Maples Metal

08/06/2026

Too pretty to take out bush? Fun to make though.

Apex Ultra hand forged from 6mm bar.
Brass, ringed coobah and black G10

06/04/2026

Fresh off the bench is this 28cm Cu Mai carver, made collaboratively with its recipient.
Apex Ultra core and copper splashed all over the place.
I'm off to lunch at his place shortly, where the knife is likely to be put into active duty immediately!

18/02/2026

Another custom build completed for a return customer.
She wanted a meat slicer with enough heft in the spine to use it as a tenderiser. And a bright red handle!

I ended up with a 155mm bunka style blade with a 4mm spine all the way to the start of the K tip, which then tapers to a wicked point.

Redness courtesy of some spectacular spalted flame tree from and some G10 and copper.

15/02/2026

A little nakiri I smashed out for a mate.
1084 core with "modern wrought" stupid+ layer count recycled Damascus cladding.
Spalted Tassie sassafras matches both the blade and the recipient.
Some of the tricks I have learned in the past year or so are starting to bear fruit.

07/02/2026

After a bout with prostate cancer, immediately followed by the devastating passing of my best mate and knife making mentor, the second half of 2025 was tough.

2026 has started well. These ones are for you, Phil.

29/06/2025

I (and three other students) just finished three days learning from sensei Shawn of
It was a revelation.
This is my version of what we made under his watchful eye:
1084 blade hand forged to closely match Shawn's template. Brass guard (another template), G10 spacer, and mallee handle (yet another template)
I learned about the importance of templates. And parallels. And scribes. And push sticks. And how a hammer can un-f**k most imperfections 😉
Thank you Shawn. Thank you

18/05/2025

I just finished this 20cm chef's knife for a dear friend.
Blade is 1084/15N20 Damascus, then 15N20, then old farrier rasp.
Handle is Tasmanian myrtle, stabilised in house from an off-cut the recipient sent across Bass Straight. There's enough timber left over for several more handles!
As I usually do with my custom builds, I sent him live updates as I went.

02/04/2025

Here's a little nakiri I knocked out a while ago for a cousin's birthday present. They already have a carver and a bread knife of mine, so this should be a nice addition to the set!

28/11/2024

This little Japanese style cheffie was custom built for a friend, to give as a birthday present to someone special.
Apparently it was well received!

05/07/2024