Damascus steel was the forged steel comprising the blades of swords smithed in the Near East from ingots of wootz steel imported from India and Sri Lanka. These swords are characterized by distinctive patterns of banding and mottling reminiscent of flowing water. Such blades were reputed to be tough, resistant to shattering, and capable of being honed to a sharp, resilient edge.
A Bowie knife is a pattern of fixed-blade fighting knife created by James Black in the early 19th century for Jim Bowie, who had become famous for his use of a large knife at a duel known as the Sandbar Fight.
James Black was an American knifemaker best known for his improvements to Bowie knife designed by Jim Bowie.
Buck Knives is an American knife manufacturer founded in San Diego, California and now located in Post Falls, Idaho. The company has a long history through five generations of the Buck family from 1902 to the present day. Buck Knives primarily manufactures sport and field knives and is credited with inventing the "folding hunting knife" and popularizing it to such a degree that the term "buck knife" has become synonymous with folding lockback knives, including those made by other manufacturers.
Massad F. Ayoob is an American firearms and self-defense instructor. He has taught police techniques and civilian self-defense to both law enforcement officers and private citizens since 1974. He was the director of the Lethal Force Institute in Concord, New Hampshire from 1981 to 2009, and now operates his own company. Ayoob has appeared as an expert witness in several trials. He served as a part-time police officer in New Hampshire since 1972 and retired in 2017 with the rank of Captain from the Grantham, New Hampshire, police department.
Bladesmithing is the art of making knives, swords, daggers and other blades using a forge, hammer, anvil, and other smithing tools. Bladesmiths employ a variety of metalworking techniques similar to those used by blacksmiths, as well as woodworking for knife and sword handles, and often leatherworking for sheaths. Bladesmithing is an art that is thousands of years old and found in cultures as diverse as China, Japan, India, Germany, Korea, the Middle East, Spain and the British Isles. As with any art shrouded in history, there are myths and misconceptions about the process. While traditionally bladesmithing referred to the manufacture of any blade by any means, the majority of contemporary craftsmen referred to as bladesmiths are those who primarily manufacture blades by means of using a forge to shape the blade as opposed to knifemakers who form blades by use of the stock removal method, although there is some overlap between both crafts.
Robert Waldorf Loveless, a.k.a. Bob Loveless or RW Loveless, was an American knife maker who designed and popularized the hollowground drop point blade and the use of full tapered tangs and screw-type handle scale fasteners within the art of knifemaking. He is cited by other knifemakers and collectors as one of the most innovative custom knife makers in the world.
Blade is a long-running consumer magazine about knife collecting. The magazine is based in Appleton, Wisconsin.
W.R. Case & Sons Cutlery Company is an American manufacturer of traditional pocket knives, fixed blades/sporting knives, kitchen knives, limited edition commemoratives and collectibles. The company originated in Little Valley, New York, around the turn of the 20th century, before relocating to its current home, Bradford, Pennsylvania, in 1905. The company's namesake, William Russell Case, first made knives with his brothers under the name, Case Brothers Cutlery Company. His son, John Russell ("Russ") Case, worked as a salesman for his father's company before founding W.R. Case & Sons.
Randall Made Knives, usually referred to as Randall, is an American custom handcrafted knife manufacturer founded by Walter Doane "Bo" Randall, Jr. in the U.S. The factory and showroom is located in Orlando, Florida. Randall began making knives as a hobby in 1937. His son and grandson continue the family trade along with 20 craftsmen producing about 8,000 knives per year out of a shop on South Orange Blossom Trail.
Makera Assada is among the areas that form the town of Sokoto state of Nigeria. The area is part of Magajin Gari Ward in the southern part of Sokoto North local government area of Sokoto state, bordered Gidan Haki in the east, Digyar Agyare in the west, Mafara in the north and Helele in the south.
The American Bladesmith Society, or ABS, is a non-profit organization composed of knifemakers whose primary function is to promote the techniques of forging steel blades. The ABS was founded by knifemaker William F. Moran, who came up with the concept in 1972 when he was Chairman of the Knifemakers' Guild; the following year, he introduced Damascus steel blades at an annual show. In 1976, he incorporated the organization, and it received non-profit status in 1985.
James Buel Lile, known as Jimmy Lile and "The Arkansas Knifesmith", was an American knifemaker from Russellville in Pope County, Arkansas, who made the Rambo Knife for the films First Blood and Rambo: First Blood Part II. As a knifemaker Lile served as a President of the Knifemakers' Guild and on the Board of Directors of the American Bladesmith Society.
William Francis Moran Jr., also known as Bill Moran, was a pioneering American knifemaker who founded the American Bladesmith Society and reintroduced the process of making pattern welded steel to modern knife making. Moran's knives were sought after by celebrities and heads-of-state. The "William F. Moran School of Bladesmithing" bears his name and in addition to founding the ABS, he was a Blade Magazine Hall of Fame Member and a President of the Knifemakers' Guild.
A. G. Russell was an American knife maker.
John Nelson Cooper (1906–1987) was a custom knifemaker who was a founding member of the Knifemakers' Guild. He was a mentor to Jody Samson and made knives for over 60 years.
Forged in Fire is an American competition series that airs on the History channel, and is produced by Outpost Entertainment, a Leftfield Entertainment company. In each episode, four bladesmiths compete in a three-round elimination contest to forge bladed weapons, with the overall winner receiving $10,000 and the day's championship title. The series is hosted by Wil Willis, with a three-judge panel consisting of J. Neilson, David Baker, and Doug Marcaida, experts in weapon history and use. History ordered an initial eight episodes of the series with the first program premiering on Monday, June 22, 2015, at 10pm ET. Season two premiered on February 16, 2016 and increased to 10 episodes. The third season premiered with a "champion of champions" match on August 23, 2016, and was announced as having 16 episodes. The fourth season premiered on April 11, 2017, with a "Judges' Pick" episode in which the four judges each selected one smith from past seasons to compete again. The fifth season premiered on March 7, 2018. The sixth season premiered on February 6, 2019.
Bob Kramer is an American bladesmith, "widely considered the greatest American knifesmith working today". Some consider his kitchen knives to be "the best in the world". His first knife shop in Seattle, Bladesmiths, opened in 1993. As of 2017 he forges steel and makes knives in Olympia, Washington.
