into new forms of making a livelihood going forward. The landlord decided to sell the building and I couldn't afford to buy it, so I decided to get out in September which I did. It's a little sad, dismantling and walking away from 16.5 years of running a business I built, but the timing actually worked out in a strange way and has allowed me to invest a small amount in new endeavours. It's definitely sink or swim, but ain't that how it is for everyone, ultimately.

 

[i4Marc]

2020 was a horrible year in so many ways. No need to recap the obvious stuff. In addition to most of my racing events being canceled, the lack of contact and interaction with family and friends and the loss of much of my income (this isn't my day job), I also lost my father earlier this year.’Nuff said. I didn’t make many pieces this year (actually, I don’t make many pieces any year). I wanted to express my appreciation for all those who offered positive and encouraging remarks about my work and a special thanks to those who chose to add one of my knives to their kit or collection. I may have forgotten something but these are the pieces I finished this year.

A2/Koa

1095/Maple

80CrV2/Koa

1095/Micarta

80CrV2/Faux Ivory

A2/Micarta

Hoping 2021 won’t be the unholy sh!tstorm 2020 was. Not holding my breath.

 

[SharpByCoop]

Great idea for a thread. Thank you Lorien! ^^^ Great stories and happenings to review.

Serendipitously I had created a series of MY 2020 highlights for my IG account. Many of you have seen them, yet I will post it appropriately here as well, with a bit of commentary on each entry.

Here is my family. Enjoying a holiday get together at my in-laws home.

Covid decimated MANY businesses. Not mine. Although overall output was far below prior years, because of Show cancellations, the amount of Studio work I produced was up 40% from the past. Because there were no other venues to get it done, makers flew them in!

We DID participate in one successful LVCKS 50/50 Productions Show in January. That was fun! Susan is talented in ways many of you may not have known.

I spent MORE hours exercising outdoors than ever. Especially gaining miles on bikes. Here we are at the midpoint of a 28 mile ride on a train path in Poughkeepsie over the Mighty Hudson River.

We own 10 bikes all told. Ready? I have ordered a 48" tall Hiwheel.com Penny Farthing replica. It's a bucket list thing....

Trevor has a TERRIFIC photographic eye which he continues to explore. He's MUCH more gifted than me outside of my studio. He's also responsible at 17. We drove around Manhattan on a Sunday just for some late photo ops. Here he is driving my Corvette....

My FIRST outdoor fitness love continued with Rowing. (My SECOND job is maintenance person for a large rowing Club. I coached for years, but I am only doing hands-on work now.) Again, Trevor excels. He's the quickest youth in our program, especially in his Dad-supplied Vespoli single.

Did I mention he has a great eye? He don't need no stinkin' DSLR....

The Contest organizers were flabbergasted He WON the two most populous categories (as a student). They had different judges for each category without confering, and came upon the same winner. HA!

Those who know, KNOW. This was with lowly treaded Michelin street tires. The drag radials are two tenths quicker still...

A career motorcyclist in years past, I wanted a project. BOY did I find one. This top bike is NOW all apart and sandblasted in boxes as I refinish it. I give it two years to completion. Wish me luck.

 

[Lorien]

Attaboy, Coop!!!

Marc, I'm so sorry to hear of your tribulations, particularly the passing of your father. Been there, its sucks. That said, all the work you posted is inspired! And inspiring

 

[rover]

Attaboy! Some really great pics and stories. Makes me feel lazy though! Lol

JW Bensinger made a couple knives for me this year. My favorite was the Mexican Scorpion Tail Bowie in 80CRV2. I've been a huge fan of the bowie for years and this was the first full custom job made like I want. It has amazing balance and a very scary zero-convex edge. Also grabbed a couple of classic Cold Steel.


Spent most days with my new friend who joined us midyear.


Enjoyed God's creation

 

[3fifty7]

Am I the only one who can’t see pics in posts 5,6&7 ?

 

[Scott Hanson]

I made about 10-11 knives this year, I'm just a part time maker and had a lot of other things to get done this year, seems like I do every year. I'll hit it harder when I retire or go into partial retirement in a few years. The pandemic didn't have a big influence on me other than getting sick for about a week and a half. Hopefully this coming year we can we can get things back on track.

This is probable my requested knife to make is a a Replica of the first knife Bo Randall made back in 1937.


These are 4" drop point hunters with a Randall model #27 handle style, this model is a close second the one above it as far as customer orders.


These are drop point hunters with Scagel style handles that I was trying some new handle material on. It's a black and red laminated G10 that I used for some of the spacers.


These next two were an attempt to make some chef style knives, this is a pair Santoku knives in AEB-L at HRc-62 with Lignum Vitae scales. The blades are 6 1/2" long but I think about 8" blade would be just about right.


This last knife is a 6" up swept Scagel style hunter with Whitetail crown, and leather , brass, and G10 spacers.

