Was there or is there a neo-tribal logo or symbol?
I have never noticed one and was just wondering. Gib's page got me thinking of it. He says as does Dana that he subscribes to the neo-tribal way of knife making. I kinda thought a universal symbol would be kewl on the sites of like minded blade smiths, as well could be used as an icon link to other sites.

ghostdog

As far as I know the NTM's when they wer officially in existance, never had an official logo. There was talk many full moons ago of someone designing a t-shirt with a full moon or something on it, but that never materialized.

Just a thought (please don't shoot me). Wouldn't the introduction of such a logo make things very complicated? I can imagine the discussions about who has the right to put such a logo on his knives (and how neo tribal one has to be in order to get the logo). I think the knife itself as well as the personality of the knifemaker will say enough about the building and neo tribalism of the knife.

A while back before the Great Crash. Some where using a simple N T stamp on their blades. The only requirements for N T status at that time was simply to say you were N T.

I don't think any of that has changed.

The logo we worked out for the T-shirts. Was a silohoute of a howling wolf with his tail on fire, imposed on a full moon.

Apparently none of us were graphical enough to come up with the finished product.

We have only one rule and That is no rules.

Sweany,who was there at the begining of the cyber tribes and survived the Great Crash.

Sweany, who can't spell silhoute, er silhouete , outline.

Hey Tim, we're not into shooting here, per se, coyotes yes, fellow knifesmiths, no. And one other thing, since I might be receiving the big, grey beard quench in a short while, I sure don't want your physical reflexes to be off in the least because of a gunshot wound. :)

How about a simple full moon, with the words "Full Moon Knifemakers" or something around its disk? Does Neo-Tribal even exist? Does anyone claim ownership in it anymore? I for one would love to have a logo on a shirt, sign, or hot stamp proclaiming my affiliation with this group. Heck, even something themed around "The Outpost" would be cool.

just my opinion

I'm coming back to this because there was once a great debate about the identity of the NeoTribal Metalsmiths, the validity of the name, the origin of the species, and so forth. I would like very much to have a 'tribal' identity. I would like to have a t-shirt or a hat or a mark to put on my work that linked me to this greater thing we have going on here. I think I am not alone in this desire. Let's talk about it, please.

We've not changed the name, mainly because many said it is used as a reference point to find the Outpost. However since both Tai and Tim have distanced themselves from the name "Neo-Tribal", I feel it is probably best to just let it drop. One of these days if we come up with something we all like, we'll probably change the name. With all due respects to Tai and Tim, it's hard for some to just drop or forget what they feel themselves to be, because the two people who both claim to be founders want to do away with the name.

Personally, the mindset that was a big part of the original Neo-Tribal movement still lives in the hearts, and influences the work of a lot of people. Proverbs 23: 7 states: " For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he..." There is a lot of truth in that statement. So for those who really think of themselves as "Neo-Tribal," so they are, no matter what others may think.

I felt the term had lost it's usefulness, when the definitions of the term basically became a catch-all for just about everything that wasn't something else. There's a lot of people who claim to be "Neo-Tribal," and their views are often very different as to what being "Neo-Tribal" even means. Importantly, one of the tennants of NT'ism was freedom of expression--and because of that, and the fact that the NTM's were not big into rules, anybody doing practically anything could and did claim the name. Tai now uses the term "Omni-Smiths," which is actually much more accurate in describing what "Neo-Tribal" evolved into.

As to a logo, my own personal feelings are that if one is created at all, we probably should come up with something that best describes the Outpost gang without the term Neo-Tribal in it. NT was a great idea, and it was something with which I was glad to be associated, but I feel it has evolved into a much bigger animal. Perhaps we should find a new name for the new animal.

But no matter what--The Outpost will still be The Outpost, "Neo-Tribal" or not.

Hey Dana, how about a full moon with an N T on top and Blue Ridge Tribe on bottom???just guessing...Bud

How about this:

-The Outpost-

(pic of full moon)

-Knifemaker's Club-


Whaddya think?
I think we could come up with better, but my brain is fried for the day.

You are only neo-tribal if you say you are. :)

If we are knifemakers why would we put a Club on the logo :lol:
:p

Earth, wind, fire and water. Those are the four elements and we use all of them when forging. Whether it's with electricity or without, we can't change those basic elements or their functions in nature.

