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The Business of Knife Making A forum dedicated to all aspects of running, managing and legal operational issues relating to the custom knife making and custom knife selling industry.

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  #16  
Old 06-30-2004, 02:51 AM
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I began by only wanting to make one knife - a skinning knife for my own use. For a good while I had wanted a good skinning knife. I did not want to pay the price and I could not find a kit that I liked enough. I wanted my knife to be of ATS-34 and I remember my first question: can I heat treat ATS-34 in my camp fireplace and quench in a bucket of water .

I have not yet made that skinning knife - for myself at least. If you are making knives and it gets into you the buisiness will come automatically. As stated above though, it is hard to pay the mortgage making knives.

RL


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  #17  
Old 07-01-2004, 11:18 AM
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JeridJohnson JeridJohnson is offline
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Well, lemme tell you my story and where I see myself today.. I got into this hobby after watching a documentary on Buck knives.. I thought to myself.. man, I could do that.. Started doing some internet research, found CKD and Knifefourms and have learned everything from the fine folks here on the web..

I am currently losing money everytime I make a knife.. My wife does not understand.. and I have tried to spend more time with her and my daughter.. I have slowed down my knife making and have dedicated myself to making the highest quality knife I can.. This has greatly help improved the quality of my knives.. Before, I was just cranking them out without much planning and it showed... Well, no more..

I have sold a few knives so far and all sales have been friends and family.. I too wrap finished blades up in a towel and bring them to work and show coworkers.. I received a custom order for a folder from a guy at work that I got 50 bucks for.. The deep belly skinner with stag handle was a custom order from a friend of a friends wife who wanted something unique for her husband who is a hunter.. I got 70 bucks for that.. I sold a couple knives to my brother in law for essentially material fees (bro deal) and he just picked up one of the latest hunters I made for 100 bucks. He now wants a smaller version of it.. more money.. Another brother in law wants a folder now.. So.. all in all I am making a few bucks and recovering some costs along the way.. I too have a shelf full of knives.. Knives that I will never sell because they dont meet my standard to put my name on them.. I realize I am not going to make any money at this anytime soon and I plan to continue my day job.. :-( .. Making knives helps releave the stresses in life.. I love to be out in the shop with the radio on just tinkering away.. Its quiet and there is nobody pestering me...

Post your work in Maker Sales on this forum and have people make you an offer on your knives.. Post some on ebay and put the opening bid at a price that covers your material costs..

Oh yea.. make your wife a kitchen knife or a "purse knife" to gain her buy-in :-)

Most of all, be patient and dond give up. (I am done rambling now...


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  #18  
Old 07-01-2004, 10:13 PM
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Talking

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  #19  
Old 07-02-2004, 10:50 PM
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Brett Schaller Brett Schaller is offline
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Fsawyer - Try sending a pic of yourself, one of your knives, and a blurb of information about you to Blade magazine and ask to be featured in the Knifemakers' Showcase. I was written up there about 6 months ago and I'm still getting orders based on that. Make sure you send a pic of a knife that you like to make - it will become your most popular model very quickly.


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  #20  
Old 07-07-2004, 01:58 AM
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Kevin Wilkins Kevin Wilkins is offline
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Knifemaking as a business is very different from knifemaking as a hobby.

Knifemaking as a business can be anything from making sculpture like an artist to a small manufacturing operation. Do you sit down and decide to make one knife to please yourself and try and sell it, or do you begin by looking at the market and making knives you think will sell at a profit? There are guys out there at both ends and everywhere in between!

Knifemaking typically requires high quality, industrial machines which are under utilized (meaning they stand idle a lot) while requiring high tech, expensive materials which are even more expensive when purchased in small quantities, meaning titanium and CPM-type tool steels.

It is possible to make a living as a knifemaker, but it's not easy and it's almost impossible to make "real money" as a knifemaker. By that I mean an income in the high 5 to low 6 figures.

But if you can't stand the idea of having a 9 to 5 with some boss telling you to not be late again, them maybe knifemaking is for you. The shop hours do tend to be longer than 9 to 5 however!


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  #21  
Old 07-07-2004, 07:50 AM
george tichbour george tichbour is offline
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As Kevin says the hours are MUCH longer than 9-5 and kiss weekends goodbye.

I can't figure out how anyone can make knives full time without a wife that supports them both morally and by handling a big part of the business/paperwork aspect as well.


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  #22  
Old 08-19-2004, 02:42 PM
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Makers do buy knives. Yours appear to be quite saleable and price seems good too. Actually, I could be talked into buying a small skinner as an edc.
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  #23  
Old 08-19-2004, 03:06 PM
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Just to add my $.02 to what Kevin said.

