Forging a path in his mother's honor

Mar. 30—ASHLAND — Hanging on the refrigerator in Jonathan Wessel's blacksmith shop is a photo of his mother, Judith. The photo watches over Wessel as he forges knives in the former hot rod shop turned knife company, the Judith Knife Company.

"She was the hardest working woman I ever met in my life. She was hardcore. She was a police officer in England and she would not take (explicit) from anybody," Wessel said.

In 2023, Wessel opened the company in honor of his mother using the inheritance she left him.

"When we first moved to America she was cleaning dog kennels at a vet's office under the table. Literally shoveling (explicit) to provide for her family, while my dad was working nights at the post office," he said.

Wessel was born in England before they moved to America.

"I am still really proud to say it, I am a first-generation immigrant to the United States," he added.

He said his mother showed him the American dream was possible.

"She worked her way through college, became a nurse then turned to home health where she got into dialysis ... at her peak she was making like $160,000 a year all coming from nothing."

Wessel's love of knives began when he was a child.

"When I was 11 years old, my dad gave me my first pocket knife. I was hooked right then and there. This is the ultimate tool. I felt like I could do anything and it really stuck with me," he said.

Knives tailored to hunters and outdoorsmen are his target area. He offers two knife models: a Kentucky knife at a price of $250 and a West Virginia knife for $175.

"A big thing for me is I don't like to own a knife that I am not really going to use. Knives can be art, but they are functional art. To me, if you are going to make a knife and not use it, what's the point?" he said.

Wessel begins the knife-making process by ordering new manufactured steel blanks.

"I don't do any recycled steel," he said. "When you are making a knife the most crucial part of it is the heat treat — that is turning the soft steel into a hard steel."

He takes the heat-treated blanks and then grinds the bevels, or edges, into them.

All of his knives are full tang, where the metal from the blade runs though the handle. He said there are four main materials the knife handles are made of: G10, fiberglass laminate, Micarta (similar to G10) and Richlite, a recycled paper product.

He is working on a third knife, a home knife that can be used for multiple purposes around the house. The inspiration for the knife was people using nice kitchen knives for things such as opening boxes and other household tasks where the edge can be ruined.

After graduating from Russell High School, Wessel worked in West Virginia at an outdoor camp.

He then moved out West, working at TOPS Knives, in Ucon, Idaho, in the production facility doing lasering and engraving.

"I had great success in sales for them and sold knives very well," he said.

Wessel moved back to Ashland to help take care of his mother who was battling cancer. After spending time with her, the cancer went into remission. Wessel headed back out west to Las Vegas, where he worked for Jay's Sharpening.

"I was sharpening over 1,000 knives in an eight-hour day. One every 30 seconds," he said.

He then went to work at New West Knifeworks, in Victor, Idaho, where he learned a lot about knife-making.

"I was doing their production of kitchen knives, which was pretty repetitive, and they decided to open a custom shop and contacted a local custom maker who was 17 years old. He made me look like a scratch on the surface beginner; he was making world-class kitchen knives."

While working there he received a call one day from his mom, informing him the cancer had returned. He promptly quit the job and returned home to care for her in September 2021.

Wessel was living with his mom, providing in-home care, when he asked her if he could renovate her two-car garage to start making knives. The garage was where Judith Knife Company originated. From there the rest is history for Wessel, as he would then go on to making his own knives.

He said it was a dream come true. Now, Wessel hopes to expand and aim even higher.

"I want to grow my business to the point where I can give employment, I want to be able to take somebody and teach them a skillset that could benefit them ... giving people a chance to make an honest wage, something about that gets me going," Wessel said.

"We live in an area that has been ransacked with poverty," he said. "I love it here and I want to stay here; we have bred some of the most kind-hearted people."

Wessel said the pride of his work, the quality of the product and the love for knives shows his commitment to success.

"This is really all I've got," he said about the knife company. "It's the thing I've been interested in for most of my life. I have kinda put all of my eggs in this basket because if anything's going to work for me, it's going to be this and it is."

For more information, visit judithknifeco.com. Wessel can also be found on Facebook and YouTube.

(606) 326-2657 — ajohnson@dailyindependent.com