Thank you Dan. Very unexpected and sad news. Dickie was a good guy and I have good memories from shows and hammer ins. He will be missed. My sympathies to his family and friends. They are in our thoughts.

Brion

Very sorry to hear of Dickie's passing. The hammer-ins and knife shows will not be the same without him there. He was always entertaining to be around. We will keep his family in our prayers.

We were talking about Dickie this weekend. All the great times when he was around. Dickie will be missed.

M

I did not know Dickie very well, but always had a graet time when he was around. Our prayers are with his family.

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I am saddened to tell you that I was just advised by Steve Dunn that he received a call tonight from Master Smith Dickie Robinson's daughter, that he has passed away. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and many friends of Dickie Robinson at this difficult time.

I will keep you informed as the arrangements are finalized.

Karen and I were just shocked at this news this morning. There will be many a fond Dickie story told in the days following this news, he will be sorely missed. Karen and I have heard too much negative news like this lately and would like all of our knifemaking friends to take care as each of you bring so much more to our community than just beautiful knives.

I'm sorry to hear this news. Condolences to Dickie's family.

This is the obituary for Master Smith Dickie Robinson.

Dickie Robinson, Master Smith

1953-2014

Dickie Robinson, 60, of Vega, Texas died Tuesday, Sept. 16, 2014.

Memorial services will be at 11:00 a.m., Saturday, Sept. 20, 2014, at First Baptist Church in Vega with the Rev. Geary Martin officiating. Arrangements are by Boxwell Brothers at Vega, 110 Main.

Dickie was born Oct. 17, 1953, in Amarillo to Kenneth and Winona Robinson. He graduated from Vega High School in 1972, where he excelled in football and track. He married Linda Alford on Sept. 9, 1972 in Amarillo.

Dickie went on to play football in a semi-professional league, as a member of the team “Outlaws.” An avid knife maker and American Bladesmith Society Mastersmith, Dickie won many cutting competitions beginning in the 1990’s, including “Sharpest Man.” He taught Introduction to Bladesmithing and assisted in teaching Damascus class at the Bill Moran Bladesmithing School in Old Washington, AR, sponsored by Texarkana College.

Dickie farmed in Oldham County for over 40 years, and served on the Soil Conservation Board. He was also a member of the Harley Owners Group; he enjoyed the rides, the lifestyle, and the people.

Survivors include his wife Linda Robinson, of Vega; a daughter, Shawnell Ayres of Vega; a son, Russell Robinson of Vega; his mother, Winona Robinson of Amarillo; two sisters, Patty Robinson of Amarillo and Lynda and husband Chris Simmons of Bushland; and two granddaughters, Alisha and Alex.

In memory of Dickie, the family requests memorials be made to the scholarship fund at The American Bladesmith Society, P.O. Box 160, Grand Rapids, OH, 43522.

Dickie will be missed. In a rush all the time I spent with him came back in a moment (never a bad one).

My heart goes out to his family.

Dave from Diller

This is the bio that Dickie Robinson wrote and posted on his website:

I was born in West Texas and grew up in the little town of Vega, which is about 25 miles west of Amarillo. This is located on the high plains of the Texas panhandle which the Indians called “Llano Estacado,” or the Staked Plains. The little old ladies of Vega really liked me, because I gave them something to talk about in their sewing circles. I’ll readily admit that it seemed as if I was always getting into something.

My dad bought a riding lawnmower when I was nine, and I thought I was in high cotton! Unbeknown to be, Dad had a plan. I mowed every lawn on my side of town for the next several summers. Dad let me keep the money but to this day I don’t like to mow lawns, even my own.

When I was in the fifth grade, I went on the wheat harvest with my uncle. I had to do everything the adults did including driving the truck to the elevator. I made enough money to buy a new Honda motorcycle, and after that my mother seldom saw me until I got hungry. When she took the keys to the Honda away from me, I learned to hot wire it.

