2018 BF Traditional Knife

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Norcaldude said:
How many Buck slipjoints do you own?
How many GEC slipjoints do you own?
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I own about a dozen Buck slip joints, I own many more GEC slip joints ;)
I own more Buck lock backs and fixed blades than I own GEC's, and I appreciate them all for what each one brings to the table :)
 
I have been quiet on the subject of a Forum knife. I have NOT read this thread yet. Quite frankly I am kinda burned out on the subject, and for this, I apologize to all my friends here. I am glad there are people willing to pick up the ball and run with it.
In past years, I have approached the different cutleries, and asked for proposals, based on what was introduced or brought up in threads here. The number of cutleries has diminished over the years. I have never dealt with Buck, but understand they are interested.
Please take note that this Forum is privately owned, and permission must be requested, and granted by the owner, to use the Bladeforums name!!!

I don't make the rules, but have always tried to stick to a few guiding principles in producing a Forum Knife:
>Traditional Forum, so a traditional knife with traditional materials.
>USA made, respecting our fellow Americans and cutleries.
>Patterns reflecting the cutlery industry here in the USA.
>Pricing under $100, with minimal marketing profits.
There are probably a few more things . . . . . . . . .

It's ultimately a fair bit of work. Once a consensus is reached on who will lead the process, I will happily consult, briefly and if wanted, with the people/person leading.
For now I am happy to hand off everything to your collective choices!
I'm proud of what we have accomplished to date!!!
Respectfully posted,
Charlie Waynorth
 
waynorth said:
For now I am happy to hand off everything to your collective choices!
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Charlie, have you chatted with GEC already about a possible forum knife? It sounded like you might have (based on some early posts in this thread, possibly by Barry), but you didn't mention it in your post.

If you do go back through this thread, you will find a great deal of appreciation for how you and Barry have handled past forum knives, and for the possibility of a GEC option. :)
 
waynorth said:
I have been quiet on the subject of a Forum knife. I have NOT read this thread yet. Quite frankly I am kinda burned out on the subject, and for this, I apologize to all my friends here. I am glad there are people willing to pick up the ball and run with it.
In past years, I have approached the different cutleries, and asked for proposals, based on what was introduced or brought up in threads here. The number of cutleries has diminished over the years. I have never dealt with Buck, but understand they are interested.
Please take note that this Forum is privately owned, and permission must be requested, and granted by the owner, to use the Bladeforums name!!!

I don't make the rules, but have always tried to stick to a few guiding principles in producing a Forum Knife:
>Traditional Forum, so a traditional knife with traditional materials.
>USA made, respecting our fellow Americans and cutleries.
>Patterns reflecting the cutlery industry here in the USA.
>Pricing under $100, with minimal marketing profits.
There are probably a few more things . . . . . . . . .

It's ultimately a fair bit of work. Once a consensus is reached on who will lead the process, I will happily consult, briefly and if wanted, with the people/person leading.
For now I am happy to hand off everything to your collective choices!
I'm proud of what we have accomplished to date!!!
Respectfully posted,
Charlie Waynorth
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Well Charlie, it is good to hear from you. I am sorry to hear that you are feeling burned out on the forum knife business, but I can certainly understand. I think the guidelines you laid out are good ones to go by.

Is it up to the person who takes the lead to contact Spark?

I must admit that I am quite sad to realize that there may simply not be a GEC offer on the table this year. I would have been pulling for the Buck option in any (non-whaler) case, but I was hoping that Charlie had some amazing option ready to pull out of his sleeve. But it is what it is, and when it comes to coordinating a complicated process while herding cats, it certainly has to be expected that folks will want a break.
 
JTB_5 said:
I'm guessing that some folks would be willing to shoulder parts of the burden that Charlie and Barry have shouldered, if possible. I think the biggest barrier at this point is ignorance of what exactly is required and whether such requirements could be reasonably delegated to a number of extra volunteers. Maybe this has all been discussed in the past? Maybe it is a job that can only be done by a couple of hard working folks with time rather than portioned out? I'm too new to know, but I'd like to help if I can.
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I'm a bit behind on this thread. I spend most of my forum time chasing down spambots and problem posters these days. But let me interject that any "BladeForums" knife has to have Spark's approval. Spark is the owner of BladeForums and all rights to the name belong to him.
In order to get such approval, Spark has to be assured that
  • Someone is responsible for the money. Which is to say that, if the project goes South and something happens, that person has to make up any difference. 250 knives at $100 per is $25,000. For Spark to buy into those assurances, there has to be some sort of financial wherewithal on the part of the person taking on the job. That is a lot to be responsible for and is one reason that neither Gary nor I have ever been willing to lead such an effort. Our wives would shoot us.
  • Someone has to assure Spark that all funds are strictly going for shipping and to pay the knife manufacturer. No dealer profit. If there is to be dealer profit, then the knife will be handled by the One Stop Knife Shop that Spark owns. So that's a whole lot of work for free.
In most cases over the years, the knives have been ordered and paid for before the order is placed with the manufacturer. Typically, a manufacturer will want at least half the money up front when the order is placed, and the rest when the knives are completed. The only reasonable way for that to happen is for everyone to order and pay prior to the knives being ordered. This has lead to some long order windows in the past. Took a long time to get enough people to pony up the money.
 
