Steve Shackleford's Blog

Win a Young Knife at Cal Knife Show Oct. 6-7

Steve Shackleford

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October 5, 2012

Meet some of the world’s leading custom knifemakers at Dan and Pam Delavan’s California Custom Knife Show tomorrow and Sunday, Oct. 6-7, in Anaheim.

While there, enter to win the repro of a Bob Loveless New York Special by John Young (see accompanying picture). The drawing will be the Sunday of the show.

In addition to Young, other exhibiting makers will include Ernest Emerson, Rick Hinderer, Les George, Jason Brous, Kirby Lambert, Blade Magazine Cutlery Hall-Of-Fame© member D’ Holder, Darrel Ralph, Bill Ruple, Brian Tighe, Daniel Winkler and many more.

Held at the Embassy Suites of Garden Grove/Anaheim South, the show will run 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days.

For more info click on http://www.plazacutlery.com/PLAZAcutleryKnifeSHOW2011.htm

For the latest knives, knife trends, knifemakers, what knives to buy and where, knife legislation, knifemaking instruction, and much more, subscribe to BLADE® Magazine, the World’s No. 1 Knife Publication. Click on http://www.shopblade.com/blade-magazine-one-year-subscription-us/?lid=blss100512

Roosevelt Knife Auction Sept. 9-11

Steve Shackleford

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August 29, 2016

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The pommel of the Roosevelt knife is carved in the shape of an eagle’s head of solid gold. The eagle’s eyes are garnets.

Roosevelt circa Oct. 1910. — Theodore Roosevelt in October 1910.

President Theodore Roosevelt’s knife, passed down through the Roosevelt family for the past 107 years and never before available for sale to the public, will be put to auction Sept. 9-11 by Rock Island Auction Co.

On one side of the handle is a forest scene with two men crouching behind a tree, one standing with rifle in hand, the other crouching.

Made by J. Russell & Co. of Green River, New York, the Roosevelt knife features handle work by Dreicer & Co. (1904-1923), the latter a leading jewelry retailer of the time and a competitor of such top companies as Faberge. Said to have originally cost $1,250—$33,216 in 2016 dollars—the Roosevelt knife is predicted by Rock Island Auction Co. to bring between $150,000 and $300,000 at auction.

According to public documents, James W. Gerard of the “supreme bench of New York City” and later ambassador to Germany, presented the knife to Roosevelt on March 3, 1909—Roosevelt’s last full day as president. It was a gift Gerard intended for Roosevelt to use on an upcoming African hunting trip. A March 10 story in the local Rock Island newspaper carried the headline “Fine Knife For Roosevelt.” It described Gerard as a close friend of Roosevelt and the knife as a “masterpiece of jeweler’s workmanship, the hilt being wrought in gold and platinum and ornamented with jewels. The [pommel] is carved in the shape of an eagle’s head of solid gold. The eagle’s eyes are garnets.

“On one side of the hilt beneath the eagle’s head is depicted a forest scene, with two [men] behind a birch tree, one of them standing, rifle in hand, the other crouching. The tree is done in gold upon a platinum background. On the reverse side is set the arms of the United States, surmounting a wishbone and intertwining tree boughs in gold. Below is the monogram ‘T.R.’ The background on this side is also of platinum. Two bears’ heads extending out from the handle form the guard at the base of the blade,” which is engraved “Presented to Theodore Roosevelt by His Friend, James W. Gerard.”

For more on the auction of the Roosevelt knife, contact Rock Island Auction Co. at www.rockislandauction.com.

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Forged Tacticals Heat Up in New BLADE®

Steve Shackleford

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April 21, 2015

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Forged tacticals as a trending new niche market, perhaps the best knives to use in corrosive saltwater environments, four hot new butterfly knives, the latest machetes and a comprehensive preview of the 2nd Annual BLADE University highlight the new BLADE®, on most newsstands today.

