- Joined
- Oct 7, 1998
- Messages
- 1,838
Your hope to find a CPM steel, or another truly premium alloy such as Talonite (r) in a moderately priced knife is in vain. There are several reasons for this.
The public doesn't know the difference between the usual steels and the superior alloys. Witness the introduction of the AFCK in M2 (not exactly a wonder metal, but a step in the right direction). BM blundered badly; they only allowed two internet dealers to buy at dealer's cost. This limited the access of the knives to the people clamoring for them: the knife forumites. Worse yet, BM sent the knives to the dealers, most of whom had no knowledge of what M2 was. Obviously, the public was even more unaware. Thus the M2 AFCK's gathered dust on the warehouse shelves at BM, while forumites scoured their local areas looking for AFCK M2's; a feeding frenzy would erupt whenever a stash of them were found.
BM's reason for this blunder was that only 10% of their knives were sold over the internet, therefore (they thought) only a small number of knives would be needed for internet purchasers. Further, BM had just restructured the method in which they distributed their knives, and wished to reward the 'storefront' dealers.
Another reason is that the premium alloys cost more, and in the case of Talonite (r), cost more to machine, as it is provided already heat treated, so requires more grinding time to fabricate. This cost, of course, has to be passed on to the consumer. Which brings us back to the public not understanding the difference between regular and super alloys. Thus, they are not usually willing to pay more for the super alloy.
One other consideration is that most people don't use their knives hard enough to be able to appreciate the difference between the various alloys; thus, there may be no practical difference in actual use for most people.
The good news for you is that you can get a custom knife in a premium alloy for very little more. Sometimes, it is included in the regular price. I have a CPM 420V #18 folder from Kit Carson, and it was the regular price. I have a Talonite (r) knife in the same pattern, and the additional labor cost was about $50, or about 10% of the price of the knife.
Hope this helps, Walt
The public doesn't know the difference between the usual steels and the superior alloys. Witness the introduction of the AFCK in M2 (not exactly a wonder metal, but a step in the right direction). BM blundered badly; they only allowed two internet dealers to buy at dealer's cost. This limited the access of the knives to the people clamoring for them: the knife forumites. Worse yet, BM sent the knives to the dealers, most of whom had no knowledge of what M2 was. Obviously, the public was even more unaware. Thus the M2 AFCK's gathered dust on the warehouse shelves at BM, while forumites scoured their local areas looking for AFCK M2's; a feeding frenzy would erupt whenever a stash of them were found.
BM's reason for this blunder was that only 10% of their knives were sold over the internet, therefore (they thought) only a small number of knives would be needed for internet purchasers. Further, BM had just restructured the method in which they distributed their knives, and wished to reward the 'storefront' dealers.
Another reason is that the premium alloys cost more, and in the case of Talonite (r), cost more to machine, as it is provided already heat treated, so requires more grinding time to fabricate. This cost, of course, has to be passed on to the consumer. Which brings us back to the public not understanding the difference between regular and super alloys. Thus, they are not usually willing to pay more for the super alloy.
One other consideration is that most people don't use their knives hard enough to be able to appreciate the difference between the various alloys; thus, there may be no practical difference in actual use for most people.
The good news for you is that you can get a custom knife in a premium alloy for very little more. Sometimes, it is included in the regular price. I have a CPM 420V #18 folder from Kit Carson, and it was the regular price. I have a Talonite (r) knife in the same pattern, and the additional labor cost was about $50, or about 10% of the price of the knife.
Hope this helps, Walt
