Ballito knifemaker Clyde Challenor has more than 300 knives under his belt

Technical director for a packing automation company by day, knifemaker by night, Clyde Challenor spends dozens of hours working on a single blade.

It all started years ago at the age of 4 when Clyde was given his first Swiss Army knife by his grandmother, sparking an interest in knives for the bladesmith who today has a collection of more than 40 unique knives, mostly Chris Reeves and South African Customs.

While his collection may have grown over the years, so too has his passion for knives.

But despite not being an accredited bladesmith, Clyde says he has no plans of going pro anytime soon.

“I do not want to risk having my passion start to feel like a job,” he said.

The Ballito resident said his passion for making knives started after he broke his back in a cycling accident and needed to find a way to channel his energy.

“My first step was to build a grinder – from there I just had a go at trying to make one knife,” said Clive, who estimates that he has made just over 500 folding knives.

He spends up to 40 hours working on a single blade, with blade styles preferred including viper, talon and hornet.

Eight years down the line, Clyde has made hundreds of folding knives and says that he is very specific about what kind of materials and styles he likes to use when making them.

Commonly, one may expect to find wood in a folding knife, however this is not the case for Clyde.

“I prefer working with materials which include a form of stainless Damascus steel from Sweden called Damasteel. I am not really a fan of wood, and also enjoy working with titanium and composites.”

Typically, bladesmiths would use a forge to make knives, however Clyde prefers to use a combination of computer numerical control (CNC) methods and handwork, ensuring high-precision.

A CNC machine processes a piece of material to meet specifications by following a coded programmed instruction and without a manual operator directly controlling the machining operation.

“It’s about the enjoyment I get from it.”

For those who are looking at entering the knifemaking world, Clyde only suggests that patience is key.

To stay up-to-date on Clyde’s knifemaking journey, follow him on Instagram at @clydechallenor.

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