BLADE Staff

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The Road to San Antonio
One Knifemaker’s Quest to Obtain ABS Journeyman Certification
by Lydia McGhee

Sunday, July 24, 2011

Powerful whacks resonate from the metal shop behind the house – repetitive machine-like poundings followed by a pause, then softer whacks, less consistent, more human. Suddenly, the hammering stops. Inside the shop a powerful man stands a few feet from a roaring gas forge. Flames flicker out of a small opening in the front, and one end of a long metal bar soaks in the fire. The man holds the cool end gently in his hand and watches intently as the far end, which looks like a knife, begins to glow. Completely indifferent to the bead of sweat that trickles down his nose and splashes on the concrete floor, E. Scott McGhee’s motionless posture contradicts the sweaty shirt and dirty mule-skin apron that hug his body. . . but he isn’t still for long. As the knife blazes orange, he pulls the bar from the fire and the pounding begins anew.

E. Scott McGhee is a bladesmith. He forges knives and other edged tools from high carbon steels. It is a primitive art born in antiquity and nearly lost in this country during the 20^th century. Expert bladesmiths craft knives born of fire and artisan vision, beautiful beyond imagination, and functional beyond belief.

In the mid-1970’s, the art of the forged blade was dying. At that time, factory produced knives dominated the market and only a few bladesmiths and their loyal customers understood what was being lost. According to the American Bladesmith Society (ABS), only 12 American artisans publicly practiced traditional bladesmithing in 1976 when four devotees created the ABS to preserve the art. Bill Moran, one of the founding members, hoped to double the number of active bladesmiths, and he wasn’t disappointed. There are currently 1,100 ABS members, 160 ABS journeyman, and 115 ABS masters worldwide.

E. Scott McGhee is an ABS apprentice on a quest to become a journeyman. He played at a coal forge on and off for over 30 years making historic kitchen implements, but only recently built a gas forge, joined the ABS, and began bladesmithing. He would like to forge blades full-time.

But why forge when you can simply grind?

According to E. Scott McGhee, “I forge because it allows me to be creative. While those who grind are limited by the shape of the stock, those of us who forge are not. Forging allows me to craft designs that flow for beauty as well as function.”

The American Bladesmith Society sponsors classes, hammer-ins, and shows to promote the art of the forged blade, and they certify journeyman and master bladesmiths. The process is intense. Journeyman candidates must be ABS members for three years (two years if they take an ABS class), pass a rigorous performance test, and survive a brutal peer review.

Scott passed his JS Performance Test in January of this year, but it wasn’t easy. Bladesmithing is more than just pounding metal into the shape of a knife. ABS-certified smiths heat-treat in house to produce products far superior to mass produced blades.

According to Scott, “Proper heat treating allows me to turn a piece of art that looks like a knife into a high performance blade.”

JS Performance Test knives must 1) Cut through a free-hanging 1-inch manila rope in a single pass 2) Chop
through a 2×4 twice without dulling and 3) Bend to 90 degrees without breaking.Every Journeyman Performance knife is destroyed during testing, as are some dreams. Not everyone passes, but all who do say the performance test is the easy part.

The peer review is tougher. Twice a year at either the Blade Show in Atlanta or the Forged Knife Expo in San Antonio, journeyman candidates may present five knives to a panel of seven ABS masters. This year 17 candidates tested at Blade and 13 passed.

According to Haley DesRosiers, a new JS, “At 8am the door is locked and the judging begins. Then, after what feels like 6 or 7 years, they begin to call you in one by one. It’s like being on death row.”

If you fail, you can test again in a year. If you fail three times, the dream dies.

Masters are tough in the judging room but generous elsewhere. All ABS-certified smiths are expected to share knowledge and masters are expected to teach as preserving the art is the goal. Scott is apprenticing with ABS Master Jason Knight, but frequently communicates with other ABS-certified smiths and has been amazed by how generous all have been.

“I wouldn’t be where I am without them,” says Scott, “I stand on the shoulders of giants.”

At the Blade Show in June, ABS Master Adam DesRosiers said it best, “It’s a great time to be a bladesmith. If it were twenty years ago, we’d all be alone at our coal forges reinventing the wheel every time.”

Thanks to the American Bladesmith Society, that’s no longer  true.

They are an eccentric lot, the ABS bladesmiths. All love knives, most love guns, and many are good ole’ boys and gals, but all are metallurgists and artists at heart and shouldn’t be mistaken for anything else. They are kind, knowledgeable, and generous – a good group to have on your side.

Hot knives, cool people – this is the community E. Scott McGhee is quickly making his own. Watch for him. He is fiercely passionate about forging and his peers recently named him an up-and-coming bladesmith.

Scott will present five knives at the Forged Blade Expo in San Antonio in January of 2012 and hopefully come home with a JS stamp.

Stamp or no, the art of the forged blade will be preserved.

Lydia’s original article is posted at http://absbladesmith.blogspot.com

NOTE: Lydia McGhee produced this multimedia project for a Gonzaga University graduate class in communications. Lydia chose to focus the project on her husband E. Scott McGhee and his quest to become an ABS Journeyman Smith. As part of the project Lydia produced video clips that include interviews with Haley and Adam DesRosiers, Shelly and Jason Knight, Kevin and Cheryl Evans, and herself about the ABS Journeyman Smith testing process.  This multimedia project is very well done and I know that it will give some insight into the process from several different member perspectives.

