This knife doesn’t tell the time but it sure looks like it should. American artist and knife maker Van Barnett calls this steampunk style creation the Time Machine. It is a collectible hand-made knife with a lot of old-timey futuristic personality. Barnett incorporates watch parts into the beautifully cool folding knife creation – which are more or less sold out for years and made individually by him (often with meaningful personalizations for each buyer, according to his website). He makes only a four of these per year and is so sold out far enough that he isn’t taking new orders.

Barnett takes his time crafting each piece. The Time Machine blades are made from Damascus steel (which Barnett forges himself), and the bodies are made from various metals which include steel, brass, silver, gold, copper, and more. The result is a wonderful mixture of colors and textures. The Time Machine is also a bit “aged” looking which adds to the steampunk aesthetic. It is a beautiful thing.

It would be fantastic to play with one of these, and as a collectible knife I can’t think of what might be cooler. The detailing is really impressive, and all the parts which are meant to move do move (such as the aperture over the hinge). You can see more in the video. Even the box is fantastic and includes more hand-placed rivets just like the body of the Time Machine knife itself. Oh, and these images are either from Van Barnett’s site or the property of the people mentioned at the bottom of the images such as PrairieDigitalPhotography. Prices for the knives start at $9,500 while Van Barnett’s art and object go up from there in price. Good luck getting on the list.