Who's making it? Taylor brands? CRKT, cold steel. That info would be great too, so we all can avoid the company doing it. Thank you.
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Can China made produce a good blade?
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Who's making it? Taylor brands? CRKT, cold steel. That info would be great too, so we all can avoid the company doing it. Thank you.
brancron
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There isn't one. Boats is referring to an Enlan on the first page that has obviously been modified by the owner to include a crude "wave" opener. Googling the name of the model reveals this to be the case.
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If you oversimplify things, sure. That their production looks like bits and parts of every popular western folding knife over the past decades is surely just an unhappy coincidence.
Like how a CRKT Squid looks a little bit like a Spyderco Techno. There are select few blade designs that work well, they are all going to look similar in some fashion if they are going to remain effective tools.
KingMC
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Blade shape is always going to be the hardest part of the knife to make unique, hence why so many different knives have similar-looking blades.
What Boats is referencing is the amount of patented designs that are being used by companies not paying for the rights to use them, with no regard for the patent holders' financial losses. Similar blades shapes is not the main issue, taking unique design aspects and incorporating them into knives without giving the creator/patenter their dues is the issue.
What Boats is referencing is the amount of patented designs that are being used by companies not paying for the rights to use them, with no regard for the patent holders' financial losses. Similar blades shapes is not the main issue, taking unique design aspects and incorporating them into knives without giving the creator/patenter their dues is the issue.
You sound like you have the answer to the question then. What brands copy patented designs? Is it Taylor brands?, CRKT? Cold Steel? I keep reading about these patent infringements but no one seems to know what companies are doing it.
Just looking for clarification so they can be avoided. If you have that info, it would be awesome to see it provided.
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There's a point where style impedes form and function. I'm not sure what you expect from the Chinese knife designers. Originality in design is scant in this industry of late, and it's not just inherent to China. When's the last time you looked at a new Spyderco and thought "Wow, THAT'S a Spyderco? Never woulda guessed that!". ZT seems to regurgitate the same SinkRexErer designs too. There's so much good competition in our industry that it's hard for any designer regardless of nation of origin to strike an original chord. I think if you took an un-biased look at the manufacturers that we've put forward as good examples of high quality Chinese knives you'd see that there is a little bit of something new there. I see it. I'd be happy to discuss particular models you have questions about if you want to try to see the trees rather than the forest.
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I agree, I don't support or buy those knives. Those aren't the knives we're talking about. I have no desire for a counterfeit spyderhole or axis lock when I already have the real thing. These are new designs we're talking about.
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Here's a Chinese knife I wouldn't mind trying[/URL][/IMG]
What the heck is that
Quite nice.Sosa, I commend you for exercising restraint on this thread. I know because I've read your posts in the past and very much agree with you on many of them(I do to some extent with people here also). It's wise to know when to and when not to.
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It's believed that at some point SRM was an OEM manufacturer for Benchmade (the HK knives) and gained access to the Axis lock there. For some time after the manufacturing agreement ended, SRM made an unauthorized copy of the Axis lock. I don't believe SRM still makes an Axis lock, however.
There are many models of Ganzo that are direct rip-offs of Benchmade models. These are still readily available today.
Navy does almost exact copies of certain Spyderco models. It been conjectured that Navy grew out of the original OEM manufacuter for the Byrd line.
There's an online website that's almost entirely composed of counterfeit or rip-off knives spanning from Chris Reeve to Shirogorov. Some are incredibly well done.
I don't consider these as valid examples of Chinese knives. These are crimes against industry and creative persons. These aren't the knives we're discussing but they seem to be the only perception of Chinese knives for some people. (which I can actually support if that's how you feel. I hate these copies...but that doesn't mean all Chinese knives are bad knives. It just means its more challenging to find the good)
KingMC
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Correct, we are talking about based-in-china knifemakers making unique designs, and whether someone would purchase them or not.
