First, the Buck Vantage Pro is a steal at it's full MSRP of $75 - a great buy where I saw them this afternoon at a B P for $45. Plus - you get a knife made in ID, USA by folks who are taking a 10% pay reduction this week, due to lacking sales. If you like that blade, the next better handle it comes in is the Ti #172 Wamea TNT - MSRP $350 - then the carbon fiber #172CFSLE - MSRP $450.
Now, if you can find a Benchmade 635 for $160, grab it. Some folks list everything on their site 'in stock'... call them, and it's usually a different matter. Nice knife - but, at a third, or less, of it's cost, a Buck Vantage Pro is a real pocket knife. I've opened packages, whittled, sliced fruit & veggies with mine. I EDC-ed a Spydie Native, one of those $40 WallyWorld ones, for two years - had to re-edge it after cutting down appliance boxes and tree root runners, etc - straight forward on a Sharpmaker. Below are the aforementioned Buck 347 and BM 635:
Below are the Buck #347 and my abused Spydie Native:
One attribute the Native has - it's backside is covered, keeping change out. The Vantage Pro likes pocket change. My local gunstore/knife emporium has quite a collection, including $60 Natives, the best deal on them I have seen in the over a year since WallyWorld ran out. I love S30V - and that Vantage Pro!
Stainz
PS I remember sleeping upstairs, okay, they call it a 'ladder', from my shop. Food was supplied, as was a good source/cost for the dress code stipulated clothing. Your address changed a lot - and you were often rocked to sleep - and even thrown out of that bunk. Calling a big burly guy 'Mate!' was as hard to get accustomed to as wearing that funky white hat... and a kneckerchef, blouse or jumper, and bell-bottoms. Ahhh, the Navy!
To get a true sense you'd compare the MSRP, the lowest street price, the mean street price, and the standard deviation. Then you'd compare the difference between the lowest and the mean to the MSRP to get a sense of how much is profit.