Purveyor Les Robertson specializes in tactical and handforged knives, so it only stands to reason he would be on the cusp of the edge if forged tactical knives were to become hot as firecrackers—and apparently such is the case. Find out why, which ones are hot and more in Robertson’s “A Niche Market In The Making?”

Spyderco has long touted its H1 steel as being not just stainless but stain proof. Ocean kayaker Lance Clinton decided to try out the company’s Pacific Salt model while floating off the coast of Costa Rica. Find out what he found out about this intriguing blade material in “Down To The Sea With Knives.”

Balisongs—aka butterfly knives—have long intrigued edged enthusiasts, and the latest examples of the genre will capture your fancy in “Enter The Spin Zone.” Factory machetes, meanwhile, are appearing in ever-increasing numbers. Check out some of the latest of the long blades in “Those Magnificent Machetes.”

BLADE University, a fresh approach to knife education at knife shows, was a huge hit at last year’s BLADE Show—and this year’s 2nd Annual BLADE University has been expanded to cover a wider range of topics, including knife grinding, collecting, how to have your design picked up by a knife manufacturer, 3D CAD/CAM knife design, how to engrave, how to design combat knives, how to make handles and guards, introduction to bladesmithing, how to sharpen, what to look for in the best high performance knife and much. Get the complete lowdown in “School of Steel.” BLADE University will commence a day before through the show Saturday of the BLADE Show, which will be June 5-7 at the Cobb Galleria in Atlanta.

There’s much more in the latest issue of BLADE. Check it out at your local newsstand.

Recommended:

Stay abreast of the latest developments on this and many more knife rights issues with a subscription to BLADE.

Enter KA-BAR’s Pumpkin Carving Contest

Steve Shackleford

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October 15, 2013

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Break out your favorite KA-BAR knife, grab a pumpkin and commence to carving—it’s time for KA-BAR’s third annual Pumpkin Carving Contest!

The winner will receive a free KA-BAR knife. The contest runs through Halloween, Oct. 31.

Using your favorite KA-BAR knife, carve a pumpkin and photograph the result. The photograph must also include the KA-BAR knife you used to do the carving. Upload the image to any of the KA-BAR social media channels—see below for a list of them—and you are officially entered.

Since you’ll need to upload the shot, you’ll need to use a digital camera. If you don’t have a digital camera, borrow one from a friend, or shoot a print and have a friend scan the image and upload it for you.

Be sure to follow all standard safety procedures when carving, including using a sharp knife—to ensure it’s sharp, touch the edge up beforehand—and when carving, cut AWAY from you and anyone else in the vicinity. You might even want to keep a box of bandages and other medicinal items on hand while you carve. You never can tell when you might get a bit klutzy (hey, it happens to all of us from time to time, right?).

If you have any questions about rules, eligibility, etc., contact [email protected]. They will be happy to help.

KA-BAR social media channels include https://www.facebook.com/KABARKNIVES and

https://twitter.com/KA_BAR

https://plus.google.com/u/0/108773739377759118633/posts

For the latest knives, knife news and more, keep it at www.blademag.com (www.blademag.com).

And happy trick or treating and Happy Halloween!

BLADE Will Make You Sharper

Steve Shackleford

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August 31, 2017

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BLADE® will make you sharper. How do we know? Because for almost 45 years now, BLADE has kept the world of knives abreast of all that cuts, slices, dices, severs, skivs, hacks, whacks, perforates and, yes, sharpens. That includes the latest knives, knife trends, knife events, knifemakers, collectors, cutting competitions, hammer-ins, knife awards and all else that stays on, around or anywhere near the edge.

You can subscribe to your choice of the print, digital, Canadian and/or international editions. It will, quite honestly, be the best bang for your blade buck anywhere.

Get sharper now with BLADE.

Lawful Ivory Protection Act Needs Your Help!

