This page shares some background on the man that makes these wonderful D'Holder knives, and some photos.
This is "D" and his lovely wife Pat, who engraves many of the knives made by "D" .
D'Alton Holder ("D" as he is widely known) was born in Heald, Texas at a time and in a place where guns, rifles and knives were commonplace and accepted. D has an older brother, an older sister, and a younger brother. He and his wife Pat have two daughters and a son, and, four grandchildren.
His initial hobby was custom guns, and after one of his customers asked him to make a knife and was thrilled with it, D was hooked!
He sold that first knife in 1966 for $8.00, and now, 41 years later, he is still making knives. They cost a whole lot more now though!
D has been a full-time knife maker since 1988, and has given much back to his craft, including many years on the executive of the Knifemakers Guild (including 8 years as President), and many years and positions with the Arizona Knife Collectors Association.
He freely shares his time, knowledge and skills with others from all across America.
D's knife-making has taken place in: Denver, Phoenix, Amarillo, Farmington, back to Phoenix and now Peoria, with a different maker's mark for each place.
He does his own leatherwork, and his sheaths truly compliment his knives. Each sheath is made specifically for the knife it accompanies, and is made as each knife is completed. His wife Pat does a lot of the engraving on his knives, and is also a major factor in D's success as a knife maker.
D is self-taught, and only after he was making knives for a few years did he spend any time in another knifemakers shop (Dan Dennehy's, Don Weiler's and Harvey Draper's). He and Buster Warenski were friends and hunting partners, but they didn't spend much time in the shop together.
Photos of D'Holder knives have appeared in numerous publications (too numerous to index here), but, here is an index of the photos of D'Holder knives that have appeared in each of the 27 editions of Knives Annual beginning with the first (1981) edition and continuing to the present.
Although many folks visit D in his shop, D makes all his knives himself without any assistants or help.
I was fortunate enough to be able to spend a couple of days with D and Pat, and essentially watch a knife being made from start to finish. Here are my notes and photos from that visit: Making a Knife
And below are photos of D in the process of making a knife about 25 years ago!
One of the Knifemakers whom D attributes a lot to is Dan Dennehy. Here's a bit about Mr. Dennehy taken from the 1977 'Official Directory of The Knifemakers Guild'. D spent time in Mr. Dennehy's shop with him.
Another of the Knifemakers whom D attributes a lot to is Don Weiler. Here's a photo of Mr. Weiler taken from a promotional catalog of Mr. Weiler's. D spent time in Mr. Weiler's shop with him.
Thanks to Chuck Shipman Jr. for the photo.
Yes, a D'Holder Custom knife was used to field dress this Colorado Mule Deer.
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