Ashamed of purchase price

I only call them dipshits for the fact that I once was a dipshit wasting money myself. Lol. And if you knew some of the people around there, thats a borderline nice term of endearment.

I guess this thick rhino skin makes me less sensitive than most.
 
Guilt is a waste of time and energy.
I don't feel shame or guilt when I'm flat broke.
I don't feel shame or guilt when I have some cash in the bank.
I don't feel shame or guilt for having some nice things...nor do I feel shame or guilt that I don't have more.
 
Dsmroots said:
Correct. I have a few nice knives and sharpen a lot of knives for people at work and while on the topic I try to stay away from the price point so as to not look or feel like a showboat. At the end of the day all they do is cut things. I just prefer a little better quality than most of the guys at work. It is still a little awkward regardless.

I will say that there are 2 guys I work with who appreciate knives and workmanship for what they are and I have no issue talking about designs or companies with them. I think that is because there is a mutual understanding of the market. I'm not going to lie, prior to the last 4 months, I had a hard time justifying anything beyond $40. I took the plunge and can't see myself going back in the near future.
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It sounds like the path you are on is fine; you're too humble IMO... Anyone that balks at what you spent on an item can go pound salt.


Also, congrats on your decision to go over $40!

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Just tell them the make and model and that you got a great deal. There is no need to talk numbers with anyone unless they are paying the tab.
 
zhyla said:
Well... it's yours to do with but there's a lot of good that excess income can do. This world is a mess.

We're too quick to justify our own materialism. I buy more way knives than I need and I'm not particularly proud of that (it's sort of an obsession).
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I don't need to justify how I expend resources I earned to anyone. Period. Sorry, man.
 
Never be ashamed of something you work for and have pride in

if they don't understand

Simple put they do not understand, so do not waste your time unless you feel the need to educate people on your decisions
 
If I'm not sure of the person's knowledge about knives, I just don't tell them and wave the question off. If I see them sporting knife brands, then I know they're knowledgeable and hence won't need me to tell them how much knives cost unless they're looking for a deal.
 
Well, I once had a Benchmade and a friend saw it and said, "I don't know why anyone would pay that much for one of those knives with the butterflies on them."

So then the same year, that Christmas, he goes on, "Ahh there's nothing like a brand new knife's edge," basically implying the sharpest it will get is from the factory.


So yeah I tend not to worry too much about what people think.
 
craytab said:
Yup. Couldn't agree more. I have knives in every price range. I can justify the price I paid for each of them, I just don't need to explain the reasons to people who wouldn't understand. Never be ashamed of your stuff. What other people think doesn't really matter. It is what you think that matters.

Oh, and my ZTs are more precisely made than my SAKS and I can justify the price I paid for each.:thumbup:
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Victorinox makes millions of knives every year. They hold close tolerances and produce knives that are virtually identical. They're sharp out of the package. The tools all have nice walk and talk. I've many complaints against ZT and pretty much every other company out there, yet I read virtually 0 complaints against Victorinox knives, despite Victorinox SAKs being the best selling knives on the planet. Victorinox is the gold standard for consistency in production knives. You can pick one up anywhere without even looking at it and you're pretty much guaranteed to get a perfect example every single time.

Some additional reading: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...-anyone-ever-had-a-defective-Swiss-Army-Knife
 
RetiredGuns said:
I don't sweat it much. The guys at work are used to me having an expensive knife on me. Most have some sort of hobby. My boss will carry a $30 Gerber, but spend $250 on an autographed baseball that sits in a lucite holder. I figure I can at least use mine in everyday tasks. My other boss carries an old carbon schrade pocket knife and is about $50k into restoring a '68 Chevelle & a '70 Nova. A lot of us have something that most would consider extravagant.
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I think this sums it all up very nicely. I have inexpensive knives (read: NO junk!) and some fairly expensive knives. Everyone around me is used to that and rely on me to have a sharp knife in my pocket. That's my "thing" and they know it.

They have expensive fishing gear, I don't. They go out to eat with their respective significant others often, and I don't with mine since I like to cook. They go see all the new movies when the come out, I never do. They buy expensive bottles of wine for "the weekend", as well as a bottle when they go out to the local country western dance club. I buy moderately priced bourbon, and don't drink much wine at all. I like their really expensive watches, but wear a Casio. I drive a 12 year old truck I bought new, and still like it.

On the other hand, I have had to point out to a couple of annoying guys that they could buy a motor home with the money they spend on ex wives and child support. Or at $6 a pack for cigarettes, I could easily buy a $250 knife every month for what they pay in cigarettes alone. And to point out someone's bar bill for comparison... that's shooting fish in a barrel.

As others have said here, be comfortable in your own skin.

Robert
 
Everybody has their taste for fine expensive things be it expensive trucks, guns, food, booze, gear or whatever. I happen to like fine knives and don't have any concerns about what others think about it.
 
Bufford said:
Everybody has their taste for fine expensive things be it expensive trucks, guns, food, booze, gear or whatever. I happen to like fine knives and don't have any concerns about what others think about it.
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My hobbies tend to get expensive, then I end up broke like I am now.
 
Funny you mention cigarettes. I smoke Indian Reservation smokes. I paid $160 for 12 cartons... when I drank, it was Steel Reserve. Consumables never deserve top dollar in my book.
 
