Innholdsfortegnelse for September 2025 i Blade

Vermont Repeals Auto Ban As a result of Vermont Gov. Phil Scott signing the state’s switchblade ban repeal bill in June, Vermont not only becomes the latest state to legalize automatics but also expunges prior ban-related convictions, the Knife Rights website reported. At press time, the effective date of the repeal was July 2. Known as S.109, the bill removes “switchblade knives” from the existing Vermont statute that had banned a “switchblade knife, the blade of which is three inches or more in length.” The new bill also requires that “the Court” order the expungement of any related convictions handed down prior to July 1, 2025. “This is the first time one of our bills has incorporated an expungement clause,” the site reported. The American Knife & Tool Institute (AKTI),…

SPEC CHART KNIFE NAME: Lambsfoot KNIFE TYPE: Slipjoint BLADE LENGTH: 3” BLADE MATERIAL: O1 tool steel BLADE GRIND: Full flat SCALES: Jigged bone dyed and jigged by the maker BOLSTER: 416 stainless CLOSED LENGTH: 3 5/8” MAKER’S PRICE FOR A SIMI- LAR KNIFE: $356 at press-time exchange rate KNIFE TO KNOW: The maker is a member of the Australian Knifemakers Guild MAKER: Huntsman Fabrications, c/o Tristram Oliver-Skuse, Dept. BL9, 50 Mosculpt St., Campbells Creek, Victoria, 3651 Australia 0636 776 076 tristramos@yahoo.com (Rod Hoare image) SPEC CHART KNIFE NAME: Kovan KNIFE TYPE: Utility fixed blade BLADE LENGTH: 3.5” BLADE MATERIAL: CPM 10V tool steel ROCKWELL HARDNESS: 63 HRC SCALES: Juniper Micarta® OVERALL LENGTH: 8.26” BOLSTER: Black G-10 MAKER’S PRICE FOR A SIMILAR KNIFE: $278 at press-time exchange rate MAKER: JC Blade…

This hunting knife was given to me by a close friend over 25 years ago. I had no idea who made it or where, I only knew it was exceptionally well made and aesthetically beautiful. I worked as a deputy sheriff in south Orange County for over 30 years. Right in the heart of my sector was Randall Made Knives. I frequently visited the Randall shop while on duty. In fact, one night I caught and arrested a burglar who had broken into the Randall shop. It was on one of my visits that I learned the origin of my knife. It was made by John L. Kemp, who had been a blacksmith for Randall for several years. [BLADE Magazine Cutlery Hall-of-Fame® member] Bo Randall had allowed John to produce…

VISIT US ONLINE AT WWW.BLADEMAG.COM TO: • Sign up for our free newsletter. • Renew your magazine subscription. There’s a subscription link in the nav bar. • Comment on our site stories written by BLADE® staff members and others. LOOK FOR BLADE MAGAZINE ON: SUBSCRIPTION SERVICES: Visit us on the web at www.blademag.com or call 877-485-6426. BOOK SALES: Visit us at www.gundigeststore.com or call 920-471-4522. BACK ISSUES FOR SALE: Subject to Availability. Call 920-471-4522. ADVERTISING: Contact Lori McDaniel at 715-498-3768 or lori@gundigest.com, or request a media kit by writing to: BLADE, 5583 W. Waterford Ln., Suite D, Appleton, WI 54913. LETTERS OR ARTICLE SUBMISSIONS: Steve Shackleford, Editor BLADE Magazine 5583 W. Waterford Ln., Suite D Appleton, WI 54913 or email steve@blademag.com.…

UG-Tools won Overall and Imported Fixed Blade and Shirogorov Knives pulled off a rare triple by taking home three honors to highlight the BLADE Magazine 2025 Knife-Of-The-Year® Awards at the BLADE Show June 6-8 in Atlanta. The awards are the ultimate honors in the factory sporting knife industry and are named each year at the BLADE Show (page 26), the world’s largest and most important knife show. Also known as Fixed Knives International, UG-Tools won both awards for the same knife: the TiNy Drop Point. Shirogorov captured the Investor Collector Award for the Stellar BCD folder, and the coveted Manufacturing Quality Award that recognizes outstanding workmanship of a company’s entire line of knives. It shared the third award—Best Collaboration—with American custom knifemaker Charles Marlowe for the RKMP folder. Two other…

