Thomas Nohl about his passion and family tradition
The passionate hunter Thomas Nohl turned his passion into a profession and at the same time brought a family tradition into the fourth generation.
His parents – a cutler and a goldsmith – believed that the art of making knives no longer had a future. Although the mother‘s side of the Nohls had been cutlers in Gießen for more than 150 years. So Thomas Nohl completed his training as a retail salesman after graduating in order to be able to continue the family business at least. He did not enjoy this field of study , but he did find enough time for his hobbies. They all somehow involved knives: fishing, diving, canoeing, survival training, traveling the world and finally also hunting. And there was still the old shop in which he always experimented on new knives for himself.
Randall knives – an real accolade in the scene
When he was traveling in Florida, Thomas Nohl met Gary Randall – a real legend among cutlers. Gary Randall must have taken a liking to the curious German. Not only did he give him valuable tips and tricks to take with him, he later also gave him exclusive distribution rights for Europe for the famous Randall knives.
The portrait of Thomas Nohl
The passionated hunter Thomas Nohl produces knives that seek their equals in his small workshop in Giessen.
Many small details make the finishing touch
Thomas Nohl ended up spending more and more time in his workshop, participated in forging and honing seminars and looked over the shoulders of the masters in the industry in Europe and the US. He designed hunting, outdoors, and collector’s knives and improved his designs through the practical experience he collected as hunter and survivalist. His most successful knife lines “Waldlaeufer” [ranger] and “Wiesel” [weasel] feature numerous small details which have proven their advantages in practice. Looking at the Wiesel, an all-round knife, you immediately notice the grip hole. It prevents the hand from slipping onto the blade, makes it easier to control the knife and apply force due to the lever effect, and makes it possible to grab something while holding the knife. The Waldlaeufer – available in turbine steel or Damascus steel – is tailored perfectly for hunting. The attractive damascene pattern not only makes the knife more difficult to produce and more attractive, but also significantly more robust. In addition, the blade is honed almost all the way up to the handle and thus cuts in the spot where the most force is applied.
In the meantime the order situation is so good that Thomas Nohl needs to outsource parts of the knife production to small manufacturers and he even offers a lifetime sharpening guarantee in his family shop. His wife shares his passion for hunting. She manages the goldsmith shop which provides also hunting jewelery.
ZEISS is practically a part of the family
The fact that the cutler Thomas Nohl uses ZEISS weather he is observing or aiming at game is not just due to his uncompromising quality standards. Long before Thomas Nohl discovered his passion for hunting, his great grandfather sold eye glasses by ZEISS.
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