[music playing]
Bladesmiths, welcome to the strength test.
Mike, you're up first. You ready?
Yeah, man.
All right.
[music playing]
Nice job.
Your blade took some deformation in the test.
There's definitely some rolls big enough for me to get
my fingernail underneath.
The rest of the knife I really like.
Well done. - Thank you.
Thank you.
Cody, you're up next. You ready?
Let's do it.
All right.
[music playing]
Your edge held up relatively well.
There's some minor deflection but not much at all.
The big problem I have is this handle.
This is a very narrow handle.
Man, it was just really difficult to index,
and it kept rolling in my hand.
This is about half as tall as I'd like to see.
That being said, well done.
Thank you.
Rob, you're up next.
Let's do it.
All right.
[music playing]
Bone's hard on a knife, man.
You've got a bunch of chipping along the edge here.
The handle is very comfortable.
In all, your knife held up.
Well done.
Thank you.
All right, bladesmiths, the pork shoulder slice.
A sharp edge and a hook should easily
cut through this piece of meat.
Mike, I'm about to go hog wild.
You ready?
Yes, sir.
[music playing]
Your gut hook worked nicely.
Once it got in there to start cutting, it separated the skin.
You do have some rolls on your edge over here,
but it did not cause any issues at all in cutting the meat.
Overall, sir, it will cut.
Awesome.
Good job.
Thank you.
Cody, you're up.
Are you ready?
I am.
Let's do this.
[music playing]
All right, Cody.
First off, your gut hook.
The tip you have over here doesn't
easily penetrate and lacerate.
But it did cut.
Your edge over here is sharp enough to cut easily
through this pork shoulder.
Overall, sir, it will cut.
Thank you.
All right, Rob.
Are you ready?
Let's do it.
I'm really hoping this gut hook works,
and I'm hoping those chips on the edge don't
affect how it cuts the meat.
[music playing]
All right, Rob.
Let's talk about your blade right here.
The angle and the way you have your gut over here,
there's no sharpness to this at all,
so that when you capture right there in the tip,
it doesn't cut easily.
Then, when I have to angle the blade
to penetrate and cut down, you have to put force into it.
Now, your edge, despite taking some rolls here,
was sharp enough to cut through this pork shoulder.
Overall, sir, your knife will cut.
Thank you.
Bladesmiths, the judges have completed their deliberation.
It's time for one of you to leave the forge.
Rob, your blade didn't make the cut.
Rob, aside from your blade taking the most damage
in the strength test, the gut hook, a key parameter,
underperformed its function.
And for that reason, we're sending you home.
OK.
Rob, it's that time.
Please surrender your blade.
I feel a little disappointed.
Not having as much time to work on my blade in the first round
definitely hindered me in being able to get
a good heat true to my blade so it wouldn't take damage.
This entire experience was amazing.
It was a challenge.
But at the same time, I made a blade in 4 and 1/2 hours,
and I think I did really well for that.