One of my good friends, a lad named Chic, and his dad would frequently take us north of Vega to the Canadian River to camp out and hunt for arrowheads. There wasn’t much good fishing there, so mostly we hunted for Indian relics, and when we got back to camp after a long hunt, Chic’s dad would have a good meal waiting for us. We visited the old cabin where Billy the Kid sometimes stayed with he and his gang visited nearby Tascosa, which is now nothing but a ghost town. We also poked around the ruins of a cabin that had belonged to Charles Goodnight. With my vivid imagination, I could in my mind’s eye see him sitting on the porch of his cabin keeping an eye on his longhorns. We also found the adobe ruins of Old Man Torre’s store that looked down on the river from a high bluff. There were cartridge cases scattered all around the ruins, but we never found out if they were relics of an Indian raid or simply the empties from some drunks shooting off their guns.

About the time I got to high school I traded in my motorcycle for a ’65 Ford Mustang. It was tough getting a date with that motorcycle! I wrecked the Mustang twice and put in perhaps half a dozen clutches. Thus began my mechanical years. I ever began overhauling the irrigation motors for my dad. This proved to be a big mistake, because he ran around 15 of them the year round. But I did learn a lot from this and I went on to overhaul my tractors and hot rods.

My introduction to the forged blade occurred when I picked up a copy of Blade Magazine and read about a get-together called a hammer-in that they were going to have at the new bladesmithing school in Washington, Arkansas. That was 1988, and so I jumped on a plane and went to the hammer-in. Jim Crowell was a featured demonstrator, and he forged, ground, and hardened a blade, which he used to chop up a 2x4, cut a one-inch rope, and shaved hair from his arm. I knew on the spot that I wanted to make a knife like Jim’s, so the next week I went to an auction and bought a number of tools, including a power hammer.

I like bladesmithing so much that I earned my American Bladesmith Society journeyman smith rating and later, in 2003, my ABS master bladesmith stamp, which is the highest rank to which an ABS smith can progress. I now teach at the W.F. Moran School of Bladesmithing once or twice each year, and I am now the Liaison Officer for the school. For the past several years I have served at the annual Blade Show in Atlanta, Georgia, on the judging panel for applicants testing for their JS stamp.

Every blade I turn out is forged, because I believe that such a blade has no equal when it comes to performance. Qualities may be imparted by the smith to a forged blade that cannot be achieved by any other method. I have been testing this belief in any number of cutting competitions which I have entered over the years, and at the risk of seeming immodest I will say that I have won a number of such events. Each of my knives is tested for strength and durability before it leaves my shop. My guarantee is simple. I guarantee each of my knives for defects in workmanship unless it is abused. I cannot guarantee natural handle materials, such as ivory, bone, pearl or stag. I make my knives one at a time and to the very best of my ability.

I prefer 52100, L6, or 1084 for my carbon steel blades, and depending upon the application, I use a variety of steels in my Damascus including L6, 203E, 1095, 1084, 1018, and nickel. My basic styles include Bowies, hunters, fighters, swords, battle axes, and folders, including linerlocks, lock-backs, slip-joints, and the like. All of these knives can be had in either carbon steel or Damascus.

Dickie was one of the good guys. Always ready to joke around, but if you needed help, he was first in line. He helped teach the second intro course we had at Haywood. It was fun getting to know him better for that week. I will also remember competing with Dickie in cutting competitions. Yes, I have lots of fond memories. He will be missed, but not forgotten.

Bill Wiggins

Thanks for posting Dickies Bio.

I met Dickie at the 2013 Blade Show, spent a good bit of time at his table talking knives and farming. We had several things in common. I didn't realize how much till I read the Bio.

I won't forget that conversation we had that day!

My thoughts and prayers go out to his family.

Russell

As Bill said Dickie was always willing to help. He was one of my two masters for my JS performance test. If I had a question I could give him a call and he would help. One of the good guys. I remember his farmers friend cutting sword from an Old Washington hammer in. A lot of fun. Some great stories and memories. Thanks Dickie. RIP.

Brion

When I received word of Dickie Robinson’s untimely death, I felt as if I had been kicked in the stomach. Dickie was a longtime friend, and a man who was intensely devoted to the ABS and its goals and purposes. He taught at any number of hammer-ins and any nujber of claeses at the Moran School. He was a vibrant individual with an outgoing personality, and was a skilled master bladesmith and a longtime member of TOMB. To say that he will be missed is as gross understatement. My sympathy goes out to his family and his many friends.

BR Hughes

My depest sympathy to the family and friend. R.I.P. Dickie.

Dale