Work Harder, No One Cares

Back in the Shop — Barely Holding Together (Just Like Me)

To say it’s been a long, hard road would be the understatement of the damn year. My injury didn’t just throw a wrench in the gears — it blew the whole damn machine apart. My life got flipped upside down, shaken, and then kicked square in the teeth.

I wish I could tell you I’m making some big, Hollywood-style comeback — better, faster, stronger. But the truth? I don’t know if that’s in the cards. And that’s a hard pill to swallow.

What I do know is this — my fire for knife making hasn’t gone anywhere. If anything, it’s burning hotter than ever after being away from the shop this long.

First Day Back: Like Opening a Time Capsule... of Pain

Walking back into the shop hit me like a freight train. Joy, frustration, a burning urge to get to fucking work, and a strange sense of being home — all at once.

Dust on everything. Tools right where I left them. Blades from the class I was teaching before my last work trip still sitting on the table, just waiting for a finishing touch. It was like time had frozen.

Then I tried turning stuff on… and the place basically went to shit.

The Great Shop Meltdown (Starring Dry Rot and Rage)

• First, the big ass shop door wouldn’t open. $4,500 later — boom, it finally worked.

• Then the rubber drive wheel on my horizontal grinder dry rotted and disintegrated like it had seen some serious shit in my absence.

• Tried to cut some scales on the bandsaw — gasket on the wheel dry rotted and snapped mid-cut.

• Went to fire up the sandblaster — the damn power button for the suction was dead.

• Said screw it, tried to finish with the stonewasher. It ran for three glorious minutes before the drive belts gave out. Yep…you guessed it, dry rot. Again.

At this point, I wasn’t sure whether to laugh, cry, or take a flame thrower to the place for insurance money.

Where We’re At Now

The shop’s limping, I’m limping, and everything seems held together with zip ties, duct tape, and a few stubborn hopes. But I’m back. The work ain’t going anywhere — and honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way. There’s something damn near magical about turning a worthless hunk of steel into a badass tool that’s ready to work. That’s why I do it. That’s what keeps me coming back, destroyed shop and all.

It’s gonna take some time to get this machine running smooth again — both the shop and the man behind it — but we’re not done. Not even close.

So bear with me. If you’ve been riding with Stand To Blade Company for a while, I appreciate the hell out of your patience. If you’re new here, welcome to the chaos.

We're not polished. We're not perfect. But we damn sure keep moving forward.

Stand To.