Grimsmo Norseman, what's the deal? and others...

Mercules

Mercules

Joined
Feb 12, 2016
Messages
297
What's the deal with Grimsmo Norseman's being so sought after and ridiculously expensive? I get they are engineered to extreme tolerances and very collectible, but still seems incredible to me.

Any time I see one for sale, $1200 seems to be the norm. I saw one just yesterday that was just produced in Sept. and for sale on a facebook group for 3X the retail price and never even used. They retail for half that, what makes them so good? Same with the "lucky 13" sheepsfoot- always selling for 4X retail price. I guess I hate those type of people that corner a limited market and gouge the secondary- same type of people buying up tickets in bulk to sporting events just to make a quick $.

Norseman owners, please share your experience with the knives.
 
That's the market we're in. I personally cannot stand the blade shape on the Norseman's. If I wanted a spoon, I'll just use a spoon.

But I respect that others probably love that shape, and will pay out accordingly. It's a good time to be a knife guy.

Also, gougers will always be a part of that market unfortunately.
 
Quiet said:
That's the market we're in. I personally cannot stand the blade shape on the Norseman's. If I wanted a spoon, I'll just use a spoon.

But I respect that others probably love that shape, and will pay out accordingly. It's a good time to be a knife guy.

Also, gougers will always be a part of that market unfortunately.
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Yeah I've not come across (m)any reviews about the Norseman. They look 'cool' but agree the blade shape seems useless.

I feel Hinderer was at this point for a while and finally hit that point where their knives have just saturated the market new and used. I doubt Grimsmo will ever be at that level though.
 
marcinek said:
Nobody is forcing anybody to buy those knives for those prices you find so outrageous. Cant sell what people wont pay for.
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True, I agree. I'm just trying to figure out what the hype is since there's not much out there in regards to their overall performance. The design and engineering aspect is appealing and I can see buying one at retail price. Not double what it's worth when more are still being made nonetheless.
 
Grimsmo has stated in one of their videos that they want to remain a "boutique" manufacturer of knives. However, I believe once they are done with Rask pre-orders, they will have a Norseman pre-order and hopefully any one that wants one can get in at a reasonable price. Either way, the market will come down on these eventually. I did handle a Norseman at Blade this year and it is a remarkable piece of engineering. I would never pay secondary, however. PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE!
 
I have a norseman. its an awesome knife. the action on it is like none I have seen or handled. I like the shape of the blade because it is different than any other shape, and it works just fine for me. the price shoots up because they are made in small numbers. not a ton of them out there. I didn't pay $1200 for mine and Grimsmo doesn't sell them for that much.
 
Mercules said:
True, I agree. I'm just trying to figure out what the hype is since there's not much out there in regards to their overall performance. The design and engineering aspect is appealing and I can see buying one at retail price. Not double what it's worth when more are still being made nonetheless.
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Knife pricing for "customs" has always been a very strange thing.

Regardless of what anyone thinks a knife is worth, like a true collectors market the price is determined by many other factors besides the sum of a particular knife's parts.

Supply and demand, as well as hype just to name a couple.

The value of anything is determined by what you can sell it at, and there is nothing wrong with that technically...
 
JR88FAN said:
Knife pricing for "customs" has always been a very strange thing.

Regardless of what anyone thinks a knife is worth, like a true collectors market the price is determined by many other factors besides the sum of a particular knife's parts.

Supply and demand, as well as hype just to name a couple.

The value of anything is determined by what you can sell it at, and there is nothing wrong with that technically...
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Yeah it's still something I'm getting used and it's funny how some knife makers just take off while others remain in the shadows.

Not being able to handle these caliber of knives in a retail environment often makes me wonder what I'm missing when there is that much hype.
 
Supply and demand. First thing you learn about in economics. A lot of knife makers went through and are going through this. The buyers are setting the prices that high by continuing to purchase them. It just is what it is. I have a Norseman and it is by far my favorite knife. The action is what everyone says, perfect. I didn't like the blade shape at first but it has grown on me. It actually is great for EDC tasks.
 
