Blatant Shameless Spyderco Ripoff

I still have the packaging here "coastportland" Coast Products 8033 NE Holman Portland, OR 97218

theirwebpage.com/heritage/ is a whole lot of selling the history and family that they claim is behind the company (or at least the name). Made in China of course. They claim to have patents as well, maybe for their multi-tool? I dunno, not going to research that.

What I noticed is the ones that looked "similar" to other knives... have changed minor details that could potentially stand up in court. I would think Sal/Spyderco is aware of this brand but I could be wrong.

(removed links but should be easy to figure out where to go)
 
There is a real Coast that has been around awhile. Have a couple of small led flashlights of theirs that I like use all the time. Knives of theirs have been cheap hardware store stuff. Their website show lots of knives that were obliviously "inspired" by well known makers for $20 something. Most are probably different enough to get past legal challenge --all are clearly branded Coast.
 
It looks like Home Depot sells them. I am sure among others. I don't know much about Coast. SO many better knives out there, and others at that price that are not design ripoff's.
Looks like they take multiple designs and make a knife out of them, other low end companies do that too.
 
The only MOD knife the DX340 even slightly resembles is the CQD. Regardless, I think the design is just barely differential enough to call their own.
The handle on the DX345 looks very similar to that of a Benchmade... *cough*Rift*cough*. I know we are talking about coast here, but shrade also seems to be in the plagiarizing biz, as the handle on the schrade SCH304MS model looks like a Medford Praetorian's. I would have never purchased a shrade or coast in the first place, but seeing this has sparked a loathe for both brands.
 
Too bad, Schrade actually produces some pretty decent blades, particularly fixed.
 
marcinek said:
So. Just out of curiosity...so, for you, someone who claims to be passionate about knives, bout knives as a hobby, and about the people who make knives...as long as a clone/counterfeit/tribute isn't taking money out of somebody's pocket, it's OK?
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I'll probably regret what I wrote .....but , WHY company like Spyderco do not do anything against counterfeiters? Like to reduce the prices of their knives in half ? That is only way they can fight with this ......Don t you think that their prices are too high ? If they do it , maybe I will bye some BRAND knive .. . .. for fair price . I don t like to fill like
somebody just robbed me :D
 
Natlek said:
I'll probably regret what I wrote .....but , WHY company like Spyderco do not do anything against counterfeiters? Like to reduce the prices of their knives in half ? That is only way they can fight with this ......Don t you think that their prices are too high ? If they do it , maybe I will bye some BRAND knive .. . .. for fair price . I don t like to fill like
somebody just robbed me :D
Click to expand...

So to avoid feeling like somebody robbed you, you literally rob Spyderco?

You're only cheating yourself. Spydie knives may cost 2x more but they are 10x better.
 
Interesting justification........a legit company charges too much, in your eyes, so buy a copy from thieves???
Doesn't make any sense to me.
 
Natlek said:
I'll probably regret what I wrote .....but , WHY company like Spyderco do not do anything against counterfeiters? Like to reduce the prices of their knives in half ? That is only way they can fight with this ......Don t you think that their prices are too high ? If they do it , maybe I will bye some BRAND knive .. . .. for fair price . I don t like to fill like
somebody just robbed me :D
Click to expand...
Extremely flawed logic. "I can't afford something so it is okay to steal it". That is not what this forum is about.
 
Natlek said:
I'll probably regret what I wrote .....but , WHY company like Spyderco do not do anything against counterfeiters? Like to reduce the prices of their knives in half ? That is only way they can fight with this ......Don t you think that their prices are too high ? If they do it , maybe I will bye some BRAND knive .. . .. for fair price . I don t like to fill like
somebody just robbed me :D
Click to expand...
Their quality justifies the price, among other factors. Plus, Sal and Eric come off as some of the most down to earth businessmen I've ever seen, I would personally hate to feel like I'm robbing them by buying a fake.
 
All anyone has to do is merely look at the photo of that total piece of garbage in post #3 and plainly see it's worthless !!! Anyone that thinks they're saving money buy buying that over a genuine Spyderco budget line knife is a fool imho.

“A fool and his money
are soon parted”
 
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Seriously, Spyderco has literally done everything in their power to bring us more affordable models. Tenacious family, Byrd knives, and now the Polestar series.

Even these "homage" knives are a thin line. For example blackjack copies many Randall designs. However Randall in turn was inspired by Scagel knives. Spyderco's design is purely Spyderco.

