Mark of the Maker

This time around, we pulled together an episode with picks we thought were perfect for this glorious time of year - Summer!  There's quite a variety here and we had fun with it as we always do with the picks shows.  Give it a listen when you have some time.  Find us at our Patreon and follow us on Instagram @markofthemaker or join our discussion group on Facebook for more conversation.

The whole crew gets back together to chat with Donnie from STARKO Gear.  Donnie shares his unique path into the world of EDC and gear and how the brand came to be.  Like many, he wasn't a "natural" maker and found is way through his own path.  Great chat, one we think you'll enjoy.  Find us at our Patreon and follow us on Instagram @markofthemaker or join our discussion group on Facebook for more...

Sean and Mark dive into another Influences episode, this time about the Punisher Comics and specifically the short Punisher Armory series. These were a big influence on Sean and we spend some time talking about the knife-related content in these comics and the artist Eliot R. Brown. Fascinating stuff and what reads like a love letter from Eliot about the state of the art of knives and gear of the...

Mark continues his knife road trip adventure with a visit to Randall Made Knives in Orlando, Florida.  This was a special treat as he was able to walk through the Randall Museum with Jason Randall, who shared some fantastic detail and insight behind some of the knives in this truly vast collection.  Historical pieces, Randall oddities, ethnic knives, and of course the iconic knives that supported...

Mark heads out on the road and makes a visit ot our friends and sponsors, Arizona Custom Knives.  In the first segment, he chats with Andrew McMichael, Director of Consignment Sales about a crazy selection of knives from their inventory.  Some fantastic pieces, from historic to art, to tactical and more.  In the second half Mark and Henry Hyman talk about the history of AZCK and how it became the...

The four of us chat about some recent shows, Blade Texas and the New Orleans Custom Knife Invitational.  Tom shares his experiences in Texas and the great list of stuff he brought back home.  Michael gives us some insight into the NOCKI show and the new venue.  We talk knives, projects, and some insight on a couple upcoming episodes of Mark of the Maker.  Find us at our Patreon and follow us on In...

Mark and Michael have a chat with purveyor, collector and Mastersmith knifemaker David Ellis of Exquisite Knives to talk about his knifemaking journey, collecting and some of the fantastic makers represented in his inventory and in his own collection.  Dave's story is unique in that he's an ABS Mastersmith who achieved that rank for his own reasons and has a journey with knives and making that is...

This is Part 2 of Mark's chat with Jim Wirth from Giant Mouse Knives.  We talk knives, watches, and one of Jim's hobbies - metal detecting.  His collection is fantastic and he's got some great stories about why he loves metal detecting and what he has done with some of the things he's found over the years.  Super fun conversation, hope you enjoy it.  Find us at our Patreon and follow us on Instagr...

Here's another in our growing series of live on-site interviews.  This one's with Jim Wirth, one of the founders of Giant Mouse Knives.  Jim came into the knife world as a collector of many things before he, Jesper Voxnaes and Jens Anso launched Giant Mouse.  His story is a good one as Jim has been smitten by the collecting bug across a pretty huge variety of things.  Hope you enjoy this chat, thi...

We're back with Part II of our deep dive into Fighting Knives!  This time around we all make picks for Dagger, Art or Ceremonial and Anything Goes.  This one, like most picks episodes, is one where we'll each have companion posts in our Facebook group to help guide you along.  Some fantastic pieces in here, from ancient to recent and everything in between.  Find us at our Patreon and follow us on ...

Sean had some special fighting knives he wanted to talk about in light of our recent deep dive into Part I of Fighting Knives, so he got together with Mark and Michael to have a look together.  Some great pieces in here and with some interesting history to boot.  Late in the episode, Burch takes us on another quick trip through the BudK reviews of some fighters.  As always, check our Facebook grou...

Join us for a discussion about one of our favorite styles of knife:  The Fighter!  What makes a fighter?  What fighters really get us spun up?  Give this one a listen and you'll find out.  We had so much fun with this, it's going to be a multi-part adventure.  Be sure to check our Facebook group for a visual companion to our picks for this fun episode.  Find us at our Patreon and follow us on Inst...

