Top 4 Weapons Made On Forged In Fire

            Forged in Fire is a hit reality show on History channel. In the show four competitors compete to make a knife out of a random material every week. After the blade is forged, it is presented to the judges and they determine which competitor to send home. The remaining three then put a handle on their blade to make it a fully functioning weapon. After a series of tests, one more contestant is sent home. The remaining two competitors then have five days at their home forges to make a predetermined iconic weapon from history. These weapons are then put to the test, and a winner is determined to receive $10,000 and the title of Forged in Fire Champion.

Jamie’s Roman Gladius

            In season 1, Episode 7 “The Roman Gladius”, Jamie and Mareko went head to head to forged an accurate reproduction of the iconic roman gladius. Jamie’s blade was made out of a beautiful Damascus blade with a wooden handle featuring “Fortune Favors the Bold” carved into the handle in Latin. Both Jamie and Mareko’s blades preformed amazingly in a sharpness test against a bunch of tangled vines, kill test against a ballistics dummy, and a strength test against another roman gladius. The test were so neck and neck, that Jamie only won because Mareko’s blade picked up a slight bend in the hilt during the strength test.

Pete’s Crusader Sword

            In season 1, episode 5 “Crusader Sword”, Dave and Pete were tasked with creating a historically accurate crusader sword. Dave chose to make his blade out of 5160 Steel, a very common and simple steel to work with. The handle was made of walnut, featuring a leather band in the center, and all covered up with a thin deerskin hide. Pete made a very beautiful Damascus blade, with a beautiful handle and cross guard. Both blades were tested by delivering a blow to a fully dressed crusader dummy from horseback at full gallop; and then again on the same dummies from foot. Both blades preformed admirably in the kill test, and it was on to the strength test. For the strength test, each sword delivered 5 blows onto cow femurs. While Pete’s sword made it partially through the first bone without taking any damage, Dave’s sword made it through the first bone and into the second; though it did pick up a bend and lots of blade rolling and damage. Because of the damage to Dave’s blade, and the performance of Pete’s blade, Pete became the new Forged in Fire champion.

Ben’s Scottish Claymore

            In season 3, episode 1 “Champions Edition”, 4 previous champions were brought back and tasked with creating a Scottish Claymore. Matt created a 57.5 inch claymore with a 43 inch blade. Ben’s claymore had a 40.5 inch blade with a cross guard and pommel made from a rod iron anchor chain with 24 karat gold inlayed into the pommel and a Damascus blade. The first challenge was the bullet split, where each blade was required to split a .45 ACP bullet fired at it. Matt’s blade split the bullet with ease, and only a small but of dulling on the blade where it was struck. Ben’s blade was next, and it was able to split the bullet with nothing more than minor scratching where it was struck. Next was the sharpness test, where the blades would have one blow delivered to the front legs of a “horse”, simulated by sugar canes. Matt’s blade cut cleanly through the sugar canes with ease; while Ben’s blade cut cleanly through one leg and only partially through the other. Next, for the kill test, each blade was put to the test against a pig carcass. During the second season, blade smiths were also tasked with creating Scottish claymores, but when it came to the kill test against pig carcasses, on blade bent and wrapped around the pig, while the other shattered completely on impact. Matt’s blade was first, and when it struck the pig, the blade lacerated the skin, but ultimately it was too flexible to cut; therefore, failing the kill test. Now it was time to test Ben’s blade, and as his blade struck the pig, it cut cleanly through with ease; almost as if the pig wasn’t even there. Because of his performance in the kill test, Ben became the first 2 time Forged in Fire champion.

Hook Sword

            In season 3, episode 2 “Fan Favorites”, Dave returned from the Crusader Sword episode to go up against Rich from season one to create a Hook Sword. For the sharpness test, each blade was put to the test cutting through 3 rolled up mats filled with rice. Rich’s blade cut cleanly through all 3 mats with no issues whatsoever, while Dave’s blade was sharp enough to cut into all 3 mats, but not sharp enough to cut all the way through any of them. For the strength test, each blade was hit twice against two Terracotta warriors. Rich’s blade was first, and though it did pick up a very slight bend and slight edge deformations, it faired fairly well. Dave’s blade performed amazingly, smashing the warrior to pieces and only picking up slight edge deformation. It was a very difficult decision for the judges to make, but ultimately Dave’s blade came out on top because of the way it destroyed the Terracotta warrior.

