06/25/2026
See Featured Knifemaker – Jim Clow
You only need to talk with Jim Clow for a few minutes before learning three main things about him and his knifemaking. First, he always wants to be challenged. Second, he is an open book and shares his knowledge. Third, his wife Bev is part of everything he does in knifemaking and in life.
Jim and Bev live in Brooks, Alberta. They have three grown children and five grandchildren. Knifemaking entered their lives 26 years ago after Jim heard about a knifemaker who taught courses in Lethbridge, Alberta. Jim is a Welder/Fabricator and it was the combination of the machinery, materials, fire, and taking raw steel and wood and forming it into a knife that immediately hooked him into lifelong knifemaking.
Jim has never stopped challenging himself. For the first 14 years, he made fixed blades until longtime knifemaker/friend, Roger Hatt, showed him how to make a liner-locked folder. Folders continue to give him the greatest satisfaction and challenge.
Jim has been fascinated with making Damascus, and about 10 years ago, he spent 2 years just making and learning about Damascus. “I started from very basic and evolved to complex patterns and canister Damascus.”
The second thing you quickly learn about Jim is that he shares his knowledge freely. When people ask him about a technique, he creates a video and shares it on his Instagram and Facebook.
The third thing about Jim is Bev. She has always been 100% behind Jim’s knifemaking and everything he does. Bev has both a creative and a critical eye. He says, “She gives me input into materials that work well together and with each completed knife, she finds something that I could have done better. She is my greatest supporter and my best critic.”
Jim makes about 30-50 knives a year. His knives sell all over North America.
His favourite steel is Damascus, using 15N20 and 1084. For handle material, it is mammoth ivory. He says, “It is awesome to work with 15,000-30,000-year-old material. It is pure beauty.”
See more of Jim’s knives: https://www.instagram.com/jim.clow/
See his full story on our Website: https://www.knifemaker.ca/blogs/news/jim-clow