I think the disconnect is that everyone knows that a person wanting a Randall will not get a Blackjack. However a person looking for a small ergonomic EDC knife with a hole in the blade might buy a coast knife over the Spydie. Thus stealing a potential customer.
 
Spyderco already makes affordable Chinese knives. Do they cost more than that Chinese knockoff? Sure. Are they higher quality? Of course!

Buying a $13 low quality copy instead of a $20 Byrd lacks logic. The Byrd is higher quality, has an actual warranty and supports a reputable company. Even if you are only looking out for your own best interest it defies logic to buy the knockoff.
 
bearfacedkiller said:
Spyderco already makes affordable Chinese knives. Do they cost more than that Chinese knockoff? Sure. Are they higher quality? Of course!

Buying a $13 low quality copy instead of a $20 Byrd lacks logic. The Byrd is higher quality, has an actual warranty and supports a reputable company. Even if you are only looking out for your own best interest it defies logic to buy the knockoff.
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And we are back to the "don't buy a knockoff because of bad customer service" and "clones are low quality" thing.

Like craytab craytab said earlier, to me, that is not what this forum is about.

If a clone has great quality and CS and warranty....it is still purpose-built to make a quick buck off some other knifemaker's work ...and should not be bought. End of story. Nothing else really needs to be considered.
 
I think you misunderstood me. We are on the same page. I too am opposed to them for moral reasons and because they are detrimental to the hobby and the industry.

Natlek said:
I'll probably regret what I wrote .....but , WHY company like Spyderco do not do anything against counterfeiters? Like to reduce the prices of their knives in half ? That is only way they can fight with this ......Don t you think that their prices are too high ? If they do it , maybe I will bye some BRAND knive .. . .. for fair price . I don t like to fill like
somebody just robbed me :D
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I was replying to this comment by Natlek that Spydies are overpriced as his justification. My point is that even if someone doesn't care about the morality (and I was implying that he doesn't) or the detrimental effects of knockoffs that it still lacks logic from the economical aspect that Natlek proposed AND that they have in fact addressed the issue in the exact way he suggests, by competing with them at their price point. I was not saying that is why I am opposed to them but rather that his point of view is illogical and incorrect.
 
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bearfacedkiller said:
I think you misunderstood me. We are on the same page. I too am opposed to them for moral reasons and because they are detrimental to the hobby and the industry.
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OK. Sorry, man. It just bugs me that the tolerance "bar" for these things keeps getting lowered lately.

Not that you did it! :thumbsup:

But this thread is full of that stuff! Well...don't buy then because the QC is bad. Or the CS is bad. Or you might not get the steel they promise. etc.

Don't buy them because they take advantage of someone else's work. That's, to me, where the bar should be here.

Again, sorry for jumping down your throat!!! :oops:
 
No worries brother, you have good intentions. I am a full blown Spyderco junkie and they make up most of my collection by a long shot. I get pretty defensive too as they are a constant target in this battle and I hold both Sal and Spyderco in high regard.

Here is some hypocricy. I have heard Sal comment many many times about how much time and money they invest in fighting this and anybody with any sense would know that those resources don't come out of nowhere and that they end up in the prices of the knives themselves. So the very folks that buy knockoffs of Spydercos and use price as an excuse are themselves adding significant costs to Spyderco's business and driving up the very prices they are complaining about.
 
I get a kick out of the justifications that some come up with.
Couple YT channels come to mind.
No copies, knock offs, counterfeits.......period.
I am also a Spydie fan, the knives, CS and most of all Sal.
Have seen many posts by Sal addressing this problem and if you think it doesn't hurt them, you're nuts. He has stated how fake Enduras & Delicas almost put them out of business in the '90's.
Joe
 
I don't know if brands like this do much to hurt the major brands, because a guy at Home Depot with 10 bucks to drop on a folder wasn't going to get a Delica anyway. He might have, however, purchased a Byrd knife if they were side-by-side. Major knife companies would do well to get their ultra-budget lines into the gas stations and hardware stores where people are buying these terrible imitations. It would introduce the brand to a whole new audience.

On the topic of clones (not imitations), I like that Kizer and Stedemon (somewhat ironically, both Chinese companies) have taken the budget-line approach to a different level and pre-empted clones entirely by making their own lower-cost versions of their knives (examples: Kizer Vanguard series, Stedemon ZKC models). That would be the step necessary to completely derail the clone market - brands making their own clones. It won't stop imitators like Maxam and Coast, though, as that can only be accomplished by a combination of legal action and direct and visible competition through budget lines.
 
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