The History
I am Gavin Coleman and I have been a professional Knifemaker since 2017.
My journey into blade making began when I was working as a Self Defence and Combatives Instructor. Around 2016, my senior instructor and I began research and development on a edged weapon combative system specifically designed around the ambush scenario. This lead us quickly to discover that certain blade types were better suited to that task than others. The blade we advocated was the Pikal, and the work we did eventually became a published book called “The Maul – Preparing for the Chaos of Close Combat”.
Since childhood I had always had an interest in blade making, and since I frankly couldn’t afford to buy a custom Pikal for training, I decided to try my hand at making my own. Little did I know that this would launch a new career. Through the power of social media my Pikal design, named The Shrike, spread through the combatives community and I soon had people asking me to make them one. Not long after I founded Ironside Edge Works and spent the next 8 years figuring out the knife making business and unleashing my dormant creativity on a new artistic medium.
During that time I became more and more interested in a specific type of blade. The more I looked at them, the more fascinated I became. The Japanese sword appealed to me both on an aesthetic level and a philosophical one, and the more I began to understand about blade making myself, the more I could appreciate what the master smiths in Japan were doing.
I started incorporating the Japanese aesthetic into my own work. First with wrapped handles. It quickly became an obsession. I wasn’t satisfied with the resin coated cord wrapped handle so prevalent in the EDC knife world, I wanted to create accurate, authentic representations of Japanese Tsukamaki on a modern knife. I spent years fine tuning and developing my modern Tsukamaki handle, using genuine materials and tools I imported from Japan, and the techniques I could decipher from watching master Tsukashi do their work.
My obsession was affirmed when I was offered the opportunity to restore an antique ShinGunto that had been damaged in transit to its new owner. With a Tsuka completed snapped in half, this sword required a complete new Tsuka core, a delicate clean up of its fittings, new Samegawa and tsukamaki. It was an opportunity I relished, and once the work was complete, and the client very happy, I knew I wanted to do more work in this field.
By 2025, I had done all I felt I could in the EDC knife space. Ironside Edge Works closed its doors having taught me a lot about running a knife making business, but also leaving me wanting to pursue a deeper more meaningful craft. The Arcadian Era of my career began.
The Meaning
Arcadian is an archaic term meaning “one who lives an idyllic rural life”.
This phase of my life is also one in which I’ve begun a family, and had some thoughts of how I want life to look for them. It occurred to me that city life and 12 hour work days were no longer desirable. I wanted less stress, less commuting, and less time spent away from the people closest to me.
I have begun plans to move my workshop and home into a more peaceful setting in the countryside.
This new phase is also a spiritual one. I’ve long felt the desire to express my faith through my work. I am a devoted Christian and have begun incorporating this into my work through different themes. You will notice names, and aesthetic elements appearing in my works, as well as symbols that have deep meaning to me and my faith. I truly hope this inspires others to begin their own journey to Christ.
The
Vision
My goal for The Arcadian is ultimately to pursue the craft of Japanese Bladesmithing and produce Sole Authorship Japanese style swords. This has been an area of fascination for me for many years. I’ve put it off all this time as it didn’t quite fit into the framework of my previous knifemaking enterprise. Now though, I feel the time is right to begin this new journey.
The swords I make will of course not be real Nihonto. I’m not in the fortunate enough position to move to Japan for several years to apprentice and become a licensed smith. That however does not deter me. I still aim to produce modern works that are both functional and artistically considered. Following well thought out and composed traditional and modern themes. Making use of as much traditional techniques and skills as I can. These will be sole authorship works, meaning, no other hand is involved in the making of them except mine.
This is a daunting task for any bladesmith. The array of skills needed to produce complete works at a high level includes blade smithing, blade polishing, saya making, tsukamaki and tsogu work. All of these are considered separate careers in the Japanese tradition, with many years needed to achieve mastery.
I have given myself a period of 5 years to become proficient in these. Luckily I had a head start in the art of Tsukamaki…
There is really only one way to do this. To produce Japanese swords in the way I intend to produce them in future. I have chosen some of the most difficult paths, such as water quenching or Yaki-Ire, which is notoriously difficult and results in many broken and unusable blades, even for experienced Japanese smiths. But, its a process which produces the most visually striking Hamon, which ultimately means a more beautiful blade.
My aim is to produce works that are separate from authentic, antique Nihonto, but viable as master works in their own right. Functional blades that can be used for martial arts practice, but also artworks that may be appreciated for their beauty.
I also haven’t fully let go of my EDC knife making, and still produce one exemplary piece that I feel is a fully modern interpretation of what a Samurai may have commissioned centuries ago. Using all my knowledge of traditional Japanese swords and modern knife making, distilled into the framework of a Defensive EDC knife. I feel The Covenant is a piece worthy of all my experience, and the only modern knife I feel compelled to continue making.
I hope you enjoy following my journey. You will be able to follow much of the work I do on my YouTube Channel, and if you would like to consider supporting me, my Patreon offers deeper insights into my work.
I will be completing my first pieces in October 2025. Until then, please enjoy the process.