Steve Shackleford

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July 21, 2014

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Will you help stop domestic ivory ban? — The Lawful Ivory Protection Act designed to save the elephant and stop the domestic ivory ban is off to a good start but still needs your support. (Bill Simmermacher photo)

Designed to both protect African elephants and stop making criminals of innocent citizens who sell legal ivory, the Lawful Ivory Protection Act is making headway in both the House and Senate and needs your help—especially in the Senate.

“The House Interior Appropriations bill that will essentially not allow funds—your tax dollars and mine—to be used to enforce the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service changes to the ivory laws has passed the first hurdle,” noted Sandra Brady, scrimshander and member of the Elephant Protection Association. “It made it through Appropriations and is now on to the full House for a vote.” It is unknown when that vote will be.

“Next, H.R. 5052 is getting increased support but the Senate bill, S. 2587, isn’t, so call your senators!” Brady emphasized.

Both bills have the official name of the Lawful Ivory Protection Act of 2014 and are in dire need of your support. Please contact your elected officials on the federal level and urge them to support these bills, both of which are designed to protect elephants and prevent legal ivory from being banned from sale domestically.

“It is critical that you call your senators and representatives and ask them to co-sponsor S. 2587 and H.R. 5052,” stressed Rob Mitchell of the Elephant Protection Association. “Getting your legislators to so-sponsor these bills accomplishes two goals: It brings these bills closer to a vote in their respective chambers, and it shows support for the Appropriations measure that ultimately needs to pass both the House and the Senate. If you want to save elephants and stop the domestic ivory ban, this is the most effective way to do it.

“Our goal is to get as many co-sponsors as possible before Congress breaks for August.”

For more information on how you can help, contact elephantprotection.org.

For the latest in knives and knife news, stay sharp at blademag.com.

2014 BLADE Show A Smash Success

Steve Shackleford

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June 9, 2014

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Overflow crowds, the latest knives, award winners, Cutlery Hall Of Famers and scads of sharp stuff in general made the 2014 BLADE Show a smash success.

Held June 6-8 at the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta, Georgia, the BLADE Show is the world’s largest and most important knife event, and the 33rd annual rendition this past weekend surpassed all expectations.

Knife enthusiasts stampeded through the show on Friday, with many on hand remarking on how it was the biggest Friday crowd in show history. ABS master smith Daniel Winkler and his Winkler II Knives booth experienced record sales. “Last year was my best BLADE Show ever in terms of sales, and I sold more on Friday of this year’s show than all of last year’s show,” he noted.

Many makers reported heavy sales, including Jon Graham of Graham Knives, who said he sold 97 of his mid-techs and was sold out Friday. In fact, many exhibitors sold out Friday.

However, that did not slow things down any on Saturday, as the knife feeding frenzy continued.

Meanwhile, the BLADE Magazine 2014 Knife-Of-The-Year® Awards were named the Saturday night of the show during the BLADE Magazine Awards Reception, with the CRKT/Ken Onion Hijinx taking Overall Knife-Of-The-Year® honors and the Rat Worx MRX winning the first-ever People’s Choice Knife-Of-The-Year® Award. For more on the winners, visit bladeshow.com.

The custom knife judging named the top handmade knives, headed by the Tembo Bowie, winner of Best Collaboration and Best Of Show. The knife was auctioned by the Custom Knife Collectors Association to raise money to save the African elephant.

One of the most popular selections of the show was the naming of Goldie Russell of A.G. Russell Knives to the BLADE Magazine Cutlery Hall Of Fame©. Goldie is the first woman to be inducted and joins her husband, A.G., as the only married couple in the Hall.

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Build a Knife From The Latest Knife Kits

D2 Tool Steel Just Keeps Cutting

Knives of The Expendables 2

BLADE Show 2018: Plan Now!

Win a Young Knife at Cal Knife Show Oct. 6-7

Roosevelt Knife Auction Sept. 9-11

Forged Tacticals Heat Up in New BLADE®

Enter KA-BAR’s Pumpkin Carving Contest

BLADE Will Make You Sharper

Lawful Ivory Protection Act Needs Your Help!

2014 BLADE Show A Smash Success

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