Category: Episodes

We are joined by knife collector Justin Laffer for another Collector Spotlight episode. Justin shares his perspective with us on a variety of topics relevant to the knife community and the current state of the custom knife scene. As always, Justin is eloquent and well-spoken as we hit some key touchpoints facing both collectors and makers today. It’s a fun, rambling conversation and we hope you enjoy it as much as we did. Follow us on Instagram @markofthemaker or join our discussion group on Facebook.

You know you’ve seen them before – knives that have “that look” and give pause to even the casual observer. We dig into the topic of scary knives, whether from horror movies or designed with specific scary intent. This one’s a bit of a ramble that we recorded on Halloween. Do you have a favorite scary knife? If so, sound off on our Instagram @markofthemaker or join the Mark of the Maker group on Facebook for some conversation.

The crew faces a challenge: What knife would you buy if you had $25 to spend?  How about $100 or $300?  We won’t pretend our choices are the “best” for the money, but each has a reason why they were chosen.  A fun episode for us and some choices you might not expect.  Join us in our Facebook group “Mark of the Maker” and let us know what your picks are!

We are joined by collector and maker Andy Frankart for a discussion about knives, collecting, and his perspective as the maker of probably the hottest and most collectable non-knife EDC items out there. Andy shares insights with us about how he came into the knife community, some specifics of some great pieces in his own knife collection, and what it was like to see his brand explode. Fun stories, some personal history and a great conversation.

We dive into the diverse and fascinating world of ethnic knives – knives and designs that come from specific regions or cultures around the world. We discuss the origins of these designs and how many of them influenced knives used to this day in both functional and fighting roles. Also discussed is the upcoming Gathering X show in Las Vegas. We offer advice for Gathering newcomers and some reminders about show etiquette.