Spend a Weekend or a day at Ashokan that will enlighten you on the history, development, and creation of high quality blades.
Program information for the October 4-6, 2024 Ashokan seminar will be posted later this spring.
The Speakers for the 2023 Knife Seminar were:
Tim Zowada
Biography:
For those of you who are not familiar with Tim, or his work, here are a few highlights of his career: Tim made his first knife in 1979, while still in high school. In 1982, he made his first Damascus steel. In 1983, knife making became his full time profession. Since then, he has risen among the ranks of custom knife makers, whose work is among the most desired. He has also won several awards at knife shows, and juried exhibitions.
Not only does Tim make great razors and knives, he teaches others in order to preserve the craft. He has lectured and demonstrated at several seminars over the years. He has been the director of the Ashokan Knifemaking Seminar for most of the last two decades. Tim has also been a regular contributor for both the Blade Magazine, and Knives Illustrated. His other writings include a chapter in Blade's Guide to Making Knives 2nd Edition and articles in Knives 2012, 2014, and 2016.
In the modern era, Tim was the first craftsman to make razors, full time, in the US. He was also the first razor maker to use Damascus steel, of his own manufacture, in his razors. Since then, he has continued to innovate by making his “Tim-ahagane” from iron ore he collects himself. As far as we know, Tim is the only person in the world currently crafting razors from steel made entirely by himself.
While there are many makers beginning to dabble with razors. The list is very short of those who make a real, high quality razor. Tim's razors are not only excellent shavers, they are also precision works of art.
See more of Tim's work at:http://www.zowadaknives.com/home.html
Lecture:
Tim will be opening this year's program with an introduction to the line-up of demonstrators he and Kevin Cashen put together for this outstanding Ashokan seminar. He will also be doing a lecture Saturday evening lecture will cover some of the experiments he has been doing with Dr. Verhoeven. He thought this would be a good "nerd" talk to do, while Herb showed the beginners how to hammer out a blade. We have been working on such things as:
The DET/PET reaction in modern eutectoid steel.
Decalescence/Recalescence and how it relates to the austenite front.
Eutectoid crucible steel from bloomery iron.
Martensite formation in crucible steel.
Fast and cheap polishing techniques for metallography.
Plus more!
For those of you who are not familiar with Tim, or his work, here are a few highlights of his career: Tim made his first knife in 1979, while still in high school. In 1982, he made his first Damascus steel. In 1983, knife making became his full time profession. Since then, he has risen among the ranks of custom knife makers, whose work is among the most desired. He has also won several awards at knife shows, and juried exhibitions.
Not only does Tim make great razors and knives, he teaches others in order to preserve the craft. He has lectured and demonstrated at several seminars over the years. He has been the director of the Ashokan Knifemaking Seminar for most of the last two decades. Tim has also been a regular contributor for both the Blade Magazine, and Knives Illustrated. His other writings include a chapter in Blade's Guide to Making Knives 2nd Edition and articles in Knives 2012, 2014, and 2016.
In the modern era, Tim was the first craftsman to make razors, full time, in the US. He was also the first razor maker to use Damascus steel, of his own manufacture, in his razors. Since then, he has continued to innovate by making his “Tim-ahagane” from iron ore he collects himself. As far as we know, Tim is the only person in the world currently crafting razors from steel made entirely by himself.
While there are many makers beginning to dabble with razors. The list is very short of those who make a real, high quality razor. Tim's razors are not only excellent shavers, they are also precision works of art.
See more of Tim's work at:http://www.zowadaknives.com/home.html
Lecture:
Tim will be opening this year's program with an introduction to the line-up of demonstrators he and Kevin Cashen put together for this outstanding Ashokan seminar. He will also be doing a lecture Saturday evening lecture will cover some of the experiments he has been doing with Dr. Verhoeven. He thought this would be a good "nerd" talk to do, while Herb showed the beginners how to hammer out a blade. We have been working on such things as:
The DET/PET reaction in modern eutectoid steel.
Decalescence/Recalescence and how it relates to the austenite front.
Eutectoid crucible steel from bloomery iron.
Martensite formation in crucible steel.
Fast and cheap polishing techniques for metallography.
Plus more!
