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Blade Show 2021: Awards Recap

June 9, 2021

Blade Show 2021 is a wrap! The weekend-long event felt too short, but there is still much to discuss. The Blade Show awards are always an interesting snapshot of the industry, so if you haven’t had a chance to check out the 2021 winners, here’s a recap.

In the production division, the Civivi Elementum snagged the Best Buy award; it’s the simple, attractive EDC with massive appeal – and with a seemingly endless number of variations, there’s an Elementum for every taste. The Fox Saturn (see feature image; more coverage to follow this week) won big, garnering both Imported Knife of the Year and Knife of the Year. The panel of judges must have cottoned to the Saturn’s undeniable swagger, Radius Lock, and multilayered dagger blade. Kitchen knives have become a major category in the production knife world, and Benchmade received Blade Show’s 2021 Kitchen Knife of the Year award for the Meatcrafter.

In the custom realm, Jordan LaMothe won Best of Show and Best Fixed Blade. Chuck Gedraitis won Best of the Rest for a truly one of a kind automatic, shaped like a marlin fish. A new award was introduced this year, the Tony Bose Best Slipjoint award, and the inaugaural prize went to Luke Swenson for his Sowbelly Split Back Whittler.

You can check out all the Blade Show awards below:

Production Knife Awards

Knife of the Year: Fox Saturn
American-Made Knife Of The Year: Case Marilla
Imported Knife Of The Year: Fox Saturn
Most Innovative American Design: V Nives Metal-Tech
Most Innovative Imported Design: Maserin D-Dut
Best Buy: Civivi Elementum
Collaboration Of The Year: Maserin Solar
Manufacturing Quality Award: Heretic Knives
Investor/Collector Knife Of The Year: Pro Tech Malibu Titanium Ultimate Custom
Accessory Of The Year: Ulticlip
Kitchen Knife: Benchmade Meatcrafter

Custom Knife Awards

Hugh Bartrug Best Of Show: Jordan Lamothe
Best Fighter: Josh Fisher
Best Bowie: Steven Rapp
Best Folder: Javier Vogt
Best New Maker: Princeton Wong
Best Art Knife: Mauricio Daletzky
Most Innovative Design: David R. Davis
Best Damascus: Shayne Carter
Best Sword: Ilya Alekseyev
Best Fixed Blade: Jordan Lamothe
Best Tactical Folder: Brian Brown
Tony Bose Best Slip Joint: Luke Swenson
Best Of The Rest: Chuck Gedraitis
Best Utility Hunter: Eric McCright
Best Kitchen Knife: Bill Burke

Industry Awards
Publisher’s Award: J. Bruce Voyles
Industry Achievement Award: Willey Knives

Knife in Featured Image: Fox Saturn

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