Chris Reeve Knives - The Emperor's New Clothes?

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archieblue said:
The day that some knife manufacturer wakes up and makes a knife that uses a frame/liner lock AND a slipjoint style spring for closed retention will be a good day in the knife industry.
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Schrade Cliphanger, maybe those liner lock sodbusters? Higher quality would be nice
 
Mr. Clean,

Great points! Like I said, I have no axe to grind :cool:


To the OP they do not have a huge following for nothing. Are they perfect? No, but what is in life?
 
ExMachina said:
i suppose i have a similar feeling as the OP though i wouldn't go so far as to imply that CRK is naked (as in, the emperor has no clothes). the sebenza is a great knife, but admit that i too have a hard time seeing how the retail price is justified in purely functional or asthetic terms. the answer--i think--is that the sebenza is a status symbol among knife knuts. the sebenza (or any semi-custom knife) shows that you know quality and that you are committed enough to knives and knife collecting to shell out the bucks. nothing wrong with that either. like a rolex watch, you pay for the brand and it's a brand that everyone (on some level or another) wants.
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Market forces at work! When you have a product that sells faster than you can make it, yoiu do two things, increase production and raise the price until demand matches output. As I said, the OP can only do well for Chris and Ann.
 
So-Lo said:
Mr. Clean,

Great points! Like I said, I have no axe to grind :cool:


To the OP they do not have a huge following for nothing. Are they perfect? No, but what is in life?
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Roger roger! :thumbup:
I've felt the same to a certain extent, about CRK and Busse. But one sip of the kool aid and I'm hooked. Egads, it is sweet. The hype is worth the experience, in my opinion.
 
ExMachina said:
i suppose i have a similar feeling as the OP though i wouldn't go so far as to imply that CRK is naked (as in, the emperor has no clothes). the sebenza is a great knife, but admit that i too have a hard time seeing how the retail price is justified in purely functional or asthetic terms. the answer--i think--is that the sebenza is a status symbol among knife knuts. the sebenza (or any semi-custom knife) shows that you know quality and that you are committed enough to knives and knife collecting to shell out the bucks. nothing wrong with that either. like a rolex watch, you pay for the brand and it's a brand that everyone (on some level or another) wants.
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Well, I believe A.G put it in good terms, but the materials do cost a pretty penny, and you are paying for a well engineered design.

As to spending a lot on knives, you should look at the customs for sale area. I saw an XM-18 disappear pretty quickly for $800+ and quite a few others in the $1000.00+ range. People are out there with deep pockets, in which case a sebenza to them is like a buck 110 to us :D
 
I own several Sebenza's and two Mnandi's. Had a problem with one Sebbie and it was dealt with quickly and their customer service is second to none. Their employees are some of the nicest people to work with on any issue you may have with a product.

Like I always tell people - buy one and if you don't like it - sell it and most likely you will get your entire investment back in the transaction.


;)
 
RNST said:
I own several Sebenza's and two Mnandi's. Had a problem with one Sebbie and it was dealt with quickly and their customer service is second to none. Their employees are some of the nicest people to work with on any issue you may have with a product.

Like I always tell people - buy one and if you don't like it - sell it and most likely you will get your entire investment back in the transaction.


;)
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That's very true, even 10 year old sebenzas sell for about $325-$350 even if not in pristine condition. A simple refurbishment and it's like new and sells as if it's new :thumbup:

I love my Large Sebenza 21, excellent knife, very smooth, and great lockup. I've never had any problems with it.
 
I like CRK! Will buy myself one (lately my girlfriend is throwing the idea around for a CRK as a present) fingers crossed!
 
I've had both my Large and Small Left-handed Sebenzas in BG-42 for nine years. The small one has been in my pocket for that long. It has been my favorite EDC for that amount of time and has had absolutely NO issues with it whatsoever. It opens as smoothly as the day I bought it and is easy to take apart for cleaning although I only do that about once per year. I am about to send it back to CRK for a refurbish but wasn't sure if I could part with it for 2-3 weeks so I just bought a Caly3 to ease my pain while the Sebs away....AWESOME Knives and worth every penny!
 
I believe that the mythical status that the CRK company has earned is because they were one of the first to turn out a real hard use folder. The Frame Lock innovation transformed the knife world as we know it, and the Sebenza built CRK.
Chris Reeve has been a powerful name in this community for a long time. Call it brand awareness or whatever you want to. In the knife world when you begin to get into higher end knives CRK is one of the ones people talk about and aspire to get. Does this mean that the Sebenza is the end all be all of pocket folders-No. I do believe they are well made folders and that their fit and finish is superb, but I also believe that modern production quality has caught up to CRK standards. Nevertheless CRK has placed themselves well into this market and their name does stand for quality. Until this changes they will continue to have the legendary mythos surrounding them. Personally though I just traded my small regular Sebenza for a PT. I loved the sebbie but now I love the PT and I am going to be real hard pressed to spend $330 on another folder ever again. Especially considering that I can get a Bradley Alias II for $180 and supposedly they are super solid as well. I took me spending that money and using the knife though to form my opinion. Just my two cents.
 
