- Joined
- Nov 11, 2004
- Messages
- 260
Ed Van Hoy is the maker responsible for all the above in this thread. The knives I ordered from him are a Custom Snap Lock, a Custom Snap Fire, and a Custom Nautilus.
My good will and patience has been abused to the point that I cannot sit back and hope that others don't fall into the same trap as I have. It is time for you all to know the full story. Since my last update, Ed and I had agreed that the delivery date would be Nov 29th. Upon this date, I would either receive two of the knives that I had ordered, or I would receive my $900 deposit back.
Ed called me Nov 28th to inform me that yet again, he would not be living up to his promise and that nothing had been mailed that day. He told me that "he was not jerking me around this time" (he actually said that) but that he was nearly finished with the knives and he needed a few more days. For several reasons I was beginning to have the feeling that getting the knives was going to be a more likely occurrence than getting my money back at that point, so I agreed to wait (notice that his web site is no longer online--may be indicating financial trouble).
I should also say that Ed offered to go ahead and send me the prototype Nautilus as opposed to making me wait for him to make one. However, I have stressed to him several times during this process that I ordered the knives months apart from each other in an effort to do some financial planning. Receiving all 3 knives in one week would be tough. Ed said that I could take my time paying him the balance for the Nautilus. This was a nice gesture.
So Tuesday December 6th, the custom damascus Snap Lock and the custom damascus Snap Fire arrived to me. The Nautilus was not included with the explanation that it needed to be disassembled and cleaned...sounded reasonable.
Here is what happened when I opened the box:
The custom Snap Fire had the following problems:
1. Locking post that locks the knife open was loose in the frame so the blade rocked back and forth when open.
2. The indention in the base of the blade that is intended to stop the knife from closing too far was ground in the wrong location and was allowing the knife to close all the way down on its sharpened edge.
3. Decorative anodized metalwork on one side of the knife was scratched and appeared to have had a drill press accident when one of its holes were being drilled. One hole was rouged up pretty badly and was no longer really circular or smooth.
I compared this knife to a CRKT factory version and there was no comparison. The factory version had significantly better fit and finish, locked up tight, and the blade stop prevented it from closing on its own edge. I never would have thought that a $50 factory knife could surpass a $650 custom in terms of quality.
The custom Snap Lock had fewer problems:
1. The cam device that you use to initiate the opening and closing of the knife had no bushings in it to keep it from rattling against the two sides of the blade. The factory version has this and it provides a more solid feel to the opening. Ed says this was never part of his design, but I cant imagine why any custom maker would want loose parts on a knife.
2. The anodized parts on the Snap Lock were very dull and had little or no luster to them.
3. Several places had rough grind marks. In general, the knife just looked unpolished, dull, and unprofessional.
I spoke to Ed the same day and told him the knives were on their way back to him...next day via UPS. He wanted to "tune" them and send them back to me and he agreed that he felt rushed to get them out the door and he had not had time to make sure they were right. My feeling is that he has had a year to make sure the Snap Lock was right and 8 months to make sure the Snap Fire was right. I told Ed that I just wanted my money back and wished him the best. I asked Ed when he would be sending my money to me.....keep in mind it was December 6th.....he said no later than the first of the year! I said absolutely not and that 7 days would be more than generous and I expected my money by then. That time has come and gone and Ed has not returned my calls or emails (same old game I am used to) and, of course, I don't have my money.
At this point, the Knife Maker's Guild is involved and I am very thankful that they exist.
Also, we will all have the pleasure of seeing Ed featured in next month's Blade Magazine. Can anyone provide me with contact information to the management of that magazine? I think they should be aware of this story regarding the maker they are about to spotlight.
My good will and patience has been abused to the point that I cannot sit back and hope that others don't fall into the same trap as I have. It is time for you all to know the full story. Since my last update, Ed and I had agreed that the delivery date would be Nov 29th. Upon this date, I would either receive two of the knives that I had ordered, or I would receive my $900 deposit back.
Ed called me Nov 28th to inform me that yet again, he would not be living up to his promise and that nothing had been mailed that day. He told me that "he was not jerking me around this time" (he actually said that) but that he was nearly finished with the knives and he needed a few more days. For several reasons I was beginning to have the feeling that getting the knives was going to be a more likely occurrence than getting my money back at that point, so I agreed to wait (notice that his web site is no longer online--may be indicating financial trouble).
I should also say that Ed offered to go ahead and send me the prototype Nautilus as opposed to making me wait for him to make one. However, I have stressed to him several times during this process that I ordered the knives months apart from each other in an effort to do some financial planning. Receiving all 3 knives in one week would be tough. Ed said that I could take my time paying him the balance for the Nautilus. This was a nice gesture.
So Tuesday December 6th, the custom damascus Snap Lock and the custom damascus Snap Fire arrived to me. The Nautilus was not included with the explanation that it needed to be disassembled and cleaned...sounded reasonable.
Here is what happened when I opened the box:
The custom Snap Fire had the following problems:
1. Locking post that locks the knife open was loose in the frame so the blade rocked back and forth when open.
2. The indention in the base of the blade that is intended to stop the knife from closing too far was ground in the wrong location and was allowing the knife to close all the way down on its sharpened edge.
3. Decorative anodized metalwork on one side of the knife was scratched and appeared to have had a drill press accident when one of its holes were being drilled. One hole was rouged up pretty badly and was no longer really circular or smooth.
I compared this knife to a CRKT factory version and there was no comparison. The factory version had significantly better fit and finish, locked up tight, and the blade stop prevented it from closing on its own edge. I never would have thought that a $50 factory knife could surpass a $650 custom in terms of quality.
The custom Snap Lock had fewer problems:
1. The cam device that you use to initiate the opening and closing of the knife had no bushings in it to keep it from rattling against the two sides of the blade. The factory version has this and it provides a more solid feel to the opening. Ed says this was never part of his design, but I cant imagine why any custom maker would want loose parts on a knife.
2. The anodized parts on the Snap Lock were very dull and had little or no luster to them.
3. Several places had rough grind marks. In general, the knife just looked unpolished, dull, and unprofessional.
I spoke to Ed the same day and told him the knives were on their way back to him...next day via UPS. He wanted to "tune" them and send them back to me and he agreed that he felt rushed to get them out the door and he had not had time to make sure they were right. My feeling is that he has had a year to make sure the Snap Lock was right and 8 months to make sure the Snap Fire was right. I told Ed that I just wanted my money back and wished him the best. I asked Ed when he would be sending my money to me.....keep in mind it was December 6th.....he said no later than the first of the year! I said absolutely not and that 7 days would be more than generous and I expected my money by then. That time has come and gone and Ed has not returned my calls or emails (same old game I am used to) and, of course, I don't have my money.
At this point, the Knife Maker's Guild is involved and I am very thankful that they exist.
Also, we will all have the pleasure of seeing Ed featured in next month's Blade Magazine. Can anyone provide me with contact information to the management of that magazine? I think they should be aware of this story regarding the maker they are about to spotlight.
