Mini Piston #019

I began making knives in the fall of 2004 due to the want for a better hunting knife. I started slow, with files and sandpaper, heat treating with a torch, and just making fixed blades. Eventually I got real tools and a grinder and learned how to use it, and Alan Folts taught me how to make my first linerlock. Soon after I got into folders, I took a liking to flippers and began to teach myself how to make them. I got to the point where they worked well, but weren't as fast as some other makers'. In 2006 I met Lee Williams and Matt Cucchiara, and they taught me how to do internal stops and perfect the detents of my knives. Since then it's been smooth sailing. Today, the majority of my knives are flippers, and I prefer them over all other types of folders for their ease of opening and their functionality allows me to express my creativity in new and interesting ways.When I'm not making knives I'm a student at North Carolina State University and an active hunter, shooter and fisherman.