BUYERS BEWARE >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

I came across this pic today...

Weilandvector2.jpg


This vector pic opens a big issue...

The maker had/has no authorization whatsoever to reproduce this design.

Intellectual property is protected and there is a big issue over copyright
infringments that he is doing.
The design of the vector
is now under microtech's protection since I sold the rights to them.

This is the only prototype (read that one..) done of the Vector and I'm the only owner of it:

vector.jpg


I have never authorized this maker to make any additional Vectors and there is only
one prototype, no more.

I will send a letter to the Guild maker's association and the florida
knifemaker's association so they can be aware of the situation.

So be aware and don't buy any Vector "prototype" since I have the only one ever done.

For your regular Vector needs, feel free to contact Microtech knives for different versions.

Best regards,

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Joel Pirela
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www.pirelabladedesign.com
 
T

tom mayo

Joined
Jan 27, 1999
Messages
6,277
Unfortunately, anybody can copy anything they want and theres not much you can do about it short of suing them....which is a big waste of time in the custom knife market, btw, where did you get the idea for that opening hole?
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Joel, I do agree with you that intelectual property is and will continue to be a big issue. It will play out in the courts.

You can copywrite the written word.

You can Trademark images and logo's.

You can Patent designs and elements of design.

I think legally you are supposed to give photo credits.

If you have a blueprint of the knife you may have been able to register that some how as well.

For future reference you may want to check with an attorney to find out what you need to do to protect your design. Perhaps you can legally force the maker to list you as the designer if he advertises the knife? This may be a remidy for Guild to ask for from the maker.

However, as Tom pointed out, not much you do but sue the bastid. If they are not in your home state, then you have to sue them in Federal Court. Big Bucks and not worth the effort.

By the way, who was the maker?



------------------
Les Robertson
www.robertsoncustomcutlery.com
Custom Knife Entrepreneur
 
The spyderhole was for the prototype only
(1 knife), personal use and not commercial.

Please see the Microtech Vector and the proper use of thumbstuds.

The idea was not to take any actions against the maker, it was to warn people of buying this knife thinking it was a prototype.

regards,

Joel
 
Well, other than the fact that he made it and pissed you off, it looks like the did a fine job.

------------------
Danbo, soul brother of Rambo
 
UPDATE:
Talked to the maker.
He apologized for the mistake he made some time ago without knowing.

No actions will be taken. There is still only one (1) prototype to date.

Thanx for the help!


------------------
Joel Pirela
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www.pirelabladedesign.com
 
Darn
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Another lawsuit avoided. What is this world coming to?
 
Just how are bill and hillary going to take over the world if we dont stop giving the lawyers every extra dime we have so they can drive around in their 4X4 Mercedes and play golf??????????????????????????????????
I say SUE 'EM (if you do, does that make you a sewer?)
smile.gif

tongue.gif

 
Joel,
Since you won't tell the entire story, I will. You gave enough clues in your first post so that it would take no time for someone to figure out who you are talking about and drop their name. Reese doesn't hang out on the forums, so if I would not have called him, he would have been clueless. I am his friend and I work out of his shop, just so everyone knows where I am coming from.

Reese gives you full credit on his web site and links to your web site for the prototypes he built for you. He built this particular knife well before you sold the design to Microtech. He never represented it as a prototype. The similarities are obvious, but a knifemaker or serious collector can see the differences immediately, even from the pictures. Should he have called you before he made it? Absolutely. Did he call you when someone asked hem to make another one? Yes, and when you told him you didn't want anyone making the design, he never did. This could have easily been resolved with a simple phone call. If someone else misrepresented the knife, it certainly wasn't Reese. BTW, that handle on your prototype looks really similar to the Hawk, which Reese designed. Someone correct me if I am wrong.

I have always been neutral on the forums, but this really pisses me off. Even if you presented the whole story, the damage has already been done. Reese is a full time maker. He feeds and shelters his family with his knifemaking skills. He has no time to hang out on the forums. With a little forethought and private investigation, you could have gotten the answers you desire, without dragging this in public. Your little excuse about warning "buyers" is a crock of sh1t.

Everyone who has dealt with Reese knows he is a straight shooter. He does more behind the scenes stuff to help knifemakers than anyone I have ever met and he doesn't go around banging his chest about it.

You put this in public, so I am responding in public. I will post the same message on all the threads.

Bob Doggett


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"People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf."
George Orwell
<A HREF="http://www.doggettcustomknives.com" TARGET=_blank>
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</A><A HREF="http://www.customknifedirectory.com" TARGET=_blank>
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</A>
 
Bob,
I don't think Reese has anything to worry about--we can all read between the lines here. He is fortunate to have a friend like you. Truth be told, I like the look of his version better.

------------------
~Greg Mete~
Kodiak Alaska
Buck Collectors Club-Lifetime Member
JKM-Chai
KnifeKnutt@aol.com
 
Boy, it's a good thing Bob Loveless didn't get uptight about his drop point hunter being copied. Or maybe any of the hundreds of knifemakers whose designs have been copied by hundreds of other knifemakers including most of the factories. I think Bob is right. This wasn't handled particularly well.

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Jerry Hossom
www.hossom.com
The New Tom & Jerry Show
 
The other side of the story....

Time frame of the vector design:

Contracted Reese to make the knife on March, deilvered on August, Tony saw it on September, close the deal with Tony on October and Microtech Vector done in December for SHOT Show.

Reese did this knife (the vector 2) without my knowlege, and knowing my position with my prototypes and the way I control them in the market, to guarantee the exclusivity of my designs to my customers.

You have to be in my position to really understand how I feel when I see stuff like this.

I didn't know if Reese did this last week or last year. (either way it was wrong...)

Reese called me today, apologized and offered to post an explanation regarding the existence of only one prototype. I told him it wasn't neccessary.

The person that sent me the e-mail this morning with the photo told me that he was told that he was buying one of 2 of a kind Vector.

I'm a person that hates the spotlight and pandemonium but like you said, a phone call asking for permission could it save a lot of this.

Did I handled this correctly? maybe yes, maybe not.

My point was to make customers aware of this knife floating away and that was not an original vector, not to prosecute Reese.

Regards,

Joel
 
I REPEAT: Anyone can make anything they want. Unless you are Bill Gates theres not much you can do about it.......except whine!
frown.gif
 
It is a great looking knife with a great design. I'm not much into protectionism, but I don't make my living from designing. Whoever builds the better mousetrap for the best price gets my vote. Even if you made the Spyderhole for a personal blade, you still copied their trademark and are complaining about someone using yours.

Go figure,

sarge
 
Tom, If there is a contactual agreement between the two parties that the maker can not make any more of the knives after he does the prototype then he can't make more of them. So your statement that anyone can make anything they want is incorrect. Can the knife be changed enough to get around the contact? Probably, but that would be pretty sleazy.
Sarge, do you know for a fact that Joel did not have an agreement of some sort with Spyderco that gave him the right to use the hole?
If this knife has been presented as a second Vector prototype then that is definitely wrong, if not then I think Joel has over reacted to what has happened. I do think that this could have been better handled between the two parties involved rather than in the forums. It seems like two reasonable people could easily have worked this out.
I do not side with either party here because I do not know all the details. I just wish it had not had to happen here in front of everyone like this.

Keith.

[This message has been edited by Keith Montgomery (edited 03-04-2001).]
 
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