Workshop At a Glance
Price: Starting at $685 per person

Duration: One 8 hour session with a 45 min meal break, give or take thirty minutes.

Location: Craftsman Ave Workshop at 117 11th Street Brooklyn, NY 11215

Class size: 8 people

Skill Level : Beginner — no prior experience is required. This workshop is designed to introduce you to the core concepts of knife making – profiling, beveling, polishing, etching, handle-making and sharpening.

What You’ll Be Making : Have you ever marveled at the beauty of multi-colored Damascus steel? Ever wondered what it would be like to craft your own knife? This course gives you that empowering experience and the beautiful blade you make is yours to show off for a lifetime. This workshop will teach you all the skills needed to design and make a custom knife anyone would be proud to call their own.

What You’ll Be Doing: You will use various hand / power tools to shape your knife, including bandsaws, files, belt grinders, orbital sanders, drill press and sanding blocks. You’ll also use belt sanders and rotary tools to finish handles for your knife.

What’s Included? All Materials & Tools Provided!

What To Expect
This workshop is focused on the stock-removal knife making technique. We’ll provide you with a bar of high-carbon steel, 1095/15N20 that has been forge welded in the Damascus style, and then teach you how to cut, grind, shape, drill, harden and finally etch and polish it, into a custom knife that rivals most cutlery you’ll find in stores.

You can choose from several classic knife designs – Bowie, Camp, Deba, and Hunter. Or you could choose to craft your own variation of one of these.

And the best part? You can customize your knife’s design, including sizing the handle so it fits perfectly in your hand. Imagine the shock and awe of your friends when they’re not only amazed by the beauty of your custom knife, but absolutely floored by the fact that YOU made it from tip to handle.

In the first half of the workshop, you’ll craft your knife’s profile and cutting edge and drill the holes for the pins that will adorn your knife’s handle, using various hand and power tools. Once that’s done, you’ll heat your knife in our forge and then quench it in oil to harden the steel so it fears no fish, fowl, meat, or bone it encounters in its future. Ever seen contestants in the “Forged in Fire” TV show quench their knives? That’s exactly what you’ll be doing!

You’ll then give your knife a short temper while you bask in the glory of your bad-ass-ness. During this time you’ll begin work on your wooden handle design and then be back on sanding and polishing your blade. Once fully polished it’s time to bring out the real beauty of the steel using an acid etching to darken the 1095 steel and leave the 15N20 steel shiny and bright. During this time we will break for about 45 min, and you can grab a slice from the yummy pizza place around the corner (or something else from the many Park Slope eateries nearby).

After a short pause you’ll clean and polish your blade and install custom brass-pinned hardwood scales to form your knife’s handle, which you’ll shape and refine until it fits your hand like a glove. Once that’s done, you’ll apply a protective finish on your handle, sharpen the blade to a razor’s edge, and celebrate the addition of “bladesmith” to your arsenal of skills!

*Another method for making knives is forging. Think: Red hot metal, hammers, and anvils – heat, beat, repeat. If that’s of interest to you, check out our “Forge a Survival Knife” workshop.

Please arrive a few minutes early to get settled and checked in.

Children under 18 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.