I have had my fair share of production knives ranging from cheap, to expensive. However, there was always something that was missing. So after some thought, I figured the best way to remedy this problem would be to seek out a custom maker. So I posted an ad in the WTB section, and the first, and only might I add, maker that messaged me was Mr. Darrin. He gave me his contact info so we could discus the details of what I wanted and I promptly contacted him. My first impression was that he was a very well spoken and knowledgeable man. I told him that I wanted a 10" 3V bowie; he told me no problem. The first thing that we had discussed after I gave him an idea of what I wanted was price. I was expecting to pay a great deal more than what I actually did. The price for everything, including the sheath and fully insured shipping, was VERY reasonable; hundreds less than what I expected to pay for top-notch work. After we ironed out the details, I waited my turn. About 2 months after I was put into his rotation, my knife was up next. If you ask me, 2 months wasn't bad at all, also considering that he had just made a major move to another shop was impressive. After he did start on my knife, I had it in my hands the next week.
Throughout the process, he answered just about every call, called back in a timely manner when he did miss a call, and responded to every email everyday. I as well as many others honor good communication and I can say that this was present the entire time. Very easy to talk to and walked me through every step of the process, including pictures to get my approval before he started the next step. After everything was finished, he sent me the final pictures and had it on its way to me.
He shipped fully insured USPS, but there was a problem and USPS screwed up my shipping (not surprising), so I called Darrin with what was going and he was very proactive and offered any help that he could give. It was nice to see a maker that also cared about his customers and his product even after the knife left the shop and is out of his control.
After a small extra wait, the packaged arrive. I was very pleased with what I took out of that box. The knife was exactly what I wanted; very sharp with skilled craftsmen ship and attention to detail. I can say that I was more than pleased.
Pictures:
Apart from looking nice, this knife is a performer. I chopped down multiple trees with it yesterday and did other various wood working task, including batoning logs for a fire; the knife was flawless with no chipping or rolls in the edge. I didn't expected anything less, and even if I did run into a major problem(s), Darrin has a life-time warranty on his blades if they break under normal use (yes, he includes batoning under normal use unlike some of these other companies/makers). And the knife after still had a fine enough edge to cleanly cut notebook paper, and even phone book paper as well. Very impressive.
Overall I would say that I had a much better experience than what I had originally thought and will be inquiring about more knives from Mr. Darrin in the future. Buy with confidence guys, you won't regret it.
Some picture of use:
Throughout the process, he answered just about every call, called back in a timely manner when he did miss a call, and responded to every email everyday. I as well as many others honor good communication and I can say that this was present the entire time. Very easy to talk to and walked me through every step of the process, including pictures to get my approval before he started the next step. After everything was finished, he sent me the final pictures and had it on its way to me.
He shipped fully insured USPS, but there was a problem and USPS screwed up my shipping (not surprising), so I called Darrin with what was going and he was very proactive and offered any help that he could give. It was nice to see a maker that also cared about his customers and his product even after the knife left the shop and is out of his control.
After a small extra wait, the packaged arrive. I was very pleased with what I took out of that box. The knife was exactly what I wanted; very sharp with skilled craftsmen ship and attention to detail. I can say that I was more than pleased.
Pictures:
Apart from looking nice, this knife is a performer. I chopped down multiple trees with it yesterday and did other various wood working task, including batoning logs for a fire; the knife was flawless with no chipping or rolls in the edge. I didn't expected anything less, and even if I did run into a major problem(s), Darrin has a life-time warranty on his blades if they break under normal use (yes, he includes batoning under normal use unlike some of these other companies/makers). And the knife after still had a fine enough edge to cleanly cut notebook paper, and even phone book paper as well. Very impressive.
Overall I would say that I had a much better experience than what I had originally thought and will be inquiring about more knives from Mr. Darrin in the future. Buy with confidence guys, you won't regret it.
Some picture of use:
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