Custom knifemaking
November 2, 2012 10:59 AM Subscribe
Custom knives by Jay Fisher, Tomas Rucker, Ivan Campos, and Rich Derespina.
The ultimate custom knife is one you make yourself. eHow has a 17-part video series to show you how.
The ultimate custom knife is one you make yourself. eHow has a 17-part video series to show you how.
Since you mentioned Ivan Campos it's also worth checking out Ruben Calo and Ariel Salaverria.
posted by qbject at 11:17 AM on November 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by qbject at 11:17 AM on November 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
Tomas Rucker: Blocked -- Nudity?
He does art nudes too. Not bad ones, actually.
posted by Egg Shen at 11:19 AM on November 2, 2012
He does art nudes too. Not bad ones, actually.
posted by Egg Shen at 11:19 AM on November 2, 2012
Good Christ, Websense is still around? I remember setting that shit up ten years ago, and taking a moment to marvel that it allowed you to block one side of hot button issue (like abortion) and not the other.
Why do knifemakers tend to have such crappy websites? You'd think custom makers of such high end goods as them would appreciate that a website matching the quality of their knives would make sense. Then again, a lot of their sales are going to be to hunters, cops, soldiers, and gun show aficionados, so I can imagine that an overly polished website will not present well to the pseudo-survivalist segment.
posted by fatbird at 11:28 AM on November 2, 2012
Why do knifemakers tend to have such crappy websites? You'd think custom makers of such high end goods as them would appreciate that a website matching the quality of their knives would make sense. Then again, a lot of their sales are going to be to hunters, cops, soldiers, and gun show aficionados, so I can imagine that an overly polished website will not present well to the pseudo-survivalist segment.
posted by fatbird at 11:28 AM on November 2, 2012
fatbird: I think you nailed the reason they get away with it. There's also a ridiculously strong DIY ethic in that scene, as you might imagine (see also: "sole authorship").
posted by qbject at 11:46 AM on November 2, 2012
posted by qbject at 11:46 AM on November 2, 2012
A Michael Morris friction folder is the only custom knife I have (http://www.michaelmorrisknives.com/9.html). Not bad for the price.
posted by stltony at 12:19 PM on November 2, 2012
posted by stltony at 12:19 PM on November 2, 2012
The first guy is extremely tetchy about the word "custom"
posted by silby at 12:45 PM on November 2, 2012 [2 favorites]
posted by silby at 12:45 PM on November 2, 2012 [2 favorites]
Interesting. I've been contemplating making my own friction folder to replace my higonokami pocket knife, and the Campos site has plenty of good ideas.
posted by 2N2222 at 12:51 PM on November 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by 2N2222 at 12:51 PM on November 2, 2012 [1 favorite]
I have the good fortune to be the owner of an R.E.H. knife. All I can say is that a handmade knife is a thing of beauty indeed. I used it every day for a year or two and then moved on to a new job that didn't require me to carry a knife. When someone was checking out my flooded house after Katrina the knife was one of the items on a very short list of PLEASE RETRIEVE IMMEDIATELY. Now it sits in a drawer, unused but not unloved. I take it out sometimes and marvel at it.
A good knife is a good thing.
posted by komara at 1:14 PM on November 2, 2012
A good knife is a good thing.
posted by komara at 1:14 PM on November 2, 2012
2N2222, I've been looking at Higo knives a lot recently and may be clicking the "buy" button soon, but when you say "replace" do you mean you've worn yours out or do you mean you don't like it?
There are tons of nice friction folders out there, but the Higo is closest to my budget, sadly.
posted by lekvar at 1:21 PM on November 2, 2012
There are tons of nice friction folders out there, but the Higo is closest to my budget, sadly.
posted by lekvar at 1:21 PM on November 2, 2012
No, nothing wrong with it. I just have an itch to try my hand at making a friction folder.
Higo knives are pretty primitive, though. I did two things to mine to be more practical: peened the rivet so the blade would have a little more friction (so it wouldn't flip open in my pocket), and I wedged a small piece of wine cork in the bottom of the handle, so that when folded, the edge wouldn't make contact with the bottom inside of the handle. But it's a great knife, really. Very thin and unobtrusive in the pocket (big selling point for me), opens one handed, and the steel on mine is laminated with the edge being pretty hard. A couple places in downtown Los Angeles sell them for $10-$15. I have seen non laminated ones even cheaper, which would probably be just as good in real world circumstances.
posted by 2N2222 at 2:58 PM on November 2, 2012
Higo knives are pretty primitive, though. I did two things to mine to be more practical: peened the rivet so the blade would have a little more friction (so it wouldn't flip open in my pocket), and I wedged a small piece of wine cork in the bottom of the handle, so that when folded, the edge wouldn't make contact with the bottom inside of the handle. But it's a great knife, really. Very thin and unobtrusive in the pocket (big selling point for me), opens one handed, and the steel on mine is laminated with the edge being pretty hard. A couple places in downtown Los Angeles sell them for $10-$15. I have seen non laminated ones even cheaper, which would probably be just as good in real world circumstances.
posted by 2N2222 at 2:58 PM on November 2, 2012
I have a Michael Hemmer hand forged kitchen knife, and it's awesome. The one I have is a large chopper. It's big and heavy, and fantastic to use. It keeps an edge better than any other knife I have, and it gets more abused than any other knife I have. The best part is it looks downright medieval. There's something to be said for a good quality hand-made knife.
posted by Eekacat at 4:50 PM on November 2, 2012
posted by Eekacat at 4:50 PM on November 2, 2012
General Price Starting Guide for Jay Fisher Knives:
Fixed Blade Knives..................Start* at $800.00
Folding Knives.......................Start* at $1500.00
Fine Art Knives and Daggers.....Start* at $2000.00
Swords.................................Start* at $5000.00
*Prices quoted are in United States dollars, and are starting points; most knives quote higher. Final quote depends on design, materials, finish, embellishment, and accessories.
Sigh. One day, maybe.
posted by porpoise at 6:41 PM on November 2, 2012
Fixed Blade Knives..................Start* at $800.00
Folding Knives.......................Start* at $1500.00
Fine Art Knives and Daggers.....Start* at $2000.00
Swords.................................Start* at $5000.00
*Prices quoted are in United States dollars, and are starting points; most knives quote higher. Final quote depends on design, materials, finish, embellishment, and accessories.
Sigh. One day, maybe.
posted by porpoise at 6:41 PM on November 2, 2012
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This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments
Jay Fisher: Blocked -- Weapons
Tomas Rucker: Blocked -- Nudity?!
Ivan Campos & Rich Derespina: sufficiently boring I guess.
posted by sparklemotion at 11:17 AM on November 2, 2012 [1 favorite]