About
About

My name is Colin Shannon I'm the owner and sole proprietor here at Shannon Steel Labs.
Here is my story:
This all started from learning how to sharpen knives and Youtube. I learned how to sharpen knives in boy scouts. The makers on Youtube that inspired me are Gavko Knives (Mike Gavac), Tuffthumbz (Geoff Blauvelt), and Jake Hoback.
Starting in December 2012, I decided to try my hand at knife making. I ordered a piece of tool steel, CPM D2 to give it a shot. I finally finished it an had it Professionally Heat treated in the summer of 2013. Looking back it wasn't very pretty, but it cut extremely well.
I then started trying different steels, and kept trying new grinds and blade shapes. I eventually had my first custom order from a acquaintance in High school. A Tanto in CPM 3V, a super steel known for extreme toughness and very good edge holding. The end result was heavier than expected, but the Convex grind and the steel performed far above the Clients expectations.
Fast forward a few years and I consistently have orders on the books. I have expanded my Steel offerings to include all the latest super steels and much more. Several popular steels are 3V and Z-Wear, as well as some stainless steels including Z-Finit.
I always welcome custom designs. I have several models that I have found to fill various roles very well, if not perfectly. I constantly improve my models and nearly all of my designs are 100% handmade with the exception of a few models being cut from waterjet.
All of my knives are professionally Heat treated at Peters Heat Treating.
Steels I can use:
Carbon:
Cru-Wear, Z-Wear
M4, PD-1
4V, 10V, REX 121
3V, Z-Tuff, Z-Max
52100, O1, D2, Maxamet
Stainless:
M390/ 20CV
Z-Finit
AEB-L, NITRO-V
ELMAX, VANAX
CPM S30V, S45NV, S90V, S110V, S125V
Books/Orders: closed due to move **
Lead Time, Stock: 2 weeks**
Lead Time, Custom: 1-3 months**
**Subject to Change


Pictures of 3 knives fresh out of Heat Treat. This shows the oxidation layer from the hardening process before finishing.
A Tanto with a Micro Swedge option. This option adds more character to the knife and also helps reduce any stress risers from a sharp 90 Degree spine.