Beautiful guns, horriable knives

[Brad Greulich]

I cant figure out why people i know carry REALLY nice guns yet they but there knife is from wal-mart. they think i'm wasting my money with good quailty knives like the Buck 110, or a spyderco. i also find it funny that they can't figure out why they have to sharpen them so often and they compleatly break, thats what happend when you skin a deer with a plastic handled $10 knife.
Anyone else know people like this?

 

[leatherman]

Yup, same here, but to a higher degree. My gun buddies collect those 700.00+ Colt's and such and I find a 5$ folder clipped to their jeans! When shown a good quality Emerson, Strider, or *gasp* a custom I get the enevitable "Ya coulda bought a decent gun for that!"

'sigh' to quote another famous phrase "If you have to ask, you wouldnt understand"

 

[spyder10]

$700? ya try lik $2,200 for me i love my HK Tactical w/ Knight's scilencer

ps i carry a CRKT M-16 and sometimes a BM42

 

[love4steel]

I wouldn't carry a poorly made knife - just as I would not carry a poorly made firearm. You get what you pay for in these situations - neither of these tools are very useful if they are unreliable. Of course, a cheapo knife may be able to "get the job done" more often than a cheapo gun - but I peronally just dont have a tase for anthing that isn't made well.

 

[harm]

it's juat that some people havent caught on to the fact that quality knives,like everything else in this world, cost more.in cars there's MBenz,Ferrari etc,watches Panerai,Rolex ,the list is endless.if a guy cant understand about knives,there's a phrase in my native language the translation of which is - u can give a donkey saffron to eat but it wont know the difference.some guys are just the donkey,dont waste your breath

 

[Runs With Scissors]

I'd often wondered if that was an exclusive tradition of the Alaskan hunter.

I can't tell you how many times I"ve known guys that have a 40,000 truck, pulling a 9,000 four wheeler, carrying a $1,000 hunting rifle, mega expensive pack, GPS, binoculars, etc. And a $15.00 Wal-Mart knife. And of course, the owner of such rigs. (Often my own family) think I'm nuts for carrying a $200 folding knife. Matter of fact, I've a family member with the forementioned habits sarcastically make remarks about how he wishes he was rich enough to carry a knife that expensive. (I'm typically pi$$ broke, wile said person owns an airplane, three boats, two snowmachines an Airstream, two trucks, one car, and a recreational cabin in the middle of nowhere)

And I've noticed it always comes down to hurting somebody also when it comes to the perception. "You could carry a gun for that much!" Of course my most frequent remark is that I've found my 1911 to be kinda lousy for opening packages and cutting things around the house. Then there's the ever popular "who you gonna cut with that knife!" or "What's a knife like that for?" (It aint like I'm EDCing a Gil Hibben "Klingon Assassinator" here)

Another odd thing here...people who build cars, keep passenger jets in the sky,build experimental aircraft, houses, etc. always come to me to simply get a knife sharpened.

I dunno. It's strange. If you look at the numbers and go to the stores you'd think that knives are becoming more popular with people and more widely accepted. Looking around at people though it seems that the proper use and care of knives is a dying art form.

My own son is eight years old. I've recently begun teaching him how to sharpen a knife, and I've been teaching him how to shoot a rifle. Irregardless of any other path he may choose in life he WILL learn to do these things. He doesn't have to become a weapons zealot like his old man, but he better darn well know his way around a knife and a firearm.

 

[Gossman Knives]

I've always found that hunters are the hardest people to sell custom hunting knives to. They use the very best in hunting firearms and seem to be satisfied with a 19.99 POS knife. The real work with hunting comes when the animal is down. Knife failure is not fun when you are miles from your camp.
Scott

 

[clt46910]

If they would think about it, you use your knife a lot more then you do your gun. Why go cheap on something you would use more?

But then I like good equipment. Not always the best or most expensive but good quality.

 

[G3]

Dont own a firearm yet but if/when I do, you can bet I would'nt choose some POS that will jam up or misfire, etc. You have to go with quality for certain things in life, regardless of cost. It's in your best interests to do so not only for life of the product but safety to yourself and others.

 

[Dog of War]

Part of the problem IMO is that with knives, added cost often doesn't provide a useful difference in performance that the non-enthusiast either needs or appreciates. Not that I understand people choosing any tool that's a total POS .... but still, there are a lot of inexpensive knives that offer terrific utilitarian value: Opinels, Moras, the budget Spydercos, etc.

With guns, vehicles and most other gear, there's also a diminishing return on additional investment, but it's not nearly so bad in most instances as with knives. If you can handle a $3500 race gun, or a fine, custom-fitted over-under, then you know, appreciate, and can actually use the kind of performance that the extra money buys.

Besides, there's nothing wrong with high end cutlery being something only the knowledgeable enthusiast can really appreciate, and then appreciate it for something beyond mere function. Be thankful if you're one of us with such refined tastes .... just don't be a snob towards the guy for whom a knife is just a cutting tool, which is the way it is for most people.

 

[Joe Dirt]

I like quality things.

One of my favorite ads was a poster in a motorcycle shop that was for Bell helmets.

It said "Got a $10 head?...buy a $10 helmet."

That gets the point across nicely.

Got $10 fingers?......buy a $10 knife.

 

[TheFacts]

"Got a $10 head?...buy a $10 helmet."