            With 5 seasons and counting, it is difficult to pick out only 4 weapons to be at the top; however, these are the 4 that I personally believe to be at the very top. I encourage you to check out the show and decide for yourself, however, because my top 4 may greatly vary from your top 4.

5 Members of the Firearms Industry who started on Social Media

Social media is a great place to get your brand name out to the public and to gain a following. This is especially prevalent with the social media site YouTube. Here is a list of five prominent figures in the firearm industry who have gained their status through social media.

Tim Harmsen (Military Arms Channel)

Tim Harmsen, more commonly known as Tim from Military Arms Channel has grown to become a very prominent voice in the firearms community thanks to his great followings on social media, specifically YouTube, where he has 680 thousand subscribers; however he has a very prominent following on both Facebook and Instagram. Tim has used his following on social media to become politically involved, using his pages to push for and promote movements to repeal the NFA (National Firearms Act), which prohibited the sale of SBRs (Short Barreled Rifles), SBS’ (Short Barreled Shotguns), suppressors, and fully automatics; the Hughes Amendment, which prohibited sale and import of fully automatics, and many other movements. Tim has most recently been rallying his following against censorship of right wing and conservative channels on YouTube; as well as rallying against the NRA (National Rifle Association) for supporting backdoor gun legislation. Tim has also used his success to promote the business Copper Custom Armament of which he is a partner, and has partnered with Forged From Freedom to create apparel in support of his YouTube channel and the movements he is involved in.

Collins Idehen (Colion Noir)

Collins Idehen, or better known as Colion Noir, started his career in the firearms industry as YouTuber who would post firearm related content on his YouTube channel Colion Noir, which has a subscriber count of 626 thousand. Today, Colion is a gun rights activist, lawyer, and an NRA commenter. Colion has his own show on NRATV, titled NOIR, which currently has 6 seasons, with more to come. On his show, Colion reviews different firearms, has conversations with those on the anti-gun side of the isle, competes in shooting competitions with others in the firearms industry, and much, much more. Colion is a very charismatic speaker, and when you listen to him talk, there is no doubt that he is a lawyer; strictly based on how he speaks. Colion has used his social media following to promote his apparel brand The Pew Pew Life. Colion has gained a great following over social media, and uses it to promote the fight for gun rights and the movements which he believes in.

Matt Carriker (Demolition Ranch)

Matt Carriker, better known by his YouTube channels Demolition Ranch and Vet Ranch is a veterinarian in Texas, who makes videos of both his job (Vet Ranch) and his hobby, which is all things firearm related (Demolition Ranch). Matt makes more humorous videos than the above two, and goes above and beyond to make amazing videos that most could not. He uses his resources as a vet and his massive 4.7 million subscriber base on YouTube to fund videos and experiments that others would not have the resources to pull off. Matt became famous by uploading videos onto his YouTube channel of him loading shotgun shells with unconventional item, including legos, and testing the damage that they would deal out against a ballistic gel torso.

Greg and John Kinman (Hickok45)

 

Greg Kinman, alongside his son John Kinman, have together created the very successful YouTube channel Hickok45, with just over 3 million subscribers. Hickok45 videos feature Greg talking about and shooting firearms, while his son John is behind the camera; however there is a second YouTube channel, Hickok45andson with 171 thousand subscribers, where the roles are reversed, featuring John front and center while his father Greg is behind the camera. Greg and John are both very active on other forms of social media as well, including John and Greg’s Facebooks and John and Greg’s Instagram accounts. Greg and John use their platform to educate their viewers about historical firearms, as well as promote movements of which they are passionate.

Richard Hewitt (Nutnfancy)

Richard Hewitt, more known by his YouTube channel Nutnfancy, where he has a 743 thousand subscriber following, is an Air Force Veteran from Utah, who tests equipment, including but not limited to firearms, extensively in some of the harshest conditions in order to provide in depth, accurate reviews on YouTube. It is not uncommon for him to upload videos over 30 minute in length, including some exceeding an hour in length. Richard prides himself with his extensive testing, often time pushing the gear that is being tested to their breaking point. This is often the reason that his videos are so long in length, his tests are so in depth, that it would be impossible for him to cover all of the data he has recorded in a shorter time.

