Welcome back to The Shed Knives Blog for edition #93! If you’re new here, welcome to the community. At Shed Knives, every decision traces back to one mission: build the best knives possible, faster than anyone else, with zero compromises. That standard pushed us to a major shift in 2026—moving to 100% in-house manufacturing. No more waiting on outside vendors. No more bottlenecks. No more unknowns. Just complete control over quality, speed, and innovation.
This wasn't a small upgrade either. It was a foundational change driven by necessity, vision, and a relentless pursuit of excellence. Today, I’m breaking down why we made the move, how it transformed our production capabilities, and what it means for our customers and the knife industry as a whole.
1. Speed Is a Competitive Weapon
Product based businesses live or die based on how quickly they can design, refine, and ship their products. For years, the biggest constraint on our growth wasn’t demand—it was waiting. Waiting on external circumstances that could be brought in-house & sped up.
Waterjet lead times:
2–3 weeks per order.
Heat treat lead times:
Another 2–3 weeks.
Laser engraving lead times:
Another 1-5 days.
Multiply that by multiple cycles per year, and you’re losing months of progress. Months where knives could’ve been in dealers’ hands. Months where new designs could’ve been tested and refined. Months where momentum is held hostage.
That level of stagnation is unacceptable when the goal is to become the best in the industry.
Bringing everything in-house allowed us to eliminate delays entirely. If we need a batch today, we run it today. If we need adjustments tonight, we make them tonight. The shop can run 24 hours a day with the right staffing, which means we can maintain speed, consistency, and pressure nonstop.
Speed builds momentum. Momentum builds dominance.
2. Extreme Control Over Quality
Quality isn’t something you can outsource. Not at the level we demand.
When you rely on external companies, you’re relying on their standards, their measurements, and their attention to detail. And frankly—we have no idea how many brands actually measure every blade, every scale, every tolerance. My guess is, they are only measuring 1-5% of knives per batch, which is practically complacent behavior when it comes to production quality.
We measure everything.
With in-house manufacturing, we can:
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Measure every knife to exact tolerances
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Inspect every G10 scale
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Track tool wear and measure bits regularly
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Control material, heat treat, stonewashing, cleaning, and finishing
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Validate consistency across every part of every batch
This level of precision is only possible when every step is internal. We know the process. We see it happening. If something needs correcting, we correct it immediately—not weeks later.
Quality should never be a gamble. With in-house production, it isn’t.
3. The Right Tools Create the Right Results
We invested heavily in professional-grade equipment because tools determine output.
Our current setup includes:
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Tormach 770M CNC mill
The backbone of our precision machining. -
Evenheat heat treat oven
Consistent, reliable heat treat cycles with no outsourcing delays. -
In-house stonewash system with ceramic media
Total control over surface finish and aesthetic. -
Ultrasonic cleaner
Ensures every knife leaves the stonewash spotless and contaminant-free. -
High-end fiber laser
Deep, crisp, high-quality engravings every time.
Every one of these tools gives us more control over the final product. And control is everything when you're committed to making the best knives in the industry.
4. The Standard: Be a Winner, 100% of the Time
My personal standard—inside and outside the shop—is simple:
Be top-tier. Every day. No excuses.
If you want to be a winner, you act like one. You operate like one. You make decisions like one. That mindset drives every improvement we make in our production shop.
One example: during the 2026 Skur design and production sprint for the November 2nd release, I worked 28 hours straight manufacturing knives. Nobody told me to. I wasn’t dragging myself through it. I was dialed in. I was on a mission. When the standard is winning, you don’t slow down just because the clock says you should be tired. You keep going until the job is done.
That’s the level I expect from myself, and that’s the level that Shed Knives is built on. When everything is in-house, that kind of momentum actually matters. You can push, and the system moves with you. No waiting. No excuses. Just progress.
Going 100% in-house gives us the infrastructure where that level of intensity actually produces results. No waiting on someone else. No slowing down because a vendor is behind. No compromises. This also allows us to be an asset not just to our knife buyers but to my friends at other knife & CNC companies. Shed Knives is building the capability to work on other projects we support during a time of need. I am TREMENDOUSLY thankful for the many people who have assisted me through this process, so if someone needs a part due to their equipment failure or the failure of an external vendor, I can now step in and provide them our world-class services.
Winners remove bottlenecks. Winners solve their constraints. Winners control their destiny.
That’s what this move is about.
5. The Knife Industry Is Changing & We’re Pushing Back
The industry is shifting hard toward overseas manufacturing, especially China. The result? Floods of low-quality knives flooding the market.
Cheap parts. Cheap construction. Cheap everything.
We aren’t participating in that race to the bottom.
Shed Knives stands for:
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100% USA-made materials
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100% USA manufacturing
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100% controlled quality at every step
If you want to change an industry, you don’t do it by blending in. You do it by raising the bar, producing excellence every day, and proving that American-made knives can & DO outperform anything else on the market.
This move to in-house production isn’t just about efficiency—it’s about leading the way ahead.
6. Customer Feedback Confirms the Mission
The best validation doesn’t come from internal pride. It comes from the people using the knives.
And the feedback has been consistent:
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“Built to work.”
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“Feels like it was made for real use.”
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“Small knife that handles big tasks.”
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“Best quality for the price.”
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“Feels like the quality of a handmade knife.”
The knives perform because the process behind them is no longer fragmented. Customers feel the difference—the balance, the finish, the consistency, the durability.
When the people putting your knives to work tell you you’re doing something right, that’s fuel to continue pushing forward.
7. Faster. Higher Quality. Total Control.
Those are the three pillars that drove the move to 100% in-house manufacturing. And with those pillars in place, we now have:
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A production process we own
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The ability to scale without waiting
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Faster release cycles
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Elite-level quality control
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Better consistency across models
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A direct path to becoming the #1 knife company in the industry
This is more than a manufacturing change. It’s a strategic shift toward dominance.
Final Thoughts
Going 100% in-house was about freedom. Freedom to work faster. Freedom to build better. Freedom to innovate without limits. Freedom to set a new standard for American-made knives.
Shed Knives isn’t following the industry, we’re building where the industry should be headed
...and this shift is a major step in that direction.
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Explore the 2026 Skur here: https://shedknives.com/products/2026-skur
Know another outdoor enthusiast who may find value in this blog? Feel free to share the link of this blog with them so we can continue to educate & encourage our fellow outdoor & knife enthusiasts. Thank you for your support. - WJB
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About The Author:
Jack Billings is the 21 year old CEO and Founder of Shed Knives, a rising manufacturer of high-quality fixed blade bushcraft knives. With over 5 years of experience as a knife maker, he has developed a reputation for crafting durable, reliable knives that are designed for outdoor enthusiasts and bushcrafters alike. Jack started making knives at the age of 13 and has been refining his craft ever since.
In addition to his expertise in knife making, Jack has a High School Degree from POLYTECH High School, where he studied Automotive Technology and obtained his ASE Certification. He is also a content creator for Shed Knives and has reached the eyes of over 1,000,000 people on Shed Knives platforms across the world through his work.
When he's not working on knives, Jack enjoys exploring the outdoors and has a passion for bushcraft. He also has a passion for the automotive world and enjoys learning about new technologies and advancements. Additionally, he has a great interest in language and is studying Spanish, German, Russian, and Arabic.
Jack's personal mission is to constantly improve himself, his products, and his processes in order to stay ahead of the rapidly changing interests of the knife industry and to surpass the competition. He takes great pride in American manufacturing and is committed to contributing to the growth of the world knife industry through his work.
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