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Price is$300$250 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
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Maxam Knives
- Thread starter joshuawy
- Start date
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- Joined
- Nov 12, 2009
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- 13,408
HI joshuawy -
I have a Maxam folding knife - it is a large one with a 4.5 inch blade.
It has Japan stamped on the tang.
I have had the knife for 25 years and although it has not seen abuse (I usually don't use my knives for prying etc.) it has held up very well over the years.
I paid around $10 for it from a friend who was selling them at the time back in the 80's.
Picture with an Emerson CQC7 for size comparison.
It seems to be a very good quality knife - but I cannot say how good the newer examples are.
best regards -
mqqn
I have a Maxam folding knife - it is a large one with a 4.5 inch blade.
It has Japan stamped on the tang.
I have had the knife for 25 years and although it has not seen abuse (I usually don't use my knives for prying etc.) it has held up very well over the years.
I paid around $10 for it from a friend who was selling them at the time back in the 80's.
Picture with an Emerson CQC7 for size comparison.
It seems to be a very good quality knife - but I cannot say how good the newer examples are.
best regards -
mqqn
- Joined
- Jul 3, 2009
- Messages
- 390
Welcom to the forums. They are definetly cheaply made knives no doubt. Probably on par with Mtech knives. they are both chinese made knives and usually take well known designs from top knife companies and make them with crap materials and quality. They use "440" stainless steel, and as you will learn on the forums there are a ton of 440 ss class knives. They like many other low class knife companies may use 440B steel which is pretty bad. I would stay away from maxam. mqqn said his was made in japan and he has had it for 25 years, maxam is a totally different company now. Japanese knives are made extremely well, chinese ones generally aren't with exceptions of course. I would maybe reccommend Byrd knives for a great quality for low money knife
TheCarbideRat
BANNED
- Joined
- Sep 10, 2008
- Messages
- 1,510
Thumbs down on late model Maxams. Got rid of the one I had.
Save up and learn, so you don't have to go through "the process" so much.
I bought, sold, and threw away quite a few knives before joining BF and getting
educated. If I saved the money I now look at as wasted I could have bought several
"grail" knives.
Save up and learn, so you don't have to go through "the process" so much.
I bought, sold, and threw away quite a few knives before joining BF and getting
educated. If I saved the money I now look at as wasted I could have bought several
"grail" knives.
- Joined
- Mar 15, 2001
- Messages
- 2,450
Definitely cheap knives, relative to the many other good knives that are available. That said, some of the designs (not the "ripped off" designs) are decent. I have a few of their knives that I purchased early in my knife collecting days and I have handled others, and while they will never be the stars of my collection, there is a place for them too.
- Mark
- Mark
- Joined
- Jan 6, 2009
- Messages
- 1,298
HI joshuawy -
I have a Maxam folding knife - it is a large one with a 4.5 inch blade.
It has Japan stamped on the tang.
I have had the knife for 25 years and although it has not seen abuse (I usually don't use my knives for prying etc.) it has held up very well over the years.
I paid around $10 for it from a friend who was selling them at the time back in the 80's.
Picture with an Emerson CQC7 for size comparison.
It seems to be a very good quality knife - but I cannot say how good the newer examples are.
best regards -
mqqn
I have that same knife, bought it 25-30 years ago. Can't remember for certain where I picked it up, but I think it was at some "off the beaten track, gas station/bait & tackle shop" for less than $10.
I agree with the above comments, it has been a surprisingly good knife, holds an edge well, and has been kicking around the house in the pantry for years. Gets used regularly for opening packages, etc.
I am not familiar with their newer offerings, but they don't seem to get very positive press here on the forums.
Kevin
- Joined
- Jun 21, 2007
- Messages
- 625
:thumbdn::thumbdn: Well generally they are pos, but lie all knives have some good ones and pos. I' have one frost cutlery flying dragon that I would put it up against a Ka-Bar next generation fixed blade.:thumbdn::thumbdn:
TheCarbideRat
BANNED
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- Sep 10, 2008
- Messages
- 1,510
Sorry, a fantasy knife will not even approach what a Next Gen can do. You smoke?
Back in the mid 90's alot of what they offered were low end made in japan knives with 440a blades I useta sale them and use them and they were good blades for the low price they cost they hade a couple of hunting knives that were very good and I've got a large chopper that I've beat to hell and still is in good shape but like alot of things today they changed to made in china junk and the diffrence was night and day. They had a spyderco knockoff that when it was made in japan was actually a decent knife that held up well and had a good lock then when it moved to china the blade and lock got really thin and would break if you looked at it wrong and all the knives from then on got really bad. They now use 420j2 thats so soft you can bend it in half with your bare hands and will dull if you try to cut bread with it. Much like everything else Maxams knives are made by the lowest bidder.
DennisStrickland
BANNED
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- Jun 24, 2009
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- 5,040
members whom wish to buy inexpensive cutlery would be better advised to buy used second hand good quality knives at flea markets or yard sales. i'm always amazed when people spend 6.00$ for a new knife & expect a miracle wonder.
- Joined
- May 18, 2005
- Messages
- 23,026
they are terrible.
Honestly, it depends on what you are after. Agree, Maxam knives are not high-end production or custom caliber. They will not measure up to an Emerson, Spyderco, Zero Tolerance, Case, etc.