I'm sure we could put our heads together and come up with something including the four elements and a person manipulating them to forge iron and steel for a logo. Perhaps something as simple as some peckerwood forging a blade on an anvil with a coal forge. But a gas forge would be right too. Gas, after all, comes from this planet too.

Maybe the problem is that there's no reason to have any distinction from our forging brothers all over the world. We all have to use the basic elements in our craft. I think the true separation comes from the fact that we move the steel instead of 're' moving it. You could say that stock removal is wasteful. In a sense it is. But it's just like that drop of water. No matter what you do, you can't destroy it. You can't waste it. It exists in a closed environmental system. It will always find it's way back into it's original form. The steel ground off of knives ultimately finds it's way back to the mother earth too. It has to. It's one of the elements that make up this planet.

So...... Are we NT? Or are we just another chapter in the evolution of our craft? It feels good to be 'different' don't it? That's a big part of it for me. I care about the environment but by myself I can't do much to change how it's used and abused. But I can do my part. Reuse, recycle. Trash to treasure. Make do with what you have. Don't reinvent the wheel, just build on it. Neo-Tribal is just a mindset. Nothing more. It felt good to call myself a Neo-Tribal smith. But it doesn't have to have a name, does it? If you want to know who I am, just watch what I do. It's as simple as that. Is there a logo for that? You bet. I find it on every knife I forge. Every last bit of it came from the mother earth. That's the logo. Earth, wind, fire and water.

Remember the movie with Bogart, badges, badges we don't need no stinking badges, (or something link that). Treasure of the Sierra Madra (was that the title??).

Anyway, just my opinion
What I like about Neo-Tribal is there ain't no rules, just a bunch of iron pounder knifemakers doing what they want.

ABANA split because of rules, and the blacksmith group in the Pacific NW is in the process of doing that because of rules.

I think what I'm trying to say is, I'm looking for a common symbology that unites this group of folks. And maybe a Club is the wrong tool! :p

I'm not trying to make any rules. I'm not trying to force anyone else to use a common symbol. But I think it'd be cool to have one that was agreeable to most folks if anyone (like me) wanted to use it as a 'tribal' identifier. Maybe I'm just a wierdo, but I think that the main participants on this forum are, in fact, a community, and I like the idea of being identified as one of them.

Of course, I recognize the problem of getting a bunch of individualists to agree on much of anything. I also recognize that if someone (like me) makes some crappy knives with a logo on it, it taints the reputation of the whole group. So maybe it isn't such a hot idea. Or maybe, just maybe, we take pictures of our work (and I'm the worst at that), and the group decides if it's a "worthy" piece. I dunno. I'm rambling, I know. But when Ghostdog brought it up, something clicked in my own mind that absolutely agreed with the idea.

If it's just too contentious, I'll drop it. But let's kick it around a little bit more first, before writing it off completely.

I just like to belong. :eek:

Actually what it is, is a discussion.

One of the things we did a while back was to make medallions representing the variouse tribes I think Gene has some from several tribes.

Nothing wrong with a symbol or identification, I came close to assembling the logo and getting hats or t shirts printed up, that was just before the Great Crash. There wasn't much interest after that, we were just trying to hang on.

Dana jumped in and kept this forum going and I'm very glad he did. He is strictly volunteer and deserves our thanks.

Quite a lot of other folks have continued to help make this a great forum. With the posts and tutorials they have put together. Max has been a big help in that regard.

Alex, has been a great help in keeping the forum in good shape and in a place where we can be found.

A lot of others have contibuted also, if you get left out, don't feel bad, your are listening to an old brain here. :)

If you want a logo. Let's make one. Folllowing the NT prime directive.

Rule # 1: There are no rules!

Hey, a t- shirt made with walnut husk ink?

Badgers? We don't need no stinking badgers! :)

Maybe we could get something functional like matching band-aids or fire extinguishers.
But seriously if a logo could be agreed upon, embroidered patches could be made inexpensively and that way you could put it on your jacket, cap, leather apron etc. They last longer than T shirts.

On the idea of "clubs,"---I like war clubs. :)