Every bladesmith I ever asked, including myself, began to make knives with the romance of eventually making swords. I don't know why, but almost all of us as children are fascinated by swords. We all love a good sword movie. We make up whole adventures and legends around the idea of a sword. Swords are as much a part of human culture as clothes.

I was lucky enough to have Kevin Cashen, a world renown swordmaker, as an instructor at the Bill Moran School of Bladesmithing. This did not help to lessen my fascination with swords. So, like many bladesmiths, I have tried my hand at making a few of these legendary weapons.They are very hard to make, and my hat is off to those who are true swordmakers. I will no doubt, continue to study and make them in the future.

My favorites are probably the Greek and Roman spatha style, or gladius, but I have met very few swords I didn't like.

Daggers are, in my opinion the most elegant and beautiful of knives. There is inherent beauty in their symmetry and deadly grace. They also are very difficult to make, and thus the dagger is the one knife specifically chosen by the American Bladesmith Society as part of the test to become a Master Bladesmith.