Kuttin' it up with Nick "Pickle" Tobin

(Image credit: Nick Tobin)

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BRUTE de FORGE expanded our bladesmithing community this week as we headed north into Canada for the first time and chatted with Nick Tobin. Nick, or Pickle as he is best known, is the bladesmith behind Pickle Kutterz out of New Brunswick, Canada.

Recognized for his one-of-a-kind blades, Nick talked with us about the inspirations behind his designs, what he hopes to be remembered for, and how he got started as a bladesmith.

Nick’s bladesmithing origin story

BRUTE de FORGE: How did you get into forging and bladesmithing?

(Image credit: Nick Tobin)

Nick Tobin: I have always had a passion for edged tools. I did edge tool restoration for a few years about ten years ago, but life got busy, and I had to put that aside. Then, when COVID hit, I got laid off, and one day, I went out to the wood shop because I needed to do something. I don’t like idle hands, and my headspace needed something, so I went to the shop, took out a bucket of old, rusted axe heads, and restored a few. I also made a few handles for them. I decided to get back to the restoration gig but realized that it didn't have that spark for me anymore.

I am big into bush crafting and survival, and part of that is making your own tools. So, I decided that I was going to make my own knife. I made a paint can forge, put some gas torches in it with two saw blades I had cut, and made a knife.

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I made that first knife and posted it on Facebook, and somebody wanted to buy it. So, I sold it for thirty-five dollars. The handle looked amazing because I'm a woodworker, so I knew from the start that I had that part covered. I knew when it came down to handles and working with the wood and materials and glue-ups that it wouldn’t be a problem for me. Anyway, like I said, the handle looked great. The blade was rough, but it sold! Then suddenly everybody and their mother wanted one. I started taking orders, and within the first month, I had dozens of orders.

“The more time you put into it, the better you’ll get at it.”

It only took a couple of months before I got sick of the paint can forge, and I ordered a real forge from eBay. That's what started it all off, though. I purchased a grinder and all the other tools I needed, and here I am today. I have everything I need in my small shop, and I make it happen.

BDF: That is a short amount of time to go from making your first knife to being a full-fledged smith.

NT: It will be four years in March. It's like anything else: the more time you put into it, the better you'll get at it. In my first year, I had almost two hundred knives go out of my shop. From the start, I had the mentality that every knife I made would be better than the last one. I made a lot of knives that year, so I got better quickly.

BDF: Are you self-taught?

NT: Yeah, I’m self-taught, with guidance from a few makers online. Dennis Tyrell and Geoff Fader helped me out. Nick Rossi did, too. There are quite a few smiths out there that I was able to reach out to, and they were kind enough to help me out. A lot of Canadian smiths, too, like Justin Lamoureux.

I got into the community as a guideline to make knives, and it has been a great resource. YouTube is impossible for me because I cannot sit in front of a YouTube video and focus on it. It is almost impossible. I can't learn in a group setting, either. If I go to a hammer-in and we're all trying to learn something from somebody, and there are five or six people there, I'll be outside by the door, watching everything happen and taking it in. I can't handle the group setting because I can't focus.

The benefits of bladesmithing

BDF: You certainly are not the only one. I've talked to a lot of bladesmiths who have mentioned how the skill has helped their ADHD, ADD, social anxiety, and mental health in general. 

NT: That’s very true. I was diagnosed with ADHD. I went back to school when I was thirty-five, and the teachers caught on to it quickly. When I was a kid in the 80s, no one paid attention to those things. Back then, I spent most of my days in the hallway! But when I went back, they caught on quickly. I thought I would be okay during my first semester, but the second semester kicked in, and it got harder. So, I thought, “Alright, maybe I need the help.” I got evaluated so that I could get the assistance I needed. By then, though, I realized school was not for me, so I returned to the workforce. I was a construction worker before I went back to school, and when I got out, I went into woodworking, making furniture, cabinets, and things like that.

BDF: Are you a full-time smith now?

NT: Yeah, I do this full-time.

BDF: Did you find that construction and woodworking skills translate well into bladesmithing and forging?

NT: Yes. There is so much to me that makes sense—everything from the geometry to the aesthetics and the finish. For example, when I'm putting up a TV stand for somebody, I don't want it to look like s**t! If it isn’t perfect, it will bother me. It’s the same thing with my knives. I don't want my knives to be all lopsided and thrown together. I tell everybody that fit and finish is worth hundreds of dollars. You could be making knives for twenty years and still make a shitty knife if it doesn't look good and you’re throwing it together.