Dan Maragni
Dan Maragni will be first up at this year's program with the brief lecture on how the England Bladesmith Guild came to exist as a "Non-sanctioned shadow organization". As the original "Grand Puba" Dan developed the program format and knowledge sharing style that has made the annual Ashokan Blade Seminar one of the premiere gatherings of instructors and blade aficionados from across the country. Dan will also share a review of some of the books that are of interest to the blade forging community
Kevin Cashen
Biography:
With a lifetime devoted to the research and study of the history, science and methods of forged blades, Kevin Cashen is one of the most respected experts in his field on many aspects of his craft. Because of this, his services as an instructor are much in demand. Kevin has been an American Bladesmith Society approved instructor for over 20 years, and has taught classes ranging from intro to bladesmithing, for beginners, to blade metallurgy, for master instructors, at locations that include local events, international symposiums and colleges and universities. He has been integral in helping to organize and lead programs for the Ashokan Knife Seminars for many years and will be lending his expertise to this year's program. View Kevin's work at https://cashenblades.com/the-blades/
Demo:
Kevin will be doing a demo on heat treating blades Saturday evening and a lecture on blade testing Sunday morning.
With a lifetime devoted to the research and study of the history, science and methods of forged blades, Kevin Cashen is one of the most respected experts in his field on many aspects of his craft. Because of this, his services as an instructor are much in demand. Kevin has been an American Bladesmith Society approved instructor for over 20 years, and has taught classes ranging from intro to bladesmithing, for beginners, to blade metallurgy, for master instructors, at locations that include local events, international symposiums and colleges and universities. He has been integral in helping to organize and lead programs for the Ashokan Knife Seminars for many years and will be lending his expertise to this year's program. View Kevin's work at https://cashenblades.com/the-blades/
Demo:
Kevin will be doing a demo on heat treating blades Saturday evening and a lecture on blade testing Sunday morning.
Matthew Parkinson, JS
Biography:
Matthew has been a full time smith since 1998 and specializes in culinary knives as well as modern takes on historical blades from the 7-17th century. After a career as a blacksmith primarily producing railings and ornamental iron while making knives and swords primarily for the renn fair market Matthew became a full time bladesmith in 2011. He attained the rank of journeyman smith in the ABS in 2016
Matthew has won numerous awards for his work, Is a staff writer for Knife Magazine and has had his work featured in publications around the world.
Matthew began teaching blacksmithing and bladesmithing in 2007 and now teaches at schools throughout the US as well as teaching out of the dragons breath forge school.
Matthew is a founding partner and owner of Dragons Breath forge.WWW.Dragonsbreathforge.com
Lecture description:
Painting in Steel, or controlling mosaic pattern development.
Using basic building blocks to create designs in mosaic steel, and how using these techniques to plan and control images in the steel can result in coherent images. The inspirations and concepts Of what Matthew is calling pictorial mosaic. The concept of using the blade as a single composition I have captivated, the idea of creating patterns that are coherent and not repeating patterns. This requires thinking about the pattern and the material in a slightly different way.
Demo description:
Artistic Forgery , controlling and enhancing Pattern in any damascus blade is something we should all consider, but it is critical in forging pictorial mosaic knives to shape.
There are a number of factors that need to be considered in forging these kinds of patterns. not just when to cut, grind or forge, a feature in. Even the order of operations within the forging operation itself needs to be controlled and planned in a thoughtful way.
Matthew has been a full time smith since 1998 and specializes in culinary knives as well as modern takes on historical blades from the 7-17th century. After a career as a blacksmith primarily producing railings and ornamental iron while making knives and swords primarily for the renn fair market Matthew became a full time bladesmith in 2011. He attained the rank of journeyman smith in the ABS in 2016
Matthew has won numerous awards for his work, Is a staff writer for Knife Magazine and has had his work featured in publications around the world.
Matthew began teaching blacksmithing and bladesmithing in 2007 and now teaches at schools throughout the US as well as teaching out of the dragons breath forge school.
Matthew is a founding partner and owner of Dragons Breath forge.WWW.Dragonsbreathforge.com
Lecture description:
Painting in Steel, or controlling mosaic pattern development.
Using basic building blocks to create designs in mosaic steel, and how using these techniques to plan and control images in the steel can result in coherent images. The inspirations and concepts Of what Matthew is calling pictorial mosaic. The concept of using the blade as a single composition I have captivated, the idea of creating patterns that are coherent and not repeating patterns. This requires thinking about the pattern and the material in a slightly different way.
Demo description:
Artistic Forgery , controlling and enhancing Pattern in any damascus blade is something we should all consider, but it is critical in forging pictorial mosaic knives to shape.
There are a number of factors that need to be considered in forging these kinds of patterns. not just when to cut, grind or forge, a feature in. Even the order of operations within the forging operation itself needs to be controlled and planned in a thoughtful way.
A few examples of Matt's work work:
Bill McGrath
Biography:
Bill McGrath started his training in the Pekiti-Tirsia system of Filipino martial arts in 1975 at the age of 14 and continues to this day. He has a 30 year career in law enforcement, where he served as a defensive tactics and firearms instructor for his dept.
