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Background InformationJust in case you are wondering; who is this guy and where did he come from?
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I grew up in northeast Kansas. I spent a good part of my early years living and working on farms. During those years I spent most of my free time hunting and fishing. Doing so gave me a strong interest in knives and firearms. As I grew older, I gained a deep appreciation for fine firearms and high quality knives. Ever since I was very young I have been interested in building things. My parents were constantly wary of what I would build next. Living on the farm gave me a good supply of materials to create things. Lumber, steel and machine parts were everywhere. My parents tried to control my creativity by limiting the materials and tools that I had access to, but they were not entirely successful. Many of my creations included projectiles, fire, explosives or excessive speed on some flimsy device; much to the horror of my parents and grandparents. Being a farmer, my Dad had to be good at repairing his machinery because there wasn't enough money to pay someone else to do the work. Much of my mechanical interest came from watching Dad work on farm equipment. My Great Uncle George, who loved machinery and the "old way" of doing things, inspired in me an appreciation for history and crafting things with my hands. It was around 1985 when I first heard about the handmade knife industry and I realized that making knives was the perfect creative outlet for me. Since I was interested in the old crafts, hand forging blades was particularly interesting to me. To learn more about forging, I took an apprenticeship with a local blacksmith, Jim Bevan of Valley Falls, Kansas, which was paid for by the Kansas Arts Commission and the Kansas State Historical Society. Because of my relationship with the Historical Society, I started doing blacksmithing demonstrations at the state's historic sites, at civic events and elementary schools. While doing demonstrations at the historic sites, I found that visitors to the event were interested in what happened at the site and wanted historical information about what it was like to live in that time period. To provide them with that information, I studied Kansas and "old west" history extensively. To me, the best part of doing the demonstrations was to watch a youngster's reaction as I explained to them what it was like to live 150 years ago, or to listen to an elderly person reminisce about watching a blacksmith work. My previous jobs include several years as an auto mechanic and three years in a tire factory. After that, I worked for a pet food manufacturing plant for nearly 25 years. I made knives part time until 2005 when I resigned my position at the pet food plant and opened my knifemaking business full time. I am also a Master Gunsmith and have done gunsmithing on both a part time and full time basis. In 2002, my wonderful wife Mary and I were married. I am blessed to have a wife that is supportive of my knifemaking endeavors and who encourages me to pursue my desire to be creative. We have three daughters, one son and eleven grandchildren. Home Gallery Available Pieces Shop Gallery Tutorials Jigs and Fixtures Contact Info Links Page
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