The BLADE Blogs

The blogs of the BLADE editors, Steve Shackleford and Erin Healy.

July BLADE® Hits Various Newsstands TODAY!

Bear Grylls’ new parang design for Gerber, 30 years of indelible BLADE Show memories, Israel’s No. 1 name in knives, keys to the best everyday carry knives and much more highlight the July BLADE®, on various newsstands today.

 

Get the lowdown on knives with some of the most intricate damascus going, a primer on handle shapes, a tribute to Blade Magazine Cutlery Hall-Of-Fame© member Jimmy Lile and a profile of Sal Manaro. Looking for knives to give Mom on Mother’s Day? Check out the story by BLADE Managing Editor Joe Kertzman for suggestions. Cutlery Hall-Of-Famer Michael Walker’s LinerLock is the focus of BLADE’s latest installment in its “Knife Mechanisms” series, and the PDXF utility knife by William Eirich gets a going over in “Spec Sheet.” ABS master smith Joe Szilaski shows you how to make handles from elk antler, and ABS master smith Ed Fowler dispels myths concerning forging heats.

 

In addition, there is editorial mention of Wally Hayes’ 9/11 knife; Gil Hibben’s “Alien”; the “Arad,” “Dimona” and more of Du**Star’s fixed blades; damascus knives by Steven Skiff, Graham Fredeen, Rick Dunkerley, Tom Ferry, David Lisch, Peter Martin and John White; Paul Myers’ Remington Bullet repros; not only the aforementioned parang but also Gerber’s Bear Grylls Ultimate Knife, Ultimate Multi-Tool, Folding Sheath Knife, Compact Scout pocketknife  and Ultimate Survival Kit; A.G. Russell Knives 3-inch lockback, Benchmade’s 470 Emissary, CRKT’s Keydashi neck knife designed by Flavio Ikoma, William Henry Studio’s B09 Whitehorse, the Case 11592 Small Texas Toothpick and Kershaw’s composite-blade Leek; knives by Anders Hogstrom, Jim Batson, Keith Ouye, Kenneth King, Steve Schwarzer and Todd Kopp.

 

Also: Jimmy Lile’s First Blood Rambo, Lile Lock Folding Hunter and Lone Wolf Gonzaullas bowie; Grayman’s “Satu,” TOPS “Key A” and “Key B,” Les Stroud’s “Survivorman,” Spartan’s “Enyo,” and Boyd Ashworth’s “Turtle”; knives by Ken Steigerwalt, Billy Bob Sowell, Richard van Dijk, Bill Duff, Wild Boar Blades, Emerson Knives, Inc., and Eric Ochs; mini profiles of Jason Howell, Eric Dobratz, Pekka Tuominen, Walter Powers, Mike “Whiskers” Allen and Larry Hostetler; the KA-BAR Kharon, Grant and Gavin Hawk’s S.T.U.D., Boker Plus Titan Drop, Meyerco Folding Focus, Andre Van Heerden’s flipper folder, Buck Vantage Force, Cold Steel Mini Tuff Lite and Camillus 18671 folder; Bill Coye’s “Oscar Mike”; and a whole lot more!

Rhett Stidham Passes Away

Rhett Stidham, long-time knife collector and purveyor who probably will be best remembered for founding the Randall Knife Society, succumbed to a long illness Saturday, April 23.

 

Along with wife Janie owner of Meadows Edge retail knife store in Meadows of Dan, Virginia, Rhett was a familiar site at knife shows, selling and trading Randall knives and just about any knife, for that matter, that caught his fancy. A big man with a big smile and laugh to match, Rhett, along with Janie, was constantly on the road attending knife shows all over the country until failing health curtailed his busy travel schedule.

 

In the early years of his knife experience, Rhett specialized in selling and trading antique pocketknives, and later included custom knives and even knives by William Scagel among those he sold and traded before starting the Randall Knife Society. He also wrote and published the society’s newsletter and coordinated the RKS meetings at the BLADE Show. Early on, he wrote a book about the old (1900-1919 and 1931-1939) Napanoch Knife Co. of Napanoch, New York. As these words were written, this year’s RKS meeting was to be held as planned at the BLADE Show.

 

Funeral arrangements were pending.

Only a Few Spots Left for BLADE Show!

There are only a handful of booths and tables left for the BLADE Show. If you’ve been wavering on whether or not to attend and exhibit your knives, now’s the time to sign up for the show.

 

Contact Alicia Newton: [email protected]; or call Alicia at 513-531-2690, Extension 11310.

 

Save the date! We look forward to seeing you for the 2011 Blade Show.

June 10-12, 2011

Cobb Galleria
2 Galleria Parkway
Atlanta, GA 30339

http://www.cobbgalleria.com

 

 

Ohio Knife Show Starts Today

All Buckeye knife enthusiasts should point their wagons to Wilmington, Ohio, for a three-day knife show starting right now.

