[AcridSaint]

I'm a little late here, but I'd like to add to this a little. We don't get a lot of shows near here, and I don't get a lot of time to go out of town for recreation... nor do I get a lot of money. We had a gun and knife show here about 6 months ago and there was one custom knife maker there. His name was Dave Vail.

I don't know if his display attracted me or if it's just that I love knives and had to stop. What I do know is that he made some very attractice knives and was very personable. We talked for a good 15 minutes, I told him I was very new but into knife making, we discussed steels and materials, techniques and other makers. Even after I told him I couldn't afford one of his knives at the moment we still talked, he gave me a card, and even wrote the address of one of his suppliers on the back. I believe there was even an offer to give me pointers if I ever had the urge to call.

Not only do I respect his work, but I also respect him. As such, if I wanted to buy a custom knife locally, or knew someone else who wanted to, Dave's name would definately come to mind. Of course you need to have a product that someone likes, but you also need to get in touch with people. If he hadn't spent that time talking to me, or gave me his card I would have probably forgotten I'd ever met a local smith. People who buy customs usually love knives, and want to talk about them, especially with the guy who made one they're interested in.