Our Knife Of The Day for April 18 is ABS master smith Don Hanson III’s bowie in a 12.75-inch damascus blade with a long clip and a most distinctive handle of ancient walrus ivory. Overall length: 17.75 inches. In addition to the blade, the fittings (the guard and ferrule) are damascus, too.
For more information click on www.donhansonknives.com or visit Don’s table at the 31st Annual BLADE Show (www.bladeshow.com) June 8-10 at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta, Georgia.
For more on the latest knives, knife legislation, knifemaking instruction, knife trends, knifemakers, what knives to buy and where and much more, subscribe to BLADE Magazine, the World’s No. 1 Knife Publication. For subscription information click on http://www.shopblade.com/product/blade-magazine-one-year-subscripti…?r+ssfb041812#BL1SU.
Long-time knifemaker Glenn Marshall has passed away after a knifemaking career that spanned eight decades. He was 92.
He was laid to rest today, Sept. 21, in his hometown of Mason, Texas.
Glenn started making knives in the 1930s only to have his knifemaking interrupted by World War II. He joined the Navy and served as a demolition man, including surviving an explosion on Okinawa that cost him an eye and an ear and his spleen and gall bladder.
Glenn made fileworked lockback folders in a style reminiscent of the 1970s and ’80s—which should come as no surprise, of course—and fixed blades for hunting, camping and other uses. He said he liked native woods for handles, especially desert ironwood, mesquite burl and others. Since he had only the one eye—a 92-year-old one at that—he said some of his knives “might have an extra scratch or two.”
No matter how many scratches he or they may or may not have had, Glenn Marshall and his knives will be missed by many very, very much.
Long-time knifemaker Norman Bardsley of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, passed away yesterday.
Probably best known for his fantasy knives, Mr. Bardsley also made working knives. His patterns included fighters, boot knives, and renaissance and native American styles in upscale and presentation fashion. He used exotic hides for his sheaths.
Among others, Mr. Bardsley made knives for such actors as Geoffrey Lewis, known for his role as Clint Eastwood’s sidekick in Everyway Which Way But Loose, the leader of the trio that seeks revenge on the town of Lago in High Plains Drifter and other films.
Grand prizes include a free knife and pass to the 2018 BLADE Show in our Best Carved Jack-o’-Lantern Contest.There will be two Best Carved Jack-o’-Lantern Contest categories: Reader Favorite and Editor’s Choice.
Win your share of “ghoul’s gold” in Blademag.com’s first-ever Best Carved Jack-o’-Lantern Contest.
Halloween will be here soon, so now’s the time to break out that pumpkin and get to carvin’! While you’re at it and to add to the fun, you might as well enter our contest for the chance to win a ghoul’s gold in free prizes.
There will be two categories: Reader Favorite and Editor’s Choice. The grand prize winner in each category will receive a free knife and a free pass to the 2018 BLADE Show, the world’s largest knife show, June 1-3 at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta, Georgia. Three honorable mentions will win free tuition to the 5th Annual BLADE University, which is held the day before the 2018 BLADE Show begins and on show Friday and Saturday, also in the Cobb Galleria Centre. BLADE University is the most comprehensive array of educational classes on all things knife offered by any knife show.
The rules are simple: Carve a pumpkin in a manner that you think will get the most votes from our voters. And feel free to get creative! Though many choose to make scary looking jack-o’-lanterns, you can carve a pumpkin in just about any design you like. Take pictures of your carved jack-o’-lantern and a picture of the knife you use to carve it, include the knife’s model name and brand, and email it all to us. Visit the site daily to view the entries and vote for your favorite. Meanwhile, tell your family and friends to go to our page and vote, too. Remember: One vote per person only please! We will announce the winner on Halloween, Tuesday, Oct. 31.
Spartan Blades’ Horkos takes everything the author dishes out—and then some.
By MSG Kim Breed, 5th Special Forces (retired)
It is always a good sign when you enjoy the feel of a knife, and that is the way it is with the Horkos from Spartan Blades. Featuring a slim handle and nothing sharp except for the edge, it was very lively in my hand. The edge was extremely sharp out of the box.
