Esee lost a customer today

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gpewett

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I carried my esee 3 with my for 2 years in the Marines. After a tour in Afghanistan the fabric sheath was destroyed and the bolts of the plastic one had to be replaced, the coating had bubbled and peeled (I put on the warranty this was caused by jp8 or diesel) and rust would form very quickly in those creases. When I got home I decided to repair the knife. I found some matching bolts to repair the plastic sheath (there was no hope for the fabric on) and tried to sand down the coating where it had come off to try to help the corrosion. Water still collected where the coating met the metal and rusted quick if I wasn't careful. The knife had become useless for my job, Every time it would rain on patrol or while hiking I would get back and have to scrub rust off the blade. I tried taking the rest of the coating off and cover it in beeswax, mineral oil, anything food safe that may help. It did a lot better but still was useless for food prep in extended field scenarios. So I sent it back to them to see what they could do. The shop received it the 21st of last month. Last week I emailed customer service to ask about it and they said they were behind on some things and it should go out middle of this week. About an hour ago I received this email.

The shop received your ESEE 3 for Warranty. They will sharpen it and send it back to you as is. JP8 (jet fuel) did not take the coating off:) ANd we do not warranty wear of the coating.
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That is very disappointing to hear. The coating had almost completely come off on my last tour from the chemicals I work with jp8 (what Marines call diesel) being one of the most corrosive. I chose your company for my deployment knife because of your claim of an unwavering warranty, the sales rep that worked for yall at SMKW showed me broken knives that people had shot, clamped and broken then sent in. I tried to repair the knife as best as I could and get the rest of the coating off. After applying several different kinds of finish to the blade (mineral oil, Car wax, beeswax, patina ) the knife was still extremely difficult to keep from rusting out in the field and kind of useless for the application I had bought it for. I bought your knife over Ontario's because of the "superb" warranty and of a story I was told about your founders integrity towards Ontario when they wanted to ship faulty knives. Maybe that was all just a sales pitch. Thank you for your time and returning the knife.
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If you had bothered to read the warranty you would have seen we don't cover "normal wear and tear". We actually have JP8 available here at the shop and it doesn't touch the coating so I don't know what really took the coating off.:) Even if it did it wouldn't be warrantied since the coating eventually wears anyway and you would still be faced with doing regular rust prevention anyway.
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This is not the company I thought it was. I am not saying they did anything "wrong" and technically the coating peeling is wear and tear. I was just under the impression that the warranty would be no questions and that I shouldn't have to snap it in half to send it in.
 
I would have gone with a Benchmade. The Adamas looks very similar to the knife you mentioned. Put some paracord on it and Benchmade's warranty does cover everything. I don't know about reblading fixed blades, but $40 will get you a brand new blade on a folder. You could probably have them re-coat it with Cerakote for a low price or free
 
That last quote is from them? A bit snotty and smart ass-ery. That would irk me more than the warranty issue.
 
If the last quote is directly from them (specifically the first sentence), that is disappointing and insulting.

If I were ESEE, I would have sent you a brand new knife just to thank you for your service. Thank you, BTW!
 
Yes the only email from me is signed Gage. And thank you for your support.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
 
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I know the coating can't be expected to last forever but I'd think they could do better than just resharpening it.

And that last message, OMG, was that from ESEE? "If you had bothered to..." should never anything someone in customer service should say. Wow.
 
ESEE lost a lot of good will, I believe. I've used this company before, but didn't need the warranty program.
 
First, thank you for your service!

ESEE shouldn't have responded that way, it's very unprofessional.

One thing, the 3 is 1095 steel, and it will rust if you look at it wrong. Especially if you don't take off the decarb layer on the steel that's usually left on coated blades. If moisture gets in and under the coating, that will peel the coating off, so it was probably water and rust not the diesel.
 
Yep, the coating is not covered.
It is also well known that you'll sometimes get a snarky e-mail.
They will fix the knife if it is broken though. :thumbup:
 
MassMatt said:
I know the coating can't be expected to last forever but I'd think they could do better than just resharpening it.