Bill’s website: https://pekiti.com/
Bill’s knife blog: https://pekiti.com/blogs/news/tagged/knife-training
Bill’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/TuhonBillMcg/videos
Lecture:
What are some important aspects of handle design for blades used for self defense purposes.
Bill McGrath started his training in the Pekiti-Tirsia system of Filipino martial arts in 1975 at the age of 14 and continues to this day. He has a 30 year career in law enforcement, where he served as a defensive tactics and firearms instructor for his dept.
Bill’s website: https://pekiti.com/
Bill’s knife blog: https://pekiti.com/blogs/news/tagged/knife-training
Bill’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/TuhonBillMcg/videos
Lecture:
What are some important aspects of handle design for blades used for self defense purposes.
Robert Wayman
Biography:
Rob Wayman operates Rob Wayman Knives out of Middleburgh NY. He started making knives in 2017 and attended his first Ashokan Knife Seminar shortly after. He focuses on forged blades, damascus steel and kitchen knives. In 2019 he was a finalist on History Channels Forged In Fire and won Best In Show at the 2023 North East Cutlery Collectors Association Knife Show.
Demo Description- This will be a discussion of different Chef Knife styles and Construction Considerations. I'll be going over several different chef knife designs, various construction methods and some things to consider when designing your next chef knife.
See more of Rob's work at https://www.robwaymanknives.com
Rob Wayman operates Rob Wayman Knives out of Middleburgh NY. He started making knives in 2017 and attended his first Ashokan Knife Seminar shortly after. He focuses on forged blades, damascus steel and kitchen knives. In 2019 he was a finalist on History Channels Forged In Fire and won Best In Show at the 2023 North East Cutlery Collectors Association Knife Show.
Demo Description- This will be a discussion of different Chef Knife styles and Construction Considerations. I'll be going over several different chef knife designs, various construction methods and some things to consider when designing your next chef knife.
See more of Rob's work at https://www.robwaymanknives.com
Examples of Rob's work work
Nick Rossi
Biography:
Nick’s interest in metalworking began with a boyhood fascination of knives and swords. At the age of 15, he started working at one of the state’s largest cutlery shops and was introduced to the world of custom knifemaking by local craftspeople. With the combination of books, advice and seminars, Nick developed his skills as a bladesmith and began selling his work under the “Rossi Knives” name.
“From the time I knew that there was such a thing as a custom knifemaker, I was sure that I wanted to be one. Not growing up in a terribly mechanical family, I was sort of left alone to figure it out for myself. I assumed that metallurgy, machining and woodworking would be the knowledge base required, but it was the peripheral knowledge that solidified my decision. Sociology, history, material science and industry became equally important to me. It became readily apparent that this ‘hobby’ would provide me with several lifetimes’ worth of study and research. There was no turning back…”
In 2003 Nick’s work was featured in Downeast Magazine’s “10 Cool Gifts from Maine,” and in 2006 he began teaching bladesmithing at the New England School of Metalwork. Nick continued to operate Rossi Knives on a part-time basis while employed as a sales engineer for a local technical fabrics company until he was offered a full-time position at NESM in 2011 where he worked as an Instructor and Assistant Program Director until 2020.
Nick now operates Nick Rossi Knives full time out of his studio in Vassalboro, where he creates dynamic, one-of-a-kind cutlery. Nick’s work is most influenced by Japanese, Southeast Asian and Scandinavian design as well as architecture, fine art and nature. Nick is a certified Master Bladesmith in the American Bladesmith Society, a member of the Maine Craft Guild, the Maine Craft Association, the Portland based Metals Collective and a member of the New England Bladesmith Guild. Nick teaches workshops and gives demonstrations all over the country.
See Nick's work at: https://nickrossiknives.com/about/nick-rossi/
Lecture:
How to sell a knife: Marketing for the Knifemaker
Demo:
Blade grinding fundamentals.
Nick’s interest in metalworking began with a boyhood fascination of knives and swords. At the age of 15, he started working at one of the state’s largest cutlery shops and was introduced to the world of custom knifemaking by local craftspeople. With the combination of books, advice and seminars, Nick developed his skills as a bladesmith and began selling his work under the “Rossi Knives” name.
“From the time I knew that there was such a thing as a custom knifemaker, I was sure that I wanted to be one. Not growing up in a terribly mechanical family, I was sort of left alone to figure it out for myself. I assumed that metallurgy, machining and woodworking would be the knowledge base required, but it was the peripheral knowledge that solidified my decision. Sociology, history, material science and industry became equally important to me. It became readily apparent that this ‘hobby’ would provide me with several lifetimes’ worth of study and research. There was no turning back…”
In 2003 Nick’s work was featured in Downeast Magazine’s “10 Cool Gifts from Maine,” and in 2006 he began teaching bladesmithing at the New England School of Metalwork. Nick continued to operate Rossi Knives on a part-time basis while employed as a sales engineer for a local technical fabrics company until he was offered a full-time position at NESM in 2011 where he worked as an Instructor and Assistant Program Director until 2020.
