Craftsmanship Crowned: Winners of the 2026 Custom Knife Awards at BLADE Show.
The 2026 Custom Knife Of The Year® Awards once again took center stage at BLADE Show, held June 5–7 at the Cobb Convention Center in Atlanta. As always, the event drew some of the finest custom makers in the world, and this year’s field was especially fierce. Keeping pace with the massive momentum of last summer, the number of custom entries remained roughly the same as last year, ensuring a brutally competitive arena for the makers.
A panel of expert judges had the unenviable task of selecting standouts across a range of categories, recognizing the blades that best embodied design, innovation and craftsmanship. From elegant folders to bold fighters, here are this year’s winners—including the coveted Hugh Bartrug Best in Show.
Best Of Show And Best Custom Art Knife
Jean-Louis Regel
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Best Custom Bowie
Matias Funes
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Best Custom Collaboration
Honore Vilain/Camille Sennegon
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Best Custom Damascus Contender
Gabe Fletcher
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Best Custom Damascus
Julian Antunes
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Best Custom Fighter Contender
Jordan LaMothe
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Best Custom Fighter
Matias Funes
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Best Custom Fixed Blade
Julian Antunes
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Best Custom Folder
Moro Knives
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Best Custom Handle Design
Don Nguyen
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Best Custom Hunter
Camille Sennegon
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Best Custom Kitchen Knife
Will Stelter
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Best M.A.C.K.
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Best Custom Miniature
Rhidian Knives
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Best New Maker
Brent Mathison
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Best Custom Single-Blade Slip Joint
Honore Vilain
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Best Custom Multi-Blade Slip Joint
David Kramp
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Best Custom Sword
David Goldberg
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Best Custom Tactical Folder
Sergey Shirogorov
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Custom Best Of The Rest
Fabio Barros
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