Fine custom knives - makers and collections

[JDelage]

All,

Michael Alden asked me a few weeks ago to start a thread on custom knives and their makers. I have learned much from the LL crowd, and it is a pleasure for me to tell you about this hobby / passion of mine.

I have been collecting knives for slightly under 10 years, and I am an "advanced amateur" in this world. By this, I mean that my knowledge of the craft and its people is pretty deep, but for a subset of the custom knife universe only. I have developped a very nice "provincial" collection (as opposed to world class).

Custom knives are generally split along several dimensions, and many collectors focus on subsegments. Those dimensions are:


1) Construction method:
Knives can be hand-forged or ground (stock removal). Hand-forging the knife means taking a bar of steel and heating it until it becomes plastic, then exercising mecanical force using a hand hammer, a power hammer, or a hydrolic press. Stock removal knives are made by taking a bar of steel and grinding away steel until what you have left is the desired shape.

In truth both type of knives involve some forging and some grounding. The makers all* start with a bar of steel of manageable size, which was forged down during the production from much larger billets. This is important as forging down big pieces of steel into smaller sizes has positive implications for the physical properties of the steel (grain refinement, grain alignment, etc). Similarly, even the knives that are hand-forged "to shape" require some time on the grinder to finalize their shape.

The construction method has some implications on what a maker can do. For example, it is trivial for a good bladesmith (one who forge blades) to take a 5" piece of steel, and by careful manipulation, produce a 10" blade. It is impossible for a grinder to do that. On the other hand, the vast majority of stainless steels are impossible or very difficult to forge by hand because they harden as soon as taken out of the fire.

Forging a blade by hand allows one to have complete control over the heat-treatment of a blade, which is the critical operation that gives a piece of ground steel the desired characteristics of a blade (hardness, abrasion resistance, toughness). Stainless steel generally has to be heat treated offsite by a specialist, and in any case offers less room for creativity in balancing opposing properties. On the other hand, hand-forging a blade gives numerous opportunities to do untold damage to the steel. Stainless steels are often more brittle than plain carbon steels, and are therefore less adequate for large knives and swords, where toughness is key. There are some wizards who can make a very good sword from stainless, but they are few.

One technique that is used by bladesmiths is damascus, or more correctly pattern welding. It consists in forge-welding steels of different composition (e.g., nickel and non-nickel steels), and manipulating the billet thus created to develop a multitude of layers and patterns. Those can be revealed once the blade is polished by etching the blade carefully: simple steels blacken while nickel-bearing steels stay silver.


2) Knife type:
Among collectors, there's a clear difference between fixed-blade knives and folders. In part, that has to do with the appeal of specific designs. For example, daggers or bowie knives are more often fixed blade, though some makers have produced beautiful folding versions. It has also something to do with prices, as folding knives can be more expensive than fixe blades, due to the added complexity of the pivots and locks.

Many fascinating historical designs only exist as fixe blade knives, so if one is drawn towards traditional pieces, one is more likely to dedicate a large portion of their collection to fixed-blade. This is particularly the case for nearly all edged weapons historically, and those often have a strong romantic appeal with knife collectors (and makers).

On the other hand, folding knives have the added attraction of the mecanical smoothness (hopefully!). They offer a somewhat better canvas for engraving and precious inlays, and they are infinitely easier to carry in one's pocket.


3) Price:
As an art form (if you consider fine craft an art), knives are not very expensive. With this said, the range covered by fine knives goes from a few hundred dollars to tens of thousands, and obviously, collectors cluster around certain price points.


* There are some very few makers who smelt their own steel using iron powder and charcoal, but this is completely exceptional.

[JDelage]

Here are a couple non commercial websites showing a good sample of fine custom knives:

Sharp by Coop:
http://www.sharpbycoop.com/index.html
Jim Cooper is a knife enthusiast who went from being a dedicated amateur photographer to developing a strong reputation as a professional knife photographer. His galleries in the site are a great introduction to the custom knife world.

Collector Phil Lobred:
http://www.sanfranciscoknives.com/
Mr. Lobred has developped a world class knife collection. His focus is "San Francisco knives", that is to say modern renditions of knives made in San Francisco during the glory days of the gold rush by names such as Michael Price and Will & Finck. However, he has also an extraordinary collection of other knives, including a reproduction of a gold dagger found in Tutankhamen's tomb.


Here are a few pictures I took:

Tim Wright:
Tim is renowned as a very precise and careful maker of knives. He makes both fixed blade knives and folders, but his specialty are "take down" folders, delivered to the collector with a little tool to take them apart. I have a couple of those:






Barry Davis:
Barry Davis makes exclusively folders, generally with damascus* he forges himself. He is a rare example of a folding knife maker who focuses on non-stainless steels. His knives have handles of fine natural materials. This one has two slots where can be found a gold toothpick and a pair of damascus tweezers:




Wolfgang Lerchner:
Wolfe is a Canadian maker who specializes in intricately carved knives, both folding and fixed. The small dagger below is a fairly simple example of his work.