Our buddy Tyler Holden sat down with us to talk about his life and his collecting journey.  Tyler brings an interesting perspective that we think you'll find insightful.  Like many, his interests have evolved over the years and you eventually find your niche and your people.  Give it a listen when you have a moment, and we hope you find it as enjoyable as we did when we recorded together.  Find us...

It's the start of Season 9 for Mark of the Maker so we look back a bit at 2025, talk about some challenges we all faced and then look forward to 2026 and our goals for the new year.  2025 was kind of a rollercoaster!  We dig into shows, touch on trends, and chat about plans for where we all plan to be this year.  Find us at our Patreon and follow us on Instagram @markofthemaker or join our discuss...

We wind out the last of Season 8 with a Holiday Picks episode, as we often do.  Four categories, three picks each, and lots of laughs as well as some amazing knives to check out.  Some are stinkers, some are gems but all will likely make you say "oh yeahhhh" or "oh no..."  Hope you have as much fun listening to this one as we did recording it.  Thanks for riding with us for another season, stay tu...

If there's one thing that knifemakers consume faster than candy or gas station burritos, it's audio content. Many like music, others prefer to fill their earholes with audiobooks or podcasts. This time we nerd out over audiobook selections as well as a few podcasts to the guys are enjoying and use as a tool to help stay focused on their work in the shop. Find us at  our Patreon and follow us on In...

Our buddy "Farmer" Rob Baptie of The HateDust Project found a few minutes to sit with us and chat about his knife collecting journey, the origins of the project and its evolution. Rob and his wife Andrea have generated over $2.5 million in charitable funding for a huge array of causes over the last 10+ years. If there's one thing we're even bigger fans of than knives, it's people being good to oth...

Mark and Sean sit with Tom to hear about his experience at Blade Show West 2025.  Pretty eventful weekend for Tom, winning Best MAC Knife and some cool stuff that he brought home with him. Join us to hear more about the show and whether you may want to add it to your schedule next year.  Find us at our Patreon and follow us on Instagram @markofthemaker or join our discussion group on Facebook for...

For this year's Halloween episode, we put together a picks episode about what you'd use to battle a monster (or monsters!) from the movie of your choice.  As usual, we each went in a little different direction with our picks but we have a great time doing so.  We'll share photos or links to our picks in the Mark of the Maker Facebook Group.  Find us at our Patreon and follow us on Instagram @marko...

We sit down with Isaac Roesler to learn more about his adventure in starting a knife and EDC shop in Springfield, Missouri.  Springfield EDC has been around for a few years now and Isaac shares some insight into what it took to get this business rolling and what it's like trying to launch a brick & mortar knife shop today.  Find us at our Patreon and follow us on Instagram @markofthemaker or join...

We managed to get the whole crew back together for a picks episode, each finding three knives with "wildcard" as the only rule.  Some of us made predictable picks, but some took the wildcard assignment seriously and colored far outside their usual lines.  Super fun one and some gems we found, so watch our FB group or have your search engine warmed up!  Find us at our Patreon and follow us on Insta...

Mark and Sean recap their participation in the Giant Mouse Grand Opening and 10 Year Jubilee.  We talk about the event and share some clips from discussions with some friends at the event.  It was a great time, the folks at GMK know how to host a fine party.  Big thanks to the GMK team for providing us a space at the Jubilee and for the hospitality!  Find us at our Patreon and follow us on Instagr...

Mark, Tom and Sean recap the 2025 Pacific Northwest Custom Invitational show.  Mark and Tom recorded a bunch of clips from the show floor so this one's got lots of great interviews and fun stuff inside.  It's a great show, be sure to check it out next year!  Find us at our Patreon and follow us on Instagram @markofthemaker or join our discussion group on Facebook for more conversation.

Traditional pocketknife maker Mike Moran joins us to talk about his work, about moving a shop across the country, and about his podcast and knife show he's hosting.  We had a fun chat, and covered lots of territory.  Give it a listen to learn more about this great maker.  Find us at our Patreon and follow us on Instagram @markofthemaker or join our discussion group on Facebook for more conversatio...

Here's Part 2 of Sean's interview with his friend and mentor, Mike Franklin of HAWG Knives. Such a great conversation, this one digs deep into the world of knifemaking and Mike's position at the center of a seemingly innumerable number of critical points along the path of tactical knives and their emergence on the scene. Sit back and enjoy more of Mike's story and his incredibly interesting journe...