I, for one, would purchase knives from a few Chinese-based brands, but I don't have the kind of money to actually do so. ReaTe, Kizer, and Stedemon are all making knives that, if not for the high prices, I'd be inclined to at least consider buying on merits of the knife, not considering the location where they're made as a hindrance.
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SRM
Sadly, they still do make axis locks. For Chinese domestic market only but of course, it trickles down the export trail. If SOME Americans want it, they can get it. And they do.
Yeah theres a new Byrd line maker. Third time's a charm?
Sadly, they still do make axis locks. For Chinese domestic market only but of course, it trickles down the export trail. If SOME Americans want it, they can get it. And they do.
Yeah theres a new Byrd line maker. Third time's a charm?
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And a legitimate issue indeed. No one should countenance theft. The sad thing is, some counterfeit knives are extremely well-made. And therein lies the problem. It's only human nature to want to make the theft of intellectual property "bad" on every conceivable level. But sometimes the quality of the counterfeited product just doesn't let it work out that way. So what do you do when a bad motive results in a good product? Well a lot of folks start out by slamming the motive which is perfectly OK as far as I'm concerned. But it's only a matter of time before they start slamming the quality of the product, too. And when they do that, they lie. So then we're faced with the question of whether two wrongs make a right. Is it OK to lie about the quality of a product you've never seen but you know is the result of a stolen design? To me, the answer is no. Lying is never acceptable. To others, the answer is yes. It's OK to lie in order to discredit a thief. Whichever side you're on, though, it's a quandary. And we're not going to resolve it here.
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Thanks for the info. I hadn't seen any SRM's with Axis lock so I'd been under the impression that they were trying to go straight. I do know that the bulk of their new offerings are original...ugly, but original.
Doesn't the Axis lock patent expire soon? When that does I bet we see Axis locks everywhere, lol.
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Thanx. The knife is some kind of traditional Chinese folder. I was looking into Chinese cutlery for amusement. I would not buy it though. It would have to be gifted to me from a Chinese official as a token of goodwill haha.What the heck is that
Sosa, I commend you for exercising restraint on this thread. I know because I've read your posts in the past and very much agree with you on many of them(I do to some extent with people here also). It's wise to know when to and when not to.
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ROLF! That's awesome. The knife, and the comment.
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Lie? That's a pretty strong word.
A counterfeit is a comprehensive problem, not one with a neat bifurcation between the intellectual theft and its execution.
A good historical example is a B-29 crash landing in the USSR in WW2. The soviets then made a nearly to the bolt and rivet copy by Tupolev, one which flew correctly and served for decades. No aviation expert ever credits the Tupolev knock off and its improved versions with ever being as good as the B-29 and its airframe successors. How could it be? You can readily copy something without understanding what makes it great because you bring no insights with you to the copying exercise.
A counterfeit is a comprehensive problem, not one with a neat bifurcation between the intellectual theft and its execution.
A good historical example is a B-29 crash landing in the USSR in WW2. The soviets then made a nearly to the bolt and rivet copy by Tupolev, one which flew correctly and served for decades. No aviation expert ever credits the Tupolev knock off and its improved versions with ever being as good as the B-29 and its airframe successors. How could it be? You can readily copy something without understanding what makes it great because you bring no insights with you to the copying exercise.
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You may be right if the 763 is out of production. Quick search and it seems to still be available. I see that the pics cover the axis lock. BM must have dropped the hammer. Good for them.
The Axis patent has expired in the past and is yet to expire again next year I heard. BM knows its value and they got good lawyers protecting their property.
Add: It can be argued that they are going straight if they keep them inside China where there are no patent laws valid for the axis. BUT it always ends up here anyway. Whose fault is that? The buyer....lack of law trade enforcement.
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On that point you and I will have to disagree. Once a product comes into existence, it has it's own set of properties that need to be judged through the lens of objectivity. If you don't have access to the product or if your lens is clouded due to bias or emotion, you cannot judge the product on its own merits. And that's where the lie normally begins.
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