Like Peelin’ Taters
The Horkos has a finger-notch choil so you can choke up on the blade for more control. This worked perfect for slicing through plastic board. I had to move my holding hand quickly so I did not shave off part of my knuckle! It was like using a potato peeler—real smooth and fast. I went to regular cardboard and the material did not last very long under the blade’s still razor-sharp edge.
My arm wore out before the edge did on the 3/8-inch sisal rope—160 crunching cuts. Next up: the ¾-inch manila rope. I hit 50 cuts before I started to feel the edge slacken somewhat.
The finger-notch choil came in handy once again as it made whittling pine very controllable and comfortable. After I built a nice pile of curly-cues on the garage floor, I locked a piece of pine in my vise and started whacking. The Horkos chopped very well even though the balance is in mid-knife. I like a bit of blade-heavy balance for chopping. The Micarta® slabs were grippy but did not wear my hand out. There were no hot spots as all the exposed steel is softened/rounded. I like this knife.
I cut some old river cane I picked up during high water this past spring. The cane was covered with silt and sand—just what I needed to challenge the Horkos. It cut the cane with no problem and I finally managed to put a few blemishes in the very tough SpartaCoat finish.
To The Point
The edge was still holding up and it was time to work the point a little. I proceeded to stab the Horkos into and through the Yellow Pages—746 pages plus another 3/8 inch into the underlying plywood bench top. It did not damage the tip and the knife held tight in my hand.
It was time to chop the nasty ol’ seasoned oak chunk. I used the Horkos to beat and whack on the log for 15 minutes without hurting my hand, flinging wood chips all over the driveway. Using my no-mar hammer, I beat the blade into the oak. It was a bad move. The oak grabbed the blade and I had a fit trying to remove the knife from it. I marred up the hammer but not the Horkos. This is a very tough knife.
To gauge the heat treatment, I did the brass rod test. The edge flexed in both directions without chipping or deforming, a sign of excellent heat treatment.
The last step was an old edge test used mainly on forged blades—chopping into a deer antler. After a dozen or so chops, there was a small flaw in the edge. I stropped it a few times and it straightened out. The knife would still shave hair. The knife passed every test, and then some.
I Would Like To See …
… a tad more weight in the front of the knife to make it just a bit blade heavy.
Final Report
The Horkos is a great multi-use knife. Big enough for camping and handy for smaller jobs, it is an exceptional all-around knife.
SPEC CHART
Knife: Horkos
Pattern: Combat/utility fixed blade
Company: Spartan Blades
Blade Steel: CPM-S30V stainless
Blade Pattern: Drop point
Blade Finish: SpartaCoat (DLC black or ZrN flat dark earth)
Overall Length: 10 7/8”
Blade Length: 5 11/16”
Handle: Textured canvas Micarta® (green, black or tan)
For more information contact Spartan Blades, attn: Curtis Iovito, Dept. BL4, POB 620, Aberdeen, NC 28315 910-757-0035 www.spartanbladesusa.com.
For more on the latest knives, knife legislation, knifemaking instruction, knife trends, knifemakers, what knives to buy and where and much more, subscribe to BLADE Magazine, the World’s No. 1 Knife Publication.
Learn how custom knifemakers and manufacturers join to make knife collaborations from two of the best at it: knifemaker Tony Bose and John Sullivan of Case at BLADE University.Award-winning custom knifemaker Tony Bose.
Learn how to have your design turned into a custom/factory knife collaboration from renowned custom knifemaker Tony Bose and John Sullivan, marketing director at W.R. Case & Sons Cutlery Co., at BLADE University.
Held in conjunction with the world’s largest knife show, the BLADE Show, BLADE U. will be held the day before through show Saturday at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta. The BLADE Show will be June 5-7.
