Doug Ritter RSK Knife Announcement

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insta9ves said:
Not sure what people's problem with this. I for one love the design and i missed the original Benchmade's version of this. If anyone think it's "clone" and against their principle to buy it, don't buy it. Complaining here is not gonna stop this from happening.
Strictly from practical point of view, where do you find $153 knife with M390, made in US and designed by a great designer who happened to be a big contributor to the knife community? I know Spyderco produces some in that price range but it's rare(sure not impossible) to see others knives with this price/quality ratio.
Sit down, take a breath and relax. Take some time to appreciate that we live in a time where we have so many quality knives within reach, and the fact that some of us are able to carry them around due to the works some people did to preserve that freedom.
There are more important things beside sitting behind a screen being cynical about everything and trying to rack up as many forum post counts as you can.
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Well said!
 
palonej said:
I got kinda soured on BM when they discoed the Ritter Grips and started producing a very similar design without Doug’s name on it. Seemed like a penny pinching move......IMO.
Don’t really blame Doug for making this move and the knife is priced reasonably.
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I wasn't aware Benchmade started producing a similar design. Is it a Griptilian?
 
Critter said:
Out of the initial order of M390 steel a significant number of blades were used for prototypes. Plus, always some scrapped, moreso with a first production run. I would guess we get somewhere in the neighborhood of 250 +/-
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Is this going to be the only run or will it be a regular production through knifeworks like the rsk mk2 that i love so much
 
Meshach said:
Is this going to be the only run or will it be a regular production through knifeworks like the rsk mk2 that i love so much
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I asked the same thing on IG but didn’t hear back, the info page he put up indicates that continuous production would be necessary to support his income and knife rights efforts so I have to assume this will be available for quite a while. I’m in for one.
 
Mo2 said:
That only applies in Chicago and major cites. Illinois doesn't have a length law that I know of anymore. There used to be iirc. But that has changed last I read. But indeed Chicago has to be 2" iirc. I carry plenty of 4" folders but I'm not in the city... Though not been stopped by LE either.
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NOTE: I am not a lawyer. I am reading from the Knife Rights cellphone app which opens a page to the ilga.gov site....

Any knife that is 3 inches or longer is a "Category 2" weapon, and if the SHTF and you use it to defend yourself, you may be charged with a felony. As always this is at the discretion of the arresting officer like every arrest.

I was getting the beans beat out of me in Chicago and all that I did was draw a knife to my right hip, and THAT was an ag assault misdemeanor. There was no slash or thrust of the weapon...all that I wanted the 4 to 5 thugs who were beating me was to let me leave and to leave me alone. The knife laws are NOT set up for self defense. Cops look for every chance to bury you when they come to the scene, and the prosecutor would not let me off.

THIS is why I support Knife Rights and before I carry seriously again will have USCCA insurance.
 
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I fully support Ritter/Hogue and do not see this as a clone or a blatant ripoff of Benchmade. Yes, the Ritter Grip was designed on the Griptilian's platform however the Ritter Griptilian's claim to fame came from a well priced USA made blade with a high-flatground stonewashed blade with superior steel. The new MK1-G2 is just that and more... Furthermore, I for one had no clue as to why Benchmade would discontinue such a popular knife (Ritter Griptilian) in the first place however it was their choice to do so. It made more sense when shortly after I saw a Benchmade Freek and my initial thought was that this is a Ritter Griptilian blade slapped on a different handle and was probably their idea of adding a comparable knife to the Ritter Grip to their lineup.

I hope that there is a mini in the future!
 
gusnuts said:
I fully support Ritter/Hogue and do not see this as a clone or a blatant ripoff of Benchmade. Yes, the Ritter Grip was designed on the Griptilian's platform however the Ritter Griptilian's claim to fame came from a well priced USA made blade with a high-flatground stonewashed blade with superior steel. The new MK1-G2 is just that and more... Furthermore, I for one had no clue as to why Benchmade would discontinue such a popular knife (Ritter Griptilian) in the first place however it was their choice to do so. It made more sense when shortly after I saw a Benchmade Freek and my initial thought was that this is a Ritter Griptilian blade slapped on a different handle and was probably their idea of adding a comparable knife to the Ritter Grip to their lineup.

