How about a young gun in this category. Mark has seriously made some big time leaps in his knife making. So I'm gonna nominate him for this one.
Long dog forge
Although I don't stand a chance against you guys and I made some nice bowies this year this was one of my favorites,this is a actual user and accompanied the owner on a elk hunt were he used it to dress and quarter his elk.It's O1 with walrus oosik.13 1/2 overall.
Man... this category has some really amazing knives in this year; great showings from those makers from whom we've all come to expect greatness... but also some top-shelf pieces from some new(er) makers. :thumbup:
My vote goes to Karl. Karl consistently turns out clean work... but this knife stands out (to me) as one of his greats. It's the total package; the combination of the damascus and black guard with that rich piece of walnut... bam. The lines are clean and elegant, and that fantastic Seward sheath certainly doesn't hurt things either.