Treasure hunt

His knives may not be jewel-encrusted, but the self-proclaimed neotraditionalist practically goes on a treasure hunt to make them.

“A bladesmith forges a blade from steel, raw steel. I use old found items like old springs, leaf springs, files, meat cleavers, any kind of steel that can be hardened. And I forge it out by hand. Then, I fashion found materials for the handles; I like to use old billiard balls, dominoes,” he said.

He often uses old silver coins to separate the blades and handles on his knives, while aged silver tea sets are transformed into the shiny inlays. He scours estate sales, garage sales and the Internet for “found objects,” although he sometimes takes coil and leaf springs from unwanted old cars.

“This is junkyard, outin-the-brush-patch abandoned stuff. ... You know, you pull a piece a steel out and it’s all rusty and it looks terrible, that’s what I like to use,” he said. “I put it in the forge, hammer it out in whatever shape I want, sand it off, harden it, temper it.

“The things you see that no one wants ever to have again — you know, it’s gone — to be able to get it and make something else out of it, that’s pretty satisfying.”

Worcester, 57, won the Red Earth President’s Award this year for “Big Fish,” a knife with a curved multihued handle fashioned from old pool balls and dominoes and a double-blade “tail” crafted from a wrench from a 1930s-era Ford.

“Where it’s traditional, you’d have a piece of wood, maybe a deer antler or something like that (for a handle),” he said. “I like the new and different materials, to be able to get something contemporary.”

Longtime interest

He pointed out tiny scars on his weathered hands as evidence of his longtime fascination with blades.

“I’ve always since 5 or 6 years old been interested in knives and art, and it kind of blended together,” said Worcester, who worked as a systems analyst for AT&T for 38 years.

In 1988, he attended bladesmithing school at Texarkana College in Washington, Ark., a block from where James Black forged the original Bowie knife.

“The guy that taught me at bladesmithing school, he had all kinds of things that he said you couldn’t do. And usually when I hear somebody say you can’t do something, I think, ‘Ah, I’ll try,’ ” he said with laugh.

He passed on that attitude and his artistic know- how to his son, James Daniel Worcester, 30, who is becoming an award-winning bladesmith in his own right.

“He enjoys it and he’s developing his own style and putting his own personality into his pieces,” the elder Worcester said.

“He’s always calling to ask ‘Dad, do you think this’ll work?’ ‘I don’t know, try it.’ That’s what I’ll tell him is ‘Try it.’ Usually it works and sometimes I say, ‘I’m going to try that myself.’ ”

Worcester’s grandson Christian Dodson, 6, rode along with his sister, Lily, 5, and the Honored One in the Red Earth Festival Parade Friday morning. The boy said might want to learn bladesmithing someday, since he already owns several of his grandfather’s knives.

“I have six of them. I have one this big,” he said, indicating his small middle finger.

New traditions

About 15 years ago, Worcester started making miniature knives when he ran short of material, using scraps to create tiny versions of his elegant blades. Although he jokes they are for skinning mosquitoes, the artist said the minis are popular with collectors.

His latest artistic experiment also is displayed at Red Earth: a set of daggers with intricately painted enamel handles titled “Four Sisters.”

“I like to make each piece different from the last piece. So my work 10, 15 years ago has evolved, and it’s still evolving, you know, day by day,” he said.

“I kind of look at my work as I’m making a tradition now: 50, 75 years from now, my work may be traditional.”