The blogs of the BLADE editors, Steve Shackleford and Erin Healy.
When considering the “Greatest Loveless Knife Designs,” a pearl-handle piece is probably not the first that enthusiasts would think of. In fact, this “gent’s” model is one of the very few knives made in pearl from the Loveless shop. And what a beauty she is! … including the naked lady logo.
Thanks go to Dave Ellis for lending the image and his expertise on the matter. Dave has two websites: http://www.robertloveless.com and http://www.exquisiteknives.com.
A SOG Twitch II assisted-opening knife helped save the day in a recent car accident. Zachary Taylor was the passenger in a car driven by his fiance when it spun out of control while avoiding a large animal in the road.The passenger side hit two trees and Taylor’s right leg was pinned under the dash.
As Taylor recounts the incident, “My right arm was pinned because the impact swung it up under me, but I used my left hand to retrieve the Twitch II knife from my pocket, opened it with one finger, and cut the seat belt. I then used it to cut away my pants leg that hung up under the dash. If I would’ve not been able to get out of the car, we would still be sitting there as no one was around us, we were way off down the embankment, the cell phone was busted, the front lights had busted out, it was really cold and we were wet from an exploded cooler.”
You can read the whole story, including photos of the car, at http://on.fb.me/xWdPOI
The preceding is courtesy of Knife Rights. For more information click on http://kniferights.org/
For more information on the Twitch II, click on www.sogknives.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. For subscription information click on http://www.shopblade.com/product/blade-magazine-one-year-subscripti…?r+ssfb020112#BL1SU
Our Knife Of The Day X is a curvaceous bowie by Kevin Casey with gold-inlaid engraving by Joe Mason. The ferrule and 6-inch blade are Casey’s feather-pattern damascus, the guard and buttcap 416 stainless steel, and the dropped handle is stag. The sheath is by Paul Long.
For more information contact Kevin Casey, 10583 N. 42nd St., Hickory Corners, MI 49060 269-719-7412 www.kevincaseycustomknives.com.
To read similar stories and all about the latest knives, knife trends, knifemakers and much more, subscribe to BLADE® Magazine. For information on how to subscribe, click on http://www.shopblade.com/product/blade-magazine-one-year-subscripti…?r+ssfb221211#BL1SU
Let’s keep the ball rolling on this thread showcasing some of the greatest Bob Loveless knife designs.
Today’s featured knife is yet another rare puppy, an amber-stag-handled Wilderness model.
So far we’ve had a New York Special, Drop Point Hunter and Wilderness. A good start, I’d say. What do you think?
Thanks to Dave Ellis for supplying the knife image when I asked him for an example of a Wilderness model. Dave actually has two websites: http://www.robertloveless.com and http://www.exquisiteknives.com.
Master bladesmith Daniel Winkler’s knives and axes created for elite Special Operations teams. http://www.winklerknives.com/
A contemporary version of the Mount Rushmore of Knifemakers, a secret of knife collecting, knives with nice butts, the Bob Loveless knife that changed knife history and more touch up the edge of the latest BLADE®, on newsstands NOW!
BLADE did an all-time “Mount Rushmore of Knifemakers”—the top four makers of the modern era—in the May 2015 issue. Afterward, one of the participants, Dan Delavan of Plaza Cutlery, suggested we do a Mount Rushmore saluting contemporary makers. The result is our poll of leading industry observers that pinpoints the top four makers—four to fit on our Mount Rushmore—from 2000 to 2017. Check out who they are, as well as the ones who just missed, in the latest issue.
Collecting custom knives must be fun and rewarding for you or else why do it? One way to make it fun and rewarding is to be successful at it, and one way to do that is to be aware of the life cycle of popular knife genres. BLADE field editor Les Robertson makes a living staying abreast of the life cycles of hot custom knife genres, something he has been doing for almost 35 years now. Learn what the cycles are, their history and how you can use them to enhance your collection in “The Circle Remains Unbroken.”
In knife parlance the end of a knife handle is called a butt—and knives with the nicest butts often are the kind that attract knife aficionados most. See why this is so and some examples of some of the best of their kind in “Knives With Nice Butts.”
The dropped hunter—aka the drop-point hunter or simply the drop point—by BLADE Magazine Cutlery Hall-Of-Fame© member Bob Loveless is probably the most emulated custom knife design of all time. Join John Denton and Cutlery Hall-Of-Famers A.G. Russell, D’ Holder and B.R. Hughes as they dissect what made the drop point a knife that changed knife history—all this and much more in the latest issue of BLADE.
Some websites offer exclusives on custom knives. True North Knives (TNK) has the exclusive on Kirby Lambert’s “Scorpios” (above). Blade steel: CPM-S35VN stainless. Blade length: 3 1/8 inches. Handle: Ironwood burl. Bolster/guard: Lightning strike carbon fiber. TNK’s list price: $675. (TNK photo) For more information about this knife and/or more like it, click on http://www.truenorthknives.com/vcom/index.php
WHITE-HOT KNIFE WEBSITES
The hottest cutlery websites offer the best in knives, selection and service
By Mike Haskew
The Internet crackles with items to buy, sell and trade, and the number of websites serving the knife community has steadily grown in recent years. Browsing online does have its advantages with a broad selection just a click away.
Knife specs and prices can be easily compared, while information on custom makers and manufacturers is readily available. However, before buying online, it pays to be informed as to service, responsiveness, quality of the items once received, and the degree to which an Internet source is prepared to stand behind the knife it sells and ships.