How you conduct yourself and your knifemaking business when you’re on the selling floor of a knife show is critical. If word comes down the aisle there is a well-known collector in the room, don’t go over and interrupt the business between the collector and crafter by waving your work in front of them, or stepping into the customer’s space. I’ve seen this too many times over the years. Such crafters are an embarrassment to all who draw from the same collector pool. Stay in your space, behave in a professional manner and wait for the customer to come to you. The last thing any craft needs is for a crafter to double his prices when a particular collector approaches. As a result, the collector immediately assumes all crafters are…

Note: Entries with an asterisk (*) include knives and knife accessories as the main/sole focus. Entries with two asterisks (**) include knife seminars or symposiums, cutting or balisong competitions, auctions or other knife-related events. AUGUST AUG. 8-9 MERIDIAN, ID The 12th Annual Idaho Knife Show at the Courtyard by Marriott. Email idahoknife@gmail.com or visit idahoknife.com.* AUG. 15-16 MANKATO, MN Midwest Knifemakers Guild Annual Hammer-In. For more info, visit midwestguild.com.** AUG. 15-16 LEXINGTON, KY Central Kentucky Knife Show, Clarion Hotel Convention Center. Contact Kathy Litton 502-863-1840 litton711@aol.com.* AUG. 18-29 TROY, OH August Intro to Bladesmithing Class at the American Bladesmith Society-approved SOFA School, Miami County Fairgrounds. Contact Joel Worley, jaworleyknives@gmail.com 937-638-9518 and/or visit americanbladesmith.org.** AUG. 21-24 TROY, OH Mid-America Blade Symposium and Judging, Miami County Fairgrounds. Contact Joel Worley, jaworleyknives@gmail.com 937-638-9518 and/or…

Jean-louis Regel’s Isadora had one judge so captivated during the BLADE Show custom knife judging competition he mused about going full d’Artagnan with it. The judge said something he looks for in a classical dagger is to be able to picture himself drawing it from waist level to engage with some imaginary opponent—and he can do that with Regel’s knife. For more on the Isadora, BLADE Show 2025’s Best Art Knife and Best of Show, and other of the custom winners, see page 34. UG-Tools combines extremely low weight with the stability of a full tang in its TiNy Drop Point, the BLADE Magazine 2025 Overall and Imported Fixed Blade Knives Of The Year. Despite extreme light weight (2.8 ounces) augmented by its handle of 6Al4V/Grade 23 titanium, the TiNy is…

Anne Reeve joined Chris Reeve Knives in 1986 and quickly became an integral part of the company. Her partner in life and business, BLADE Magazine Cutlery Hall-of-Fame® member Chris Reeve, served as a great craftsman. While his forte was knife design, Anne’s strengths were administration and bookkeeping. She spent many years pitching in where she could, helping build a company known for quality and excellence. In the early years, CRK was Anne and Chris and a handful of employees, which meant Anne wore many hats. As the company grew, she worked in administration and customer service. Her years of answering the phone and meeting customers, partnered with her determination to ‘do the right thing,’ laid the groundwork for CRK’s reputation for excellence. After a nearly 30-year partnership, Chris retired, and…

A cache of spectacular cutlery that often saw the judges go ga-ga over premier workmanship, creativity and attention to detail highlighted the custom knife competition at BLADE Show 2025. Counting Jean-louis Regel’s Best of Show/Best Art Knife Isadora dagger, 19 category winners included three others of two awards each: Julian Antunes (Best Fixed Blade and Best of the Rest); Rhidian Gatrill (Best Miniature Knife and Best Collaboration in tandem with Jeremy Yelle); and Luiz Gustavo Gonçalves (Best Kitchen Knife and Best Fighter). An elegant dagger with a fullered needle-point blade of stainless wootz damascus, Regel’s knife had the judges agog with praise. “Sexy,” “super crisp clean lines” and “hard-to-beat craftsmanship” were among their comments, with one judge saying, “What I always judge about a dagger is you can picture somebody…