Conversations with Jesse Bruner

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jesse Bruner

Hi Jesse, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I have always had an obsession with tools since I can remember. Antique machinery in particular and specifically metalworking. I am not completely sure how the initial interest occurred, but I think it might have something to do with my dad allowing me to cut up an old washing machine with a cutting torch. (I was quite young and mom was not happy.) From there it was around fifth grade when I bought my first coal forge at a farm auction. Freshmen year of high school I acquired my first power hammer. During high school I job shadowed a local machine shop that worked with food grade stainless steel and I was offered a part time job the same day. That is how I got experience tig welding, cnc machinery, lathes, mills and blueprint reading. After graduating high school I went to tech school for welding and continued to work my part time job. I competed in Skills USA for welding and managed to place first in Kansas, sixth in the nation, and compete for the USA spot to compete in Russia. Although I didn’t get selected to represent USA it was a great learning opportunity and helped me get my next job. From there I worked at BNSF Railway as a boilermaker.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It hasn’t been a smooth road and there has been plenty of issues, but there were two bigger issues. First is having a spot to do my work and second is getting laid off from the railroad. I worked exactly two years for the railroad before getting laid off. Around that same time me and my parents went in together on building a shop. They covered the main structure and I covered the concrete floor and electrical. Up until that point I never had a good place to work, just the bare minimum set up under a large cedar tree. Luckily I had some good friends that were letting me store some of my larger equipment in their out buildings up until this point. I attended college during this time pursuing a mechanical engineering degree and was also getting to work on my photography covering a lot of college sports. I managed to finish an associates degree before getting called back to the railroad and giving that another shot. Around a year later I abruptly got laid off with half of the shops boilermakers again. Now I am currently full time doing metalwork/photography. As I continue to navigate being a entrepreneur getting laid off the second time might have been a blessing in disguise putting me on a crash course of doing what I enjoy.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I specialize in making custom forged knives. Mostly kitchen knives and I find it a lot of fun to make daggers. I have made a few swords and have plans of doing more of them. Swords are very time consuming and are difficult just due to the length, but are rewarding in the end. One thing that sets me apart from others is that I have fenced since I was six years. For that reason it only makes sense that I make swords. It’s neat because I have made some of the blades that I use for historical fencing. That also gives me a good feel for how a proper blade should handle. I am proud of the people that I have met along the way. There has been great guys that have been extremely knowledgeable and that I have acquired equipment from. Sometimes it feels like I was born in the wrong time period and it is neat to combine modern techniques with an ancient craft.

Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
Knife making is very technical when it comes to making a quality blade, but can soon become extremely artistic. Knives at their root are a tool, but can soon resemble more of a piece of jewelry than a knife. It is important to make blades that you like and also appeal to customers. Keeping a good reputation is critical while also working on building a following to get noticed by collectors as a way to make more time consuming artistic pieces. I am currently trying to build publicity of my knife making, for example I will be attending my first knife show next month. I kind of veered around the question, but staying determined/motivated is most important to my success.

Pricing:

• Custom knife prices very greatly due to time, complexity, and materials.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://forgesandtorches.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/forges_and_torches/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrOBx_JeT1Kule6hOXFlJPw
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@forges_and_torches