Begg Knives...worth wait?

I have a custom L51 gold that Andre Thorburn made me and you are right, they are one of the best flippers out there. In my opinion there is no comparison between the quality, fit/finish and flipping action of the thorburn bs the Begg. The thorburn outclasses the semi custom beggs and were half the price.
 
RobertA.R said:
Begg Knives are like the Nike shoes of the folder world. His limited stuff like the Black and Gold are always so tempting but for the prices that he charges i would opt for a custom from some of the other fellas out there that don't fleece people with inferior production models for almost custom prices. The Glimpse is 11-1300 dollars, has his name on it but is put together by a shop guy. His guys are no doubt skilled but for 1200 dollars i want Todd Beggs work, not some guy who works for Todd.
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There is more truth in ^^this and Purples post than I have read in a long time...
Thanks to both of you for telling it like it is, very refreshing.
 
Pittknife said:
I have a custom L51 gold that Andre Thorburn made me and you are right, they are one of the best flippers out there. In my opinion there is no comparison between the quality, fit/finish and flipping action of the thorburn bs the Begg. The thorburn outclasses the semi custom beggs and were half the price.
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Hey Pitt, you forgot to add that Andre actually touches the knives that carry his name.
 
JR88FAN said:
Hey Pitt, you forgot to add that Andre actually touches the knives that carry his name.
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LOL, good catch @JR88FAN. I thought mine might of been special but my bro got another L51 and it's just as amazing as mine, constantly good and yeah, Andre Thorburn made it himself.
 
Hi all,

I respect all of you for your opinions. I am not familiar with Andre Thorburn, but after reading some of these posts, I checked his stuff out. He is definitely on my list for a future purchase. That being said, I truly love my Begg Bodega 2.0. For me, it's everything that I can ask for in a knife, and yes, it's worth the wait. Anytime I've called Begg Knives, the phone has been answered promptly, and have received excellent customer service. JR88 you mention that it's important to you to that the maker actually touches the knife with his/her name on it. I read Andre's production process and it seems almost identical to Todd's process with the exception of the knife not being touched by Todd himself. I'm not sure that in this day and age that this is the most important factor in deciding to purchase a knife. The fit, finish, on the bodega are truly exceptional. Kudos to Todd and his team!!! I hope to get my Thorburn soon so that I can compare and contrast.

See ya!

Leo
 
Luckyleo said:
Hi all,

I respect all of you for your opinions. I am not familiar with Andre Thorburn, but after reading some of these posts, I checked his stuff out. He is definitely on my list for a future purchase. That being said, I truly love my Begg Bodega 2.0. For me, it's everything that I can ask for in a knife, and yes, it's worth the wait. Anytime I've called Begg Knives, the phone has been answered promptly, and have received excellent customer service. JR88 you mention that it's important to you to that the maker actually touches the knife with his/her name on it. I read Andre's production process and it seems almost identical to Todd's process with the exception of the knife not being touched by Todd himself. I'm not sure that in this day and age that this is the most important factor in deciding to purchase a knife. The fit, finish, on the bodega are truly exceptional. Kudos to Todd and his team!!! I hope to get my Thorburn soon so that I can compare and contrast.

See ya!

Leo
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I dont think anyone is disputing that Begg Knives "generally" puts out a decent product. But they are not all fantastic. Some get exceptional and some get decent and others get not so good at all. And trust me I know and understand that you dont get absolute perfection with any company. But I think the real issue here is that IMHO a Begg knife is on par with ZT, Taichung spyderco, and the like but they are charging full custom pricing. And they have an upcharge for things that are usually standard at such a price. Heck for a time (and it still may be this way) they werent even grinding their own blades. Im not saying that that they arent decent knives. They are, or at least can be. But at the same time I think for the price you should be getting 2 or 3 knives not just one. These dont have hand rubbed satin finishes or mirror polished blades. They are factory assembly line knives with tumbled finishes. Some like to preach about "hand assembly" and "Hand tuned" locks and detents. But that is how every single knife is made. There is no machine that currently assembles production knives nor sets them up. So you cant take par for the course and make it a bullet point of why you are above the rest when everyone is doing the exact same thing. Im very pleased to see you got a knife that would seem to be one of their better knives. But I think at those prices it better be exceptional. For those of us who got poor quality and even poorer service, I really couldnt and still cant justify the cost. Especially when so many other options exist and I can have it made to order. So for me its kinda like why go and pay 2 or 3 times the acceptable pricing for McDonalds when I can go and get a meal made to order and have it be exactly what I want (and unique) for the same price if not a bit less? I dont expect a production knife to go through Todds hands. But I do when he decides not to charge production prices. By comparison he makes hinderer and CRK look like bargains.
 