“It’s important to remember,” advised BLADE® field editor Dexter Ewing, “that the Internet in general is very dynamic, and folks that sell knives on [it] have the advantage of harnessing the power of cyberspace and using it to their advantage. If they get a new knife in from, say, Benchmade or Spyderco, they can almost immediately have the picture of the knife up as well as the specs, pricing and a ‘virtual shopping cart’ feature.”
Those considering the online purchase of a custom or factory knife may want to visit some of the best sites around to find out for themselves just what may be in store.
From the custom angle, three story sources said Neil Ostroff and his truenorthknives.com is a winner. “This Canadian purveyor is a real success story and an inspiration for me,” commented collector Lorien Arnold. “There is a constant movement of knives through the store, and there are quality photos accompanying each knife. Pricing is very consistent, and although my interest isn’t primarily in folding knives, visiting this site regularly keeps me informed on what is hot. True North Knives really has its finger on the pulse of what is hot in cutlery.”
True North Knives is also high on the list of collector Mike Searson. Others topping his list are Bladeart.com, EDCknives.com, nordicknives.com, bluelinegear.com and schmuckatellico.com. “I primarily collect custom knives, and these sites often have photos and stats of the latest knives more up to date than even the makers’ own sites,” he commented. “Pricing is pretty reasonable, and all of these dealers have gotten back to me usually within the same day.
“For production knives,” Searson continued, “I usually go to the factory websites as they tend to keep those more up to date than the custom makers do [their sites], and these include emersonknives.com, spyderco.com, chrisreeve.com, microtech.com and others. They all offer an equal level of customer service and response time.
“In today’s market, everyone has to be competitive. The bigger production houses can take a day or two to get back in touch with you, but that’s understandable with their volume or if you are looking for a discontinued item that may be in stock. Usually, I will buy any needed supplies from these folks when placing a knife order.”
A collector of high-end custom tactical knives, Tarek Mirshak likes arizonacustomknives.com, steeladdictionknives.com and ebosshoss.com. “They have a great variety of custom tactical knives, updates on a regular basis, great communication,” he said. Of arizonacustomknives.com he added, “It’s a ‘real-time site,’ so once an item is sold, it’s automatically marked as sold. Pricing is reasonable and shipping is prompt.
“If I’m looking for a very special piece, the place to look is ebosshoss.com. Jon Ukman has a knack of having hard-to-find pieces and most people’s ‘holy grails.’ His prices are sometimes on the high side, but considering the rarity of the pieces he has, the prices are not unreasonable. His communication is great and shipping is always prompt.” At steeladdictionknives.com, Mirshak says to expect more of the same, a real-time site with regular updates and outstanding customer satisfaction.
Ewing is a fan of truenorthknives.com, knifeart.com and knifecenter.com. In addition to knives, the sites offer sharpeners from angle-guide kits to bench stones, files, storage cases, storage bags, zippered pouches, lubes and sheaths. All three keep their content updated with timely postings of new images and information.
“Their site is their storefront, and they have to keep posting new knives on a timely basis because that’s what helps generate sales,” Dexter related. “To some degree these sites offer exclusives with custom knifemakers of a special design that the site and the maker agree on. They usually are models that are not offered in the maker’s regular lineup and offer a point of attraction for these websites to be the only source for a knife that only can be purchased from that one website.
“The selection of these sites is enormous,” Ewing added. “They all cover the range from custom and production slip joints, fixed-blade hunters, gent’s knives, full-blown tacticals, and some investment-grade collector pieces. They also stock a good variety of knife care supplies and equipment. All three sell flashlights, too, something that apparently a lot of knife guys are also into, including me! So, it’s great to see a wide variety of cutlery and related products for sale on just one website.”
Arnold said he credits his online experience with his “discovering” custom knives on Bladeforums.com. “It’s a place which provides social interaction with people whom I’ve befriended there over the years. I also frequent a number of custom knife purveyors’ websites, and I am always looking for new work by my favorite makers or newly available work from makers who unfortunately may no longer be in this world.”
Arnold indicated he enjoys browsing robertsoncustomcutlery.com. “There are rarely any exceptional deals to be found, but if you are looking for a knife which will either maintain its value or go up in value, this is a good place to look, and a great place for solid, informed advice. The store’s owner [Les Robertson] is very communicative,” he added.
Materials, Sheaths and More
Arnold said he has made a few knives himself and purchased most of the materials needed from alphaknifesupply.com. He indicated he appreciates the site’s wide selection, and researching its materials costs has provided insights on how finished knives are priced. Among his other favorite sites are beautifulblades.com and nordicknives.com.
“This purveyor always has very interesting knives of all varieties available and somehow seems to get high-end knives of a level rarely seen elsewhere,” he said of the Solvang, California-based Nordic Knives owned by Dave and Grace Harvey. “The photos are consistent and easy on the eyes and is a very simple site to navigate as well.”
At beautifulblades.com, a specialty is custom sheaths, and the site features custom fixed blades and art knives, some of which are the work of Magnus Axelson. Arnold said he recently bought an Axelson knife from beautifulblades.com and was pleased with the packaging and turnaround time.
While the Internet presents challenges all its own, and nothing quite takes the place of holding a knife and getting a feel for its balance and a solid look at the craftsmanship, online shopping opens a whole new arena for knife buyers. As always, doing the necessary homework and understanding pricing, terms of delivery and return policies help make the most of an online purchase from a reputable and responsible source.
For more on the latest knives, knife websites, 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+ssfb160112#BL1SU