I find this statement illogical and irrelevant. Even if the quote stated, "Got a $10,000 head?...buy a $10,000 helmet.", does this imply that one can actually put a price value on life or limb? Either way, I would find such advertising offensive and unnecessary. Are we, in fact, so oblivious to marketing hype and BS that such ads could be taken seriously?

 

[tim8557]

I find this statement illogical and irrelevant. Even if the quote stated, "Got a $10,000 head?...buy a $10,000 helmet.", does this imply that one can actually put a price value on life or limb? Either way, I would find such advertising offensive and unnecessary. Are we, in fact, so oblivious to marketing hype and BS that such ads could be taken seriously?

Lighten up! Nobody takes advertising seriously except the beer commercials during football season.

 

[Joe Dirt]

I find this statement illogical and irrelevant. Even if the quote stated, "Got a $10,000 head?...buy a $10,000 helmet.", does this imply that one can actually put a price value on life or limb? Either way, I would find such advertising offensive and unnecessary. Are we, in fact, so oblivious to marketing hype and BS that such ads could be taken seriously?

I find your post illogical and irrelevant.

 

[G3]

I find this statement illogical and irrelevant. Even if the quote stated, "Got a $10,000 head?...buy a $10,000 helmet.", does this imply that one can actually put a price value on life or limb? Either way, I would find such advertising offensive and unnecessary. Are we, in fact, so oblivious to marketing hype and BS that such ads could be taken seriously?

Just my $.02 - No offense meant but...

No what it it implying is that you can't put a value on your head that would be worth selling it for, so you should put the very best on it for protection. That marketing tactic is older than dirt. You should be able to see through it's ploy as the company trying to claim their product is superior in one way or another.

Just like: "...because so much is riding on your tires."

 

[TheFacts]

No what it it implying is that you can't put a value on your head that would be worth selling it for, so you should put the very best on it for protection. That marketing tactic is older than dirt. You should be able to see through it's ploy as the company trying to claim their product is superior in one way or another.

I agree, the ad is suggesting that the best should be placed on your cranium...their best and for the price that they want it for. As for the marketing tactic, your right, it has been around forever, and your right, it is a ploy (equal to marketing BS and hype).

 

[Brian6244]

I have a father and a couple buddies like this. Thousands of dollars invested in guns and hundreds of pennies invested in knives. I also get many of the same comments about my quality cuttlery as have already been mentioned here. The fun for me comes when we each hang a couple deer up at the camp and begin skinning, quartering and deboning. Guess who finishes first? Yup me! Guess why? Well of course, because they have to either stop to sharpen their knife once or even twice before their deer is finished or even better, they bring several knives that are not only dull but also a POSs and they struggle through the entire process. A few passes on the ceramic rod or a diamond plate afterwards and I'm ready to process more game.

At least these folks know how to sharpen their own knives. They don't get them popping hairs but the do get them better than dull. Of course they ugly them up in the process also.

 

[MGF]

My own brothers are like this. I'm going to give them both KaBar Doziers next pheasant season. Then I know they'll at least have something decent.

When bird hunting, I carry an old-style Wave on the left hip, a little Old Timer with brass liner lock in the watch pocket (sometimes a wee blade is very handy) and folder (usually a Griptillian or a KaBar) in the right, back pocket.

Use Gerber game shears to clean the birds. I know... Gerber's knives aren't great these days, but these shears have been workin' for years for me.

Nothing very expensive, but all very functional.

 

[harm]

sometimes the best answer is to tell these guys to go f#@$ themselves.and i have had the same experience - it's the high rollers that think $200/300 is expensive for a knife.most of the time it's the working class guy that appreciates a quality knife-because guys like that know the value of a good tool

 

[Hair]

I cant figure out why people i know carry REALLY nice guns yet they but there knife is from wal-mart. they think i'm wasting my money with good quailty knives like the Buck 110, or a spyderco.

What is wrong with buying a knife from Wal*Mart? Last time I checked, one could get several Bucks, a Spyderco, several Leathermen, and several Victorinox SAKs at Wal*Mart.

Anyways... while I like nice knives as much as the next guy the answer to your question as to why some people buy cheap knives is because it is all they need or want. Do you buy only the best of anything? Never bought cheap food, or cheap shoes? Own any cheap scissors, or forks? Any cheap lamps in your house? Everyone buys cheap **** when it is something they don't really care about. Having a nice gun doesn't mean you need a nice knife. If a junk knife works for someone, let them be. I like nice knives, but that doesn't mean I need high-end boots. And it doesn't mean I can look down on people for liking and spending their money on different things than me. This is for the general population, though.

I agree it is silly to go hunting with top-end gear except for a junk knife. But I don't think they deserve redicule. Try nicely educating them. They will probably want a nicer knife if you show them why it is worth the extra money. And if, in the end, they don't feel they need a nicer knife, so be it. Not everyone has your standards about knives, just as some people have higher standards than you when it comes to shoes, sewing machines, pens, or ceiling fans. You aren't an idiot for not spending as much on a ceiling fan as someone that is really into ceiling fans, are you? What makes a nice knife anyways? To you, an Opinel or Native may be inexpensive but "nice" or "quality". But to someone else, they may be junk, and nothing but a high-end custom is acceptable. Are you a fool for falling below their standards? No, because what is goodm enough for you is good enough for you, and that is all that matters. Likewise, an Mtech might be good enough for some Joe Hunter out there.