The History of Chaves Knives

In This Article

• Ramon Chavez: A Curious Boy
• Following Footsteps
• Going Pro: The Rise of Chaves Knives
• Chaves Ultramar
• A New Facility
• Back to His Roots
• Into the Future

Is it just me, or has Chaves Knives been popping off lately?

We’re talking new USA manufacturing, brand collaborations, OTFs, even a new budget line! Seriously, the brand is on fire.

Not long ago, Chaves was a smaller operation, selling grail-level knives mostly to die-hard enthusiasts. Today, it’s a rising star in the knife world.

If you’re wondering what the deal is with Chaves, you’re in the right place. We’ll dive into where it came from, how it got here, and what makes it special.

Ramon Chavez: A Curious Boy

Ramon Chaves grew up in New Mexico. His dad proudly served in the United States Army during the Korean Conflict.

It was tthe first of many careers: He worked for the Albuquerque Fire Department, Santa Fe Railroad, Sandia Laboratories, Lockhead Martin, and even played competitive poker

But mostly, he provided for his family with his own television and radio repair business. He taught Ramon the value of accountability, self-reliance, and honest work—and to always carry a knife.

Ramon’s Teen Years

When Ramon was a sophomore in high school, he found an old fixed blade in a drawer and asked about it.

His Dad basically told him, "Your uncle made that from an old saw blade."

Ramon thought to himself, "I’ll make one too!"

So he grabbed an old file, fired up the angle grinder, and roughed out his first knife.

That blade is long gone now, but it was the start of something big.

Following His Father’s Footsteps 

As Ramon entered adulthood, he followed his father’s example of hard work; just like his dad, he worked in a lot of different jobs.

He started working on a local farm and then found his way into corrections and law enforcement. After that, he drove trucks, worked inventory for Budweiser, and even did time on the railroad like his dad.

In each of those jobs, he saw firsthand how hard-working people keep our society running.

But in his spare time, Ramon made knives.

After years of refining his skills with a grinder, he established a signature style.

He was really good at knifemaking.

His coworkers loved his knives for their strong build, familiar feel, and top-notch performance.

Collectors loved them for their wicked grinds, the attention to detail, and their bold-yet-tasteful designs.

Ramon had something special, and he knew it.

Going Pro: The Rise of Chaves Knives

Those early customs taught Ramon something important: people trusted his knives, and people wanted more of them than he had time to make.

If he wanted to keep up, he’d have to go all in. That’s when he made the leap. Ramon left the day jobs behind and started Chaves Knives full time. 

A huge part of any knife company is identity. Who are you, and what does your company stand for?

For Ramon, these answers were simple: Chaves Knives is built on quality, reliability, and hard work—the same values his father taught him growing up. 

When it came time to build a brand, Ramon drew from his faith. As a lifelong Christian, he was inspired by Golgotha, or the Place of the Skull.

It’s the hill where Jesus carried His cross before being crucified. It has a natural rock formation resembling the eyes and nose of a skull; that image became the basis for the Chaves skull clip.

Skulls often signal edgy toughness, but here, it feels more reverent, like a quiet nod to sacrifice and strength. 

That skull, combined with the name Chaves (which literally translates to "keys" in Portuguese), led to the brand logo: a skeleton key. 

His first production knife was the Redencion, and numerous models followed.

The knives were an instant hit. The success taught Ramon a lot about running a knife company.

Chaves Ultramar 

In the early days of Chaves Knives, there were two distinct lines.

First were the customs, handmade by Ramon himself. The second was Chaves Ultramar, the production line.

Chaves Ultramar knives were much less expensive than the customs, but they were still made with top-notch materials in the finest knife factories in the world.

With increased supply and accessibility, Chaves Knives blew up in popularity and name recognition.

The Ultramar line is also where we first got many of the most popular Chaves folders, like the Liberation, Sangre, T.A.K., and C.H.U.B.

We eventually got other EDC gear too, like pens, wallets, pry tools, and more. Ramon went all in with his company, and it was paying off!

But even while his designs were being made overseas, Ramon realized that years of making knives himself had equipped him with the skills to run his own manufacturing facility.

But setting up such a facility is no small undertaking!

Running a knife factory is more than just grinding steel; it’s buying and maintaining machinery, managing personnel and production schedules, purchasing raw materials and tooling, and much more.

Once again, Ramon would have to go all in to make it work.

So he did.

A New Facility

Ramon found a machine shop that would serve his needs in Pleasant Grove, Utah, so he packed up and left his hometown of Albuquerque.

There, he assembled a team of skilled machinists and got to work. After the learning and growing that comes with such a big change, Chaves Knives released the C.H.U.B. OTF, which uses a replaceable razor blade.  

It’s hard to overstate just how impressive this is. OTF’s have a lot of moving parts that need to be perfectly tuned to function properly.

If a spring is too strong, a pin is 0.001" too long, or who knows what else, the knife won’t function.

The fact that the first knife off the line was an OTF that could run with the big dogs is amazing.

And that was just the beginning! In 2025, the second Chaves OTF, the Dissident, also hit the market.

One of the lessons Ramon learned from running his own knife factory is that making a production knife is not that much different from making a custom.

The same exacting tolerances, the same manufacturing processes, and the same quality standards apply to both custom and production knives.

With that line blurring, Ramon decided to retire the Ultramar brand and reunite the brand under one name: Chaves Knives.

Back to His Roots 

Today, looking back at the history of Chaves Knives, it’s clear that Ramon’s father was right: Integrity, honesty, and hard work really do pay off.

Ramon’s years of dedicated effort have turned Chaves Knives from a hobby in a garage into a thriving knife manufacturer. The Chaves name is synonymous with bomb-proof durability and top-shelf quality.

But Chaves Knives aren’t only made for die-hard fans who can spend hundreds on a folder. They’re made for people who work hard every day.

That’s why Chaves Knives released the Blue Label series and the new Redencion X-Lock. They’re just as tough and rugged as any Chaves knife, but they’re priced much lower.

Into the Future 

From where we sit at Blade HQ, I’m not privy to everything Chaves Knives has in the works right now.

But this much I do know: Whatever is coming down the line will be great, and Ramon, along with the entire Chaves Knives team, is hard at work getting it done for you.