Banned from Benchmade!

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Mike Turber

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Well it looks like am banned from Benchmade's forum. I may be wrong but here is the message I get when I try and post.

<font face="Verdana, Arial" size="2">Sorry, but you do not have permission to reply to this topic.

Your registration request may not yet may have been approved by the Administrator or your posting privileges have been removed.

You may also be trying to post to a forum where you do not have permission to post.
</font>
Click to expand...

Oh well...

To bad, I was wanting to know if they are in fact getting blades and components made in China now. According to a factory in China, they have been making parts and blades for Benchmade for years. Is this true Benchmade?

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that is real interesting is it a good source from china ?? i hate to say it but i guess thats why i cannot trust any company these days there is a lot of that going around made in USA ya right!! more like made overseas put together in USA i bet a lot of people are going to be pretty upset keep us informed

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I am just a worthless liar....... I am just an Imbecile ...... I will only complicate you ..... Trust in me and fall as well .... I will find a center in you ... I will chew it up and leave .. I will work to elevate you just enough to bring you down
 
Sheesh!

I know that in today's "global economy" a lot of work is being farmed out overseas, but that's got to be bad for Benchmade's reputation.

Mike- how's your source on this?

Seems like a bad move for the company that touts it's completely made in the USA status so proudly. I hope it's not true.

Firebat

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Name's Ash......Housewares.
 
Benchmade obtains some of the small parts, screws, etc., from a company called Portland Screw (I've always wanted to work for Portland Screw, a company that pays you to just screw around). (BTW, I'm telling you any trade secrets here. Nine out of ten manufacturers in the Portland, Oregon area get their small mechanical parts from Portland Screw.) Anyway, Portland Screw is just a distributor. It wouldn't surprise me if many of their parts do come from China.

But, I have had the rare privilege of touring Benchmade's factory (because of various practical and insurance concerns, they don't generally conduct tours). I've seen them making the blades. I've seen four very expensive lasers cutting the blade shapes out sheets of steel. I've seen wonderful machines made just for Benchmade by a company in Germany profile and finish the blades (though sharpening is done by hand). I've seen millions of dollars worth of CNC machines making all of the other major parts of their knives. I've seen machines that take in steel rod stock and make screws, washers, and other small parts. While Benchmade's designers, of course, try to use standard parts (from the Portland Screw catalog) as much as possible, having these machines allows them use a custom part when necessary. This is how they can do special things like the Axis lock that other manufacturer's can only wonder at.

And I've seen groups of technicians assembling the knifes. This is where the "benchmade" comes into Benchmade.

Some small parts probably are made in China. But the majority of most recent Benchmade knives were made about twenty miles from my house, on Beavercreek Road, in Oregon City, Oregon by a team of skilled craftsman, machinests, and technicians who are proud of their work.

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Chuck
Balisongs -- because it don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing!
http://www.balisongcollector.com

[This message has been edited by Gollnick (edited 01-28-2001).]
 
Gee Mike, we just had a controversy over somebody being banned from a forum, do we really need another one here?

I think Jeff is right, this belongs in the GBU forum. I am moving it there Mike, and leaving this locked here. Obviously if you want to re-open the thread here in the BDF, it is up to you.

I just think this really is a GBU thing. Maybe somebody else will ask the question at the BM forum for you and let us know what they have to say for themselves.

Just doing my job, boss
smile.gif


Paracelsus
 
Dear Mike:
Before you start spreading rumors you should get your facts straight. Benchmade never had, is not and will not get parts made in China. I have been working with them for 6 years and not once have I heard anything about China.
Just recently, Benchmade has been communicating with a Taiwan agent about small parts like screws, thumb studs and pivot pins, etc...

Allen Elishewitz
 
I can also tell you that in my previous occupations as an engineer, I have experienced Chinese suppliers. I hate to paint with a broad brush, and certainly don't want to imply that all Chinese suppliers are this way (I have had Chinese suppliers who delivered wonderful quality parts on time and below budget), but, in general, they'll tell you anything to win your business. The Taiwanese are even worse. Don't even trust... Just verify.


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Chuck
Balisongs -- because it don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing!
http://www.balisongcollector.com
 
Allen, I was not trying to start a rumor. I was actually trying to stop it. This company is trying to get business and touting Benchmade's name. They even claim to be making some blades for Benchmade. This would explain the move to other steels like Gin-1 which is the thread I was trying to respond to when I saw I was banned.

Again just looking for answers before I start dealing with this company as I would not like to deal with them if they are lying up front about supplying parts or blades to Benchmade.

------------------
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Mike Turber
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Is anyone from Benchmade a member of this forum? If so it would be nice to hear from them directly.
Why would it seem that mike has been banned? Is this just a mistake, or was it purposely done? If done on purpose, it seems to me that Benchmade is trying to avoid answering a touchy question. Why?
I do not want to accuse Benchmade of anything without getting their side of the story. How I can get their side of the story, I do not know.
Keith
 
Mike,
Next time you try to post, they will ban your IP
rolleyes.gif
. If you call Travis you might have a shot at getting back on though, as long as you stay reasonable. Those both come from experience. I would also like to know about the possible connection with China, I hope it is merely a rumor.

