Creamy Ivory...start over, or sell?

blades&grace

blades&grace

Joined
Dec 22, 2005
Messages
814
Heres the deal. This is not an advertisement, but if you have to move it I'll understand.

I finished this knife last week and love the the way it turned out. The beautifully creamy Ivory is just too smooth! However, as I peened the last pin I went ever so slightly too far and there it was! :eek:

attachment.php


You see it too I'm sure.
The smallest of checks, but a check none the less! :mad:

So what to do? :confused:

BTW I would normally ask $500 for a knife like this...should I discount, take it to the show and hope someone likes it in spite of the small flaw, or grind off the Peaches and Cream and replace it with something else? Let's hear your thoughts!
 
Brent, I think it looks great even with the check. It's nice to see you trying a new shield.
 
Brent at least at a show you can haggle with people about it, some may not care a whit if you and a potential customer can come to an agreement great, a rock solid price on a knife you consider to have a flaw? thats a tough one.
Ken.
 
Brent,It sounds like,this was not an ordered knife.I dunno.
If I ordered that & knew it was gonna be $500 (as agreed),I would not want it,that way ,for the agreed price,but could possibly be talked into,or talk you into,a new agreement
I think to dis assemble it is ashame & if I were a knifemaker,I'd never do that I'd find a home for it,at an agreement
To me,its crazy to waste all that work It's a great knife!
It is part of the learning curve,to get to the place where you wanna be with your knifemaking.
That's my $.02
-Vince
 
I think as long as you're up front about it, name your price. Some folks want only perfection. For me, that's just a nice little birthmark.

In other words, see if it sells at the normal price. If not, drop it 5%.
 
Thanks for the responce guys this is what I'm looking for!

VCM3 said:
Brent,It sounds like,this was not an ordered knife.I dunno.
If I ordered that & knew it was gonna be $500 (as agreed),I would not want it,that way ,for the agreed price,but could possibly be talked into,or talk you into,a new agreement
I think to dis assemble it is ashame & if I were a knifemaker,I'd never do that I'd find a home for it,at an agreement
To me,its crazy to waste all that work It's a great knife!
It is part of the learning curve,to get to the place where you wanna be with your knifemaking.
That's my $.02
-Vince
Click to expand...

Your right Vince this one was made to take to the show.
 
this is heart breaking. take to show & advise interested ones of defect & see whom may want to add it to collection. does ivory check increase in dry humidity?
 
can it be at least partially repaired by mixing ivory dust with epoxy? It might still show but not as prominently. Or just filling it in with epoxy would at least make it feel smooth in the hand?
 
fishface5 said:
can it be at least partially repaired by mixing ivory dust with epoxy? It might still show but not as prominently. Or just filling it in with epoxy would at least make it feel smooth in the hand?
Click to expand...

It is small and unnoticeable to the touch. I'm sure there's no way to fill it!
 
Ivory gets checks, it's just a fact. Still a beautiful knife. Really nice swedges and nick. Be honest about it, get what you can for it at the show, and move on.
 
It looks to be really figured Ivory,too.
Someone will dig it! Go look at the Old knife thread & check out some Ivory with pin cracks & stuff,some 100 yrs old & still remain a solid,useable knife.
 
It is,a tiny little check,too.
 
That's a shame for such a beautiful knife Brent. As long as you're up front about it I don't see a problem with taking it to the show. One thing to consider if you end up selling it at a discount is how you want to warranty it.(maybe everything except the scales?) If the checking spreads and you end up replacing the scales anyway, you're doing the same amount of work for less money. Ultimately it comes down to whether or not you're happy with selling it as is because it's your name on the knife.
 
Whateryakiddinme? That's a beautiful knife, and IMO, that superfluous little check will just give the lucky owner a bit of incentive to actually carry the knife. I'd just offer it as an "EDC" example of your fine work--perhaps marked accordingly?--with a moderate discount. Someone will be very happy, indeed.
 
Of course you could just drop that one in your pocket and use it for a demo when you are out and about...
 
I think you should bring it to a show and offer it with the disclosure of the the check. Call it a show special, an EDC special like someone said, or whatever title you want to give it.

I am sure there will be someone at the show who whould be interested, because I would be one of those people.

I would actually seek out knives like this at a show because the discounted price is worth the small mark as I use all the knives I own and marks eventually will happen anyway, so why not get a discounted price and still get a perfectly useful and still gorgeous brand new knife. Then you also get to not lose out on all the work and effort on a great knife, a win win for both. Another benefit of bringing it to the show is that the customer can look at it with their own eyes and decide if it is acceptable to them better than over the internet.

By the way I LOVE that ivory, it is amazing.
 
Brent, i wish i was going to the knife show because i'd be in line to buy it.
Regarding the question above as to whether it is likely to spread, i have a collection of antique ivory carvings. some have cracks. these cracks have not enlarged in the last 60 years. however a knife scale may behave differently if the pin is still exerting pressure on the ivory.
roland
 
I do not consider myself a knife collector although I have ended up with many collections in my desire to obtain good hard use traditional cutlery that also happened to be beautiful. Many of these knives are and were covered with fine quality Ivory scales like this knife you have here. After decent usage on cutting projects in the field all Ivory ends up with wear eventually including checks, cracks, ect..

Starting over is out of the question for such a teeny tiny flaw, in my opinion. It barely even qualifies as a 'check', more like a 'dimple' or a 'birthmark'(I like that term best) as another member here called it.. The knife is drop-dead gorgeous for someone like myself who would immediately drop it in his pocket to proudly use for every day use anyway..

My advise is to put your typical price on her at the show. Then wait and see if you get called on it and drop the price accordingly if you like. After all, you have to display your wears out in full view of GOD and the general public anyway. If folks inspect(like we all do) your knives for sale and notice the flaw,, let'em start haggling(which is a big part of the fun) and let them also know you guarantee your workmanship and a deal will be struck accordingly.

Best,
Anthony
 
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