I'm another hobby guy. Sold some knives to people at work (yes I too walk into the office with a knife in a dish towel!). Then one day I was bored at work and created a web site with some pictures of blades I sold. (I made it look like I'm a big time maker, but that was for fun. However, the blades and information is all real.)

Some people found the site and said, "Make me a knife just like picture 5." I was thrilled and said sure!

(Now we get to Kevin's issue.)

What I discoved is that while I put my heart into those knives and did my best, I was always longing to make something I hadn't made before. But then I was stuck. I had commitments to fulfill before I could move on.

I've learned that I probably couldn't make it fulltime. People really do want to see a picture and get one "just like it." And I don't know if I could do that.

I'm just guessing here, but I'll bet the bulk of most fulltime makers income doesn't come from unique peices. Rather, they have some bread and butter models (like Loveless and his drop point).

Just my thoughts,

Steve


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  #24  
Old 08-20-2004, 11:33 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SteveS
I've learned that I probably couldn't make it fulltime. People really do want to see a picture and get one "just like it." And I don't know if I could do that.

I'm just guessing here, but I'll bet the bulk of most fulltime makers income doesn't come from unique peices. Rather, they have some bread and butter models (like Loveless and his drop point).

I think you are right. I would have to say even as a beginning part time maker I am seeing the same thing. Plus I have found that I really hate having an order hanging over my head. So I pretty much don't take them. Oh if someone says "I would really like one of those" I might make it. But only if I'm pretty sure I could sell it if the "order" fell through. And then I don't take any money down. That way i don't have this committment hanging over my head. Because that stiffles my creativity like nothing else.

Plus I would say a couple of standard knives have allready appeared on my table. But each one is still slightly different. And as a bladesmith they haven't gotten to be too much like work yet.


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  #25  
Old 01-11-2005, 03:22 PM
Joe H. Joe H. is offline
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I knew some one who made a few knives out of old leaf spring that he got for free and sold them at the pawn shop. I dont remember how much he got for them, but he made money, but not very much as it was a pawn shope, but for a noobie, that just might work.
for me, when I get better, im going to try selling some kives at the army surpluse store. the guy who owns it likes knives and knows how to tell a good one from a bad one, he has some cheap chines(sp?) knives but most are good production knives (like ka-bars) so that is some thing else you could try, and it would get you more recocnition (i cant spell) than a pawn shope.


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  #26  
Old 01-11-2005, 07:10 PM
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Thumbs up

Good thing FSawyer did not give up too quickly eh?
(clickonthis)



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  #27  
Old 01-12-2005, 11:08 AM
Joe H. Joe H. is offline
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ya!!!
man is he lucky.
I dont think that it is posible to quit making knives, I have not even made one (my steel is on the way!) but i have made a couple practice one with mild steel, and I can stop thinking, and reading about it!!!
it is kind of funny because I have all this knowlge, but know experiance, other than with mild steel, and no HT experiance, yet I could still tell some one how to make a knife. to some degree.


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  #28  
Old 01-12-2005, 06:54 PM
cactusforge cactusforge is offline
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Knife sales? what is that!! Sales are the hardest thing I do, some times I am back-ordered for several months then like now I have only had one knife order and two blade ordures since July of 04 and then the COLLECTOR? refused to pay for it without even seeing it and he knower's my work, he has several pieces. I have priced 5 or 6 knives since July that did not result in a order, this is why I require a deposit.
When we had A.G.Russell's Cutting Edge we makers that were starting could sell our knives for enough to cover expenses and a little more, not enough but it got me started. I will never forget the first check for $385. If The Cutting Edge was still there I would be using it, so far I have not found a replacement.
I have never sold a knife through Forum Maker Sales and I post on several sites. I have sold knives from my site but for some reason every thing has dried up.
Fsawyer there are a lot of places to sell knives like Truck Stops, a good gift shop also works and there are others
What the answer is I don't know I am still looking and yes Geno has it right.
Gib


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  #29  
Old 01-12-2005, 07:41 PM
Joe H. Joe H. is offline
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another thing you could do is, if you live in a tourist town (like I do) you could sell your knives at a suvonire shop if you just put the name of the town some where on the knife.
it probaly would help if you knew the store owner too.
One other thing i have been thinking about is getting a table at a local craft show. at the one I was at (not selling looking) people were selling little houses they made from drift wood and rocks and a hot glue gun and other people were selling other home made suff, like bead necklaces and stuff, most of it usless, but they were still making money!!!


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Last edited by Joe H.; 01-12-2005 at 07:45 PM.
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  #30  
Old 01-12-2005, 08:05 PM
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Setting up a little hot shop at a flea market like Ray Richards does and works outside for a day has always appealed to me. Nothing like a ringing anvil to draw the curious.


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