Allan Blade

While I'm thinking about it...

Question:

A lot of guys have mentioned that prepaying is bad practice in general, and in this case nuts. I didn't exactly prepay. I ordered, and a week before the knife was due for completion talked with Allan via e-mail and was told it'd be done and shipped on time and that I could send payment so I did so at that point. Same practice as I did with some other excellent makers like Gene Ingram and Charlie May. 'Course I got knives from them :p

Anywho, the question is I guess, when should you pay? I presume no maker is going to actually send the knife to you first unless you have a relationship with that maker so at some point you have to take the leap of faith that if you pay, you're gonna get the end product.

I'm sure a lot of you guys have bought a lot more customs than the half dozen or so that I have so I'm curious what's the norm for paying in a custom situation?
 
TStetz said:
....and was told it'd be done and shipped on time and that I could send payment so I did so...
Click to expand...

Good point. At some stage of the maker/buyer relationship, payment has to be sent. So, when the maker says your knife is ready, most of us would assume that it's safe to send the money and collect our knife!

Another good reason to keep threads like this active.
 
May actually have been on BB. It was a couple years ago now. His web site was up, he was promptly responding to mail and inquiries, delivering knives on time, the guys getting stuff were happy, etc. etc.

I knew the history (an advantage of being able to have open discussion on a public forum) but at that point in time things were looking positive. Like I said too, my first transaction went like clockwork and seemed to confirm what other folks were saying at the time. No problems at all. It was only later that things seemed to have gone into the crapper. :(
 
The way Allan does things, it is always only a matter of time before everything goes to hell in a hand basket. He may be able to keep things together for awhile, but at some point an emergency is going to require money that he doesn't have. That money is going to come from the people he is making knives for. Once he has used that money to cover the emergency, he has nothing left to purchase materials with. That's when the excuses start and the emails no longer get answered.
 
Hi Keith,
I suspect you're right. So what's the solution to this? is there anyway (barring sending even more money) to remedy this?
 
TStetz said:
While I'm thinking about it...

Question:

A lot of guys have mentioned that prepaying is bad practice in general, and in this case nuts. I didn't exactly prepay. I ordered, and a week before the knife was due for completion talked with Allan via e-mail and was told it'd be done and shipped on time and that I could send payment so I did so at that point. Same practice as I did with some other excellent makers like Gene Ingram and Charlie May. 'Course I got knives from them :p

Anywho, the question is I guess, when should you pay? I presume no maker is going to actually send the knife to you first unless you have a relationship with that maker so at some point you have to take the leap of faith that if you pay, you're gonna get the end product.

I'm sure a lot of you guys have bought a lot more customs than the half dozen or so that I have so I'm curious what's the norm for paying in a custom situation?
Click to expand...

good question, with alan blade all i can reccomend is have him make the knife for ya and meet him somewhere(ie: a knife show) and then give him the $$ as he hands ya your knife, might wanna inspect it first, other than that i dont know what ya could do, maybe try another smith?? no way i'd send him money irregardless what story he comes up with. of course no way i'd deal with him in the first place, it is a dillemma though, imho would make it hard for him to sell stuff.

the best suggestion i could think of is to forget alan blade, his stuff is nothing special anyway, and go with pat crawford/darrel ralph/tom mayo/ernie emerson/strider/bud nealy/et al, with them ya can order something, they wont ask for a down payment/payment in full and then they actually send ya your stuff, and if ya dont like it will refund in a timely manner, makes buying knives a lot more pleasant when ya arent worrying about getting your stuff, thats not a common pronlem with smiths by the way, only a few bad apples around imho.
 
Same procedure though it sounds like. Nothing up front, just pay when the knifes ready to go out. It just didn't happen in this case.
 
No, don't send money when Allan Blade says the knife is finished. Too many people have gotten ripped off that way.

The solutions are easy. For Allan Blade, his solution is to sell only to dealers only on a payment after delivery basis. He's promised to do that....

For the rest of us, do not give Allan Blade any money unless the knife is in your hot little hands. Do not send him any materials unless the money is in your hot little hands.
 
Cougar's solution is one that certainly works. One other way to go would be to only pay for a knife after you have received it. If Allan doesn't want to do business in that manner then tell him you are not interested.
 
TStetz said:
While I'm thinking about it...

Question:

Anywho, the question is I guess, when should you pay?

I'm sure a lot of you guys have bought a lot more customs than the half dozen or so that I have so I'm curious what's the norm for paying in a custom situation?
Click to expand...

Most of the ones I have got you send the money when they say the knife is ready.

On a few I have paid up front and interestingly in almost every instance those arrived later than they were supposed to.
 
As a matter of interest - how many people here have actually met Allan Blade, face to face? I guess it's just the "psychologist" in me but I'd be curious to talk to him and try to figure out what creates a personality like that.
 
Cougar's plan works but the better plan is to NEVER do business with Allan Blade, period............................
 
I was more curious what the genral norm was, not specifically in Allans case. Obviously, with this thread, we know that now even if we didn't at that time.

Hollowdweller:

My experience has been the same as yours. The ones I've prepaid for are the ones I've had problems with. The others I paid when the knife was ready and, other than this last time, all have been ready on time and delivered.
 
I like to have the maker let me know about a week before the knife is ready. That way I have time to get the money order and have it to the maker when it is time to ship. I will not deal with a make I do not trust, so I have never had any fear of sending the payment a little early. There has never been a problem.
 
Heh, I didn't have that issue until now :D Live and learn.

I have dealt with others and that's how we did it as well. They let me know about a week out and I sent payment then. Gene Ingram and Cjarles may were exemplery to deal with. They definately kept me from becoming sour over the whole custom experience altogether. I have one Ingram and have had 3 Mays now. :tu
 
Someday I might have a problem as well. I do make it a rule never to purchase knives from makers with spotty or poor reputations. That doesn't mean that a maker that previously had a spotless reputation won't all of a sudden go bad. Look at Steve Corkum and Jack Crain. I still believe that if you make careful choices that you much less likely to have a problem than if you take a chance on a maker you know has had problems in the past.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top