Bonnskij Posted December 26, 2021 Author Share Posted December 26, 2021 I don't have a proper photo of the blade for this one, but wanted to show off the handle anyway. I'm experimenting a bit to figure out what there is a demand for in the market around here and used some rather expensive ringed gidgee and ancient kauri. Priced it substantially higher than some other cleavers I had for sale and it was also the first cleaver to sell the next morning. I also got a job as a seafood processor. I worked for one day and was told the season was over and would restart again in July. I had to laugh at that one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted December 26, 2021 Share Posted December 26, 2021 That’s lovely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted December 26, 2021 Share Posted December 26, 2021 Very Nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted December 26, 2021 Share Posted December 26, 2021 That's a spectacular handle, no wonder it sold quick! Message received? Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnskij Posted December 27, 2021 Author Share Posted December 27, 2021 Thanks everyone! I'm really stoked about how it turned out. 9 hours ago, Frosty said: Message received? Invest in quality materials / gorgeous handle woods, as people are willing to pay for it and it will be worth it in the end? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buzzkill Posted December 28, 2021 Share Posted December 28, 2021 The somewhat unfortunate reality is that often the handle sells the knife. Interesting shapes on the blade sometimes have that effect too, regardless of the practicality. Your average person doesn't know the difference in alloys or the proper heat treating steps. They know what looks good to them and/or feels good in their hand. Frequently those are the only criteria used when they make a purchase. It is assumed by most of these people that if a knife is hand made it is of superior quality compared to the mass produced knives, so they take that for granted. Serious collectors and enthusiasts do know the difference though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted December 29, 2021 Share Posted December 29, 2021 Ditto Buzz. People generally assume that a person who spends time to produce a good finish they also spent the time to produce a quality blade. Pretty sells. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnskij Posted January 7, 2022 Author Share Posted January 7, 2022 Seems to be the case i suppose. I did point out there was no difference between the blades though. And I reckon my blades come out pretty alright these days. No chipping or rolling when testing on bone and brass in any case, and the grain is really fine. At least you'd hope someone who spent a lot of time on their handle wouldn't want to waste it on a sub-par blade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnskij Posted January 21, 2022 Author Share Posted January 21, 2022 I made a big 'un! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnskij Posted February 8, 2022 Author Share Posted February 8, 2022 Tried experimenting a bit with heat treating some 1084. Suppose this isn't exactly the best result I could've hoped for. I'll try again in the dark. That's when I always do heat treating anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnskij Posted February 11, 2022 Author Share Posted February 11, 2022 Another heat treat test. This time in the dark. Worked out a bit better. I'll keep heat treating at night time. Previous test at the bottom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnskij Posted February 27, 2022 Author Share Posted February 27, 2022 Finished this 1084 sløyd knife with a Tasmanian blackwoid handle the other day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnskij Posted April 3, 2022 Author Share Posted April 3, 2022 From a market the other weekend. Still have most of the sløyds left, but the cleavers I had practically flew off the table. I don't know how I somehow fell into cleaver production, and that somehow being the most popular thing I make... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted April 3, 2022 Share Posted April 3, 2022 The signs are clear then, do NOT Cleave unto the Sloyds! People can be funny at markets, one person buys a thing and everybody else has to get one before they're all gone. Maybe have a friend walk around the market with one of your blades and talk about what a good deal it was. Hmmmm? Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 3, 2022 Share Posted April 3, 2022 And the next one might be vice versa! Always fun to make a bunch of what sold well last time and have it sit on the table while the stuff nobody bought last time sells out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted April 3, 2022 Share Posted April 3, 2022 SO true but we all know what'll happen if you didn't make a bunch of last market's good sellers. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted April 4, 2022 Share Posted April 4, 2022 One suggestion is to make stuff you enjoy forging; so you are not mad if someone wants to buy 144 others! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnskij Posted April 7, 2022 Author Share Posted April 7, 2022 Yes, I've sort of been trying to figure out what sells by making all sorts of things and after doing a few markets, I'm not all that much wiser... I have learned a couple of things though. People are more willing than i expected to buy more expensive items, and that's where I've made most of my income from sales. I sell enough hooks and key chains and such to cover the cost of doing a market basically. Also, squirrel cookers are apparently not that popular around these parts... And out on the country side the sales are more skewed towards the expensive items than closer to the city. I also got a new job with a fish exporter doing water quality management and other things as needed. Not as much hours as I'd like lately due to Chinese ports being closed but hopefully that turns around soon. Good to get a bit more income though, especially after being shafted by the university for my severance pay (they must have a whole department dedicated to making loopholes). All I got for nearly seven years of work was a kick in the backside. I shant whinge too much though. I didn quite realise how much of a toll that place had taken on my mental health. Anyways. Work in progress. New market on Sunday. Wonder if anyone wants it: Figured Tassie blackwood, copper and 5000 year old ancient redgum. Also picked up a bunch of wrought iron My strategy is definitely to make things I enjoy making. I'm always having fun when I get to fire up the forge! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted April 7, 2022 Share Posted April 7, 2022 A basic rule that served me well when I tried selling at public demos runs like this. Our main product is bragging rights, you can buy almost anything we make at a hardware store, cabinet shop, etc. What we sell is "hand made". Do NOT under price your work! If something isn't selling, up the price $10 for the next show. I did it while people were watching once and it didn't deter them from buying them all. I was demoing, making leaf finial coat hooks with twisted shaft at the state fair and pricing the 6 minutes it took me from cutting the stock to applying the wax finish at a more than profitable $9.95ea. sets of four 34.95 and they weren't selling, my little table was getting crowded. I was sharing the booth with a long unlamented ex- ass ociate who kept telling me I was pricing them way too high. $5ea. was on the high side. For me. He went to lunch and I was so sick of hearing his BS I flipped the price card over and changed the price to, $19.95 ea. Sets of four, $ 74.95. Doubling the price did the trick. A fellow who had stopped by, looked at a couple hooks and made a couple comments told me, "Under $20 that fits in a pocket makes a good seller. Under $10 just doesn't." By time my Ass ociate returned, my little table was all but cleared off and there were a couple people waiting for me to finish their hooks. It can go too far the other way too but it's always easier to drop a price than raise it. Those are my two golden rules of sales. 1, Under $20 that fits in a pocket and 2, Charge luxury prices. Nobody brags to their friends about how LITTLE a piece of art cost. They DO however brag about how MUCH it cost. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnskij Posted April 13, 2022 Author Share Posted April 13, 2022 That's a good point about pricing. I hope I'll be able to find the right balance eventually. I'll be putting up the price on some of my bottle openers next market, so should be interesting to see how that goes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George N. M. Posted April 14, 2022 Share Posted April 14, 2022 Another way of arriving at a price point is how much time you have in it. If you decide your time at the forge is $60/hour and you can make a bottle opener in 15 minutes then the price is $15 each. If you think you can get more, fine, but don't go below that because you are minimizing the worth of your skill and craft. That harms you and the craft. "By hammer and hand all arts do stand." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnskij Posted April 14, 2022 Author Share Posted April 14, 2022 I try to time myself on the things I make and price myself accordingly. I watched John Switzer's video on pricing your work and have found that quite helpful. I try to take fair market value into account as well, so for something like hooks I can get maybe $90 an hour for my time while a cleaver is perhaps $30. I certainly won't try to price myself at a level that undermines the craft or the amount of work that is put into it. I am also continuously debating whether to take my rudimentary tool setup into account. I know I'm competing with people with power hammers, forge presses and large belt grinders, so do I price my work as if I'd saved time by using these tools, or by actual hours spent? Anyways. One finished kitchen knife: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnskij Posted April 25, 2022 Author Share Posted April 25, 2022 For some reason I've gotten several requests for fire pokers on the markets. Not really something I'd expect in the tropics, but now I've made a couple at least. Good fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted April 25, 2022 Share Posted April 25, 2022 Nobody makes camp fires in the tropics? Half the reason for building one here besides being a must, is helping keep the bugs away. No bugs in Queensland? Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnskij Posted April 26, 2022 Author Share Posted April 26, 2022 Well. I mostly associate fire pokers with fireplaces. I suppose the concept of car camping and thus packing everything but the kitchen sink is always going to be foreign to me. Pack light and partially live off the land is the camping I grew up with. A fire poker never made it as part of the kit Nothing but bugs in tropical Queensland. Big enough that I could probably sell spears to fend them off with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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