Great job Lydia and all the best to Scott in San Antonio

The Lexington Patch has an article about the incident that killed Blackie Collins. It seems this particular stretch of road had a history of fatalities. Here’s an excerpt:

The driver, 71-year-old Walter Wells “Blackie” Collins of North, was pronounced dead at the scene by Lexington County Coroner Harry Harman. No other vehicles were involved and Collins was wearing his helmet. An autopsy will be performed to determine the cause of death, Jones said.

Collins, Patch has learned, was a world-renowned knife maker.

The accident is the latest in what has been a deadly week on Lexington County roads.

Click here to read the entire article.

BLADE continues to keep Blackie’s family in thoughts and prayers.

New American Bladesmith Society Office Announced

ABS Chairman Jim Batson has announced that effective immediately the Business Office for the American Bladesmith Society has been moved to Grand Rapids, Ohio and Cindy Sheely is the ABS Office Manager. Cindy can be reached at [email protected] or call (419) 832-0400.

The new American Bladesmith Society office address is:

American Bladesmith Society, Inc.

P. O. Box 160

Grand Rapids, Ohio 43522

The Cypress, Texas Office is now closed.

7th Mid-America Bladesmithing Symposium

August 26, 27, and 28, 2011

Offered by the American Bladesmith Society, Inc.

Hosted by the Southern Ohio Forge and Anvil Blacksmith Association

ABS YouTube Channel Video Clip from last year’s Mid America Symposium
Master Smith Joe Keeslar – Silver Wire Inlay
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCTIeECDDxQ

Location:
Miami County Fairgrounds
650 County Road 25A
Troy, Ohio 45373

Contact: Jim Batson at 256-971-6860 or [email protected] for more information

Registration: $55

Pre-Register and pay the $55 Registration fee online in the Store

or Cindy Sheely, ABS Office Manager at [email protected] or (419) 832-0400

Demonstrators:

Joe Keeslar, MS – KY …………………Silver Wire Inlay and File Work

Jim Batson, MS – AL……………………Simple Bladesmith Metallurgy

Zoe Christ, AP – NC…………………….Damascus Steel from A to Z

Brian Thie, JS – IA……………………..Handles & Guards and Leather Sheaths

Daniel Warren, JS- NC………………..Forging and Finishing Integrals

Carolyn Hughes, Editor – TX…………Promotion and Marketing

BR Hughes, Founder – TX…………….MS and JS Judging Standards, Auctioneer

Butch Sheely, JS – OH…………………Blade Forging, Grinding, Heat Treating, and Cutting Demonstration

Bill Wiggins, JS – NC……………………Damascus Steel

Demonstrators and SOFA……………..Hands on Forging

Accommodations:

Electrical Hook-ups & Primitive Camping, washrooms & showers are available, no sanitary hook-ups.

Super 8 Motel, 937/339-6564, 1330 Archer Dr, 1-75 exit 73 East to Archer Dr, ask for ABS rates

Best Western Luxbury Inn, 937/335-0021, 1375 W Ohio Rt 55, 1-75 exit 73 East to Dorset Rd on left

Econo Lodge, 937/335-0013,1210 Brukner, 1-75 exit 73 East to Archer Dr turn right just before Waffle House

Best Value Motel, 937/339-1515,30 Troy Town Dr, 1-75 exit 74 West turn left on Troy Town Dr.

Holiday Inn Express, 937/332-1700,60 Troy Town Dr, 1-75 exit 74 West turn left on Troy Town Dr.

Residence Inn by Marriott, 937/440-9303, 87 Troy Town Dr, 1-75 exit 74 West turn left on Troy Town Dr.

Comfort Inn Piqua, 937/778-8100, 987 E Ash St., 1-75 exit 82 East, connected to mall next to Interstate

Travel Lodge Tipp City, 937/667-2481,1100 W Main, 1-75 Exit 68

Walter “Blackie” Collins, Blade Magazine Cutlery Hall Of Fame© member, first managing editor of BLADE® Magazine and inventor of scores of knife, sheath and other related cutlery items, was killed in a motorcycle accident yesterday.

“It is with a heavy heart that I write to tell you that Blackie Collins passed away [July 20] around noon Eastern time,” Mike Manrose of Meyerco informed many in the knife industry yesterday via an e-mail. He said Blackie’s wife, Jane, was riding also but was not involved in the accident. “She has asked that we keep her in our prayers during this very difficult time,” Manrose noted. “We are very saddened at the loss of an industry icon, a prolific designer and most of all, a friend.”

For the past few years, Blackie had designed a number of knives for Meyerco.

Blackie was known for any number of different knives, knife materials and knife mechanisms, including the assisted opener, the first use of thermoplastic for knife handles (Gerber LST), the Bolt Action lock and much more. He also invented a number of sheath mechanisms for the diving knife industry.

 Details on services for Blackie were pending as of this writing.

Blackie had set up a profile here on Blademag.com only a week ago. If you’d like to pay your respects, click here to leave a message on his page.