I really don't understand why people get so worked up over issues like this. I've lost count of the times I've seen threads like this.

Why is knife X so expensive? What's so good about it? It's only a status symbol. I have knife Y, it cost half as much and it's better.

So what?

If you don't like knife X, if you think its too expensive, if you think its overrated, don't buy the bloody thing.

I've seen knives for sale here that I wouldn't buy for half the price being asked for them. Do I complain or start a thread asking why anyone would buy it? No, I don't. If people want it and can pay the price they will. If they don't want it, they won't. Doesn't get much more simple than that.

I fail to see why anyone should get their panties twisted because a knifemaker can charge what he wants for his product and thousands of people are happy to pay it. Good luck to him.
 
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So-Lo said:
The Large BG-42 reg. Is probably the "one" for me, but the S-30s do nothing for me.

Flame on, :cool:
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Not a flame So-Lo, but I'm surprised you can find a difference between the two steels. I had a Large BG-42 seb and couldn't tell a difference at all. I had both my S30V and BG-42 sharpened at the same angle on the edge pro.
 
gajinoz said:
I really don't understand why people get so worked up over issues like this. I've lost count of the times I've seen threads like this.

Why is knife X so expensive? What's so good about it? It's only a status symbol. I have knife Y, it cost half as much and it's better.

So what?

If you don't like knife X, if you think its too expensive, if you think its overrated, don't buy the bloody thing.

I've seen knives for sale here that I wouldn't buy for half the price being asked for them. Do I complain or start a thread asking why anyone would buy it? No, I don't. If people want it and can pay the price they will. If they don't want it, they won't. Doesn't get much more simple than that.

I fail to see why anyone should get their panties twisted because a knifemaker can charge what he wants for his product and thousands of people are happy to pay it. Good luck to him.
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My sentiments exactly. :thumbup:
 
To the OP- CRK has been in business for quite a number of years and developed a following. The CRK knives don't really ring my bell, but the people who put up the cash for them seem to be:yawn: a pretty contented group. It isn't necessary to to P** on CRK's cornflakes. A thing is worth whatever people are willing to pay for it, so if you don't care for them, don't buy them.
 
I think Mr. Reeve and his products are well regarded in these forums (and others outside of BF) because of the following:

  1. Mr. and Mrs. Reeve and the individuals who work with them are customer service oriented. They respond to their customers. CRK tries hard to satisfy the market.
  2. CRK products are consistently well engineered and executed.

Those of us who have purchased and handled and carried and used a lot of different knives over the years appreciate this.
 
Can I tell a story? Well I'm gonna. When I was young I loved knives (and got the stitches several times to prove it.) but most of my knives were real cheap. (think the boxes of knives at the checkout of gas stations.) Sometime in my teens I got a Gerber LST for like twenty bucks. Man I think that might have been the best twenty bucks I ever spent. The lock worked. It held an edge for days of hard use instead of minutes. that knife was easily four or five times the quality of the four dollars cheapies.

After I aquired a handful of Case and Gerbers and Bucks, (as a matter of fact there's an EZ Out JR. sitting on my computer desk right now...knife is pretty old..my origional ez out was first production run and I got the JR right after that.) any ways one day I saved up and got a Benchmade (old one with the spydie hole AFKC or something like that) Man it was impressive. Quality took another leap. NO it wasn't four or five times like when going from chinese junk to a 'real' knife maybe 1 and a half times as good.

After getting a couple higher end folders, I saved up and got a Sebenza. That was over five years ago. Once again the quality took a step forward although it wasn't a giant leap, but then I didn't expect it to. In economic terms this is called the law of diminishing returns. beyond a certain point the increase of labor and materials gives you a lower return of fit finish and performance. That said, The Sebenzas are the best knives I have and I'd replace them if they got lost or stolen in a heartbeat.

Now about the Reeve knife, I used it every day in a warehouse to cut plastic shrink wrap, cardboard and plastic strapping. (I say used because I recently got a small decorated sebenza and I switch them off) It takes a wicked edge, Locks open like a vault, and stays useably sharp for weeks at a time. I might have taken it down for a thorough cleaning five times since I got it. (that means about once a year) Mines never been back for service and I don't think it will need it in my lifetime (or my sons lifetime for that matter.)

Personally I don't care for several of their designs. I did get to handle a Umnumzaan at Blade 2008 and I'll probably get one eventually especially if they make a smaller version. Mnandi is just not my cup of tea. do I appreciate other knives? heck yes. The knife I'm most excited about right now is the soon to be released Spyderco Ladybug w/purple scales and the H1 steel version. (25 and forty dollars maybe?)

In closing Lots of good knifes from lots of good companies. I have to say this is probably the best time in the history of the world to be a knife enthusiast. Look how good we have it. there's good knives for every taste and budget.....AND I WANT THEM ALL. LOL

Later GDWTVB
 
Anyone who makes a good knife with a strong warranty is going to have a loyal following. Reeve just happens to make a great knife with an outstanding warranty.
 
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