American Knife Company | Small-Batch Knives Made in the USA

Our Standard

What we stand for

Made in the United States. All of it.

Built and assembled in the USA with American components to the greatest extent we can. That was the rule when the company was founded and it is the rule now.

Small batches

We build in short runs, small enough that every knife gets looked over by someone who knows what to look for.

Materials and standards

We buy the best steel and handle materials available, then hold the heat treatment, the grind and the fit to standards we would put up against anyone's.

Backed without conditions

Every knife carries a lifetime warranty against manufacturing defects. If your knife fails under normal use we will make it right.

The Range

What we make

Historic

American patterns that earned their reputation in service, built again with modern materials and tighter tolerances than the originals ever saw. The MK2 is the first. A pilot's survival knife is next.

Hunting

Knives shaped around the real work of a hunt: field dressing, skinning and camp chores. Sized to carry all day and to hold an edge through the whole job.

Everyday and kitchen

The knives that see the most use are the one you carry and the ones on your counter. They get the same materials and the same standards as everything else we make.

Design

Designed by people who live for knives

Our designs come from inside and outside our own walls. We go to knifemakers whose work we respect and ask them for the knife they would want to carry. Then we build it the way they drew it.

Matt Martin of Vehement Knives designed the MK2. More collaborations are on the bench.

The Company

Built by someone who has needed one

American Knife Company was founded by Jim Nowka to build knives and tools for harsh environments, the kind that have to work when there is no second option.

Jim came to it the long way round. He farmed the rocky ground of northern Michigan, then worked as an operator in the Middle East. Along the way he owned and ran KnifeForums and consulted for Blade Magazine, which put him on first-name terms with most of the cutlery industry. All of it went into the knives.

Today the company is owned by Jason Thoune who wanted to preserve this great company. He's spent years selling the best knives made in this country, and knows what separates a good one from a great one. Jim's standard has not moved. What we have added is range. More designers, more patterns, the same reason for building them.

The Knife

The MK2

The MK2 is the first of our Historic patterns: an American design that earned its reputation in service, built again with modern materials and tighter tolerances than the originals ever saw.