Steve completed his first knife in 1966. Interestingly, Steve had Gil Hibben as his Boy Scout Explorer Advisor and Gil gave each scout the opportunity to make a knife. For Steve the "project" evolved into part-time and then full-time work. Steve also worked with other knife makers such as Harvey Draper, Rod Chappel, Buster Warenski and, as most in the business know, Bob Loveless. Bob's influence on Steve's knives is obvious and any Loveless style knife made by S R Johnson is a highly collectible. Steve has become a star in the world of fixed blade knives.