In Bose and Sullivan’s “Your Knife Design Into Production,” you’ll learn the keys behind the decision to produce a particular knife pattern and what knife manufacturers are looking for in new production concepts. Additional topics will include how to plan for the production of the first knife samples and the steps involved in preparing for a larger-scale production run. Product packaging, promotion, marketing, sales and post-sales support also will be discussed.
Bose is an award-winning custom knifemaker of international renown whose custom slip-joint knives set the standard in the genre. Working out of Shelburn, Indiana, he has long been a proponent of traditional pocketknives, and few manufacturers have a better reputation for such knives than Case. Bose has designed knives for special collaborations with Case since 1998, including but not limited to a sowbelly pattern (2001), his Saddlehorn design (2004), a sway-back jack/gent’s knife (2008) and the BackPocket.
Based in Bradford, Pennsylvania, and owned by Zippo, the famous lighter manufacturer, Case is the leading name in collectible factory knives. Sullivan has worked hand-in-hand with Bose on the Case collaborations and will share his insight on the relationship from a manufacturer’s point of view.
For more on this class and the many others of BLADE U. visit BLADE University.
Knifemaker Stefan Neil Palmer made a knife in memory of Dustin Chamberlain to be auctioned off. He never knew it would change his life.
While at his parents’ Siloam Springs, Arkansas, home for Christmas break 2011, 20-year-old Dustin Chamberlain was shot dead by an intruder. Nearly five years later, knifemaker and racecar driver Stefan Neil Palmer was asked by his racing mentor if he would make a knife to auction off to raise money for Dustin’s Dream, the charity foundation organized in Dustin’s memory. Stefan agreed, but when he laser-engraved Dustin’s favorite saying on the handle, everyone agreed that the knife could never be auctioned off.
On Dec. 15, 2011 Dustin, a biology-pre-med sophomore at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, was resting at home after a minor outpatient procedure. Both his parents left for work with Dustin’s reassurance that he didn’t need anyone to stay with him. His father, Don, had planned to have lunch with him. At approximately 10:45 a.m. Dustin’s mother, Deondra, called the house and Dustin’s cell phone repeatedly but got no answer. She called Don and asked him to check on their son.
Don walked into the Chamberlain home to find his son lying dead just inside the door with four gunshot wounds. In the family room, he found a stranger with what police subsequently said appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound that later proved fatal. The investigation revealed that the stranger was a local man who had been reported missing, depressed and possibly suicidal. He had wandered onto the Chamberlain property, and evidence showed he’d been on the premises for two hours before the Chamberlains left for work.
It’s an understatement to say that the Chamberlain’s lives were changed forever, but as day followed day, God showed them how they could carry on Dustin’s name and spirit, Don explained. “It’s been therapeutic,” he said, referring to the charity they set up in remembrance of their son. In honor of Dustin’s dream to one-day become a doctor, Dustin’s Dream sets up medical clinics in third-world countries and funds teams to conduct medical mission trips to those countries. They also offer scholarships for aspiring medical students.
Knifemaker Stefan Neil Palmer made a knife to auction off in benefit of Dustin’s Dream.
In 2013, two years after Dustin’s murder, Chamberlain family friend Steve Butler decided to use his racing hobby to support Dustin’s Dream. Steve introduced Stefan to Dustin’s Dream Racing, which raises money for the foundation “while being a positive, Godly influence” in the sport of racing, according to their web page. In the summer of 2016 it was suggested that Stefan make a knife to auction off to benefit Dustin’s Dream.
So Stefan set out to make the best knife he could to honor Dustin. The 3.112-inch hollow-ground drop-point hunter was constructed using buckshot-pattern steel forged by Brad Vice’s Alabama Damascus. “It’s my favorite pattern,” Stefan said. And buckshot- or raindrop-pattern damascus is his favorite steel. The handle was made from camel bone and brass with—fittingly—a checkerboard inlay front and rear of the handle. The shinbone of the camel is an economical choice, but it’s the ideal medium for laser engraving, explained Stefan. The rubbing compound left in the pores of the bone lend it that gray undertone. Signature filework runs from the tip to the butt of the spine. “It turned out great,” stated Stefan.
