1. Yep. Oops. ^^ that's what the ebay ads do say. Dunno why I typed sourced in US....probably because I've been looking around at so many websites the past few days, combined with the heat+work....been kind of a miserable week actually...anyway...My mistake and I'll let that be for now.
2. Yes yes...there's lots of conjecture and conspiracy theory because a company won't divulge their sources or locations of source/manufacture. Happens to everyone who creates mystery by keeping their sources anonymous. Let's not forget the "picture proof" someone posted - simply a blade blank on a work bench who someone randomly claimed was in Pakistan. Nevermind there's
nothing in the picture to substantiate that claim - no taliban wanna-be's hammering on an anvil, no Kirthar or Himalaya mountains in the background....Hell....could be a picture of someone's garage in Hoboken NJ for all anyone knows.. It's just a picture of a blade, on a table in a dark room with no other hints as to where that is. You couldn't convince a jury of 12 anything BUT that fact....
3. Yup, that's so strange. Ebay and Etsy-only sellers are so untrustworthy that NO ONE ever shops there ::eyeroll:: . How dare someone NOT have a brick and mortar storefront to show off their wares?
As far as "bid war" goes for things, that's nothing new - and is the epitome of what Ebay is all about. If it costs you $50 to produce a knife [like the big one I have here] in limited bulk, let's say 100 blades, it cost you $5000 to produce those 100 knives. 20 sell for $25; 30 sell for $40; 40 sell for $75 and 10 sell for $95, you collected $5650. True that your profit was only $650 [for 100 knives] but it's still profit and this is just an example as I see the practice. Obviously the sale is going to bid higher or lower depending on the consumers....but I've seen their knives bid as low as $9 and as high as $138. He also has quite a few styles to choose from, branching out to the fickle taste of the varied consumer.
Let's not forget these come with the following warranty: [from ebay]
"LIMITED LIFETIME REPLACEMENT GUARANTEE: Our knives are made very well. We guarantee them for life. If you break one of our knife blades or knock the handles apart, contact us, and we will help you pick out a new knife from our current stock to replace the damaged one for free. You must send the Certificate of Authenticity with the knife to receive the free replacement. There is no replacement guarantee on our Seconds or knives sold with defects already mentioned in the auction on eBay."
Let's see....ratings for the past 12 months on EBay...
http://feedback.ebay.com/ws/eBayISA...y-company&ftab=AllFeedback&myworld=true&rt=nc
overall score 99.9% positive feedback and member since 06 Jan 2006 [9 years]
positive......14974
neutral............14
negative...........9
.......says something about the company though, eh?
New Jersey Steel baron sells D-2 Steel in bulk. I list the following from their website:
A single bar of D2 - tool steel
Thickness....- .250"
width..............2"
Length..............36"
cost..........$118.18
The blade I'm holding is about 13.5" total length, 1.75" wide. From a yard of bar stock, I can get 2 full knives, plus one or 2 smaller knives from that one bar. If I get 4 blanks from that one bar, and they sell for more than $29.54 each, I've made what I spent on the blade steel alone. Knife makers both here on the forums and not, have been doing this for decades.
But if you take another knife maker, on this forum or not, and they stock removal that same piece of steel into a blade like this, heat treat it themselves or send it out...put $20 worth of Micarta or $15 worth of Cocobolo on the handle. They use $35 worth of leather sheath materials and charge you anywhere up to $950 for that blade.
....and that's more acceptable? Why?
The CFK warranty looks to be pretty much the same as any "favorite" knife maker we can find..here or anywhere. What's the problem? IMO, "brand name"...
Nike!..vs..Converse!..vs..New Balance!!...vs Puma!.............it's no different....
4. You are welcome to your opinion and it is obviously shared by others. Brand loyalty, myopia and critical interpretation of words [CS vs. CRKT thread as one example] will always play a part in how someone thinks or feels about something. Doesn't mean they are right or wrong though....it just means they are discriminatory in nature [that can be both good and bad].
Right now I've got the blade in my hand, looking at it with an indifferent point of view. I have to if I'm going to [try to] properly evaluate it. The "got a box in the mail!" giddyness is long gone and now I have to try and example this knife to everyone in a video. I'm reserving judgement until the very end of my test.
