Great insight Mathew. Thank you.

Chris

Definitely great insight, Matthew!

I think that has been my problem while trying to learn, I've been jumping around too much. Once people learned that I'm starting to make knives, everybody wants me to make them a certain style, but I'm not to that point at all and I realize that. Initially, I wanted to make knives for people, but I'm realizing that by giving them inferior products, I'm not helping myself. Most of them are people that I work with and they are just being supportive.

My plan is to pick a design and try to make 10 of them exactly the same, well, with different handle material/color schemes, but essential exactly alike.

I know they won't be exact, but I will learn certain processes better as I progress, i.e grind lines, handle construction, fit/finish. My thinking is that by shooting for the same target, so to speak, I can tell how close I'm getting to the bulls eye and adjust from there. By jumping around, I'm basically shooting at different targets every time.

Just my thoughts and being new to this, I'm definitely open for suggestions.

Thanks for your reply Shane.

From the beginning I have always looked forward to seeing the end result. There is just something special about holding your finished work and looking it over. However, this has also been a problem at times. I have fought myself to keep a high level of commitment to each step rather than rush to the finished product.

I wish I had the foresight and determination to develop some skill before even applying them to a knife. I am convinced that my learning curve would have been shorter. The hardest part is not being able to see the fruits of your labor as soon as you might like.

We live in a world where instant gratification is expected instead of being the occasional pleasant surprise. As a result there are some areas of every knife build that I don't have as firm of grasp than others.

Chris

I've been teaching Bladesmithing/Knifemaking for many years. At first I tried to take on 2-4 students at a time, and found that there was always one who had more aptitude, drive, or just another "level" of eagerness to learn. That individual is always the one, that as a teacher, I would gravitate towards, and in the end, somebody would be unhappy with the attention they received during a class. To ensure that never happens again, I teach strictly "one-on-one". Doing so allows my full attention to be directed to a single individual, and allows me to "slow down" or "speed up" the structure of the class based on how the individual is doing.

When it comes to the order of how to teach.... it's always from the "known" to the "unknown". To that end, I believe it's a must to speak with the individual(s) BEFORE they arrive for a class, to understand their current "level" of Bladesmithing/Knifemaking knowledge. Those of us who have been doing this for a while, often do things as a matter of "muscle memory".....meaning that we do it without having to think about it, or consider how. Often times we will take certain aspects of Bladesmithing/Knifemaking for granted, and just assume that others know the "how" and "why". I feel it's vitally important to take an individual all the way through the process.... from teaching them about the forge and why we do it, all the way through a finished knife. I've learned that often times a student does not fully understand why we do something at the forge, which affects something else later in the process. I always teach that each step in the process begets the next..... good, clean forging means that rough grinding is easier, good rough grinding leads into an easier heat treat, etc, etc.

I also believe in making sure that individuals whom I teach know/understand that the way I do things is certainly not the only way, and I always encourage them to "take the next logical step" in their mind(s).... I show them the particular way I do something, and then if they are not comfortable with it, encourage them to find a way that works best for them.

Finally, I think it's vital to be "picky" about ALL aspects when teaching someone, and especially with "fit and finish" a student puts into their knives..... I often get the "rolleyes" when I make them sand a bit more, or clean up a mark/scratch in a guard or handle. 20 extra minutes spent on fit and finish can easily turn a $200 knife into a $350 knife. <img src=' http://www.americanbladesmith.com/ipboard/public/style_emoticons//smile.gi f' class='bbc_emoticon' alt=':)' />

mostly going to pop in on this for other new members such as myself with a personal concept I HAVE to live by personally. I know how to set extremely expensive precious stones in heirloom jewelry because I was teachable and found a master jeweler willing to be patient enough to teach me. So I was when I was given a correction my insides would want to justify and qualify why I had done something that was wrong application wise. My common sense side kept that inside and I just applied the correction and asked afterwards and explained my perception so he could help me along. I know how to teach wing tzun kung fu & Latosa Escrima which gives me some insight into from years of teaching it at night after work how to apply the blades. What I DO NOT KNOW however is how to adhere to what the ABS's way of building collector quality knives that are more than just decoration. Those other areas of my life are useful however here the most useful tool to me is asking and applying and then seeking directions / corrections as much as possible so I can flow with ABS standards. I know laymen might be impressed because they have little to no exposure to this stuff but a skilled smith might very well shake their head at my last 2 years of bumbling. Any time in any area if I ask for help I also have to remind myself the folks I ask it of did not come chasing me down to join up..........I am just not cool enough for that to ever have happened so humble, manners, and tact are gonna be great tools.

Interesting, I have been approached three time so far.  I am tempted because of the potential income, but then the imposter syndrome slaps, punches and kicks me.  I too am self taught after taking a basic weekend course where I made a punch and a pair of tongs.  I am flattered that people are asking and I am trying to be upfront with them and they are still persisting.

If I do venture down this road, my plan is to stick with some basics.  Teaching hammer skills, some hand grinding skills, forge heat treating.  Then move onto using the press, wish I had a power hammer, then the 2x72, then heat treat using the kiln.

I think one of the most valuable things, and was for me, was to to make a pair of tongs and a hammer.  This way they have starter tools that will teach some basics that will ruin their bank account forever....

I love watching Ilya's work.  I agree on the hammer skills.  I spent my first year doing things like buiding my forge, making some fire pokers, hangers etc.  made 3 different sets of tongs and two different hammers.  Then started making some roses to sell.  Found they were easy to sell.  Only started making knives when I was asked.  My first knife sold for $225. Two and half years later, I just took an order for $1575, and again he asked if I did any lessons.  I still only do this part time, but am really hoping to retire next year and do this as a full time hobby that makes me a bit of beer money. (how do you tag someone like you did Michael)