Home of the Pickle

BDF: Tell me about your shop.

(Image credit: Nick Tobin)

NT: My shop is called Pickle Kutterz. Pickle is my nickname, which I've had since I was a child. It was a family thing; then, it moved on to friendships, teachers, and other parents. Now, a lot of people don't even know my real name! My nephews and my niece all call me Pickle. They don't even say uncle.

Anyway, that's where Pickle comes from. Kutterz worked because I'm making knives, and you're getting cut up. So, Pickle Kutterz seemed fitting. I spelled it with a ‘k’ because I am dyslexic, and I like that I'm different, so I made the name different, too. I don't want to be in a box.

The logo was inspired by Metallica. I liked their lightning bolts. I didn't copy their bolts, but I was inspired by them. Then, green is my favorite color.

Nick’s signature style

BDF: Do you have a signature style?

I do have my own style. I like to create different blades and put out work that you haven't seen from me yet. Work that keeps on getting better. My blades are the expression of me. What you see when you're holding it is a part of me. You can see my pieces on your feed and say, “That's a Pickle Kutterz blade,” without seeing my name or the logo.

My mindset is that every blade I make is going to be better than the last blade. So, when it comes to working a batch and creating these knives, it's me literally sitting there and drawing out what I feel. If I feel like curves, I'm going to make something curvy.

(Image credit: Nick Tobin)

To determine a set style is kind of hard. It varies so much. People always say, “That blade is so cool,” but the truth is I made that one, and that's probably going to be the only one like it. I have tried to get into doing batches, but I got bored with them.

“My blades are the expression of me. What you see when you’re holding it is a part of me.”

BDF: I think there's something to be said for each one being one of a kind.

NT: Definitely. I have this one customer who ordered seven chef's knives and wanted them all the same design. Three sets had the same handles, and one was totally different. I still have two to make before Christmas, and I'm sick of them [laughing]. I don't want to go there, but I have no choice. He is a good customer, but it’s hard for me to do the same designs over and over. I’ve tried making batches of EDCs, but I get bored quickly.

BDF: It has to be hard sometimes to stay in the mindset of wanting to do your best and produce your best work but also just wanting the project to be over.

NT: Exactly. And I'm so picky about my finishes. If I'm looking for a jet-black finish on the edge and end up with carbon mitigation and ghost lines, I cannot move on until I get the color I want. I could spend a day etching one blade until I get it where I want it. That is how intense I am. I get frustrated at times, but then I sit back and do my thing. I’ve been baptized Tokin Tobin (laughing).

Nick’s design inspirations

BDF: What inspires you when designing a new blade?

NT: Curiosity and materials. I want to try things that have never been done. I made a stainless mesh-mai, which was pretty sick. That blew a lot of people's minds.

I'm always inspired to put something out that is different. Simple as that. Some people are inspired by an animal or by nature. I can't say I have that type of inspiration, but I aspire to be different, and that all comes down to what you're looking at.

Most of my customers give me the green light to create what I want. I appreciate that because I've dealt with a few picky customers, and it reminds me of my construction days and dealing with homeowners. But the one out of one hundred is okay.

BDF: Do you have a favorite project that you've worked on?

NT: It's going to sound crazy, but every project is my favorite project because when it is done, it's the best blade I've made. It comes back to making each one better than the last one.

BDF: Is it hard to part with the blades you make sometimes?

NT: Yeah. Sometimes, I slack on shipping. I tell my customers I like to keep the blades around for a week or so before shipping them. I want to be sure nothing happens to the blade. That's my excuse, but really, it is because I have a hard time letting go sometimes. I need a little more time with them.

Overcoming Obstacles

BDF: What was the most challenging part when you were learning and teaching yourself this skill?

NT: One thing I had a hard time with—that I'm okay with now—was not the process but the fear of fire. I've had a lifetime fear of fire. I was always worried about fire destroying my home or dying in a fire. I don't like fire; ironically, it scares me. At first, I would have a hard time sleeping at night because I would be worried that my shop would burn down. Now I sit around for an hour and do a fire watch before I go to bed, and then I'm okay.

