We want to extend this invitation to you. The 12th Mid America Bladesmithing Symposium and Knife Show is just 6 weeks away, and will take place, as in the past 11 years, at the Miami County Fairgrounds, Troy, Ohio, August 26, 27 and 28, 2016.

We have an excellent line up of demonstrators this year. Master Smith, Jim Rodebaugh will be here from Wyoming, teaching blade forging, grinding, and heat treating. This is an excellent opportunity to learn from a master, no matter your present level of Bladesmith, you will learn a lot. If you are in to Damascus, Bill Wiggins from North Carolina, will be demonstrating Thorns and Thistles Damascus, that’s got to make you curious. Master Smith, Kevin Cashen, from Michigan will be helping you all with handles and guards. Kevin will also be in a classroom with B.R. Hughes going over judging standards, helping all get ready for presenting knives for JS. Master Smith James Batson, from Alabama and Mark Zalesky from Tennessee will be in a classroom giving a talk on Samuel Bell Knives and Bowie Knife Evaluation. Master Smith Joe Keeslar from Kentucky, will be doing a demos on leather sheaths and wire inlay. Journeyman Smith Butch Sheely will be demonstrating tomahawk forging. You should surely find something that interests you.

Our evening session for Saturday evening will have a cutting demonstration from Kevin Cashen, Jim Rodebaugh and Bill Wiggins.

If you have never attended the Mid American, I think you will enjoy the experience. The facility at the Miami County Fairgrounds is great. The Southern Ohio Forge and Anvil organization, SOFA, is our host. Sofa also hosts the Quad State Round-up every September, which draws close to 1,000 blacksmiths and bladesmiths, so they are very experienced with large hammer-ins. This makes the ABS Mid American an easy task for them and they take very good care of us.

There are two main forging stations; each with either coal or gas forges. Each station also has its own air hammer. The area for green coal, or hands on forging, has a number of coal forges with all of the hand tools required. The classroom sessions are in a large air conditioned hall, we also use this same building for the knife show, auction and the cutting demonstration. It is always a dilemma to choose what to watch or participate in each day, demonstration, classroom or hands on, but what a great dilemma to have. You see the great line up of demonstrators, some familiar some new, so I think we will enjoy learning all the techniques and ideas.

We will start our weekend on Thursday with registration time and the optional demonstrator’s dinner. Let the office know if you are able to attend so we can give an estimate to the restaurant. All are welcome and we will introduce the demonstrators and guests and enjoy a meal together.

Friday morning we will have the registration desk up and running before the demos start in case you don’t get your badge on Thursday evening.

The Auction and knife show on Saturday afternoon, August 29, is the only time that we are open to the public. We have done what we can to advertise and bring in the public so we have a better possibility of having buyers for the knife show. But the knife show is another good educational tool, seeing what others are doing, what can be done is a great learning experience also.

Please be sure to bring items for our auction. Any items made by the demonstrators at the event, blades, etc. will be in the auction. Please be generous in your participation as it is what keeps the cost of registration down and allows us to bring in great artists. We thank all who donate and buy.

Come prepared to have an energy filled weekend of learning. This will be your opportunity to learn from Masters, Journeyman and very talented piers. We all will have a chance to learn from each other as we enjoy this weekend.