^^^^this, however, if people are willing to pay insane prices for knives that are basically a production item bundled in a whole lot of hype and a three episode TV show, then good for Todd.

Whatever works, I guess.

Every time I see a 'Bodega' it reminds me of everything I hate about 'custom knife making' and what that should mean. I am so great full to the makers who use their skill and passion to craft amazing knives and continue to use their hands in conjunction with technology to give us these great tools at fair prices.


Now I am going to exit stage left, but like I said, thank you Purple for telling it like it is.....
 
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Finally received my Bodega. 14 weeks later. First impressions, Likes: Solid build, flips like crazy fast, strong detent, and light for size. Dislikes: Show side is very plain, even ugly. No tools, polishing cloth or COA. If I could do this over again would I? No. The Field Grade is ok but to me not worth 820.00. I upgraded for Fluted Grind and Ceramic Ball Bearings. Don't get me wrong, the quality is apparent but I believe I could of done much better elsewhere. Not at all happy with the customer service I received...won't go into any details, but I was given several excuses for delay every time I contacted Begg. Again, the quality is there but for money spent I could have done much better than all the G10 on this Field Grade. I knew this when I ordered, wished I'd thought about it a bit more. Just my 2 cents.
 
Pinnacle5560 said:
Finally received my Bodega. 14 weeks later. First impressions, Likes: Solid build, flips like crazy fast, strong detent, and light for size. Dislikes: Show side is very plain, even ugly. No tools, polishing cloth or COA. If I could do this over again would I? No. The Field Grade is ok but to me not worth 820.00. I upgraded for Fluted Grind and Ceramic Ball Bearings. Don't get me wrong, the quality is apparent but I believe I could of done much better elsewhere. Not at all happy with the customer service I received...won't go into any details, but I was given several excuses for delay every time I contacted Begg. Again, the quality is there but for money spent I could have done much better than all the G10 on this Field Grade. I knew this when I ordered, wished I'd thought about it a bit more. Just my 2 cents.
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Sorry for being so harsh and one sided on this topic....

It's a real polarizing one, and maybe some of the comments are a bit extreme if they where ever taken out of the context of just being one individuals humble opinion.

Glad you got it, and it's great to see you can be critical about an $800.00+ knife. That's the only way you will ever learn about what is, and isn't worth it.
 
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Pinnacle5560 said:
Thanks Mom.
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That's just mean man......

Some people get very emotional about opinions around here, so I was just trying to clarify myself before I broke your fragile little heart, son.

You'll get what I mean once you spend a little more time on here....
 
Never have understood what the big deal is with Beggs.

I don't care for the looks of them and the ones I've handled were'nt that nice for the premium price they charge.
 
Quote from DoubleTap1 "In all honesty, I finally found a Andre Thorburn Blue Ti in carbon fiber that I wanted. Paid half the price of the B/G Bodega and it's truly a work of art; also functions like no other knife I own. I've actually lost interest in trying to find anything to top it."

--- DoubleTap1, I agree 100%. His work is simply amazing and I haven't found anything that DOES top it. Why prices on his knives are where they are currently (happily for me) is a total mystery. They should easily be 2 or 3 times the price for the quality, craftsmanship, incredible precision, stunningly perfect action, beauty & design of what he offers, especially when compared to other makers in and around his price range, (or substantially higher). When I find a great piece by him, I grab it every time I can. If I pass on one, there's always a reason and it's almost never price. To me he is the equivalent of Cartier or Tiffany or Patek Philippe of custom flippers knife makers. I have no connection to the man other than completely admiring his incredible work...and fortunately owning some too.

Begg stuff....meh...it's ok.
 
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