Ever wonder why William Henry knives cost so much?

[Artfully Martial]

Because they're freaking hard to make, that's why.

I just got my new Benchmade 480-1 special edition Shoki in today. I bought it because, well, it's exactly what I wanted--a William Henry on a budget. It's got it all--small size, carbon fiber scales, detailed filing on the spacer, anodized titanium liners, a button lock, even a pocket-clip carrying case.

Well, it has everything but quality control. Now, don't get me wrong here--I know I'm a crybaby about off centered blades. I accept that fact. But this blade is dang near rubbing the liner--it's so close that I really don't see how it isn't--it must be less than 1/25 a mm clearance going on. This isn't user fixable.

And as if that isn't enough, it even has noticeable (but, I admit, not bad or scary) vertical play.

But AM, I can hear you say to yourself--even Benchmade lets one through once in awhile. I thought that might be the case too, so I called my dealer to see if I could swap them out and he said that he looked through his whole inventory (total: 3) to find mine because it was the best of the bunch and it's all being sent in to Benchmade tomorrow.

So I'll send mine into Benchmade, wait a month, probably until I've moved on to wanting a different knife, and hope for the best.

But next time, I'm just going to get the William Henry and save myself the hassle.

Now, fit and finish aside, how's the knife? Fantastic. The ergos is great for such a small knife. It's totally gorgeous. The button lock works great--the deployment is super smooth and flickable, and like an axis lock, you can depress the button and flick it closed. The carrying case isn't well made, but I don't care, I bought a knife, not a case, and it'll protect it from my keys, so it's good enough for me.

So it's a shame really--if this comes back perfect or near perfect this could be a classic--but if they had made them right the first time I'd be calling this post "Why buy a William Henry when you can get a Benchmade?"

Alas...what could have been....

 

[sangkala]

Nice knife. Bummer about the blade. I hope you get it back soon.

Are you thinking of getting the WH EDC E-10? Or something else...

I did a search for WH dealers near my area and most of them are jewelry stores.

 

[Noctis3880]

Hmm. I must've gotten lucky because mine happens to be dead centered:thumbup:. Some vertical play, but other than that I've had no major problems using it at work.

I bought my Shoki for the M390, Carbon Fiber, and Titanium. But mostly for the M390. AFAIK, Benchmade is the only one currently offering it in a production knife, even if it's only a limited production run. The steel isn't all hype, as it passed my "Corn Test" with flying colors, which only CPM-M4 seemed to handle well.

But I confess... After hearing about Benchmade's quality control issues, I've asked my dealers to check for blade play and centering:thumbup:. If the dealer has been asked to do so but sent you a lemon anyways, they're the ones to blame.

Though the real issue has less to do with William Henry and more to do with the fact that none of my Kershaw, Spyderco, or even Cold Steel knives have ever had any QC issues like what some users post about Benchmade.

 

[termiteslayer]

My blue class BM's are better knives than the gold class I got. I'll never go gold again.
I'm still irritated about it, but live and learn.

My WH prototype (cheapest, least flashy one I could find) is immaculate in every way. It's freakin' perferct!
Easily the best F&F I've encountered so far.

Don't think WH makes any hard workin' knives, though.

 

[pwet]

don't know if this is solved by now but you'd better check the lock.

3years ago i bought a shoki in a b&m store. LOVED the knife. very lightweight, very classy, nice thin blade, nice lock mechanism...
until it stopped locking after about ... 3 days. in fact i could close it like a slipjoint without touching the button.

got back to the store , give it back, got a new one (1st production run).

2 days later same problem. back to the store, the owner checks all his knives, give them a good spine whack and ..... none passed.
he sent mine to benchmade and got back a knife (a different one no more first prod) with the same problem i got a flakniven TK3bq instead. too bad i loved the shoki.