Keith,
My guess is you get their side of the story by either posting on their forum and waiting for ever to get an answer, or by giving them a phone call and reporting back here.


[This message has been edited by tique (edited 01-28-2001).]
 
Sheesh. This really belongs in the Manufacturers forum. Mike, try to address this there as industry news is just that, for the industry. Your opening post can be viewed as somewhat incomplete until you responded to Allen. And it still is for that matter. I' ll admit though I clicked on your thread real quick just because of its title...

Nakano
 
Their whole site is down. I doubt if I'll buy any more Benchmades. They should use some of their profits to hire some PR people who know that the "P" in PR is the PUBLIC.
 
I find it a problem that any part,even a screw being made in China used in any knife boasting to be 100% USA made.At Benchmade prices,I don't think they should be cutting corners on screws,pivot pins,or any other hardware that I've plunked my hard earned cash on.I would be disappointed in knowing I've been buying a product that isn't what it was represented to be.It would also be nice if Benchmade didn't ignore concerns or questions,and ban people who may call them out onto the carpet.It makes Benchmade look bad,to ignore a situation instead of responding to it, rumor or not.
 
BM is quick to ban people form their forum...I should know.
wink.gif
I'm permantely banned, for trying to get the site some traffic. I think they will close the forum down if any of this keeps up.

-AR
 
Hey, Mike, welcome to the club!

I was banned for posting about my AFCK which still has problems with liner rubbing the blade, and scale flex. The blade was sent back and BM replaced the whole knife, bar the blade. It is better now, less wobble and does not come off center as often (once a week now) and the up and down movement is gone.

It seems BM did not like me telling people about my problems with this knife, go figure. I can be an ******* but never on the Benchmade Forum, and no longer here!

Well Obi Wan it seems censorship is rife at BM. Pity, I really like the knives they make, I own

1. M2 710
2.M2 Nimravious
3.ATS-34 855
4.M2 AFCK

Mr Elishewitz I love your Nimravious and 690. Have you ANY idea how hard I have tried to buy a 690? Mission Impossible 3!

BM have really upset me now twice, I am considering never bothering with them again. The customer service is first rate. A company needs to dig deep and think when it starts upseting BM fans like me and others.

Rant over

Keep up the good work Mike!

W.A.

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I guess I should of reworded the post better. Now after looking at it from 3rd person point of view it sure as hell looks like I was trying to start some ****. I really wasn't.

This guy was bragging about the companies he makes parts for. I knew about all of them before he mentioned Benchmade. Man that just about floored me, so then I started thinking that maybe he is full of ****. Then he basically stated that they had been making parts for years for them. I could have sent a private email to Les but this was a while back and the Gin-1 question over there is what raised my eyebrow. Also I am not the only person who knows about this. Heck even Microtech is looking to Hattori to build stuff.



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Mike Turber
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I'd like to restate that I do not know anything about the origins of Benchmade's parts. It wouldn't surprise me if some of the minor parts are imported, but I don't know that for sure. I do know that the major parts are American made.

It's often the case that you simply can't get some of these minor parts, small screws, etc., that are American made except for highly specialized aerospace- or military-grade stuff. A few of those screws could double the price of your knife.

Why? American labor is just to expensive for these sorts of parts. The worker who runs a machine to make screws in the US earns maybe $30/hour, $45 after 8-hours on any day. He gets a hour of paid lunch and two paid 15-minute breaks each day, 12 paid holidays and 21 days of paid vacation each year, paid sick leave, unpaid family leave, health, life, long- and short-term disability, and unemployment insurance, plus profit sharing, and matching contributions to a 401K plan.
Furthermore, here in the US, the work environment has to meet expensive safety and health requirements and every employee needs sexual harassment and diversity training every year.

That all really drives the cost of a simple washer way up.

In general, American labor is great for more complex tasks (like assembling an Axis-lock knife), but just can't compete on cost making simple parts like common screws or washers.

I think if you took most any production knife that claims to be Made in American, and asked, "Was this washer made in the US?" you'd find that it probably was not. Even if it was, where did the metal for it come from?

Recognizing this reality, American laws allow products sold as "Made in America" to contain a small fraction of imported parts.


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Chuck
Balisongs -- because it don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing!
http://www.balisongcollector.com
 
Gollnick is correct. Which is part of the reason why I am in contact with China manufacturers. There are actually several projects in which certain parts are just to much here. As long as the quality is good I think Chineese parts are fine. The guy did mention that Benchmade is a stickler for quality.

There also is not real percentage that one goes by to determine what is US made or not. If you use the words 100% US made then you have a problem.

I personally don't have a problem with Benchmade getting parts from China, Taiwan or wherever as long as the QC is good. I just want to know if I am being fed a line of crap from this guy in China.

In hind sight I should have just fired off a private email to Les about this.

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Best Regards,
Mike Turber
BladeForums Site Owner and Administrator
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My wife and I work at Benchmade and to the best of my knowledge no parts come from China. The closest thing to imported parts was the ATS34 we used for blades when 154cm wasn't available in stock sizes we needed. I'm having a real problem with the start of rumors like this. BM employees take a lot of pride in their work and these accusations are insulting. This is my $1.00 worth of opinion.

Bill Siegle
 
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