 

Click here for the full event details on the show’s Knife Showcase page.

Win a Free Trip to 2011 BLADE Show

Click here to go to KnifeBroker.com

KnifeBroker.com and BLADE Magazine are proud to offer a
chance to win a free trip to the BLADE Show June 10-12, 2011, at
the Cobb Galleria in Atlanta. The prize package includes:

* Airfare to the BLADE Show (only in continental U.S.)
* Hotel accommodations near the show (check in June 9, check out
June 12)
* Two VIP passes to the BLADE Show
* $250 spending cash

How to Enter

1) Register as a member on KnifeBroker.com.
2) Receive a membership confirmation e-mail from
KnifeBroker.com.
3) Use the link in the e-mail to enter the sweepstakes.

The sweeps ends May 15, 2011. Good luck!

Good News On Knife Legislation Front

The American Knife & Tool Institute reports that right now some very good things are happening on the knife legislation front. If you live in one of the following states, take action to let your representatives know they should support these knife-friendly bills.

 

Alaska –  State Representative Mark Neuman introduced bill H 55 to Section 1. AS 11.81.900(b) to change Alaska’s definitions of gravity knife and switchblade to incorporate AKTI’s bias toward closure language successfully used in California, Texas, and in amending the 1958 Federal Switchblade Act in 2009.  The bill would add to the description of both gravity knife and switchblade knife that “does not include a knife that has a spring, detent, or other mechanism designed to create a bias toward closure that requires a person to apply exertion to the blade by hand, wrist, or arm to overcome the bias toward closure and open or release the blade.” This bill is currently in the House Judiciary Committee.  Alaska residents  – Please encourage your representatives to move this bill along and approve it.

Iowa – HSB 219 is a provision to change Iowa’s weapon law to reflect intent.  The bill eliminates current law that provides that a person, who is not involved in the commission of a crime, who goes armed with a knife concealed on the person, commits either an aggravated misdemeanor if the knife has a blade exceeding eight inches or a serious misdemeanor if the knife has a blade between five and eight inches. This bill was introduced by Chairman Sands of the Iowa House Ways and Means Committee and is the right step to making crime not based on the possession of a knife, but on the intent of the criminal. Let your representatives know this is a positive bill and you want their yes vote. 

New Hampshire – Rep. Jenn Coffey’s HB 544 bill passed the NH House on March 15th and success in the NH Senate would mean that knives are added to the list of firearms, ammunition, etc. that only the state has authority over.  Cities and counties would not be able to make more restrictive laws than the State of New Hampshire – which has no knife law! AKTI applauds her efforts on behalf of citizens of New Hampshire and encourages them to write their state senators to support passage of this bill.

Utah – On March 23, Utah Govenor Herbert signed into law H 271 that reserves to the state the authority to regulate knives and prohibits a municipaltiy, county or a local district from enacting any ordinance or criminal penalty greater than state regulations or penalties.  Utah residents can now travel throughout their state without concern of violating an unknown local law.

Buck Knives Adds Pro Staff To Test Blades

Buck Knives has announced a Pro Staff consisting of well respected outdoorsmen and women throughout the United States. “Whether it’s in hunting, fishing or survival, these men and women use Buck knives in their field as a testament to the quality of Buck’s products,” said CJ Buck, president, in making the announcement. “Valuable feedback from these Pro Staffers enables Buck to continue to bring the most innovative products to market.”

 

      Members of the newly established Buck Pro Staff:

      Chad & Marsha Schearer are outfitters, guides, television hosts and outdoor writers.

      Haley & G.O. Heath  are hosts of the “Family Traditions with Haley Heath” TV series. Born to families of hunters, their love with hunting started at early ages. Today, they travel the globe to hunt all types of game.

      Danny Grove, the host of “No Fences Outdoors,” began his career filming for Knight & Hale TV, and then worked on many outdoor and hunting shows until he found his place on No Fences Outdoors. His show promotes the ethics of hunting and Fair Chase.

      Ron Hood, wilderness video producer and publisher of Survival Quarterly Magazine, has forgotten more about survival than most people will ever know, and makes it his mission to impart that knowledge to others. A highly respected survival instructor, he has taught fully accredited courses at UCLA and other colleges, and has produced and published numerous award winning survival training videos, as well as being featured on many TV shows.

     Greg Heister is the host and producer of “Seasons On The Fly,” an Emmy Award winning program that soon will begin its second season on Versus. This season will include stops at some of the great fisheries in the world including Iceland, Argentina and Alaska. A fly fisherman since his youth, Greg is combining his better than 20-year television career with his love of fly-fishing to produce this award winning program.

      Bill Lowen is a professional bass fisherman who has been fishing full time for five years, and has enjoyed notable success.

 

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