About Us

We are a family owned and operated business. As a father and son team we specialize in knives and metal working, but our skills go far beyond that. Custom manufacturing is our mission and our vision is to make things we love and to share them with the world.

At DuPree Knives, our story is shaped by generations of creativity, craftsmanship, and a shared passion for tools that serve a purpose. Each blade is influenced by the experiences, skills, and philosophies of its makers. The individual journeys of Joe and Dean DuPree, father and son craftsmen, united by a love of creation and the pursuit of excellence in knife making.

Joe DuPree

A Lifetime of
Knowing Knives

Joe’s connection to tools began early, shaped by the steady influence of his father, a machinist, a tool and die maker who worked for Piper Aircraft in Lockhaven, PA, taught him the value of precision, patience, and hard work.  At twelve years old, Joe received his first Case folding hunting knife—an experience that sparked a fascination with blades that never fully left him.

Because he wasn’t allowed to carry a straight blade at the time, Joe improvised, crafting a crude thrower from scraps and even beginning a knife that still rests unfinished somewhere in the workshop’s shadows. That early curiosity remained dormant for years until encouragement from his sons—and a simple coal-fed, hand-cranked forge—brought it back to life.

Joe forged his first blade from 1095 carbon steel. It wasn’t perfect, but it was beautiful in its own way. More importantly, it lit a fire that never went out.

From that moment on, Joe began refining the craft. He built tools to improve workflow, experimented with techniques, and pushed himself to understand steel on a deeper level. Today, his mind still holds countless blade shapes waiting for their turn at the forge.

Joe’s journey is one of persistence, creativity, and craft. This is the heart of DuPree Knives—knives made by someone who truly knows them.

Dean DuPree

Creation Through
Craft

Dean discovered knife making through a broader love of creation. While he expresses creativity in many forms throughout his life, knife making is the craft that continues to stand above the rest. Demanding his time, attention, skill, refinement, and offering deep personal reward. His love for the culinary arts inspired his kitchen knife craftsmanship.

For Dean, forging a knife is where imagination meets purpose. The craft combines all the elements that make creation meaningful: hands-on problem solving, the transformation of raw material into something functional, and the constant pursuit of improvement.

Knife making challenges him to think, adapt, and grow with every blade. It has become not just a hobby, but a discipline, one he continues to study, refine, and shape into an art form.

Dean is driven by curiosity, creativity, and the satisfaction that comes from bringing a blade to life. For him, knife making is more than craft, it’s a calling.