[BrionTomberlin]

Hello everyone. The National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City has the ongoing exhibit of antique bowie knives. They had asked for a couple members of the ABS to demonstrate on selected weekends to allow visitors to see what is involved in the making of a knife, primarily the forging of blades.

This past weekend was the annual Chuckwagon Gathering at the museum and our first demonstration. Mike Williams MS from Broken Bow was the selected maker for this weekend. I was able to assist him on Saturday. We had a good number of flyers for the ABS and all were gone by the end of Sunday. There were over 7000 people in attendance for the weekend so we recieved good exposure. Mike also did a podcast interview Saturday morning, which I am going to try to find, and will post a link if I do. The crowds were very interested and Mike usually had a number of people watching and asking questions. They were impressed with the knives that Mike brought for display and his skill.

It was very hot on Saturday, with highs in the upper 90's. So the demonstrators got a little worn out. I think my Old Spice became extinct spice after a couple of hours. Mike was also accompanied by his wife Melinda and his daughter Allison. The subjects covered were the forging of blades, heat treating, metallurgy, and general knife design. We also answered questions about the ABS and knifemaking in general.


I want to thank Mike Williams for his demonstration and putting up with the heat. He did an excellent job being an ambassador for the ABS and I hope that we may be able to do something similar with the museum next year.

I will be the demonstrator for the International Day of the Cowboy on July 23rd. This will be held on the museum grounds and will last all day Saturday. I am looking forward to it and hope I can do as well as Mike.

Brion

[ABS Webmaster]

Thank you Brion and Mike!

The American Bladesmith Society and the art of the forged blade were certainly well represented at the National Cowboy and Western Hertiage Museum in Oklahoma City.

[Mike Williams]

Thanks Brion; for sharing with everyone. My intention was to post something up Mon. night but when we arrived home from OK City we found that our air conditioner had died over the weekend. The house was very hot and people were NOT happy. Got a new unit installed yesterday and now back to the shop.
The demo went very well; I think. Lots of meaningful questions; not the usual" How do you make them shiny",and "where do you buy your blades"; type questions.
For those of you who like the West and Western Culture; the museum is a must see. Melinda and I was there for four hours and just hit the high spots.
I hope the ABS is invited to participate again.
Mike