Stefan Neil Palmer’s accompanying sheath notes Hebrews 12:1-2, which includes in part “let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”
He went to Steve to see if there was anything that Dustin was known for saying. Steve showed Stefan what the Chamberlains had written about Dustin. “Whenever anyone asked Dustin how he could consistently make wise choices and live his faith, Dustin would say, ‘Because I love God with all my heart and I don’t want to give Him anything less than my best.’” Stefan explained, “I put that on the knife. When I looked at the finished product, I knew the knife was not for someone to buy. It was priceless and needed to go to Don.”
Stefan took his dilemma to Steve and it was agreed that a second knife would be made for the auction. The trick was to keep Don’s knife a secret, made harder by the fact that Don expressed great interest in the knife. Steve suggested to Don that he not bid on it because people would then back off their own bidding in an attempt to make sure that Dustin’s father ended up with Dustin’s knife. The racing team wanted the knife to bring in as much money for the foundation as possible.
In the end, at Dustin’s 5th Heavenly Birthday Chili Supper and Baked Goods Auction on Dec. 10, 2016, Stefan presented the original knife to Don, with both giver and receiver ending up in tears. “It changed my life,” Stefan said. “I’m not so likely to cut someone off on the race track with the Dustin’s Dream sticker on my car,” he added with easy laugh. (The T in the Dustin’s Dream logo is in the shape of a cross.) He relates how so many people have been affected for the better through Dustin’s example and the strength of the Chamberlains. “So much beauty has come out of it,” Stefan said.
Dr. Carl Duncan, left, ended up with the knife Stefan Neil Palmer, center, made in honor of Dustin, the son of Don Chamberlain, right.
The Chamberlains never returned to their home. Don manages a beef cattle ranch and other properties for his boss, and the couple and their daughter stayed at the ranch the night of the murder. They found a place to rent, but the two payments nearly put them under financially. All the while, Don said he was thinking, “I wish I could afford to just give it away to a couple who could help foster children.” Two years later, a doctor—surprise, surprise—Carl Duncan and his wife, Carol, purchased the home, and—you guessed it—they had foster children.
It was Carol who ended up with the winning bid of $3000 on the second knife, and she presented it to her husband. According to the Dustin’s Dream website, the racing team has raised $45,000 for the foundation.
Stefan’s wife, Raquel, bringing the story full circle, is returning to school to become a doctor—in the same specialty as the doctor who purchased the house and the knife. She and Stefan hope one day to accompany a medical mission team through Dustin’s Dream. Don and Deondra, a nurse, are returning to Guatemala through Dustin’s Dream for his second trip and her third. If you want to know what you can do to get involved, visit www.DustinsDream.net/give.
When Don returned to the house that fateful day, he thought it was odd that the family’s Jack Russell-rat terrier cross was out in the yard. Cricket was trembling in fear, and, uncharacteristically, she would not come to Don. It is believed that she raised a ruckus when the intruder broke into the house near her bed. Dustin came to see what the fuss was about. In yet another connection, I breed Jack Russells.
According to what police revealed to Don, the shooter asked his wife what it meant if someone was very depressed. She answered that it meant the person needed professional help. The husband and father of four reportedly said that he felt he was too much of a coward to do that. He took a gun and left the home.
I asked Don if he knew how the family was doing now. He said he didn’t, but that it had been on his heart to find out, and that my asking had solidified that course of action for him. And “no,” he said quietly, “I could never use that knife.” He has it on a dresser, along with the sheath and some photos. He wants to put it in a shadow box. “I could never use that knife,” he repeated.
“Art of the Knife” doesn’t require anything more than being appreciated for its beauty.
If you want inspiration for your own knifemaking, here’s your eye candy. Over 500 knives are pictured, and they run the gamut from highly polished and bejeweled to hunters with artistic flair. Author and former BLADE managing editor Joe Kertzman covers scrimshaw and engraving, as well as the art of each style of knife. Normally, $35, this beautiful book is now on sale for $21, a 40-percent savings.
