Journal

I am sometimes asked to make reproductions of knives and swords. It's not very often but when it happens it is always an interesting challenge. Every project incorporates at least one new technique for me and usually multiple. I try to take reproductions seriously, making the project as close to the original as possible while adhering to the customer’s specs. The idea of making “my version” of a sword is not interesting to me because I don’t have enough experience with swords generally, much less the specific sword I am making to know where to begin to make  my own...

Living in Richmond gives me the opportunity to work with some great people. The guys at Current Culture Fly Shop are a good example. They were interested in carrying our Bird and Trout model and I was interested in learning new fishing techniques. It always feels great to work out a service trade because that indicates that you have aligned interests and values with the other party. One of Current Culture’s owners and boat Captains took us out on the James River in downtown Richmond during the early part of the spring shad run. Shad are often known as bait...

  There is quite a bit of repetitive motion in the knife shop. Forging can be fun but grinding and hand sanding are the real time sinks in knife making. Grinding the bevels on a knife can be the hardest part to get right and your brain can really get in the way. I actually listen to music or podcasts while grinding because I find that being slightly preoccupied helps me grind more consistently. I suppose I could just be alone with my thoughts but that doesn’t always work out so well. When I am grinding knives, I want to...

Chaos is clearly the natural state of my knife shop. There is a constant battle against clutter, dust, spills, and general disarray in the shop that I feel like I am always losing. Every day that I sweep the floor, I get a sizable pile of dirt and trash. How does this happen? No one is making the floor dirty or throwing trash down intentionally. The bearings on the grinder wheels regularly go bad and the aluminum wheels themselves wear down. Motors burn out, hammer handles break or get loose, bits and blades seem to last for only minutes before...