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Knifemaker Featured By San Francisco Chronicle

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One of the most satisfying things an artist can experience is large-scale exposure, and the San Francisco Chronicle would qualify as a mass audience. American Bladesmith Society master smith Aaron Wilburn was recently featured in a human interest news story written by Tom Stienstra on the San Francisco Gate online blog. It also goes to show that the general public is interested in learning about age-old handcrafts brought current into the modern era. Not everyone is solely a reader of sensational headlines, and in-depth stories like this one should be shared. wilburnforgexx_17

(Michael Short / The San Francisco Chronicle photo)

For more quality knives and damascus blades, click here.

Is the Grassroots Ivory Effort Working?

Congress apparently listening to grassroots legal ivory effort. (SharpByCoop photo)
Grassroots effort to save legal ivory could be swaying Congress. (SharpByCoop photo of a knife by Kevin Casey)

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.

 

Knife Industry Opportunity: Steel Will Knives Seeks Sales Representation

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Steel Will Bruiser Knife
Steel Will Bruiser Knife

New York, NY- STEEL WILL KNIVES, a premium knife manufacturer, fuses the finest steel with extremely practical and innovative designs, producing the highest standards of quality by using the most modern methods of production. STEEL WILL Knives currently has three distinctive lines, Tactical, Outdoor and Urban, creating over 25 quality cutting tools.

STEEL WILL’s mission is to become the world’s best-selected knife producer and provide the upmost experience of class and style while doing so. They are pursuing a sales representation group that will share the same goal when representing STEEL WILL’s complete line of premium knives. This innovative and professional company has a dignified family of knives that consists of exquisite, premium, and classic materials with many more knives in the development stages.

A company representative of STEEL WILL will be attending the NASGW Show in Little Rock, Arkansas in October and would prefer to schedule interview meetings for the show. If your sales agency is interested and would like to learn more or schedule an appointment for NASGW, please e-mail Boris Shekhman at [email protected].

What Knife Do You Carry?

According to our readership surveys, BLADE®’s the “Knife I Carry” monthly column is definitely a reader favorite. We ask subscribers and newsstand buyers to email or mail high-resolution .tifs or .jpegs of themselves holding their favorite knife, the one they carry daily or most often, and a short paragraph telling us why and what they like about it, or what cutting chores it excels at. Any story about the knife at all is fair game.WinAKnife

You can participate, too, and be entered in a drawing to win a free pocketknife. Here’s how:

Tell us what knife you carry. Add a little history or an anecdote. Try to include a photograph (if digital, at least 600 KB but no larger than 2 MB) of you with your knife. We will publish your comments in an upcoming “The Knife I Carry.” Your name will then be entered in a drawing to win a free, high-quality, name-brand pocketknife. Mail to: BLADE®, P.O. Box 789, Ooltewah, TN 37363-0789, or e-mail [email protected]. If you send your entry by e-mail, please include your physical mailing address in case you win the pocketknife.

Guild/ABS Will Hold Joint Knife Show

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.

 

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

The PPCLI VP-100: A Combat Dagger 100 Years in the Making

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VP-100 knife partnership Beshara

The VP-100, aka the Ultimate Combat Dagger, the Regimental Combat Dagger of the renowned Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry (PPCLI), was born from the collaboration between the PPCLI and BESH Knives Inc.

The “VP” stands for Victoria Patricia, the first Colonel-in-Chief of the PPCLI Regiment. The “100” signifies the Regiment’s prestigious 2014 Centennial Anniversary. This design is the culmination of years of passion, research, and real world experience. A symbol of elite forces, this dagger is fast, strong, and deadly serious.

The VP-100 is one of the most unique combat daggers ever produced and is distinctly different than other dagger designs. One hundred years in the making, the VP-100 was commissioned to commemorate a century of ultimate sacrifice, dedication and loyalty to Canada.

VP-100 knife BesharaTo honor those who have served, are serving and will serve, the partnership produced this low-profile, 12-inch, full-tang, fixed-blade, MOLLE-compatible combat dagger to occupy a small foot print on body armor. The VP-100 was custom designed with the PPCLI by knifemaker/designer, Brent Beshara of BESH Knives Inc. – a Patricia, retired Special Forces/Clearance Diver and veteran martial artist. It features Beshara’s revolutionary BESH Wedge® geometry: two diagonally opposed primary bevels converging to create a third cutting edge, allowing for full thickness of the blade right to the very tip to create the one of the strongest knife tips in the world.

A significant evolution of the traditional combat dagger, the BESH Wedge® eliminates the tip weakness of the conventional dagger design and provides one of the strongest point profiles ever offered on a dagger. This extraordinary construction creates a truly battle-worthy reinforced tip – advantage through design.

The VP-100 is not a field knife. It is mission-specific geometry designed and engineered to meet the needs of today’s soldiers and the demands of the modern battlefield. Balanced with weight forward for fast response and precision machined from AUS-8 stainless steel, the VP-100 includes a custom-designed Rapid-Draw Sheath, a versatile 8-Hole Multi-Position Belt Buckle and mounting plates for vertical or horizontal attachment to any MOLLE platform. Its ergonomic handle features strategically placed scallops and texturing that together with an integral double guard ensure a positive combat grip, whether forward or reverse, with or without gloves, even under the most demanding circumstances.

The innovative features that define the VP-100 are a direct reflection of the PPCLI’s ongoing commitment to forward thinking. This incredible knife proudly displays the laser-engraved unit crest of the Regiment on its blade.

Click here to order the PPCLI VP-100.

 

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 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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