Mercules said:
Yeah it's still something I'm getting used and it's funny how some knife makers just take off while others remain in the shadows.

Not being able to handle these caliber of knives in a retail environment often makes me wonder what I'm missing when there is that much hype.
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It's a game of patience. No knife or maker stays "hot" forever.
(Especially these days)

Eventually it will just come down to supply and demand, and once John starts manufacturing Norseman's again the price will drop back to normal.

Imagine Chris Reeve knives said they where going to limit to production of the 21 to a few hundred pieces per year. (Worldwide)
How much do you think the price would change by on the resale market?!
 
Kurtis G said:
I have a norseman. its an awesome knife. the action on it is like none I have seen or handled. I like the shape of the blade because it is different than any other shape, and it works just fine for me. the price shoots up because they are made in small numbers. not a ton of them out there. I didn't pay $1200 for mine and Grimsmo doesn't sell them for that much.
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They do look like amazing pieces of work- I might get on their next preorder. Especially since i won't have a problem selling it....
 
It has to do with the fact that John G documented the entire process of how Norseman's were made when they first started. It was all very like hobby-ist like. He wasn't doing it for the money.
They shared a lot of the behind the scenes. Hell I've watched all their videos about how the Norsemans were made.
All the hand fitting, hand finishing. Trial and error of machining.

For example they make their own hardware (Screws, pivots, etc). This is something that many makers cannot do. Even larger production companies.

The guy is a very talented machinist, compared to many other knife makers he seems to know a lot of about machining.

In a video he made about the Norseman talking about making the pivots he was showing how he was able to utilize a majority of the material to make pivots and screws. Basically how he maximized his production. Someone had warned him that he was showing too much, he simply said he's confident few if any other people in the knife industry could replicate what he's doing simply because it did not make economic sense. So he wasn't concerned.
 
Luis G. said:
It has to do with the fact that John G documented the entire process of how Norseman's were made when they first started. It was all very like hobby-ist like. He wasn't doing it for the money.
They shared a lot of the behind the scenes. Hell I've watched all their videos about how the Norsemans were made.
All the hand fitting, hand finishing. Trial and error of machining.

For example they make their own hardware (Screws, pivots, etc). This is something that many makers cannot do. Even larger production companies.

The guy is a very talented machinist, compared to many other knife makers he seems to know a lot of about machining.

In a video he made about the Norseman talking about making the pivots he was showing how he was able to utilize a majority of the material to make pivots and screws. Basically how he maximized his production. Someone had warned him that he was showing too much, he simply said he's confident few if any other people in the knife industry could replicate what he's doing simply because it did not make economic sense. So he wasn't concerned.
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I've seen a few of their videos online and he definitely seems passionate, knowledgeable and very talented. Seeing one of his YT videos is what got me investigating his knives in the first place.

Sounds like I need to go back and watch the rest of them.
 
Mercules said:
I've seen a few of their videos online and he definitely seems passionate, knowledgeable and very talented. Seeing one of his YT videos is what got me investigating his knives in the first place.

Sounds like I need to go back and watch the rest of them.
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Its very interesting to watch his videos. It's very enlightening to hear about his experience as a machinist in the knife industry.
 
They're way out of my price range on the secondary market, but I get it. They're beautifully made and where else are you going to get a blade that looks like the beak of a Dodo bird?
 
Quiet said:
That's the market we're in. I personally cannot stand the blade shape on the Norseman's. If I wanted a spoon, I'll just use a spoon.

But I respect that others probably love that shape, and will pay out accordingly. It's a good time to be a knife guy.

Also, gougers will always be a part of that market unfortunately.
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Alright ill admit I laughed at the spoon comment :D

But there's gougers in every market. I've gotten gouged on hard to find drum gear numerous times.
 
They are one of the smoothest folders i've felt, even probably above shirogorov. Very well made and limited quantities... supply and demand :)
 
T.L.E. Sharp said:
They're way out of my price range on the secondary market, but I get it. They're beautifully made and where else are you going to get a blade that looks like the beak of a Dodo bird?
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dodos_spyderco.jpg
 
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