Harris Blades Keeps Austin Sharp

What do you do with an obsession? Do you embrace it? That’s what I did with motorcycles and that’s what Guy Harris did with knives.

From Obsession to Business

It was around 1990 that Harris bought a book entitled The Complete Bladesmith: Forging Your Way to Perfection, by Jim Hrisoulas. That was the beginning of his quest to learn everything he could about the art of knife making.

In 1995, he received a phone call from a buddy. This friend wanted Harris to help him build a forge and, in the process, convinced Harris to build one of his own. As things sometimes work out, his buddy never finished his forge, but Harris completed his own.

Fast forward to 2004. Guy Harris decides to go all in and opens the doors to Harris Blades.  Over the past 10 years, he’s been happily perfecting the art of bladesmithing in the greater Austin area.

I met Harris at this year’s ROT Rally and was impressed by the knives he had on display. Unlike other knife vendors at the rally (there were a few), Harris Blades’ style was utilitarian and simple. Not plain, but fluid. There were no odd curves, and each knife felt balanced in my hand, as if it were an extension of my arm. I knew when it came time to buy a new knife, I’d be calling Harris Blades.

If It’s Sharp and Metallic, Harris Blades Can Make It

The majority of knives made by Harris Blades are for utility or hunting purposes. But that doesn’t mean Guy isn’t capable of creating other types of sharp metal objects.

In fact, if it slices, dices or makes Julienne fries, Guy Harris can craft it on his propane fueled forge. A couple of his hunting knives can be seen in the movie Joe, an independent film starring Nicholas Cage. Harris informed me that his kitchen knives are frequently purchased by professional chefs, and that he’s capable of forging swords.

The largest sword made by Harris Blades was a Scottish Claymore. These things can be anywhere from 4 1/2 to 6 feet long. He’s also made a katana sword with a custom hilt in the shape of a dragon. Fantasy style swords and knives are also in Harris Blades’ repertoire, so if you’re a Game of Thrones fan and you’re in the market for a Dothraki Arakh, look no further.

Other Knife Services

Knife sharpening is also a service Guy Harris provides. Several years ago, my dad gave me a Bowie knife with an 8 inch blade. It had been a while since it was sharpened, but Harris had it squared away in a matter of minutes. Now it can fillet a sheet of paper.

Along with knives, Harris can also sharpen lawn equipment like garden sheers and lawnmower blades.

Since the Harris Blades website is still under construction, here is a brief rundown of rates and fees:

Custom built knives start at $75.00 and go up from there. The cost of an average working knife is $125-200.

Knife sharpening rates are as follows:

• $4.00 for smooth bladed knives up to 12 inches.
• $5.00 for serrated knives up to 12 inches
• $6.00-8.00 for lawn equipment, including lawnmower blades.
• Sword sharpening fees are by the inch.

Harris Blades is located at 8121 #C Research Blvd. This is directly behind Archery Country at the intersection of 183 N and Anderson Square. Their hours of operation are Monday-Friday, 9 AM-6 PM and Saturday from 10 AM-4 PM.

Special for Austinot Community

Harris Blades is running a special for Austinot readers. Guy Harris will take 50% off the total of all blade sharpening for first time customers. All you have to do is say you heard it from us at the Austinot.

You can contact Guy Harris via email at

ha**********@gm***.com











and, of course, you can follow them on Facebook.

@The_DT_Show asks:

Where do you go for knife services in Austin?

Disclosure: Harris Blades covered the cost of my knife sharpening for the purposes of this review. All opinions are my own.