Cold Steel vs. CRKT Lawsuit

Stupid if you ask me. It will be a "no sale" here too. I will go buy a CRKT right now!
 
You guys are waaaayyyy over reacting to this.

Cold Steel is famous for their marketing ploys, but also, CRKT has been selling, without any designs to remedy the problem, knives that are unsafe. A good slipjoint would perform as well as one of their "virtual fixed blade" knives. CS called them on it. CRKT, did not recall the knives, unlike Gerber that did.
Let us all take a deep breath, and relax a bit.
 
DocT said:
You guys are waaaayyyy over reacting to this.

Cold Steel is famous for their marketing ploys, but also, CRKT has been selling, without any designs to remedy the problem, knives that are unsafe. A good slipjoint would perform as well as one of their "virtual fixed blade" knives. CS called them on it. CRKT, did not recall the knives, unlike Gerber that did.
Let us all take a deep breath, and relax a bit.
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Many here agree with you Doc, but do you honestly believe that Cold Steel's proof vids promote safety, and why is CS demanding money from crkt?
 
I am still a big Cold Steel fan. I love their crazy designs, and I like their traditional videos in which they test THEIR OWN products. Some are good, and some are just entertaining. I hope Lynn will go back to his original marketing tactics, and not make a big mess in the knife community.
I also hope he is ok. :( He is filthy rich, and eccentric (Howard Hughes?).:D
 
DocT said:
You guys are waaaayyyy over reacting to this.

Cold Steel is famous for their marketing ploys, but also, CRKT has been selling, without any designs to remedy the problem, knives that are unsafe. A good slipjoint would perform as well as one of their "virtual fixed blade" knives. CS called them on it. CRKT, did not recall the knives, unlike Gerber that did.
Let us all take a deep breath, and relax a bit.
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Cold Steel isn't doing this out of concern. They're doing this for a quick profit. Is that not obvious?
 
mwhich50 said:
You and Lynn having a family squabble would be very interesting.:eek:
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Having access to Demko would be worth dodging a few Tru-Flight Throwers :D
 
Lynn is probably just mad he didn't think of the virtual fixed blade marketing ploy first. This is all about marketing puffery and not unlike the ShamWow guy challenging the Flex Seal guy to a dance off.
 
Y'all think this is actually about misrepresented marketing? Seems vindictive...perhaps CRKT bought or muscled CS out of a Chinese factory they preferred.

And for anyone saying that cold steel is bigger, bladder, better, etc... I can walk into just about any Walmart or gander mtn around the country and purchase a CRKT product. I've never seen a CS product in either.
 
Goosey said:
I was expecting a patent infringement or something... CRKT has been saying that about their LAWKS system for many a year now. They just suddenly decided to sue CRKT for s***s and giggles? :thumbdn:

CRKT should sue Cold Steel for their "World's Strongest, Sharpest Knives" slogan as this is an empty advertising claim that violates the federal Lanham Act and related California state law. :rolleyes:

Still want to buy an Ultimate Hunter though. :o
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The funny thing is someone really could sue them for their claim of having the world's strongest, sharpest knives, as those are qualities that could be objectively verified. A counterexample showing any knife that is stronger and/or any knife that is sharper would disprove their claim.
 
TravisH said:
I agree with Cold Steel's initial complaint - there's no way a folder lock makes a folder a "virtual fixed blade" as CRKT reportedly claims. To me, that does indeed seem to imply that a CRKT folder is a strong as a fixed blade.

I didn't see the CRKT knife tests but if they broke a CS while theirs survived, if I were CS, I'd be PO'ed too. ;)

But "treble damages"?! Maybe it's like in divorce court where she asks for more than you got instead of just half hoping to at least get most of it. ;)
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Think it was cs breaking crkt knives
 
English is only my 2nd language so I might be off but
isn't "virtual fixed knife" way different from a real fixed knife?
Also they didn't specify what kind of fixed knife.
I bet my mom has a few old cheap fixed steak knives which stand no chance when compared to even the weakest crkt folder.
I predict that lawsuit will go nowhere and CS is probably smart enough to know that. So why are they doing it then?
 
This stinks. I don't worry much about marketing. I have better ways to figure out what I want to buy. But this is petty schoolyard bully stuff.

I've got a lot of good CS knives. I doubt I'll be looking at any others.

The whole LAWKS concept came in response to industry wide concerns about liner locks slipping. In lightweight folding knives, LAWKS adds some extra security. It does not make them fixed blades but "virtual"? Yes, effectively, they can be as secure in daily use as a similar-sized fixed blade, used as a lightweight folding knife, whose liner lock is now less likely to collapse on the owner.
 
Brisket said:
Lynn is probably just mad he didn't think of the virtual fixed blade marketing ploy first. This is all about marketing puffery and not unlike the ShamWow guy challenging the Flex Seal guy to a dance off.
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Ok THAT I want to see!!!

Since the phrase "America's favorite pasta" was deemed unactionable puffery by the 7th circuit in 2004, I don't see how "virtually a fixed blade" can be the legitimate basis for a suit, at least under the federal Lanham Act as asserted by CS. Puffery is "vague, entirely subjective, and a bare assertion of product superiority" whereas a misrepresentation of fact, which is actionable i.e. can sue for, involves stating as fact a specific and objectively measurable attribute which the average consumer would rely on and which can be proven untrue. "Virtually a fixed blade" can be interpreted as "almost like a fixed blade" which is vague and subjective. Something like "the strongest lock ever available on any knife" is more objective but even that might squeeze by as puffery, unless there was another commonly available knife with a demonstrably more robust lock. "As safe against lock failure as a fixed blade" would probably cross the line.
 
nick21 said:
I like Cold Steel's products, I really do, but then they go and do stuff like this.

Cold Steel if you're listening, sell your products based on their merits. Don't smear the competition...
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Hrm...very familiar...where have I heard that before? :rolleyes:
 
fishface5 said:
Ok THAT I want to see!!!

Since the phrase "America's favorite pasta" was deemed unactionable puffery by the 7th circuit in 2004, I don't see how "virtually a fixed blade" can be the legitimate basis for a suit, at least under the federal Lanham Act as asserted by CS. Puffery is "vague, entirely subjective, and a bare assertion of product superiority" whereas a misrepresentation of fact, which is actionable i.e. can sue for, involves stating as fact a specific and objectively measurable attribute which the average consumer would rely on and which can be proven untrue. "Virtually a fixed blade" can be interpreted as "almost like a fixed blade" which is vague and subjective. Something like "the strongest lock ever available on any knife" is more objective but even that might squeeze by as puffery, unless there was another commonly available knife with a demonstrably more robust lock. "As safe against lock failure as a fixed blade" would probably cross the line.
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Good explanation! :thumbup:
 
If you or anybody you know has ever had a LAWKS system fail on you, I'm sure CS would love to hear from you....

Crappy move by CS, I like my crkt's, but I'm still not sending back my code4 when it gets here... I don't care that much.
 
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