I began bladesmithing back in 2008 under the teaching of Stewart MacCaskill, a 3rd generation bladesmith and iron worker. He taught me the fundamentals of using the hammer and tongs to forge a knife with attention to establishing profile, taper, and edge geometry. He also taught me how to properly use the angle and belt grinder, all the nuances of heat treating and annealing, making handles, and establishing a good edge on a knife. For 2 years I had some of the best one-on-one instruction anyone could ask for by a man who had lived this stuff for years.

Those early years were also formative to my bladesmithing career for another reason. That’s when I really started to get out and use knives every day in the woods. Making shelters, cutting natural cordage, processing game, throwing, chopping, prying, batoning, drilling, digging, carving, cutting rope and roots and anything else I could get my hands on. The hours I spent in the woods each day with my knives quickly taught me the subtle features which combine to make a knife that is useful and comfortable to use. Without realizing it, I was learning lessons about handle ergonomics, edge geometry, edge retention, taper, blade profile, cutting angles, the various strengths and weakness of different blade sizes, weights, and shapes. All of these, in addition to my continued outdoor excursions have come to play a central role in my approach to making knives.

In 2010 I sold my first knife, and as word spread more and more people became interested. I’ve been selling knives ever since. But I’m not just a knife maker, I’m a knife user, and I always have a Mars Fire knife with me to use for just about everything. I’ve been at this for more than 15 years now and can confidently say that a Mars Fire knife is going to outperform just about any other knife you can find in terms of feel, cutting ability, durability, edge retention, and ease of sharpening. Every Mars Fire knife is a hand-made, field-grade, one of a kind, working tool.

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Why Would You Choose a Mars Fire Forge Knife?

Knife Philosophy

It’s my philosophy that, just as we see all throughout nature, function should dictate the form of an object. What we see in nature is that things look the way they do because that’s the design that works best. Trees, for instance, create leaf patterns which are ideal for absorbing light, maximizing surface area. Not only this, but they’re arranged with few leaves up top and more towards the base so the tree can absorb a maximum amount of sunlight. Talons on Hawks curve back and inward so prey can not pull free, a moth’s large spots are mean to simulate eyes and scare off would-be attackers, the large eyes of the owl absorb more light so i can see in the dark and all the beautiful spots and speckles we see on animals all across the world function to help them blend in with their environment. The Point is this; All these designs exist to serve a purpose, a function, and yet we see them as aesthetically pleasing. The symmetry of the tree, the curve of the talon, the branching splendor of a deer’s antlers; all beautiful to the eye, but all designed with purpose in mind. When form properly follows function, the result is something that “looks right.”

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And that is how I design my knives. I want everything on them to be functional and serve a purpose. I want the handles to be comfortable and yet offer superior retention and control of the blade. I want the knife to be razor sharp and yet durable as well as hold a good edge. I want the steel to be shaped and tapered so as to balance the knife in hand, and provide extraordinary cutting ability. Just like in nature, I will make a knife with a purpose in mind, design the knife to serve that purpose, and allow the resulting aesthetic to work itself out. In my mind, this creates extra-ordinary one of a kind utility pieces with a subtle, organic beauty.

1 / Legacy Craftsmanship

I’ve been forging knives since 2008 and with each of the hundreds of knives I’ve made I try to get better. When you buy a Mars Fire Knife you buy well over a decade worth of experience, research, field testing, product design and and product improvement.

2 / Superior Cutting Ability

A well executed convex edge is hard to come by, because they are not cost effective for factory made knives. The smooth curving grind from spine to blade is hard for a machine to crank out, and requires the human touch and eye to properly establish and balance. When done correctly, the convex edge will cut keenly and deeply like a full flat grind, but is more durable, holds an edge longer, and is easier to sharpen. A mars fire knife can cut free hanging 1” rope (even the 3” blades) whittle, and do woodwork, but also baton through quarter inch brass and even steel rods. The secret to such a versatile edge (aside from precise heat treating) is a delicate balance between thick and thin, durability and keenness produced by years of refinement and testing.

3 / Unrivaled Durability

Thanks to the differential heat treating, Mars Fire knies are extremely durable. The spine of the knife is softened to absorb shock while the edge remains hard to keep an edge. This was the way of the old-world smiths who produced real fighting-quality blades. The result is a knife you can beat on with a steel hammer, pry with, throw, baton, or do anything else with.

