How did you get into tool making?
I have always been interested in making tools from a very young age. I was fascinated by made steel a useful tool materials. When I was 15 I made my first knife. The appeal to specifically making wood carving tools is mostly about being a part of the sloyd community here in israel, which is a wonderful community that grew in the past five years or so. Great people, lots of creativity, and solidarity.
How does your work process looks like?
I start by sending a sheet of steel out to have the blade blanks cut out. When the blades arrive back I run a precise heat treating process on them to achieve high hardness(62-63 hrc) and the highest toughness possible in that hardness which gives you excellent performance for a very fine cutting tool. The heat treating process itself is different from steel to steel. After the blades are heat treated, it is time to grind them. All my grinding is done by hand, on a mist cooled belt grinder.
I only grind wet, to keep the blades cool while grinding and keep the steel’s properties that were achieved with the premium heat treating process I preform. After the bevel grinding is done comes the time to make the handles. I only use ethically sourced local or upcycled woods. Israel has a good variety of beautiful tree species that can be used for tool handles.I went with an octagonal cross section for the handle to help the user with the indexing of the knife in the hand and prevent rotational movement from occurring.
What makes a tool a good tool in your opinion?
I believe that the most important thing when trying to create good tools is to never cut corners and holding on to a research type of mind set. Nothing is perfect and you can always strive to improve.
Do you use your own tools?
Yes I do use them when I carve. I actually don’t carve very often but I strive to do it more often. Also, I use my own kitchen knives in my home kitchen, I love the veggie cleaver I made for myself.
Do you have any role models other tool makers that you’re look up to?
I think Matt White’s work really influenced my wood carving tools so far. Also Roman from K knives in Switzerland.
I have been in touch with both of them, two very different but equally talented knife/tool makers.
But my biggest inspiration is our local carving community here!
What motivates you to keep going?
The main thing that keeps me going is the fact I get to make really cool things at work. And I also get to satisfy my natural need to create and discover new things.
How does the future look?
I think I would like to keep making tools and explore the application of new blade steels into the traditional designs and sloyd craft.
Also, I would really like to host more knife-making courses and get the chance to teach others here in Israel.
When you’re not making tools, what do you do?
I work in agriculture growing mangos and avocados on the kibbutz named Ravid in the Jordan Valley in Israel. My agricultural work also includes alot of educational work with youth who arrive to the kibbutz to do a week long work seminar.
Anything else you’d like to share with us?
I would love to see more and more people in Israel get into crafting and overall creating things.
I believe that a country that has a culture of craft is a healthier, happier and more peaceful country. I think art and craft connects us to a very basic thing in being human and can help us find more and more things in common with other people.