Charlie
May I be the first to say that you do not owe anyone an apology. It is a
testament to your hard work and enthusiasm (as well as the henchmen over the last few years) that we are seeing the annual project fire being stoked into life once more. Lets hope its onward and upward . May I strongly recommend you quickly skim over the thread. There are a few good ideas, most of it is taken up by some lunatic from Australia cranking on about pitchforks & torches.....as usual.
You deserve a short break. Why not join the P&T tour as it surges past the drawbridge of spooky Porchenberg castle on its way to Spark and Buck.?
Thank You Sir.
 
I am a little surpised about "no dealer profit" as a requirement.

It seems like a reasonable profit would cover a dealers time and investment in the project.

I would not want to trouble a dealer with all this work and worry and not pay them a fair profit. Maybe a forum knife is not for me.
 
Elgatodeacero said:
I am a little surpised about "no dealer profit" as a requirement.

It seems like a reasonable profit would cover a dealers time and investment in the project.

I would not want to trouble a dealer with all this work and worry and not pay them a fair profit. Maybe a forum knife is not for me.
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Lets say that you own Macy's, and I own Sears. I go out of my way to commission a custom shirt just to stick the Macy's name on it and sell it in Sears, with no intentions of giving you any funds from it, or not giving you the opportunity to sell said shirt (whether you wanted to or not).

Doesn't sound too kosher that way, does it?
 
Great posts from my colleagues and friends on these forums.

Why don't we take a break from GEC, and let Charlie recover, and go ahead and order with Buck this year?

The fact that the number of manufacturers is diminishing should be of concern to us all.

I am not opposed to letting dealers make a profit and would gladly pay someone for their time - particularly if it keeps the BF tradition alive.

I value this thread as much as the knife itself because it reflects who we are and the values that sit behind the manufacturing process.
 
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Camillus said:
I am not opposed to letting dealers make a profit and would gladly pay someone for their time - particularly if it keeps the BF tradition alive.
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You are missing the point. It is not a decision to be made by us. It has been made by the owner of the brand, "BladeForums". If it is a "for profit" venture, then the profit is to be made by Spark. That was made clear to Gary and I when we took over moderating this forum and the subject of forum knives first arose. Spark has both a brick and mortar knife store and a web store. And he owns the rights to all things, "BladeForums".
 
I don't believe it is an issue yet, but I can see the $100 max limit becoming an issue in the future. It's hard to get a great knife right now for $100, let alone a custom made special order. I understand a fully respect the reason that the $ limit is in place. But times are slowly changing, and the cost of knives is only going higher.
 
Rookie82 said:
I don't believe it is an issue yet, but I can see the $100 max limit becoming an issue in the future. It's hard to get a great knife right now for $100, let alone a custom made special order. I understand a fully respect the reason that the $ limit is in place. But times are slowly changing, and the cost of knives is only going higher.
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Looks like that is only a guideline, not a rule ...

waynorth said:
...have always tried to stick to a few guiding principles...
Click to expand...
 
knarfeng said:

I'm a bit behind on this thread. I spend most of my forum time chasing down spambots and problem posters these days. But let me interject that any "BladeForums" knife has to have Spark's approval. Spark is the owner of BladeForums and all rights to the name belong to him.
In order to get such approval, Spark has to be assured that
  • Someone is responsible for the money. Which is to say that, if the project goes South and something happens, that person has to make up any difference. 250 knives at $100 per is $25,000. For Spark to buy into those assurances, there has to be some sort of financial wherewithal on the part of the person taking on the job. That is a lot to be responsible for and is one reason that neither Gary nor I have ever been willing to lead such an effort. Our wives would shoot us.
  • Someone has to assure Spark that all funds are strictly going for shipping and to pay the knife manufacturer. No dealer profit. If there is to be dealer profit, then the knife will be handled by the One Stop Knife Shop that Spark owns. So that's a whole lot of work for free.
In most cases over the years, the knives have been ordered and paid for before the order is placed with the manufacturer. Typically, a manufacturer will want at least half the money up front when the order is placed, and the rest when the knives are completed. The only reasonable way for that to happen is for everyone to order and pay prior to the knives being ordered. This has lead to some long order windows in the past. Took a long time to get enough people to pony up the money.
Click to expand...

Thank you, this is especially helpful.
 
I don't think Charlie owes anyone an excuse, apology, or explanation. A few years ago, when the project was in peril, he stepped in to save the day, for THAT YEAR. The rest has been a bonus. Prior to that, the forum knife was organised by a small committee of members, acting on the wishes of the wider membership, with Spark handling orders. One thing which hasn't been mentioned is that when Spark took a step back, it was agreed members would be encouraged to take up paid membership, as a way of saying thanks and supporting the site. Over the years, many members here have put in a great deal of work on the various forum knife projects on an entirely voluntary basis :thumbsup:
 
NJBillK said:
Lets say that you own Macy's, and I own Sears. I go out of my way to commission a custom shirt just to stick the Macy's name on it and sell it in Sears, with no intentions of giving you any funds from it, or not giving you the opportunity to sell said shirt (whether you wanted to or not).

Doesn't sound too kosher that way, does it?
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I dont see the problem, especially if forum owner isnt selling "t-shirts" to begin with.

If this is such a problem, why doesnt the forum owner do the work to get a forum knife made? My sense is the forum owner doesnt have the bandwidth to tackle this.

Relying on others to make a forum knife and then denying them profit for their effort seems very unfair. The forum owner can do whatever he wants, but so can I when I spend my money and decide whether to upgrade or continue my forum membership.
 
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