A lot of brands I don't recognize

[THExKRAKEN]

I love knives. I always have and I always will. There are times where I'm more into them, where I'm more apt to shop and purchase them. Sometimes it's six months, sometimes it's a year or more. As I do my browsing online I see websites that I don't recognize as well as knife brands. I never really know which sites or brands I can trust other than the ones I already know. My budget for knives usually doesn't go over the $150 mark, and I'm not that willing to spend that much on a brand I don't know. There are, of course, the most well-known brands like Spyderco, Cold Steel, BRKT, Ka-Bar, CRKT etcetera. But what about bands like Bear and Son, Blackjack knives, Utica, Timberland or other such brands? How do you know if they are reputable brands or not? With as many brands and makers out there it can get a little confusing for someone like me who comes and goes with shopping for and buying a knife.

 

[K.O.D.]

Bear and Son does not really make many "quality" knives anymore, other than traditionals. They've taken a huge hit in the market, and have for the last 4 years. My client who worked for them for 44 years just got laid off. I would steer clear. If you like traditionals, stick with Case and GEC.

I'm not familiar with those other brands, but it sounds like they may be lower end, made overseas.

Some of the less known companies that make great knives are Kizer and Reate. Kizer has a huge selection, starting around $60 I believe and going up into the mid $200's.

 

[dw32005]

I usually google reviews for any purchases i make. And read quite a few of them to decide if the knife and company are good for me.

 

[marcinek]

How do you know if they are reputable brands or not? With as many brands and makers out there it can get a little confusing for someone like me who comes and goes with shopping for and buying a knife.

If there was only a website where people who are into knives discussed their experiences with a wide variety of knife brands...somebody oughtta come up with something like that. Would probably be quite popular.

 

[Hickory n steel]

From what I've seen bear and son still makes a decent American made user knife for the money and so does utica, case knives may be a little bit nicer but the bearded son and utica kutmaster knives I've handled seemed to betray users. ( FYI bear and some is the current maker of the Remington bullet knives )

 

[115Italian]

If there was only a website where people who are into knives discussed their experiences with a wide variety of knife brands...somebody oughtta come up with something like that. Would probably be quite popular.

It could be called blade blog or blade discussion. Maybe the word Blade and forum together somehow.

 

[115Italian]

I own 2 bear and son sip joints called farmhands. Great users, nothing fancy, could use a bit more finishing. Its hard sometimes to decipher whats good and whats not. But... You have come to the right place. Ask for info on a brand and many will respond with good info.

 

[THExKRAKEN]

I think another problem is that just because a company makes one good knife, it's not true for some of their other designs. Let's take Spyderco for example. I can buy any of their knives and be confident that I'm going to get the same quality as any other knife with their name on the blade. I can even buy the same knife six times and get the same quality. Some of these other lesser known companies don't seem to be able to offer that kind of reliability. So just because someone has a good experience with a specific design from one of these lesser known brands doesn't mean the next person will.

 

[marcinek]

Some of these other lesser known companies don't seem to be able to offer that kind of reliability. So just because someone has a good experience with a specific design from one of these lesser known brands doesn't mean the next person will.

That's more a matter of the "person" and not the "maker." Makers who mass produce low quality knives mass produce low-quality knives. A good one doesn't just "slip though" once in a while.

Now, you may like Brand X, but that doesn't mean I will. That's not because the Brand X knives are inconsistent, that's because we have different expectations.

 

[clockman]

I'll join the choir on Bear & Son. I had 3 difference Bear folders that were crap.. They made one of the models for me that I sent back to the vendor for me.
They still couldn't get it right. I should throw it away. I wouldn't give it to anyone it's not safe.