About Barto Blades

Since I was a little guy, I have always been fascinated by knives. I began collecting any unique knife that caught my attention. As an avid outdoors man and hunter, I learned that with knives often fashion come before function. A knife can look great and perform like trash. It didn’t want to start spending hundreds or thousands of dollars on something I wanted to take into the woods, and was sick of fake damascus at every vendor stand I ever visited. Inspired by to my favorite TV series, Forged in Fire, and frugality (my wife says cheap) I decided to start making my own.

In 2023, my wife bought me my first forge and anvil. A small charcoal forge with a hand crank blower. I loved this little forge and will be forever grateful to her for getting it for me. I then upgraded and made a new forge out of a rear differential I picked up at the junk yard. I was able to begin working on bigger blades and getting my temperatures hot enough for forge welding. Once I made my first damascus blade my obsession intensified. I have since switched to propane because I was sick of sourcing coal or making it myself and can work even larger pieces of metal. i

My favorite knife projects are those that tell a story. A skinner made from sawmill blades that cut the wood for the handle, a damascus blade made of metal from someones great grandfathers sheep shears, or a handle made from fire hose that the owner bought, used and retired. These are more than a knife, they are a time capsule that we can share with our family. There will never be another one like it.