The pictures below were all taken at the Paris knife show last year (SICAC 2008). There were some good example of gentlemen knives on display there:


Charles Bennica folder:


Charles Roulin folder (note how when the blade is closed, the carved trees are added to the deers):



Atelier Graveline:





Jean-Pierre Martin:





Jean-Pierre Sucheras:









Josef Rusòák:

[JDelage]

Don Fogg
http://dfoggknives.com/

Don Fogg is the knifemaker I like most, and he is a quiet legend in the world of handforged knives, as he has taught / coached / helped countless makers and has been a maker with a highly artistic vision. His specialty are fine fixed blade knives, and a large sample of his pieces are "art knives", as opposed to utilitarian. He has done much work and experimentation on damascus, and it is largely represented in the body of his work. In the last few years, he has explored the "hamon" technique used in traditional Japanese swords to combine a hard edge to a tough (springy) back. This creates two zones in the steel with different cristalline structures, and they can be revealed with the right polish techniques.

Don has a unique background, being both an English major graduate as well as a Viet-Nam war vet (as a US Marines officer). He enjoys writing about his craft and I encourage you to browse the portion of his besite called "The Way". Don is a deeply introspective man who likes to reflect profoundly about his work. As a soldier, he has deep respect for the sword as a symbol of the strong protecting the weak (I must add that Don is a highly sophisticated man who makes distinctions between the idealized role of a soldier and the use of military power; as a Viet Nam vet, he has no illusions on the later). In consequence, swords, daggers, and other edged weapons are a big part of his work. On the other hand, Don doesn't make folders (though he has made some in collaboration with other makers).

Here are a few examples from my collection:

Large dagger with a textured damascus blade (photo SharpByCoop):


Large damascus dagger:


Small hunting knife with hamon (handle is oosic) (photo Don Fogg):


Similar to the above, but with a walrus ivory handle:


Leaf shape dagger with hamon, ebony handle (photo Don Fogg):


Simple hunting knife with a handle of carded Wenge wood:


Kindjal (traditional Cosack-style dagger), handle and sheath by Zaza Revishvili


Large spear point bowie with textured flats and hamon, Wenge handle:


"Shoal" bowie, with hamon (photo Don Fogg):


Celtic-style sword with hamon (photo by BladeGallery.com):

[rs232]

I am forever impressed at forged and machined steel. I did not see l'abeille Laguiole in there, though! I know that the knife is not protected by appellation d’origine contrôlée and most are made in Asia, but the genuine article with a blade forged in Laguiole is still a fine piece of work.

[JDelage]

Charles Bennica has made some Laguiole-style knives, and like all his work, they are stunning. The Laguiole has an inherently elegant shape. It's hard to find fine, hand-crafted pieces from individual makers (as opposed to small shops).

[alden]

JDelage

Very nice series of posts. My only knowledge of pocket knives comes from Courty and Kindal, names you will recognize. http://www.couteaux-courty.com/

What do you think of the knives made by Mongins? Have you seen the Hemingway model? And there is the Atelier Percival, have you seen their knives?

I carry a knife always when in the country. Often it is an olive wood Opinel...sorry

Michael Alden

[JDelage]

Mongin knives are very fine. I don't know whether they are made by M. Mongin nowadays, I tend to think of them as a small shop operation - this doesn't change anything about their quality however. Opinels cannot be beat as a small utility knife with tons of authenticity. They are my favorite for picnics and the like.

I walked past Kindal a few days ago and they seemed to have closed. If it is verified, this is very sad. My grand-father once gave me a multi-blade knife marked Kindal that he had from his father... It was gorgeously lacquered (and in bad need of repair...)

[culverwood]

I bought a damascus blade last summer from the forge in the village of Fiskars in Finland (the village where the scissors used to come from), I do not have the name of the maker on me. I am looking to make a traditional puukko or Finnish hunting knife.

Do you have any information on where I can find how to make a fine wooden handle for a knife. I am accomplished with wood but have never made a knife.

[JDelage]

Culverwood,

I assume the blade you bought is heat treated (hardened & strees relieved). Otherwise, things are going to be much more difficult.

Your best option is to finish the knife yourself, it's very easy if you are handy with tools. There are several books on knifemaking available on Amazon that would help you. I can recommend Barney's "How To Make Knives", and Bergman's "Knifemaking - A Complete Guide to Crafting Knives, Handles & Sheaths ". The latter is focused on Nordic knives, but is unfortunately not in print anymore.

Most knifemakers would not be too interested in mounting a blade made by someone else. It can happen, but it would take time & goodwill to identify & convince the right craftsman

[JDelage]

I walked past Kindal a few days ago and they seemed to have closed.

Went past Kindal again this morning, the place is indeed closed. There's a sign on the window saying that their physical store is closed and their activity transferred to www.kindal.net .

[alden]

Went past Kindal again this morning, the place is indeed closed

That is very sad. It must have closed just recently because I saw it open before the holidays.