clone or similiar?

[nagod]

so just how much variance does there have to be before knife B is similiar to or same general style as knife A instead of a design ripoff? thanks

 

[orthogonal1]

Well, if your Cold Steel, there can be only a vague resemblance (often noted as "paying homage to" when other firms do it) and it will be called a "ripoff".

 

[jim preston]

Well, if your Cold Steel, there can be only a vague resemblance (often noted as "paying homage to" when other firms do it) and it will be called a "ripoff".

So true. Case in point: someone called the CS Pocket Bushman a Sebenza ripoff. It's about twice as big as a Sebenza, and the only resemblance is the metal handle and the greyish color.

I really don't think, among companies that produce good knives, that there is that much design copying. There are knives that are very similar, such as the Sebenza and the Bradley Alias. There are traditional patterns that have been around for so long that everyone is making them. And there are adaptations of different knives, such as Cold Steel's plastic and stainless Kudu and Twistmaster as vs the Okapi and Opinel lockbacks. And there are designs, such as military daggers, that several companies make copies/adaptations of.

I will say though, that pretty much every manufacturer who makes more traditional knives has copied the Buck 110.

 

[Let It Bleed]

Also, patents eventually expire.