Debating: Sell-off for a Sebenza worth it or not?

Features of the knife should be more of the impetus to buy than performance claims - because if it won't work for you, or has an annoying detail, you will begin to regret any amount of money you spent.

It's assumed a Sebenza or almost any other knife in this price range, made from S30V and a titanium framelock, will perform a lot better than the average 420/FRN linerlock.

But like others have said, maybe you have a sincere preference for G10, or the blade grind or style isn't optimum for your muscle memory or cutting style. One thing is sure, the ergonomics of a knife and the interrelationship with the user's task list and cutting style can make or break their appreciation, regardless of price and quality. Count up how many in this thread have sold their Sebenza. It wasn't a knife for them.

I probably won't buy one - or sell off a bunch of knives to get one at less than half their discounted retail. I found my preferred list of features doesn't include all metal construction, hollow grind blades, or production tolerances finer than frog's hair. A working folder doesn't need to be built like a Swiss watch to cut dirty rope, heater hose, or scrape gaskets.

What it could use is G10 scales for grip and warmth, a flat ground blade for all around utility cutting, Ti plating to reduce friction and scratching, and a reasonable cost. If CRK offered that for less than $150, I'd be interested. Ranger Green, please. Black is so '80's.

All this isn't to say the Sebenza isn't a great knife -it's only to point out, is it a great knife for just anyone? Maybe not so much. There are others on the market. Choose your knife for what it is, not the perception of grandeur it may add to the owner.
 
I've found myself coming back to models that I had sold to fund my Sebbie purchases, only to get rid of them again. Save your money, and when you have enough set aside, get your Seb. Then, see if you like it or not. You can easily resell it. If you like it enough, then get rid of the knives you had planned to sell off first.
 
michaelmcgo said:
I have been collecting knives for a good deal of time now, long enough to know what I like and build a decent collection of that type of knife. I have about 20 nice Benchmades, Spydercos, and ZTs to choose from for EDC, and about 10 fixed blades for hunting and hiking season. I'm now getting the itch to try out a Sebenza, so this is my obligatory decision thread that I have seen so many of you guys post. The more I collect knives, the more I realize how close Sebenza's design is to my preferences (regardless of quality). I am considering selling my Benchmade Rukus, Scrapyard Scrap Muk, Benchmade Kulgera, and Ontario RTAK-II to fund the purchase.

My two concerns:
Have you ever sold off a few EDCs to purchase a Sebenza only to be disappointed? Is the quality of the knife worth the cost, or is it the case where a Benchmade is 90% of a Sebenza but the extra 10% tacks on the additional cost (as it is with the high-end of most any product)?
Have you purchased a Sebenza and been afraid to carry it because of it's much greater value than all of your other knives?
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It seems the overall consensus it that selling current possesions will cause future regret.
 
After sorting through my knife drawer over the past few days, I came up with enough knife value to fund the $225 used Sebenza. All of the knives I sold were on the trade forum and people had asked to buy them if I ever decided to sell instead of trade. Quick money and I only sold knives I was trying to trade because they were duplicates or I never used them. I am receiving the last payment this Friday, then purchasing the used Seb the same day. I should be a proud Sebanza owner this time next week!

Now just to figure out what to do to those thumb serrations... (I'm a little glad I have an excuse to machine on such a nice knife).
 
I sold some of my knifes and got a large sebenza. Hated it and was disspointed. I got rid of it in a week.

Save up and get one or you might be sorry you gave away your other knifes.
 
michaelmcgo said:
After sorting through my knife drawer over the past few days, I came up with enough knife value to fund the $225 used Sebenza. All of the knives I sold were on the trade forum and people had asked to buy them if I ever decided to sell instead of trade. Quick money and I only sold knives I was trying to trade because they were duplicates or I never used them. I am receiving the last payment this Friday, then purchasing the used Seb the same day. I should be a proud Sebanza owner this time next week!

Now just to figure out what to do to those thumb serrations... (I'm a little glad I have an excuse to machine on such a nice knife).
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Congrats on scoring a Sebenza. :thumbup::thumbup:
 
michaelmcgo said:
Looking back, I would not have missed out on much if I bought a $400 folder right at the start and didn't look back. I do enjoy collecting knives, but after I figured out what I like, I just kept getting the same kinda thing over and over. I like to carry each of my knives, but I would appreciate a single very nice knife a lot more than I can appreciate a collection of similar knives. Every now and again I will carry the same knife for a couple of weeks and it is nice to get used to the feel of a single knife. I hope to do this for a while with a Sebenza...
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:thumbup: I often look back on all the money I blew on trying out all these different brands and blade shapes and locks and ergos and wish I had just bought Sebenzas and Busses from the beginning. They are way nicer and more consistent than anything else, for me.

The biggest question relates to your personality. When I hold a Sebenza, it's comfort in perfection. Not a single thing on the knife is wrong. It is peace of mind. Every single other folder I have ever owned had flaws or developed flaws that drove me insane. Others hold a Sebenza and can't tell the quality difference from a Benchmade, else they don't really care.