Nick now operates Nick Rossi Knives full time out of his studio in Vassalboro, where he creates dynamic, one-of-a-kind cutlery. Nick’s work is most influenced by Japanese, Southeast Asian and Scandinavian design as well as architecture, fine art and nature. Nick is a certified Master Bladesmith in the American Bladesmith Society, a member of the Maine Craft Guild, the Maine Craft Association, the Portland based Metals Collective and a member of the New England Bladesmith Guild. Nick teaches workshops and gives demonstrations all over the country.
See Nick's work at: https://nickrossiknives.com/about/nick-rossi/
Lecture:
How to sell a knife: Marketing for the Knifemaker
Demo:
Blade grinding fundamentals.
Examples of blades by Nick Rossi
Rob "Deker" Dekelbaum
Biography:
Rob "Deker" Dekelbaum is a computer security nerd who began his blacksmithing/bladesmithing journey about 15 years ago. After some relatively humble beginnings, Deker found a love for the science of metallurgy and heat treatment, the process of making Damascus, and tools...lots of tools. Over the past several years, he has specifically started to specialize in large format Damascus work, and is currently working on a project creating pattern welded steel being used to produce a limited edition of 100 1911 pistols, all of which contain a small bit of steel from the World Trade Center towers that is to commemorate those lost in, and after, the events of 9/11/2001.
Lecture:
"Pattern welding tips, tricks, trivia, and tales of troubleshooting"
In this talk, Deker will discuss the little details in pattern welding that can make the difference between success and sadness, as well as some of the popular myths and ceremony that you may not be sure about. What is flux? What isn't flux? When do you need it? How clean is clean enough? How hot? Too hot? Tips on steel selection and how it affects your work. Lessons learned on finishing, etc. It's taken over 15 years to gather this all into one brain, and you get to hear about it all in an hour! If time allows, we will even play a game of "stump the steel nerd" to answer other questions you have.
Rob "Deker" Dekelbaum is a computer security nerd who began his blacksmithing/bladesmithing journey about 15 years ago. After some relatively humble beginnings, Deker found a love for the science of metallurgy and heat treatment, the process of making Damascus, and tools...lots of tools. Over the past several years, he has specifically started to specialize in large format Damascus work, and is currently working on a project creating pattern welded steel being used to produce a limited edition of 100 1911 pistols, all of which contain a small bit of steel from the World Trade Center towers that is to commemorate those lost in, and after, the events of 9/11/2001.
Lecture:
"Pattern welding tips, tricks, trivia, and tales of troubleshooting"
In this talk, Deker will discuss the little details in pattern welding that can make the difference between success and sadness, as well as some of the popular myths and ceremony that you may not be sure about. What is flux? What isn't flux? When do you need it? How clean is clean enough? How hot? Too hot? Tips on steel selection and how it affects your work. Lessons learned on finishing, etc. It's taken over 15 years to gather this all into one brain, and you get to hear about it all in an hour! If time allows, we will even play a game of "stump the steel nerd" to answer other questions you have.
Pattern welded blade by Deker
Herb Kettell
Biography:
I started making knives as a teenager. I made my first journey to Ashokan for the 1995 Sword year and I've only missed a handful of years since. I've been a spare time maker while pursuing a career as a structural and pipe welder for a DOD contractor. I've helped teach classes and volunteered with youth forging programs at nearby New England School of Metalwork.
Demo:
Herb will be offering a demo on forging blades, and will also be leading the "Open Forge" program, an opportunity for folks of all experience levels to forge a blade. The focus will be on basic blade shapes, forging technique and sequence, along with basic blacksmithing fundamentals. Use and care of a coal forge fire will be covered as well. Blade steel will be available for purchase on site.
I started making knives as a teenager. I made my first journey to Ashokan for the 1995 Sword year and I've only missed a handful of years since. I've been a spare time maker while pursuing a career as a structural and pipe welder for a DOD contractor. I've helped teach classes and volunteered with youth forging programs at nearby New England School of Metalwork.
Demo:
Herb will be offering a demo on forging blades, and will also be leading the "Open Forge" program, an opportunity for folks of all experience levels to forge a blade. The focus will be on basic blade shapes, forging technique and sequence, along with basic blacksmithing fundamentals. Use and care of a coal forge fire will be covered as well. Blade steel will be available for purchase on site.
An example of Herb's work: