Protect that beautiful hand-forged knife you’ve just completed or keep your favorite piece of cutlery close for daily use with a leather sheath. From basic leather working techniques to a completed sheath, this how-to book will walk you through the steps to produce your own fixed-blade knife sheath. Choose from four different designs, each presented in detail, including a sheath with folded belt loop, a scabbard with leather lining and riveted belt loop, a sheath with safety strap and attached belt loop, and a scabbard with belt clip. Complete with illustrated tips on sketching the sheath design and treating the leather, as well as four complete sheath patterns and a supply list, this guide will provide you with the know-how and tools to make sheaths of your own design. Read more

Bladesmithing with Murray Carter provides the reader with an in-depth look into traditional Japanese Cutlery forging techniques and their modern applications. A non-stop flow of inquiries to Murray has prompted him to reveal the secret techniques learned during 18 years in Japan, where he lived and worked as a village bladesmith. He now shares this wealth of information for the benefit of the curious reader and Japanese knife enthusiast alike. Owners of nearly 15,000 of Murray's knives will be delighted to see a comprehensive book written by the knives' creator.Features:250+ dazzling, full-color images, including many by renowned photographer Hiro Soga.Unique and extremely rare insight into the Japanese culture through the (blue) eyes of a Japanese village bladesmith.Detailed explanations of Traditional Japanese Bladesmithing techniques that until now have been cloaked in mystery and myth.Enough detailed information to guide an aspiring bladesmith to become a successful smith in the Japanese style of blade making. Read more

The World's Greatest Knife Book is Bigger Than Ever!Now with more than 1,000 stunning knives in full color, this 45th edition of "The World's Greatest Knife Book" is the annual showcase of the most remarkable custom and factory-manufactured knives available. Fixed-blade designs, folders, swords, kitchen cutlery, cleavers, tactical knives, and every other knife style and design imaginable can be found in this this worldwide collection. KNIVES 2025 also offers features on topics that inform and entertain anyone who has even a passing interest in the ever-growing and changing knife industry, including deep coverage of the latest trends in various blade designs and styles. Whether you're a seasoned knife buyer looking to add the next piece to your collection or a knifemaker looking for inspiration, you'll find it here. A knife isn't "just a knife." A whole world of knives is out there waiting for you, and KNIVES 2025 is you guide! Read more

The collecting advantage you need If you enjoy handling and collecting Old Case and Case-Related knives you want to be sure that you have the proper knowledge and training you need to ensure that you are collecting authentic examples with knowledge as to their value. This book is an essential resource as it has a lot of examples of old authentic knives pictured and includes a comprehensive price guide to help in this regard. It also explains what to look for when acquiring these knives from the different companies and different eras. Also included is advice on how to detect and avoid buying knives that are not authentic and correct. We hope that it is an effective tool to collect and deal in rare authentic examples of old Case and Case-Related knives before 1940. Read more

Author Bob Hunt's first book, Randall Fighting Knives in Wartime, provided him the opportunity for further study on this subject. It was apparent before publication of the first book, that the subject matter could not be exhausted. In his second book, Hunt continues the process of identifying, describing and dating fighting knives produced in the dramatic early days of the Randall experience. This new volume provides a vast amount of material, carefully organized and presented to enable the reader to further his own research in the areas most interesting to him. Read more

The Japanese sword combines unbreakability, rigidity, and lethal cutting power, and it is in the resolution of these conflicting practical requirements that it emerges as a triumph of the forger's art. The mystique of the sword lingers on in our age of mechanized combat, but the aesthetic qualities for which swords are most valued by collectors today-the liveliness of the metal "skin," the confidence in every aspect of the design, the scrolling temper-line, the almost buoyant lightness of the hilt when the blade is held in the hand-all derive from what the Japanese sword demanded as a symbol of strength and as a weapon. As an instrument of clear persuasion, no other blade anywhere has ever been its equal. This volume, containing color and black-and-white plates, has been prepared as an introduction to the history and appreciation of the Japanese sword. Its author, until his death in 1978, was one of Japan's foremost sword experts, and his wide knowledge is here brought to bear on every aspect of sword lore, including forging techniques and problems of appraisal. Looking over the 1,500 years of sword history in Japan, Kanzan Sato notes how the major developments-the shift from the early straight blades to the tachi, which were longer curved blades slung edge downwards at the waist, to the familiar daisho pair of short and long swords worn by samurai until modern times-were the result of both technical innovation and changed fighting techniques. He examines the various fashions in sword mounts and the at times precious, highly decorated work of the smiths who specialized in sword guards, or tsuba, during the Momoyama and Edo periods. The centerpiece of this book, however, is a detailed examination of over a dozen of Japan's most revered blades, including the Kanehira and the Dojigiri by Yasutsuna, perhaps the two finest swords in Japan and as clear and beautiful today as when they were forged some 900 years ago. The discussion of what makes these blades special and how they have been passed down for generations offers the reader a wealth of insight into the sword in Japan as heirloom and cultural treasure. Read more

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A History of Handmade KnivesSafety Starts with your State of MindHow to Make a Knife by the Stock Removal MethodMaking a SheathMaking a Knife at the Moran ForgeAlternative Sheath-Making MethodHow to Make a Knife with Hand ToolsFlat GrindingSoldering the GuardSolderless GuardHidden TangApplying Scale HandlesMirror PolishingToolsMaterialsKnife DesignSource of Services and Materials Read more

The Complete Bladesmith( Forging Your Way to Perfection) <> Paperback <> JimHrisoulas <> PaladinPress Read more

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In The Art of the Japanese Sword, master swordsmith Yoshindo Yoshihara offers a detailed look at the entire process of Japanese sword making, including the finishing and appreciation of Japanese blades.Japanese sword art stands out in many ways: functionality as a weapon, sophisticated metallurgy and metalsmithing, the shape of the blade itself—all contribute to the beauty of these remarkable weapons. The Art of the Japanese Sword conveys to the reader Japanese samurai sword history and Japanese sword care, as well as explaining how to view and appreciate a blade. With 256 full-color pages, this sword book illustrates in meticulous detail how modern craftsmen use traditional methods to prepare their steel, forge the sword and create the unique hardened edge. By gaining a good understanding of how a sword is made, the reader will be able to appreciate the samurai sword more fully. Topics include: Appreciating the Japanese swordHistory of the Japanese swordTraditional Japanese steelmakingMaking the swordFinishing the sword Read more

“A ‘must have’ book for anyone who has an interest in edged weapons . . . Loades holds the reader’s full attention with each sword’s story that he tells.” —The Lone Star Book Review This magnificent book tells the story of the evolution of swords, how they were made, how they were used, and the people that used them. It doesn’t claim to give comprehensive coverage but instead takes certain surviving examples as landmarks on a fascinating journey through the history of swords. Each is selected because it can be linked to a specific individual, thus telling their story too and giving a human interest. So the journey starts with the sword of Tutankhamun and ends with the swords of J. E. B. Stuart and George Custer. Along the way we take in Henry V, Cromwell and Uesugi Kenshin, and there is the most detailed discussion you’ll find anywhere of all of George Washington’s swords. The chapters on these specific swords and swordsmen are alternated with more general chapters on the changing technical developments and fashions in swords and their use. The reader’s guide on this historical tour is Mike Loades. Mike has been handling swords most of his life, as a fight arranger, stuntman and historical weapons expert for TV and stage. As much as his profound knowledge of the subject, it is his lifelong passion for swords that comes through on every page. His fascinating text is supported by a lavish wealth of images, many previously unpublished and taken specifically for this book.“Superb . . . the most breathtaking coverage from the earliest days to modern times. Brilliant.” —Books Monthly Read more

Completed in 1482, Johannes Lecküchner's Art of Combat with the "Langes Messer" (Messerfechtkunst) is among the most important documents on the combat arts of the Middle Ages. The Messer was a single-edged, one-handed utility sword peculiar to central Europe, but Lecküchner's techniques apply to cut-and-thrust swords in general: not only is this treatise the single most substantial work on the use of one-handed swords to survive from this period, but it is the most detailed explanation of the two-handed sword techniques of the German "Liechtenauer" school dating back to the 1300s. Lecküchner's lavish manuscript consists of over four hundred illustrations with explanatory text, in which the author, a parish priest, rings the changes on bladework, deceits, and grappling, with techniques ranging from life-or-death escapes from an armed assailant to slapstick moves designed to please the crowd in public fencing matches.This translation, complete with all illustrations from the manuscript, makes the treatise accessible for the first time since the author's untimely death less than a year after its completion left his major work to be lost for generations. An extensive introduction, notes, and glossary analyze and contextualize the work and clarify its technical content.JEFFREY L. FORGENG is curator of Arms and Armor and Medieval Art at the Worcester Art Museum, and teaches as Adjunct Professor of History at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Read more

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Anyone who has ever searched for good custom blades knows that they are hard to find. Stop wasting time looking for that perfect blade and The Complete Bladesmith will show you how to take a bar of steel and forge it into the blade of your dreams. This guide to smithing world-class blades is for the novice and experienced bladesmith alike. With this book you will be able to build your own forge, equip your workshop, choose your materials from the exotic to the mundane, and get to work. You'll jump at the chance to heat the steel, bending, twisting, folding, cutting, and stretching it. Finally, you'll put the perfect grind on the new blade; fit the softest, hardest, or the most exotic wood to the grip; and slip your blade into your handmade sheath. Whether you want a survival blade, commando dagger, broadsword, tanto, or just a trustworthy utility knife, it's all here. Enter the custom-blade world with an edge!make your own! Read more

The first book to present the amazing swords and armor belonging to the most famous Samurai in Japanese history!Paul Martin, a world-renowned scholar of Japanese swords, takes us on a journey of discovery of samurai culture through an examination of valuable weapons and armor belonging to thirty of Japan's most celebrated warriors, many of which are classified as Important Cultural Propertiesor National Treasures and therefore rarely seen by the public.Japanese Swords and Armor covers the entire development of the samurai class, from the 10th to the 19th centuries, and offers a compelling journey into the minds and aesthetic sensibilities of the legendary warriors through a wealth of iconography with art images, exclusive photographs and life-size reproductions of some of the most prestigious swords in history.Get a close-up look at scores of magnificent blades, fittings and armor which belonged to thirty of the most famous warriors and leaders in Japanese history including:A wooden sword commissioned and owned by Miyamoto Musashi — Japan's greatest swordsman; an exact replica of the sword he wielded at the legendary duel on Ganryu-jima IslandThe tachi blade worn by Tokugawa Ieyasu, founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate and the powerful unifier of Japan—which was later presented to the Meiji EmperorThe katchu (armor) belonging to Minamoto no Yoshitsune, hero of the Genpei Wars and later gifted as a votive offering to the Kasuga Shrine in NaraThe naginata (halberd) said to be the favored weapon of Tomoe Gozen, Japan's famous female Samurai, that was immortalized in the classic book Tale of the HeikeAnd many more!These masterful works of art are presented in 200 stunning color photos including eight double gatefolds. This is a must-have work for all enthusiasts and experienced collectors, as well as for those approaching this fascinating subject for the first time. Read more

The samurai sword: a symbol of the spirit of old Japan, it embodies the samurai's steel discipline, unswerving devotion and peerless skill. With its creation, a feat of craftsmanship passed down by generations of artisans; the samurai sword is considered by most to be superior even to the famed blades of Western Damascus and Toledo. The Samurai Sword Handbook is a precise exploration of the samurai sword designed for sword collectors as well as anyone intrigued by these ancient blades. Detailing the origins and development of the samurai sword, its historical background, styles, prestigious schools and differences in construction, this revised edition of the classic reference outlines methods of identifying and researching the sword, as well as caring for it properly. This must-have for sword lovers is sure to be a bestseller.Topics of this Samurai book include:Japanese History and the Samurai SwordTypes of swordsParts of the swordBlade shape, construction, and grainThe making of the swordInscriptions and their readingsCare and maintenanceAppraisal and valueRelative point values Read more

Simple Knife making Welcome to Simple Knife Making! I’m Nick, and I’ll be your guide as we jump into some of the basics of making your own knives. Before we get started, here’s a little bit about myself and how to get the most out of this book. I built my first knife over nine years ago. It was crude and extremely ugly, cut and ground from an old rusted butcher’s knife. That knife was a bit of a stepping stone for me, a pivotal moment in my life. I had always loved the idea of building things with my hands, of creating beautiful and functional works of art. Yet I always felt as if it was out of my reach. I couldn’t afford the right tools or find the right steel. I really felt like I didn’t have the right anything. It was at that point I decided to make do with what I had, even though I didn’t have any experience. It wasn’t a beautiful or graceful start, but it was a start. Even as I built it, I knew that first knife was poor for many reasons. I had read several books, watched countless videos, watched many great knife makers at work. I had even handled lots of knives. The problem was that while I knew all these things, I had no idea how to translate that to making a knife. I had never done it before and didn’t really know how to put everything I had learned into practice. It wasn’t until I had finished that knife that it all clicked, like somebody turning on a light. The next day I set to work with the same meager set of files, a drill, and an angle grinder. With a better understanding of what I was doing, I built my second knife. This one looked and performed much better than the last one. It was a knife to be proud of. It felt good in the hand and worked well. After that, I was hooked. Soon I started making more knives, eventually working with stainless steel and having it sent out for heat treating. I began selling my work and kept improving. I had amassed quite a few tools and was all set up to start production. But after a big move, I had to give it up and start over again. I went back to the basic tools I had started out with and learned how to forge knives using a hammer and anvil. I also began building archery bows and other primitive tools and weapons. I enjoy these simpler things and It’s the idea of starting out simple that is the core of this book. The information in this book is broken up into two different types. The first is mostly words with a smattering of pictures and diagrams. In these, I’ll be explaining aspects of making knives in detail as well as giving examples and suggestions not covered in the main build-alongs. The build-alongs are mostly pictures of the steps I’ve taken to build something in particular. If you follow along, you should be able to build something very similar to what I’ve done. It’s a great way to get started with a first knife or for trying out something you haven’t done before. The three main knife builds each go over different knife styles, shapes, handle materials, and tools used. That way you get a good idea of what some of the different methods and styles look like in use so that you can mix and match parts from the different builds when coming up with your own designs or finding what style you like best. You can also take the information from this chapter and the intro sections of each knife build as inspiration for trying out other design options. There are many ways to make a knife and as many different approaches as there are knife makers. I believe the best way to try something for the first time is in the simplest way possible. In this book, I’ll show you how to use inexpensive tools to make a few knives in different styles. While using such tools can make the work more time-consuming and difficult, the reward and lessons learned make it all worth it. Everyone has to start somewhere. Starting out with a minimal investment can really help you get going quickly and working with basic tools will teach you the fundamentals. Read more

Showcasing the Finest Blades from the World's Great Knifemakers! For more than four decades, the team at BLADE Magazine has published this annual celebration of custom knives and knifemaking. This year's 44th edition continues that tradition of showing off the best of the best. Whether you're a collector looking for your next acquisition, a maker looking for inspiration or someone who simply appreciates the beauty and functionality of spectacular workmanship, KNIVES 2024, The World's Greatest Knife Book, is sure to satisfy. This 44th, full-color edition brings you more than 900 edged creations from across the globe, many of which can also be found at the annual BLADE Show, held annually in Atlanta, Georgia. And, as always, the Features section is loaded with immersive, entertaining and educational articles to help readers better understand nuances of creating fine blades. You'll also get to view jaw-dropping entries in the Factory Trends section, which features the latest in well-made fixed-blade and folding designs for everything from camping to EDC to kitchen use. Tying all of this information together is the Knifemakers Index so you have contact information at your fingertips when it's time to make a decision on your next purchase.  Read more

Written by a leading arms and armory expert and featuring over 350 pieces shown in more than 500 stunning pictures, this book is an indispensible resource for both the serious collector and amateur enthusiast. Read more