 

[Artfully Martial]

I'll give benchmade a chance to correct this. I'm also told by some of the Kershaw fans that ZT might be willing just to send me a new scale for my zt0400 for these minor scratches on it. Depending on how this transaction between the two companies go, I could conceivably just abandon Benchmade entirely and move all of that over to Kershaw/ZT. But who knows. Won't know about the Benchmade for 6 weeks. And who knows if I'll get my good number back (#70).

But I do love the Shoki design. If they can get it working properly it'll be cherished.

As per the lock, I gave it some gentle spine whacks against my arm and put some pressure on it, and it did fine, although there is some vertical play. It's a gentleman's folder and I don't expect it to withstand the stuff my ZT Mudd does or something...so as long as it can take a little pressure it's good enough for me.

 

[Toyz]

I've tried to scratch the "expensive knife" itch with a less expensive model or a similar model from a production maker - but it never works for me.

To me - it's worth it to save the money and get what you really want.

If I had done that instead of buying many others but not being satisfied - I'd have saved myself a LOT of money.

 

[Stainz]

Whatever you do, don't buy a CRK. Last fall's purchase of a CRK/Wilson Combat 'StarTac' Umnumzaan being a case in point. The purchase was to commemorate a milestone - with a 'special' knife. The then new Lion Steel SR-1 was considered - except for it's poor availability. WH & CRK, viewable locally at a yuppee sporting goods emporium, were perused - the Umnumzaan was selected. My local store charges MSRP+ - and that plus is usually 10 or more percent. A base 'zaan was $440 + 9% s/t! I went home - checked our CRK forum - saw the StarTac 'zaan - called WC - had one in a couple of days - the $430 price included s/h. Much nicer handle than the standard CRK 'zaan. Upon arrival - my first thought... I'm not worthy!

Why not buy a CRK (or WH)? They set a new standard. Oh, sure, my BM 630 Skirmish - both the one bought new and the used one - were/are as near perfect as can be expected from BM - better, even, than last year's near perfect 755 MPR. Still, they pale in comparison to the CRK. My ZT-301 and Kershaw production JYDII in Ti/SG-2 set standards - now usurped by that CRK. Be prepared to look with a jaded eye at your current favorites, once you get a premium knife. They lull you into thinking you can afford another one, too - but that won't stop the lust. I thought I deserved more... my bank account disagrees.

Stainz

PS They cost so much because they are made of close tolerance parts, properly assembled, and inspected and tested before stuffed in a box for delivery.

 

[bld522]

I did a search for WH dealers near my area and most of them are jewelry stores.

No surprise there. William Henry knives straddle the chasm between tools and jewelry. They really occupy a niche unto themselves. They design knives for gentlemen . . . well-heeled gentlemen at that. You can find William Henry knives just as easily in high-end knife stores as in jewelry stores. And yes, WH F&F is exemplary. But you'd expect that from knives whose prices can climb high into the stratosphere.

While I consider myself to be a gentleman, I'm not particularly well-heeled. So were it not for the fact that I was able to get a screaming good deal on an EDC E6-4 from a retailer who was closing out the line, I doubt I would ever have purchased a WH. Having owned one, I doubt I would ever part with it. From the perspective of materials, workmanship, fit and finish, William Henry knives truly are a breed apart! :thumbup: :thumbup:

.

 

[RubiconSS]

I have a buddy that owns a jewelry shop that I can afford to buy very little from. One can find William Henry Knives sitting next to $125,000.00 Zenith watches.
Nice store. Nice Knives.

 

[Artfully Martial]

Zenith is one of my favorite watch brands by far. Love the el primero grande date open...

 

[bld522]

I have a buddy that owns a jewelry shop that I can afford to buy very little from. One can find William Henry Knives sitting next to $125,000.00 Zenith watches.
Nice store. Nice Knives.

I don't believe I've ever seen a WH that costs $125,000. But I've seen them run north of $10,000.

 

[Artfully Martial]

lol I think he means haute horology class Zeniths costing 100+k. My personal favorite is about 9k on the street. Hence, I do not own it and probably never will lol.