Steve Shackleford, Author at BLADE Magazine

Is the Grassroots Ivory Effort Working?

Steve Shackleford

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September 25, 2014

The grassroots effort to protect Americans’ right to sell legal elephant ivory appears to be having the desired effect on Congress. Why? Because U.S. Fish and Wildlife did not make the expected changes to rule 17.40/Use After Import that were supposed to have been announced this past August. With October only a week away, the delay would seem to indicate that legislators are having second thoughts about approving the rule changes.

Among other things, if approved, the changes would make it anywhere from extremely expensive to virtually impossible to prove your existing legal elephant ivory and/or ivory knife or other item made of ivory was imported legally. As a result, most elephant ivory and items made of ivory or with ivory parts that previously had been legal to sell would become illegal to sell.

One reason Congress is delaying the rule changes may be because of the grassroots ivory effort of many letters, emails and other communications American citizens are sending to their representatives urging them not to make the rule changes.

A leading proponent of Americans’ right to own legal ivory and a founding member of elephantprotection.org, scrimshander Sandra Brady stated she thinks the letters and emails are having an effect on both the Senate and House of Representatives. As a result, she added, no changes to the rule are likely until after the Nov. 1 elections. “We have to keep up the pressure and have our voices heard in the voting booths, too,” she noted. “A Republican-strong Senate would certainly help our cause, even thought this issue is by-partisan.” The anti-ivory contingent is led by the Obama Administration and the currently Democratic-controlled Senate.

Meanwhile, Brady urges those for legal ivory rights to continue their letter and email writing campaigns, and also to use Twitter and Facebook to further the cause. She added that elephantprotection.org has been updated to make it easier for you to stay abreast of law changes and to contact your representatives.

For more information, visit elephantprotection.org.

Guild/ABS Will Hold Joint Knife Show

Steve Shackleford

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September 17, 2014

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The Knifemakers’ Guild and the American Bladesmith Society will hold their first-ever joint knife show Sept. 18-20, 2015, in Kansas City.

The show will be called the International Custom Cutlery Exposition (ICCE) and will include knives displayed by members of both the Guild and the ABS. It will be held in the Kansas City Marriott Downtown. The original Guild Show also was held in Kansas City.

It is a historic meeting of the minds of two knifemaker organizations that basically have competed with one another for almost four decades.

“The main thing is we’re coming together to put on a show,” the Guild’s Gene Baskett noted.

Baskett said everything will be “50/50” between the two organizations and both will have equal say so on matters concerning the show. For example, each organization will have 75 tables to allot to its members, giving the show 150 tables in all.

Guild members who want to inquire about exhibiting at the show should contact the Guild c/o Charlie Mathews, and ABS members should contact the ABS c/o Harvey Dean.

Baskett said the officials of the Kansas City Marriott “bent over backwards” to accommodate the Guild and the ABS for the show. The hotel recently underwent $14 million in refurbishments. Veteran knife observers will recall that the Guild Show enjoyed a very successful run at the Orlando Marriott for many years.

Admission for show patrons will be $10 for one day and $15 for three days. All Guild Honorary Members will be admitted for free, as they always have been at past Guild shows. Baskett said the ABS will make its own arrangements concerning admission for its special members.

“There will be more information to come once we get more details,” Baskett added.

For more information visit americanbladesmith.com or knifemakersguild.com.

For the latest knives, knife trends, knife news and more, stay tuned to blademag.com.

Medal Of Honor Recipients Saluted on 9/11

Steve Shackleford

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September 11, 2014

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Medal Of Honor Recipients Saluted on 9/11

Case and Zippo are presenting a special knife/lighter set to MOH awardees on the anniversary of 9/11.

Case and Zippo saluted Medal Of Honor recipients with a special personalized knife and lighter set on the 13th anniversary of 9/11.

The presentation of the sets to MOH recipients occurred last week as part of the 2014 Medal of Honor Convention and celebration in Knoxville, Tennessee.

In an official release, Case and Zippo presented the Medal of Honor Commemorative Lighter and Knife set “to the recipients of America’s highest military honor, in recognition of their outstanding service in preserving America’s freedom. Case knives and the American military have gone hand-in-hand for decades, as far back as World I, when the U.S. government called on Case to make military knives for American servicemen and women. Later, during World War II, Case manufactured the V-42 stiletto, issued to the First Special Service Force, aka the Devil’s Brigade.”

The knife is a Case trapper boasting a red, white and blue bone handle laser-engraved with images of an American flag, a reproduction of the Medal Of Honor Society seal and an eagle. The Zippo lighter has a high-polish chrome Armor™ case with deep dimensional engraving, 24k-gold reproduction of the MOH Society seal and a heavy gold-plated inside unit. Both pieces are personalized for each MOH recipient and were made in Bradford, Pennsylvania, home to Case and Zippo.