JParanee said:
Never be ashamed of something you work for and have pride in

if they don't understand

Simple put they do not understand, so do not waste your time unless you feel the need to educate people on your decisions
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Here here, Joe :)

I think you should just enjoy what you enjoy, as long as you are able to without infringing on other people.
If I want to carry a $1000+ knife every day (I personally carry a Shirogorov 95T M390-around $1200 new), then that's what I'm gonna do.
I saved for a long time to afford my knives, and I search for even longer to find the ones that I want to add to my collection, so I figure that if anyone wants to tell me that's too much to spend on a knife, then that's their own opinion, and their own situation.
I am able to spend that much on a knife, and I have my own justification and reasoning for it, so I will do what, in my judgement, I can and want to.

I enjoy educating people on knives a lot, and many of my friends are more than understanding once they've seen the amount of detail and refinement that goes into something like my Shirogorov, my Diskin Fire, my Sebenza, or my BRS Replicant bali. Some people just won't get it, but honestly that's the reality of it. People will believe what they want to believe. There are those that think that anyone who carries a gun is crazy, or anyone practices bushcraft is weird, but we have a very different opinion ;) :D

Just love what you love, and don't worry about what other people think. It makes life a lot easier from my experience (as short as it may be) ;)
 
I don't feel ashamed as the OP wrote. For me it is a breach of etiquette to ask "How much did that cost?". It is an annoyance. Are you buying it? Well I am not selling so it is a stupid question aimed at:
A) Starting controversy or
B) Trying to get info on my disposable income

None of which I am interested to waste my time with or give you info about.

I have quite a few interests and I feel joy using an excellent tool when I write/cut/build/solder or do a bit of leathercraft. I can't take money with me when I die. But I love making a leather belt and seeing the smile on a persons face when I gift it, a smile that rival the happiness I felt making it. With quality, hard to get, tools.

/C
 
In thinking about this, I have been ashamed of a few purchases I've made. Not because of what others think, but that I found out later I could have gotten a better deal on it.

Before Bladeforums learned me good, I often paid full price at brick and mortar stores for me knives.
 
Colinz said:
I don't feel ashamed as the OP wrote. For me it is a breach of etiquette to ask "How much did that cost?". It is an annoyance. Are you buying it? Well I am not selling so it is a stupid question aimed at:
A) Starting controversy or
B) Trying to get info on my disposable income

None of which I am interested to waste my time with or give you info about.

I have quite a few interests and I feel joy using an excellent tool when I write/cut/build/solder or do a bit of leathercraft. I can't take money with me when I die. But I love making a leather belt and seeing the smile on a persons face when I gift it, a smile that rival the happiness I felt making it. With quality, hard to get, tools.

/C
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I don't personally mind when people ask how much I spent on some of my toys and tools. There are some things in which I think you are very right, and you shouldn't ask someone a quetsion of price or cost, as it is rude to a certain extent.
With my knives though, especially with people I know or who have heard of me from friends, I don't mind telling them. I see it this way:

If a person has only ever thought a knife costs $30, then they will only ever buy $30 knives, and the ones they see that are $100 or $200 will look way to expensive to them. A person who knows the regular guy sitting next to them has a $1000 knife can sometimes become curious about why the knife is $1000, and once they know the reasoning, that $100 knife doesn't look so bad.

It's what happened to me, and was the original catalyst for my collection. Spreading the desease is always fun for me :D
My friends used to think I was crazy for spending $200 on a knife, and now if you ask them to empty their pockets, you'll find plenty of knives from $200-800 in their pockets, and they're more than happy to tell you about how much they love them ;)

But at the end of the day, I think if you don't want to tell someone what you paid for anything, then you certainly don't have to. I don't think the majority of people ask that question out of bad intentions, but I'm certain there are plenty that do.

I ask the question a lot, but usually just to see if the knife is something I want to spend my money on. Or if it's something that I should just learn about and bookmark for later maybe ;)
 
Don't be ashamed of anything.

I don't worry about $20-$50 kitchen knives. Its all relative. I make quality culinary knives and don't sell them to folks that want cheap junk for a picnic or second home. My Knives start at $175.00 and go up to $650.00 or more if they want mammoth ivory etc on it.

Don't ever compare yourself to the knife cheapskates! Besides, they probably spent an extra $1000.00 on some silly after market rims for their car. You have knife class and have nothing to be ashamed about.
 
Colinz said:
I don't feel ashamed as the OP wrote. For me it is a breach of etiquette to ask "How much did that cost?". It is an annoyance. Are you buying it? Well I am not selling so it is a stupid question aimed at:
A) Starting controversy or
B) Trying to get info on my disposable income

None of which I am interested to waste my time with or give you info about.
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Um, okay. Or they could just be interested in the price in order to see if they would want to make the same purchase. Sometimes the simplest explanation really is the correct one.

When someone asks for a knife recommendation around here one of the most common responses we have is to ask what's their budget. But perhaps we are not really trying to help them at all. Perhaps we are trying to start a controversy or trying to figure out what their disposable income is!

We have every right not to tell people how much our knives cost but I would hope we don't withhold this information out of shame or paranoia.

I for one like to spread the joy of collecting knives and have no problem answering every question someone has. If they scoff at the price of my CRK I can then tell them about other quality but more budget friendly options.
 
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