But in the world of Chinese-made knives they are above average. I had three of them and abused the hell out of them. They were mostly reliable (had one frame lock bend and fail under pressure but was not typical use), had good lock-up, were very easy to sharpen (b/c the blade steel is soft compared to most high-end folders), required frequent sharpening since their edge-holding ability is low to mid. In short: they forced me to learn and practice sharpening, could be left in a tackle box or used in ways I would never subject a high quality knife to without worry, and for me they lasted a few years before being tossed. They also tend to have thinner liners (which are more likely to bend under intense use), are made f inferior materials, will not last as long, and are generally shunned by serious knife enthusiasts. But they may be had for a few bucks per knife.
To me, there are now so many inexpensive mass-produced knives which are made in Japan or Taiwan with superior materials and quality that I would never again buy a cheap chinese knife. Let's be clear, it may cost you $3-10 for a chinese-made folder that lasts a few years, requires a lot of attention and may fail, but for $20 to $30 you could buy a Kershaw, Cold Steel or KaBar folder made of AUS8 or better with superior fitment and finishing, a thicker more reliable liner or frame lock, actual warranty support, and more edge-holding ability.
But in the world of Chinese-made knives they are above average. I had three of them and abused the hell out of them. They were mostly reliable (had one frame lock bend and fail under pressure but was not typical use), had good lock-up, were very easy to sharpen (b/c the blade steel is soft compared to most high-end folders), required frequent sharpening since their edge-holding ability is low to mid. In short: they forced me to learn and practice sharpening, could be left in a tackle box or used in ways I would never subject a high quality knife to without worry, and for me they lasted a few years before being tossed. They also tend to have thinner liners (which are more likely to bend under intense use), are made f inferior materials, will not last as long, and are generally shunned by serious knife enthusiasts. But they may be had for a few bucks per knife.
To me, there are now so many inexpensive mass-produced knives which are made in Japan or Taiwan with superior materials and quality that I would never again buy a cheap chinese knife. Let's be clear, it may cost you $3-10 for a chinese-made folder that lasts a few years, requires a lot of attention and may fail, but for $20 to $30 you could buy a Kershaw, Cold Steel or KaBar folder made of AUS8 or better with superior fitment and finishing, a thicker more reliable liner or frame lock, actual warranty support, and more edge-holding ability.
- Joined
- Jul 20, 2019
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- 1
I know I'm a little late to this thread, but anyway...
I still have one of the Maxim LB440 folders. My parents bought it for me for either my 14th or 15th birthday. It was either 1982 or 1983 but I really don't remember. Even back then I wasn't under any delusions that it was a high quality knife. It's definitely seen its fair share of use over the years and believe it or not, it's held up really well. I've always taken good care of it, cleaned and oiled it regularly and sharpened or honed it whenever. It's never been especially good at holding an edge, so I learned pretty early on to not worry about it too much. But for a knife that's more of a novelty than anything else and being at least 36 years old, it's actually held up really well. I didn't know that at some point production had moved to China. To be completely honest, I'm a little surprised they're still in production at all. I'd have to say though, it's more than outlived any expectations I had of it, but knowing that now they're made in China (mine was made in Japan), if anything happened to this one, I wouldn't get another one to replace it. I'm not sure when they moved production, but apparently their quality has gone down hill drastically since I got mine. In all the years that I've had mine, nothing has gone wrong with it. The handle and locking mechanism are still in excellent condition, it hasn't loosened up, there's still no wobble between the blade and the handle. It could use a cleaning, but aside from that and a few very light rub marks on the handle from being removed from and replaced in its sheath , this thing still basically looks like it's brand new. Even the sheath is in great condition. I don't know what it's made of, but it's probably imitation genuine pleather. I've seen a lot of people putting it down, but my experience with it has been overall positive. It's definitely not even close to being one of the best knives out there, but I definitely could have done a lot worse. There's a part of me that wants to order one anyway, just to see how much, if any, mine differs from new. To me, it looks like the only things that have aged are the two rivets that hold the sheath together are tarnished or corroded, or whatever it is that they've done.
I still have one of the Maxim LB440 folders. My parents bought it for me for either my 14th or 15th birthday. It was either 1982 or 1983 but I really don't remember. Even back then I wasn't under any delusions that it was a high quality knife. It's definitely seen its fair share of use over the years and believe it or not, it's held up really well. I've always taken good care of it, cleaned and oiled it regularly and sharpened or honed it whenever. It's never been especially good at holding an edge, so I learned pretty early on to not worry about it too much. But for a knife that's more of a novelty than anything else and being at least 36 years old, it's actually held up really well. I didn't know that at some point production had moved to China. To be completely honest, I'm a little surprised they're still in production at all. I'd have to say though, it's more than outlived any expectations I had of it, but knowing that now they're made in China (mine was made in Japan), if anything happened to this one, I wouldn't get another one to replace it. I'm not sure when they moved production, but apparently their quality has gone down hill drastically since I got mine. In all the years that I've had mine, nothing has gone wrong with it. The handle and locking mechanism are still in excellent condition, it hasn't loosened up, there's still no wobble between the blade and the handle. It could use a cleaning, but aside from that and a few very light rub marks on the handle from being removed from and replaced in its sheath , this thing still basically looks like it's brand new. Even the sheath is in great condition. I don't know what it's made of, but it's probably imitation genuine pleather. I've seen a lot of people putting it down, but my experience with it has been overall positive. It's definitely not even close to being one of the best knives out there, but I definitely could have done a lot worse. There's a part of me that wants to order one anyway, just to see how much, if any, mine differs from new. To me, it looks like the only things that have aged are the two rivets that hold the sheath together are tarnished or corroded, or whatever it is that they've done.
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