Dull knife from the factory poll

On a new knife purchase, it arrives dull from the factory. Do you care?

  • I sharpen my knives myself. NO, I do not care if the blade arrives dull.

    Votes: 20 17.4%

  • I sharpen my knives myself. YES, I do care if the blade arrives dull.

    Votes: 95 82.6%
  • Total voters
    115
I've had a Spyderco Waterway and Street Bowie both come with very dull and obtuse edges that also wouldn't cut paper. I did not like having to reprofile them right away. Pretty annoying, but all the others I've had from them were fine.

The one that bothered me the most was a handmade fixed blade I bought new direct from the maker. The fit and finish on the rest of the knife was perfect. I don't understand how a pretty reputable maker could not realize that they are sending out a dull knife.
 
I’d say I don’t really care about knives being sharp or not when I get them. If they are safe queens it really doesn’t matter and if they are users I’ll use them a little until I send them out for sharpening. However I would say that knives in a higher priced bracket (say $100 or more) should be sharper then a $5 Walmart knife. Companies should care enough to send them out sharp.
 
I especially hate it when a knife comes dull and won't sharpen. A Tops fixed blade I bought was like that and a MOD folder. No matter how long I sharpened they both remained dull.
 
IMO, the manufacturer should only be expected to put a useable working edge on a knife blade. I sharpen my own knives anyway, so whether the blade is sharp or dull isn’t a deal breaker.
 
your poll is completely incomplete.
I sharpen myself
I expect to receive a sharp knife
But, if i have to sharpen a knife out of the box, its not a big deal....
or it's the worst knife ever made, could go either way
 
It's aggravating to say the least if a knife comes with a less than expected edge. The ones that are for collection really don't matter because they will be kept in virgin condition. The users however, are a different matter.
The way I view it is to either send the knife back and try to get one with a good edge or back to the maker. This means for me, having to ship it out and waiting on it to come back. I worry more that something can happen now a days in transit and lose a knife as opposed to me putting an edge on one to satisfy my expectations.
Since I have the ability and equipment to sharpen my own knives, I'll choose to sharpen it my self and not go through the hassle of sending one back. Sometimes, proving a point for the principal of it kills the whole reason you bought the knife in the first place. If I buy a CRK and it has a less than stellar edge and I'm so upset that I don't want the knife, then maybe it's time for me to change hobbies.
 
I haven't read the comments, but it seems to me this poll is missing a choice. I'm not going to say that I "do not care" if a knife comes dull, but I would say that I am confident enough in my ability to sharpen a knife that a knife coming dull isn't an automatic return on my part. I've received many, many knives over the years that came dull, but instead of making a huge deal about it, I simply sharpened it up, and put it in my pocket. Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you might miss it.
 
I do care in what state a knife comes from factory. Dull knife is one thing, worst if the bevels are not balance. I do sharpen myself however a balance bevel minimises steel waste significantly.
 
Quiet said:
I haven't read the comments, but it seems to me this poll is missing a choice. I'm not going to say that I "do not care" if a knife comes dull, but I would say that I am confident enough in my ability to sharpen a knife that a knife coming dull isn't an automatic return on my part. I've received many, many knives over the years that came dull, but instead of making a huge deal about it, I simply sharpened it up, and put it in my pocket. Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you might miss it.
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Nope, you're option #1 : )
 
I just rec a WE Saakshi that was very sharp out of the box. Looking closely at the edge the hills and valleys in the edge must have been sharpened to about a 320 grind with a 40 degree inclusive edge. I prefer a min of 600 grit on a edge. I went ahead to put a 600 grit edge on this new knife but kept the 40 degree inclusive. i usually prefer a 30 degree inclusive but will try this out with the factory setting. Yep. had to mess with a factory sharp edge and could not wait until it got dull. Just me.
Ron
 
Dull knives are annoying. The point that I made in the other thread was simple tools or products that have one primary function should be able to do that function out of the box. A pen should write, a flash light should turn on, a lighter should create fire and a knife should cut. Its annoying to have to go find an ink cartridge for a new pen but its not the end of the world and its the same with sharpening a knife.

Unless we are talking about a disposable pen or in this case a disposable utility blade, I plan on maintaining the tool for quite some time so its not the end of the world if it isn't screaming sharp out of the box (Factory edges rarely if ever are that sharp by my standards) but it is still an annoyance if it is border line unusable out of the box.
 
When I buy a knife, it should cut! I don't think any of us would be OK with a dull custom made knife. I expect a sharp blade out of the box. Factories shouldn't get a pass because it wasn't custom made.


That said, i've never bought a dull blade.
 
TheArab said:
When I buy a knife, it should cut! I don't think any of us would be OK with a dull custom made knife. I expect a sharp blade out of the box. Factories shouldn't get a pass because it wasn't custom made.


That said, i've never bought a dull blade.
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ALL knives should cut out of the box. As I said, its not the end of the world but it is its primary function. I don't care if it is a 50 cent disposable pen, I am buying it to write with it and it better do that. For the same reason regardless of price, the knife should cut things. That being said, I prefer my knives far sharper than most factories are willing to put into a knife blade so I wind up sharpening nearly every knife I buy within the first few weeks of ownership but that is not always necessary.
 
greater said:
Do you care if your tires come with treads ?
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He probably does not have the capability of putting treads on his tires.
Most nearly anyone can learn to sharpen a knife, with minimal cost outlay.

I've had quite a few newer knives with uneven grinds. I can fix it, but I would prefer they be at least even.
I've had several knives arrive that were literally face shaving sharp. That is not common, in my experience. Mostly I get knives that will cut fairly well, but need to be profiled to some extent, and sharpened.
 
You only have one knife? That's a bold statement to make. Like a handmade custom made from a genuine moon rock forged on the thighs of a virgin during 8 months in a custom build forge on the plains of Siberia or you only have a 15 dollar CRKT? I can't even remember when i got my first knife (i think i was like 8 maybe) so just a weird thought that a guy with one knife ask on a knife collector forum how they like their knives factory sharpened. Or it could be you are an avid collector, who teached Cliff Stamp all he knew about edge geometry and sold his life work to obtain the ultima grail knife.
 
Jim malone said:
You only have one knife? That's a bold statement to make. Like a handmade custom made from a genuine moon rock forged on the thighs of a virgin during 8 months in a custom build forge on the plains of Siberia or you only have a 15 dollar CRKT? I can't even remember when i got my first knife (i think i was like 8 maybe) so just a weird thought that a guy with one knife ask on a knife collector forum how they like their knives factory sharpened. Or it could be you are an avid collector, who teached Cliff Stamp all he knew about edge geometry and sold his life work to obtain the ultima grail knife.
Click to expand...

I don't collect knives; I use and lose them : ) ... rather, : ( ?

Yep, I've carried I knife since I was a preteen. I do not still own any from that time! haha

I haven't focused on knives for the past couple years. I lost my last 3 knives in a month and then I said I'm taking a break from knives. EDC is currenlty a mini Emissary (S30V).
 
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