Here of some pictures of my older collections:

Collection-1.jpg

Collection.jpg

PICT0857.jpg

PICT4934.jpg


Now i just have the Sebenza, The Battle Mistress and the Satin Jack. I'm happier with those threee than I ever was with the big collections. I just wish I had a few more Sebenzas to rotate.
 
imho its never a bad thing to sell cheaper stuff and get more expensive stuff (that kinda thinking used to drive my wife nutz lol) when i 1st started out $100 was a LOT for a knife, and $500 was just outta this world, but things have changed, and now i edc a $1000 custom emerson (and love it too) and have sold/swapped a lot of stuff i got when i 1st started to get higher end production or semi custom or custom stuff, maybe i have been lucky but i have never been disappointed with any of the knives i have gotten and wish i wouldnt have waited so long to jump on the high end bandwagon,

so if ya wanna sell some & get a seb, i say go for it, ya only live once.

and as long as ya dont have unreasonable expectations (ie that the seb is gonna be nite/day better, cut better, carry better, fit your hand better than say a BM axis AFCK because its not gonna be nite /day better, some better yes, probably, nite & day? no.) i doubt ya would be disappointed either, the big difference is in aesthetics mostly, not in performance,

& then again maybe i am the wrong person to ask about this topic lol.

as far as sebs go (or any CRK knife for that matter) they are good knives which have as good a F&F as anything ya care to name, custom or production, and a lotta folks wont carry anything else, and while i think they are "ok" they have just never really "grabbed" me, but hey chocolate and vanilla right? a few months ago i gave my son the seb i have had for 8 or 10 yrs for his 18th b-day its always been one of his favs of my collection and he's wanted it since he was little and i always said "18th b-day", so he's happy and even carries it every now & again. now all the seb fanatics are thinking "gee the son has better taste than the father" lol arent ya, tell the truth.......?
 
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I am tired and long threads like this hurts my brain.

It is so simple, really.

Buy a Seb.

Like it = sell your less expensive stuff to pay for the seb.

Don't like it = sell your seb for virtually what you paid for it.

Done, easy right?
 
Yes, I have sold several knives to buy one Sebenza that I wanted. No, I have not been disappointed.

I carry and use all of my Sebs at least yearly. My wife and I both EDC Sebs. Hers is a dog paw Seb (2 years of EDC so far) and mine has recently switched fropm a small regular to a small micarta classic (2 years between them so far). Ours get used for whatever, just like a Spyderco or BM would.
 
:eek:
RNST said:
I am tired and long threads like this hurts my brain.

It is so simple, really.

Buy a Seb.

Like it = sell your less expensive stuff to pay for the seb.

Don't like it = sell your seb for virtually what you paid for it.

Done, easy right?
Click to expand...

The Canadian nailed it.:p

Now, you just need to start saving the moolah to get more Sebenzas. :eek:

And, eventually, a Scott Cook Lochsa :D.
 
RNST said:
I am tired and long threads like this hurts my brain.

It is so simple, really.

Buy a Seb.

Like it = sell your less expensive stuff to pay for the seb.

Don't like it = sell your seb for virtually what you paid for it.

Done, easy right?
Click to expand...
I agree with my friend here.
 
T.K.C. said:
I agree with my friend here.
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Not to brag, but I said it first way back in post #13

I love my Sebenza, but I wouldn't recomend trading knives which you already know you like for one that you may not like. If you think you want a Sebenza, wait until you can buy it without trading the knives you like. That way, if you don't like the Sebenza, you can just sell it for most of what you paid and go back to using the knives you like, and if you do like the Sebenza, you can at that point sell the others..
 
RNST said:
I am tired and long threads like this hurts my brain.

It is so simple, really.

Buy a Seb.

Like it = sell your less expensive stuff to pay for the seb.

Don't like it = sell your seb for virtually what you paid for it.

Done, easy right?
Click to expand...
Too much common sense here. Not enough impulsive ADD knife buying/selling.:D
 
Congrats on getting a Seb. A couple yrs ago, I got my 1st Seb by trading 4 knives for it. It was a small classic bocote inlay model (NIB). It was so pretty I couldn't bring myself to use it. I ended up trading it &, through trades, got a CGG small Seb. I ended up trading that for the exact bocote Seb I had traded off months before. I told myself I'd keep it, but I did trade it a little over a yr ago for what I think is my favorite small Seb, the small classic micarta version. I now have that & use it often, but I admittedly do not have much $ in it, so it's easier to use it.

I recently picked up a lg. classic CGG Seb on a very good trade & had a G-10 scale made for it. This one's also a user & my most difficult decision in the morning is "usually" which Seb to carry.

They're great knives & definitely worth using. If you sold/traded off knives that are duplicates, then you should have no worries or regrets.

Enjoy.
 
My advice, keep whatever Sebbie you get. I traded off my small micarta Seb, and later got another one. I traded off a small used classic, and last year, traded off a large cocobolo classic (looking at trading back into the same lg coco classic sometime in May).

Right now, I've got large and small micarta classic models, and large and small reg models, one of which is BG42. I am on the hunt for a small regular BG42, to match the lg regular BG42 (in addition to a number of other wood, graphic and mammoth inlay Sebs).

It is a sickness, welcome to the sanitarium ;).
 
RNST said:
I am tired and long threads like this hurts my brain.

It is so simple, really.

Buy a Seb.

Like it = sell your less expensive stuff to pay for the seb.

Don't like it = sell your seb for virtually what you paid for it.

Done, easy right?
Click to expand...

Perhaps good advice, but if we all took this advice with all the knives out there:

A. We would all have all the knives
B. This forum would not exist
C. How do you buy a knife then if you like it pay for it after you already have it?
 
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