 

[Lorien]

I love your old skool knives, Scott. What you lack in quantity you more than make up for in quality Pretty, too

 

[Bigfattyt]

I received a forge for my birthday from my lovely wife. A Graham blown gas forge. I had previously made a knife with files, finished a knife I started nearly 15 years ago? Then finished two more with professional heat treat and help of my new 2x72 grinder.
I made a puko stock removal 15n20 to test out heat treating in the forge.


Firsr forged knife out of 1075 (the bar came with the forge) I attempted a yakut knife. Forged a fuller, and did completely flat grind on one side, and convex on the other. By the time I removed the forge scale and pits on the edge, the fuller was gone. There is a shadow hamon, on the flat side which is nice.

I initially did a drop/Spear like the original, but went with a trailing point by the end.

Forged the next knife out of 1080, and then one for my dad out of 5160. Scagle inspired. Hickory handle and micarta spacer. Vulcanized fiber for color.

 

[Jason Fry]

2020 was so many things, but for me much more good than bad.
I did my first cutting contest in February, with Jerry Fisk and the guys at Old Washington.
I wrote a book at the beginning of lockdowns that just made it to print this month.
I finished the other book I've been working on for three years, and it's close to printing.
The knives sold very very well for me. I didn't slow down, and sales were steady even at the higher end of my range.
I haven't checked the numbers for this year's completion, but I did finish my 900th lifetime knife this year.
I worked through everything same as if there were no virus, and so did my wife. The combination of steady "essential" jobs, limited travel, good sales, and "stimulus" money, was mostly good.
Five of the six of my family had Covid, and no cases required any significant treatment. I lost a few acquaintances, a co-worker, a mentor, and some family friends.

Interesting times, for sure.

 

[Kevin Jones]

2020 has been quite a year, as many if not all of us have had to adjust our way of life to some degree as a result of COVID19.

I've basically been living a hermit's life since March so I can still spend time (safely) with my (3) grandchildren who live a short walk from me.

Hardest part was giving up the gym as was a hard habit to break after going there practically every day for the last 30+ years.
So converted the garage to a gym of sorts which between biking 25 miles per day, simple work-outs and hitting the heavy bag has kept me sane.

So the good thing our family has been Covid-free and still been able to spend quality time together for which I'm SO pleased.
COOP, C7 Corvettes ROCK!!!!! Yours is a beauty.

I wish ALL a happy, healthy and prosperous 2021.

 

[SharpByCoop]

^^^ Haha! You win on every level. Especially on the cutest kids award!

Corvette is a BEAUTY!

(I have 3 road bikes, two hybrids, a tandem, and I have ordered a hiwheel replica. I wish you were around.)

 

[Lorien]

Kevin, I have serious garage envy! That high ceiling is so nice

 

[Jsega51]

Am I the only one who can’t see pics in posts 5,6&7 ?

Nah there’s a lot of pics I can’t see either.

 

[3fifty7]

Nah there’s a lot of pics I can’t see either.

I did find that if you quote a post then insert the quote into your reply the pics will show. Then you can erase the reply before you post it. I know it’s a few steps but it’s worth it sometimes.

 

[Jsega51]

I said this was going to be the time I slow down on acquiring knives outside of a few pending/upcoming orders but damned if I didn’t buy a few here and there anyway. Life didn’t change much in that regard!

Here’s 3 of my custom orders that made 2020 like my birthday and Christmas happened all year long:

Bret Dowell Trapper, measures 4.25” closed with acid etched A2 blades and springs, walnut scales from a block I bought a handful of years ago, stainless fittings and this knife got a shield on each side. Not commonly done but it can be seen in some late 1800’s and early 1900’s slipjoints, this was Bret’s first time and it looks nice since the blades have opposing nail nicks.

David Lisch MS Legacy Knife. I’ve been a fan of the way his knives look for a while but finally got to see his work, as he makes it, after joining IG. He posts a ton of his process and makes it easy to follow. His signature knife is a rat knife, sphincter and all. I reached out to David periodically and eventually asked how to obtain one of the Legacy knives. Not long after, I got a picture of 3 rough knives asking which one I wanted....hell yeah David, you’re awesome. I carried it quite a bit this hunting season and will continue to do so!

One thing to note about the knife is between the stag and tang there is a piece of leather glued in to act as a gasket and he says it probably helps the stag expand/contract without cracking as well.

Josh Fisher JS full tang in san mai with curly maple scales, stainless domed pins and forged texture left on the tang. I gave Josh some ideas, he sketched it out a few times, tweaking it here and there, then proceeded to hammer out a killer knife that I can’t put down sometimes.

I really like that Ostrich leather. Bob Bobbitt from Bob’s Saddle Shop did both sheaths here and he’s been great to work with as well. He’s Josh’s go to man for all his leather work.