The MOH Convention included a number of special events throughout downtown Knoxville, including many awards and appreciation presentations. A number of the events were sold out, including a Charlie Daniels Band performance at the Tennessee Theatre as well as the Patriot Award Gala at the Knoxville Convention Center. A number of MOH recipients were available for questions from the audience during special live interviews at the Cox Auditorium at the Alumni Memorial Hall on the University of Tennessee campus. Autograph sessions and other special events also were offered.

For more info visit http://www.mohknoxville.com/2014-convention/events/

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BLADE’s Military Issue On Sale NOW!

Steve Shackleford

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September 9, 2014

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A special knife for a special Navy SEAL, knifemakers for elite warriors and a rebirth of military daggers highlighted by the Spartan Blades/Les George V-14 cover knife headline BLADE®’s annual military issue, on many newsstands today.

Navy SEAL Matthew G. Kantor was killed in action in Afghanistan on Nov. 1, 2012, receiving the Bronze Star for his bravery in action. Knifemaker Jim Behring made a special knife, the T.A.S.S. E4, in honor of Kantor and supplied 22 of the knives to Kantor’s platoon teammates. Find out more in this touching story about an American hero.

Inspired by the Fairbairn-Sykes combat dagger of World War II fame, today’s renditions include any number of updates, including state-of-the-art materials and designs. Knifemaker Les George, a retired U.S. Marine, designed such a dagger for Spartan Blades and it is one of many new daggers on today’s market. Find out more in the story on page 12.

ABS journeyman smith Erik Fritz and ABS master smith Shane Taylor got together after a meeting with retired Marine Pat Goodale and decided to make custom knives Goodale could give to special active-duty Marines. The two smiths got several other makers to participate in the project as well and the result was Knifemakers for Elite Warriors. Discover more in the story on page 84.

Other special stories in the military issue include a retrospective of BLADE Magazine Cutlery Hall-Of-Fame© member Col. Rex Applegate and his many OSS/CIA exploits and subsequent knife designs for Al Mar, Gerber, Boker and more; military knives designed for specific military jobs in Dexter Ewing’s “Knives For Special Needs”: a test of four tactical tomahawks by James Morgan Ayres; collectible World War II fixed blades and what they’re fetching price wise in Richard D. White’s “Vaunted Knives Of The Big One”; and much more, all in BLADE’s new annual military issue.

Knifemaker Kit Carson Passes Away

Steve Shackleford

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September 8, 2014

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Knifemaker Kit Carson is dead. — Kit Carson passed away Friday, Sept. 5. He was 63.

Kit Carson of Vine Grove, Kentucky, long-time knifemaker, Army veteran and member of the BLADE Magazine Cutlery Hall Of Fame©, passed away Friday, Sept. 5. He was 63.

Instrumental in popularizing the flipper style of folding knife, Kit made a wide range of tactical and utility folders, the best known of which are the M16, M4 and M21. Reproduced by Columbia River Knife & Tool in a wide range of iterations, the M16 has been one of the company’s best-selling and most successful knives for many years.

As revered as he was for his knives, Kit was more respected for his willingness to teach any and all how to make them. When knives and knifemaking exploded on the Internet circa the late 1990s and early 2000s, his mentoring benefited perhaps as many new and upcoming potential makers as anyone before or since.

A voting member of the Knifemakers’ Guild, Kit spent 20 years in the Army, retiring as a master sergeant in 1993. He grew up in North Georgia, interested in all things mechanical from the start. He began making knives in 1972, the same year he was drafted into the Army. It was during his last 10 years in the service that knifemaking became an extremely interesting and challenging hobby for him. While he and his wife Betty supported their children, Kit would scrounge any place he could in government housing to grind a blade shape or handle, or try to figure out how a lock mechanism worked.

“We did not have the Internet, all the books or the specialty tools,” he said of those times in his prepared induction speech into the Cutlery Hall Of Fame at the 2012 BLADE Show. “Many of us still today do every piece by hand, filing, sanding, honing blades, slowly creating knives, spending hundreds of hours at knife and BLADE Shows establishing our names in the industry and, most importantly, making lifelong friends.”

A celebration of his life with military honors will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 10, at the chapel of Coffey & Chism Funeral Home in Vine Grove. Visitation begins after noon Wednesday. At the request of family, everyone is asked to wear casual clothing and bright colors in honor of Kit’s life. Donations can be made to the National Parkinson’s Foundation at www.parkinson.org.

What Are The Best Blade Steels?

Steve Shackleford

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September 5, 2014

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Follow the maker's steel recommendations. — Ask the maker what blade steel he recommends. Bob Dozier holds one of his giant trappers.