And that last message, OMG, was that from ESEE? "If you had bothered to..." should never anything someone in customer service should say. Wow.
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It was a direct quote. I can post screens hots I just didn't want to put is name in it because I forgot the privacy policy for this forum.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
 
Busse all day. Little on the pricey side, but if I had to carry one blade, it'll be INFI. My HG55 lives on my kit in a spec ops sheath, and has been used to veg up hides, trucks and BFV's. It's been used to chip at rocky soil to loosen it enough to dig a Hasty FP. It's been used as a make shift hammer, and has actually cut some thin metal with the aid of a baton, trying to fix up some range crap. It'll hold an edge (Has about a 42 degree inclusive edge on it now, pretty obtuse for my tastes, but it hasn't needed sharpening since I got it, and have put it through the Army wringer), and if there's any deformation, steeling the edge on the barrel of my M4 will set it back right.

Close second would be a Swamp Rat Ratmandu. SR101 is a helluva steel, which will also keep a good edge (Mine is sharpened to about 20 degrees inclusive... which is scary sharp for me!), and still go. I used mine for about a year before switching for the HG55. It'll also fit a Spec Ops sheath, and is covered by Busse's excellent warranty (Which isn't just lip service as it appears ESSE's is...). Mine has been used mainly for field craft, notching logs constructing a prepared FP, notching logs for various traps teaching field craft, cutting wire and prying open ammo boxes and the like. This one is still in production, and is extremely reasonable for such a good knife. three guys in my unit started carrying RatManDu's after I started playing around with mine in the field.

If you didn't know already, Busse has a no questions asked sort of warranty, which covers the knife completely (Perhaps minus the coating... but INFI is pretty well rust resistant on its own, and SR101 takes a good patina IME). They pride themselves on never rejecting a warranty claim regardless of the cause.


HG55



Don't have any pics of the RMD for whatever reason on Photobucket, and am too lazy to go dig for one, but it's a solid knife.

Hope this helps
 
Man that was wrong in so many ways, they would have given you a new knife just because of your service, I was born and live in Guatemala, and I appreciate your service, not just for USA but for the rest of free countries you are fighting for, THANK YOU
(my dad is a retired general, he help fight the guerilla war we had here in the 70-80's, was wounded twice, I know what it is to fight for freedom, any freedom)
 
gpewett said:
I carried my esee 3 with my for 2 years in the Marines. After a tour in Afghanistan the fabric sheath was destroyed and the bolts of the plastic one had to be replaced, the coating had bubbled and peeled (I put on the warranty this was caused by jp8 or diesel) and rust would form very quickly in those creases. When I got home I decided to repair the knife. I found some matching bolts to repair the plastic sheath (there was no hope for the fabric on) and tried to sand down the coating where it had come off to try to help the corrosion. Water still collected where the coating met the metal and rusted quick if I wasn't careful. The knife had become useless for my job, Every time it would rain on patrol or while hiking I would get back and have to scrub rust off the blade. I tried taking the rest of the coating off and cover it in beeswax, mineral oil, anything food safe that may help. It did a lot better but still was useless for food prep in extended field scenarios.
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From your original post, it sounds like what you actually want is a stainless steel blade.
You obviously aren't planning on building a log cabin with a knife that small, and stainless is just going to be way better for food prep duties.
 
stabman said:
From your original post, it sounds like what you actually want is a stainless steel blade.
You obviously aren't planning on building a log cabin with a knife that small, and stainless is just going to be way better for food prep duties.
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Yes but I love 1095 and Esee made a coated one that solved the issue of rust while using my favorite steal. I use ctsxhp in a folder for food prep I just love 1095 in a fixed

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
 
They do state on their warranty that they don't cover wear and tear or rust.

However, their "no questions asked" warranty does not say you will not be ridiculed by them, and they do like to ridicule people that send in broken knives. For instance, check the current warranty page and see what they call one of their customers that sent in a knife that had been shot -

https://www.eseeknives.com/warranty.htm

No questions asked, but you are an idiot if you break a knife.

I quit buying anything from them when they ridiculed the kid that sent the knife in, broken, and told them he and a buddy were using it as a throwing knife while on a camping trip. They have since removed the thread, but they gave the kid a pretty good public dressing down.

They have no class, in my opinion. The knives are pretty good though, and cheap so just buy another one, break that one and send it back in for the no questions asked warranty.

best

mqqn
 
Grandmaster said:
Man that was wrong in so many ways, they would have given you a new knife just because of your service, I was born and live in Guatemala, and I appreciate your service, not just for USA but for the rest of free countries you are fighting for, THANK YOU
(my dad is a retired general, he help fight the guerilla war we had here in the 70-80's, was wounded twice, I know what it is to fight for freedom, any freedom)
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Well thank you so much for your support. I get enough free stuff for serving I just expected them to atleast put a new coat on it.