I hope that there is a mini in the future!
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I'm not sure that 'claim to fame' is an objective concept in this discussion. The Ritter Griptilian was a matter of sticking Ritter's blade on a pre-existing knife, the Benchmade Griptilian, designed by Mel Pardue, using an AXIS lock designed by McHenry & Williams and licensed to Benchmade at the time. What exactly has Hogue done with the original knife design by Mel Pardue?
 
Pilsner said:
I'm not sure that 'claim to fame' is an objective concept in this discussion. The Ritter Griptilian was a matter of sticking Ritter's blade on a pre-existing knife, the Benchmade Griptilian, designed by Mel Pardue, using an AXIS lock designed by McHenry & Williams and licensed to Benchmade at the time. What exactly has Hogue done with the original knife design by Mel Pardue?
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Hogue/Ritter may have based the handle design off of the Griptilian however the shape is slightly different especially in the choil area and produced with different materials. There are thousands of knife handle designs and to make one drastically different from a previous design at this point in time is pretty far fetched. As far as the ABLE lock vs the AXIS lock. If what has been stated is true there are also slight differences between the two and furthermore it has been stated that the trademark on the AXIS has expired in 2016. Other makers, Shirogorov, for one has used a similar lock as well. For the people who are claiming that this is a ripoff of the Griptilian do they also agree that the Freek's blade is a ripoff of Doug Ritter's blade?
 
gusnuts said:
Hogue/Ritter may have based the handle design off of the Griptilian however the shape is slightly different especially in the choil area and produced with different materials. There are thousands of knife handle designs and to make one drastically different from a previous design at this point in time is pretty far fetched. As far as the ABLE lock vs the AXIS lock. If what has been stated is true there are also slight differences between the two and furthermore it has been stated that the trademark on the AXIS has expired in 2016. Other makers, Shirogorov, for one has used a similar lock as well. For the people who are claiming that this is a ripoff of the Griptilian do they also agree that the Freek's blade is a ripoff of Doug Ritter's blade?
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The Freek doesn't look like a Griptilian. The new Ritter Grip looks like a Griptilian.
 
gusnuts said:
Hogue/Ritter may have based the handle design off of the Griptilian however the shape is slightly different especially in the choil area and produced with different materials. There are thousands of knife handle designs and to make one drastically different from a previous design at this point in time is pretty far fetched. As far as the ABLE lock vs the AXIS lock. If what has been stated is true there are also slight differences between the two and furthermore it has been stated that the trademark on the AXIS has expired in 2016. Other makers, Shirogorov, for one has used a similar lock as well. For the people who are claiming that this is a ripoff of the Griptilian do they also agree that the Freek's blade is a ripoff of Doug Ritter's blade?
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Several facts are incorrect here. First, the trademark on the axis lock has not expired, the patent has. Two completely different things. Second, shirogorov copied the axis lock while the patent was still in effect. It was a dirty move.
 
craytab said:
Several facts are incorrect here. First, the trademark on the axis lock has not expired, the patent has. Two completely different things. Second, shirogorov copied the axis lock while the patent was still in effect. It was a dirty move.
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You are correct about the phrasing of the Patent vs Trademark however the Patent in this case is the more important of the two since a patent is what prevents others from making or selling the design whereas the trademark is related to the name AXIS lock which is not being used in the new MK1-G2. I can only speculate as to what happened between Benchmade and Doug Ritter unless it has been made public and I am just unaware as to why exactly Benchmade dropped the deal/product. I do however see very similar designs to the Freek's blade and the Ritter blade.
 
Here’s the real controversy:
Shouldn’t the second generation of anything named Mk1, now become Mk2??
 
As I see it, Benchmade had the choice to continue making the Ritter knife. They are the ones who cancelled it, making it impossible to purchase any more. It's like a restaurant producing amazing fried chicken sandwiches and then suddenly changing the menu and not selling it anymore. It's completely reasonable for someone else to sell a damn fried chicken sandwich with a similar recipe at that point. It's not fair to sell something great and then decide to bury it while simultaneously not letting anyone else make it either.

I'd feel differently if the Benchmade Ritter and the new Ritter were being sold at the same time.
 
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