A question we often hear is What are the best blade steels? A better way to approach the question is to determine what jobs the knife will be asked to perform.

Do you need a hunting knife or an everyday carry knife? A kitchen knife or a camp knife/chopper? There are others. The type of knife and how it will be used often will dictate the type of steel.

Say you need a hunting knife. Rather than ask what kind of blade steel will be best for it, research the websites of companies or makers who specialize in hunting knives. Such companies and makers will offer hunting knives not only with the steels that they find best for hunting knife purposes, but also with the edge geometries that the companies and makers feel they are most accomplished at making/offering.

Edge geometry refers to the blade’s grind and edge. If the grind and/or edge is too thick or otherwise not formed properly, it doesn’t matter how good the steel is—the knife will not cut well. As for the grind itself, there are many—hollow, flat, convex, chisel, etc., and combinations thereof. Usually the companies or makers employ the grinds they are best at. In cases where you have the option of picking the grind from a custom knifemaker, ask him which grind he’s best at and go with it.

Another important factor is the heat treatment of the steel. In fact, a low-grade steel heat treated properly often will outperform a high-grade steel with a substandard heat treatment.

In addition to the type of steel, ask how it is heat treated. While many makers are adept at heat treating their blades, many simply ship their blades off to professional heat treaters who specialize in the process. Blades heat treated by the pros usually will be heat treated properly and according to industry standards.

High-grade steels such as CPM S35VN, ZDP-189 and others are cutting tigers but can be difficult to sharpen and are more expensive. Lower-grade steels such as 440A, 5160 and others, all things being equal (including proper heat treatment and edge geometry), may not perform as well or hold an edge as long, but are usually easier to sharpen and will do most everyday cutting jobs that most people require. And, knives with such steels should be less expensive. In the case of 5160, while it is not a stainless steel, if you clean it and dry it off after each use, you should not have a problem with corrosion. The same is true with most non-stainless steel knives. Meanwhile, it’s not a bad idea to clean and dry off stainless steel knives after use as well. They can corrode, too—it’s just that they corrode less, as their name indicates.

Bottom line: Tell the company and maker what you plan to do with the knife. They make knives for a living and usually will be able to fit you with the proper knife and suitable blade steel for your needs.

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Most Influential Knives of the Half Century

Steve Shackleford

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August 28, 2014

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Most Influential Knives of the Half Century

LILEKNIF-1000 — Jimmy Lile’s Rambo knife is one of the most influential knives of the past half century. (Jack Lucarelli photo)

This being the 50th anniversary of the Buck 110 and all, it got our friendly staff to thinking: What are the most influential knives of the past half century?

As with any such list, the parameters must be set. Those would include knives that have been emulated most (unfortunately, this would have to include the many unauthorized copies, knock-offs and downright counterfeits that have long plagued the industry) and/or knives that dramatically changed the knife culture (one observer explained it as “the knife that changed all knives after it”). There are other common denominators among the most influential knife designs, but we’ll stick with these two for the moment.

The Buck 110 obviously would have to be in the mix, as its overall look, size, feel and lockback design have been emulated by many. The K.I.S.S. folder designed by Ed Halligan for CRKT has been knocked off/counterfeited perhaps as much as any knife over the past 15 years or so. Michael Walker’s LinerLock™ folder changed the way the industry approached locking folders. Jimmy Lile’s Rambo knife was THE knife of the 1980s and was emulated by scores of factory and custom makers alike.

Ernest Emerson’s CQC-6 and/or CQC-7 had a monumental impact on the tactical knife phenomenon that continues to this day. Bob Lum’s American tanto galvanized the industry in the 1980s and is still seen. Spyderco‘s Worker, introduced in 1981, was the company’s first knife with the blade hole and pocket clip that changed modern knives completely. Bob Loveless‘s drop-point hunter was and remains an international sensation. Though not a knife, Bill Moran‘s reintroduction of damascus steel in 1973 and the repercussions and the many spinoffs from it continue to this day.

There are many others. Which ones would you pick from the above or add of your own?

For the latest knives, knife news and more, stay tuned to blademag.com.

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Steve Shackleford

Is the Grassroots Ivory Effort Working?

Guild/ABS Will Hold Joint Knife Show

Medal Of Honor Recipients Saluted on 9/11

Case and Zippo saluted Medal Of Honor recipients with a special personalized knife and lighter set on the 13th anniversary of 9/11.

BLADE’s Military Issue On Sale NOW!

Knifemaker Kit Carson Passes Away

What Are The Best Blade Steels?

A question we often hear is What are the best blade steels? A better way to approach the question is to determine what jobs the knife will be asked to perform.

Most Influential Knives of the Half Century

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