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk
 
mqqn said:
They do state on their warranty that they don't cover wear and tear or rust.

However, their "no questions asked" warranty does not say you will not be ridiculed by them, and they do like to ridicule people that send in broken knives. For instance, check the current warranty page and see what they call one of their customers that sent in a knife that had been shot -

https://www.eseeknives.com/warranty.htm

No questions asked, but you are an idiot if you break a knife.

I quit buying anything from them when they ridiculed the kid that sent the knife in, broken, and told them he and a buddy were using it as a throwing knife while on a camping trip. They have since removed the thread, but they gave the kid a pretty good public dressing down.

They have no class, in my opinion. The knives are pretty good though, and cheap so just buy another one, break that one and send it back in for the no questions asked warranty.

best

mqqn
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Not my experience at all. My buddy and I were doing some electrical work and had to cut a wire. Long story short- a wire that should not have been live, was, electricity arced, and blew a chunk out of the edge of my Izula 2.

I related that story in my email to ESEE before sending the knife at all. I fully fessed up that it was 100% our fault and that if they didn't want to replace the knife, I completely understood and would not hold it against them. This is the reply I got from Mike Perrin:

Just send knife only. No need to remove scales . Mike

Co-Owner, ESEE Knives
Randall's Adventure Training
www.eseeknives.com
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Not a gushy heart warming email, but he's a very very busy guy and I was touched that he took the time to reply personally. Certainly not snarky in any way.
 
Niddhogg said:
Busse all day. Little on the pricey side, but if I had to carry one blade, it'll be INFI. My HG55 lives on my kit in a spec ops sheath, and has been used to veg up hides, trucks and BFV's. It's been used to chip at rocky soil to loosen it enough to dig a Hasty FP. It's been used as a make shift hammer, and has actually cut some thin metal with the aid of a baton, trying to fix up some range crap. It'll hold an edge (Has about a 42 degree inclusive edge on it now, pretty obtuse for my tastes, but it hasn't needed sharpening since I got it, and have put it through the Army wringer), and if there's any deformation, steeling the edge on the barrel of my M4 will set it back right.

Close second would be a Swamp Rat Ratmandu. SR101 is a helluva steel, which will also keep a good edge (Mine is sharpened to about 20 degrees inclusive... which is scary sharp for me!), and still go. I used mine for about a year before switching for the HG55. It'll also fit a Spec Ops sheath, and is covered by Busse's excellent warranty (Which isn't just lip service as it appears ESSE's is...). Mine has been used mainly for field craft, notching logs constructing a prepared FP, notching logs for various traps teaching field craft, cutting wire and prying open ammo boxes and the like. This one is still in production, and is extremely reasonable for such a good knife. three guys in my unit started carrying RatManDu's after I started playing around with mine in the field.

If you didn't know already, Busse has a no questions asked sort of warranty, which covers the knife completely (Perhaps minus the coating... but INFI is pretty well rust resistant on its own, and SR101 takes a good patina IME). They pride themselves on never rejecting a warranty claim regardless of the cause.


HG55



Don't have any pics of the RMD for whatever reason on Photobucket, and am too lazy to go dig for one, but it's a solid knife.

Hope this helps
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Think I've heard of one rejection. Dude shot up his Swamp Rat with a rifle. 3 rounds. No idea why. Sent the pieces in for warranty, and posted about it somewhere where Jerry found it. He didn't have to ask questions because between the pieces & the post, the story was on the knife. Intentional major damage, pretty sure claim denied. :D But...that's about it, the only denied claim I've heard about. Moral of the story? Don't shoot up yer Busse & 'Kin knives into pieces for no good reason. :D ...And then post about it...not that Jerry can't recognize firearms damage when he sees it or anything. ;)
 
19-3ben said:
Not a gushy heart warming email, but he's a very very busy guy and I was touched that he took the time to reply personally. Certainly not snarky in any way.
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They're not always snarky.
But don't be surprised if they are.

Rust and coating issues, and damage from throwing are the things which get the most snark, with abject ridicule reserved for those who break their knives throwing them.
 
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