(Image credit: Nick Tobin)

That was a big obstacle for me in the beginning. But other than that, there's not much that has challenged me. To me, every challenge is just a process to get through, and I enjoy it. I tell people I'm retired. I don't work. I do what I love. It comes easy to me. I believe that there are things in life that just come easy to some people.

BDF: What is it that you hope to be known for?

NT: I want to be known as a helpful person. I'm recognized in my community as someone who's always open to helping out other people. There are some makers out there who are not keen on answering DMs and helping other makers or new makers. I had the opportunity to get in with a few good guys, and so a big part for me is helping others and paying it forward. I do it a lot in the community. I always get messages with questions asking, “How do you do this? What should I do? What should I get? Where did you get this?” I'm always answering questions on Facebook Forums, as well. So, a big part of me is helping others.

“I want to be known as a helpful person.”

I've done several raffles to raise money for people in need. I had a close friend who had a brain tumor. She’s on her own and not working, so I did a fundraiser for her and sent money to help her. Right before Christmas, my sister-in-law found out she had cancer. Unfortunately, she was out of work already because she was pregnant during COVID. She was a registered nurse at the hospital, and she found out she had cancer. My little brother was busting his ass raising two kids and providing for the household and everything, so I decided to help. I held a raffle, and a bunch of other makers jumped in on it and helped out. I had forty-two prizes from other makers. We had knives, cutting boards, fire pokers, leatherwork, and even prizes from sponsors. In the end, we brought in over twenty thousand dollars within three weeks.

That is what I want to be remembered for being that guy who helps others. I know what the struggle is. I've been through my fair share of struggles, and I've humbled myself through my struggles. I've learned not to blame others and found my purpose in life.

Pickle is on the air!

BDF: I saw on your social media that you are also on a podcast. Can you tell us about that?

NT: Yeah, I'm part of a podcast now. I'm now a host of the Work for It podcast. Please go check it out! Brian Housewert from House Made is the man behind it. He's a do-it-yourself grinder manufacturer out of Florida. He makes forges, too, and he's always working on innovations and coming up with something new. He’s been a good friend of mine from the beginning. One day, I asked a question on a grinder group, and my phone rang, and it was Brian! We talked for a couple of hours, and we became good friends. I've been down to Florida at his shop four times in the past two years, and we clicked.

Brian Housewert, Bryan Kohn, and Ben Butler hosted the Work for It podcast together. Ben left, and the other two were a duo for a while. Then they had me on as a guest for an interview, and after the show, I sent Brian a message and said if you guys are looking for a third host, I'm down. They talked about it together, and they took me in. It’s been great!

I also get to help others in the podcast world as a host. We have an after-show where the Patreons can ask us a question. The questions can be life-related, work-related, project or tool-related, anything! We chime in on it all. I'm here to help people get that information out there.

Nick’s advice for would-be bladesmiths

BDF: Do you have any advice for aspiring bladesmiths?

NT: Even if it gets hard, don't give up. When those doubts kick in, conquer those doubts. Get rid of them as soon as you can because you don't want to sit around lying in those thoughts for too long. Bladesmiths like myself spend a lot of time alone. We're in our shops, and some of us don't socialize much. Often, there's a reason behind that; it's part of our personalities. Like you mentioned earlier, with the ADHD thing, we're all kind of in the same boat. I realized, though, over the past three and a half years that I have found my people. You're in a good place if you're part of these people. The maker community is an amazing group. So, keep your head up and don't give up. Even if the struggle is real and it's hard, push through it and get it done. Nobody else is going to do it for you, so push through no matter what.

“Even if it gets hard, don’t give up. When those doubts kick in, conquer those doubts.”

Also, if you need time to yourself, step back if it's the best thing for you. It works for me sometimes. When I'm in the shop for a month straight, I'll take two days completely off, and then I come back, and I'm better. Don’t forget to take time for yourself. No matter what you have going on, you have to think about yourself first.

It is a jungle out there, I'll be honest. It will humble you if you don’t humble yourself, so don't try to be anybody else. Just be kind, be good, and be yourself.

To see more from Nick, follow his Instagram @pickle_kutterz, on Facebook at Pickle Kutterz and check out his website http://www.picklekutterz.com. Also, listen to the Work for It podcast on Patreon or anywhere you download podcasts.

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