Gold Class Valet 485-151

damn that looks really nice!!
Too rich for my blood as well, but you never know.. My max increases every year.
 
Impressive materials set! Would look great next to a 930-92 Kulgera. However, for its size, I'm shocked at the MSRP.
 
crolfe1984 said:
Impressive materials set! Would look great next to a 930-92 Kulgera. However, for its size, I'm shocked at the MSRP.
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Don't be shocked at the price, that is why they call them Gold Class. While very nice, the premium asked is a bit too steep for many. That is why they also have such small numbers. Some have been more reasonable than others in cost over the years.
 
If it was a full damascus 531, I’d be settin’ up camp in front of the dealer lol

I was never crazy about the Valet. I almost pulled the trigger on one a few months ago until I fondled it at my local dealer and noticed significant blade play. Also wasn’t crazy about the smaller axis lock and gray G10.

This Gold Class looks nice and I appreciate the workmanship, but I could never justify using damascus.
 
RevDevil said:
Some have been more reasonable than others in cost over the years.
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Don't get me wrong, I get the higher tag for a Gold Class piece. They are usually outstanding works of production knife art! However, lets take a more relative look.

The 485-151 has a $1200 MSRP, full Damascus, 3.75 ounce mass, 160 piece run
The 930-92 had a $1200 MSRP, full Damascus, 5.30 ounce mass, 200 piece run
The 757-151 had a $1300 MSRP, carbon fiber/Damascus, 6.62 ounce mass, 100 piece run

I threw the Vicar in there Just to make things interesting. For this purpose I'm going to look at BM's limited series (not the unlimited limited series ala the new 908-161). Now we all know that each GC piece has its unique design elements, hand input, special R&D, tooling, materials acquisition, artist consulting, etc. However, that fact remains that you're paying a premium for an artistically assembled, joined-up bit of high end materials with a sharp edge. Why is it the Vicar has 77% more material yet an MSRP that is only 8% higher with 60 less pieces being run?

So, lets establish a rough "Value Factor" equation. [(MSRP / Mass) x Run#] = Value Factor. The lower the result, the more of a value the knife becomes.

485-151 has a "Value Factor" of 51200
930-92 has a "Value Factor" of 45283
757-151 as a "Value Factor" of 19637

Naturally the closer to "1" the Value Factor is, the more of a real value the knife becomes. To justify the cost of a GC piece (in my mind) the ratio between the cost of materials, amount of material, and the limited run have to make sense. Sense to me a becomes a Value Factor of around 45000 +/-.

But then again, with knife purchases, monetary/artistic/sentimental value are all relative ;)
 
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