In conclusion, social media sites such as YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook are great places to get your brand out there and get established. There are countless more stories of people who have started out on social media, and gone on to make a living off of the social media content they create.

5 Weapon Makers Who Have Become Successful Because of Social Media

Starting a business is a huge step, and having the correct people see your products is key. This can be extraordinarily difficult when you’re dealing with a very niche market. One such market is the gunsmithing and knife making market. These are both very specific products for a very small number of people. Because the market for these specialty items and services is so small, it is crucial that you market to the right people. This is where social media comes in. Social media like Facebook and Instagram are great places to reach people who would be interested in such services. On these sites, you can promote your business and show off your products at little to no cost to you.

The EZ Rack

 A friend of mine created the EZ Rack, a small device that can be attached to the back of Glock brand pistols to allow for easier or one-handed manipulation of the slide. The main way that he went about marketing his product, aside from going to gun shows and physically showing it to people, was on his Instagram page (https://www.instagram.com/ez_rack/). On Instagram and Facebook, he is able to successfully market for both his product, the EZ Rack, and his gun shop, APB Arms.

Uintah Precision, The UPR-10

            Another example of someone successfully using social media to market their product, is my friends at Uintah Precision. Uintah Precision are the creators of the UPR-10, an AR-10 upper than seamlessly transforms a standard, semi-automatic AR-10 rifle chambered in .308 Winchester, into a highly precise bolt action rifle for long distances in a variety of calibers. This is done by simply unpinning and removing the semi-automatic upper and pinning on their custom-made bolt action upper. On their Instagram page (https://www.instagram.com/uintah_precision/) they’ve been able to market their product and gain the attention of many in the firearms industry.

Walter Sorrells

Another niche market that is difficult to market towards in that of custom made knives. Custom knives can bring in upwards of $1000 if made by a quality knife maker with a well known name and a reputation for making quality blades. One great example of a knife maker using social  media to promote and advertise for his business is Walter Sorrells. Walter is a professional knife maker who also runs a very successful YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/user/slappybuckshot ). On his YouTube channel he teaches the art of knife making to both aspiring knife makers and professionals alike.

            Walter Sorrells teaches his viewers how to make knives using little to no power tools, using only tools that most people will have access to. This isn’t all that he does, however, he also advertises for his own custom knife business, where he sells his own professionally made blades. Walter also uses Facebook and Instagram to advertise and market his business, however his biggest following is on his YouTube channel.

Alec Steele

Another knife maker worth noting is Alec Steele, a young blacksmith from the United Kingdom. Though he doesn’t sell his product online like Walter Sorrells does, he still uses his YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/user/alectheblacksmith ) to promote his forge in the United Kingdom, sell merchandise, and advertise for his blacksmithing classes that he teaches. Alec draws in an audience of over 669 thousand subscribers by making beautiful blades that are both works of art, and functional blades; as well as doing very challenging builds that even the most experienced blacksmiths would struggle with.

Eli Orzechowski, ZNA Productions

Perhaps my favorite blade maker is Eli Orzechowski, or more widely known as ZNA Productions on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/user/nonlethalbychoice ). Though Eli doesn’t have a knife making business, he makes his living off of entertaining and teaching others about weapon making using very unconventional means; as well as a merchandise shop. Eli has nearly 1.1 million subscribers on YouTube and has accumulated a rather large following from making these videos teaching about blade making, among other things.

          

  Accumulating a following for your business on social media, though being one of if not the best medium for promoting, is still no easy task. One popular way to gain followers and spread awareness of your business is known as the “follow for follow” method, in which you follow every likeminded page of Instagram for example, with hopes that they will in turn follow you back, causing them to see all of your posts and become aware to your business. I personally have found and purchased products from companies because they’ve followed me on Instagram, and after viewing their page, I have decided to follow them back. One downside to this method is that it can make the consumer feel as if they’re not special if you are just following everyone with hopes to spread your business. I personally will ignore these follow for follow pages if I go to their page and they are following thousands of pages with very few followers.

            To establish a reputable business on social media, you have to provide a quality product.  Social media is a great place for anyone who has a bad experience with your business to tell about it and spread it to many people very quickly. If social media is your main medium for advertising, you must be especially careful and be sure to provide quality service for your consumers.