4 / One of a Kind

You’ll notice your knife is marked 1-1 meaning it is the first and the last of that knife ever made. Because each is hand forged with hammer and anvil (there are no patterns or jigs involved) each knife is 100% unique unto itself and will bear its own set of distinctive features. Some forge scale, a slightly different file pattern, minute differences in taper or length, variations of the handle, the depth of the choil, etc, each knife is a creation unto itself and the only one of its kind ever made. You’re not buying a mass-produced clone, you’re buying a one of a kind tool fashioned the old way, with fire and hammer.

5 / Full Distal Taper

All Mars Fire knives come with varying degrees of taper based on the knife’s intended use and design. This is an old bladesmithing technique in which the spine is thin in the handle, thick towards the center of the knife, and thin again towards the tip of the knife. Not only is this one of the hallmarks of a well made hand forged blade, but it also provides superior balance, handling, and cutting power towards the tip of the knife.

6 / Custom Sheath

Each knife comes with a hand made and hand fitted custom leather or kydex sheath. The leather sheaths are painstakingly hand made to the highest standards. Excellent veg tan leather, hand cut, hand dyed, oiled, waxed, buffed, and stitched. All knives are finished with Obernauf, and impregnated with beeswax extending the life of the leather, increasing the retention of the knife and making the sheath resistant to the elements.

7 / Forever Warranty

I’m sure I’ve beat on these knives more than you as the owner ever will, and because of that I’m happy to offer a lifetime warranty for any Mars Fire knife. Unless you’ve purposefully tried to break the knife or acted in some ludicrous manner (say, trying to baton through a rock), I’ll happily repair any damage or remake the entire knife if needed.

Testimonials

Landen

I received a hand forged knife by Sean Powers as a gift from my wife and after using it, I can never go back to a store bought knife again. I carry this knife with me almost every day and use it for everything from skinning deer, opening packages, anything bushcraft and even splitting kindling. The spine and edge of the knife are forged just right that the edge doesn’t roll and chip when using it for splitting and busting through hard objects and the spine, flat, and tip of the blade doesn’t fracture, break or crack. I cleaned a deer with this knife this season and was able to break through the pelvic bone, cut though the rib cage and even skin and butcher the whole deer with this knife with no chips, cracks or rolling anywhere on the knife. And it’s still sharp! The attention to detail on the knife is amazing from the curly maple handle to the very impressive hamon line on the blade that tells you that the hardening and tempering of the blade was done with great expertise. Even the leather sheath included with the knife was done with just as much attention to detail. Made with real leather and wet fitted to the exact shape of the knife insures an exact fit that keeps the knife locked in tight but still easy to pull out. This is an heirloom quality knife that I’m proud to own and will be using it for years to come. I can’t recommend a hand forged knife by Sean Powers enough.

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Our Signature Aesthetic

Accipeter Bowie

The accipiter bowie was named after the genus of hawks that go after other birds. They are airborne fighters, powerful, fast, agile, and specialize in forest fighting. The agresive, quick, and combative nature of the hawk is an admirable fit for a knife which was, in keeping with its namesake, designed for combat. Building off the time tested design of a bowie knife, the accipiter adds a kukri-style recurve blade, making it a great slasher and chopper. The low point in conjunction with a curved handle places the point directly in the centerline of the knife, making it an effective and natural thruster, and deadly with snap cuts. The 7.5” blade is convex ground, for strength and edge retention, and tapered for proper balance. Stationed just behind the imposing blade is a double-quillion brass guard, modest, yet effective. I’ve completely dehorned every area of the guard and contoured it right into the shape of the handle, so the transition from handle to guard is seemless, and comfortable. Full force thrusts in both saber and reverse grip aren’t going to bloody your knuckles. Lastly the curved and contoured handle offers a variety of comfortable grips, both forward and reverse. Choke up on the knife for ultimate control, and drop your grip back to the butt for powerful chopping. At 13” overall and with a weight of 12 oz, this knife is easily carried as part of your tactical gear, or can just as easily be concealed for EDC.
The Accipeter also serves admirable as a camp knife, and survival knife. I’ve personally skinned rabbits, cut sod, batoned, done bushcraft, carved, and much more with the Accipiter. I can make these with either unsharpened, or sharpened false edge (+$35).

Mars Fire Forge Guarantee

I take the reliability and durability of my knives very personally and I want you to be 100% in love with and able to rely on the knife I make you. I also want you to be able to hand it down to your kids someday. For that reason I back up these knives 100%. If something goes wrong with your knife, send it back here and I’ll fix it. If it can’t be fixed and the damage wasn’t incurred from grossly negligent abuse I’ll make you a brand new one.