how does Frost Cutlery make their knives so cheap?

B

Billmanweh

Joined
Sep 5, 2002
Messages
606
I am just fascinated by those late night knife shows on cable tv. I can't help but wonder how they can make folding knives cheaply enough that they are able to sell them for less than $2 apiece.
 
If you ever handled one of those knives you would immediately know why they can be sold so cheap. They are more like Cracker Jack toys than knives.
 
Made in China of junk steel. If you get the chance watch the video where the guy taps a table with a Katana, it breaks in half and sticks him in the stomach.
 
i always wondered too.

i would love to see the internals of their folders.



i love that video!
 
Billman said:
I am just fascinated by those late night knife shows on cable tv. I can't help but wonder how they can make folding knives cheaply enough that they are able to sell them for less than $2 apiece.
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3 reasons:

1) Cheap material components and design. These things are not made to be used; they are made to look plausible in photographs.

2) Slave labor wages, lowest possible working conditions, and zero environmental/regulatory costs.

3) Mass marketing on a very large scale aimed at a completely ignorant audience reduces the cost per item of generating the sale. Why bother to demonstrate and prove your product when you can sell snake oil to the kids?

n2s
 
Anyone who has seen a 3rd world workshop or factory will know why they can make things so cheaply. They use very old machines, zero safety measures, the cheapest materials sometimes scavanged from toxic waste like old electronics equipement and the cheapest labour, mostly women and kids and pay them next to nothing. A lot of assembly work is done as out work so no factory needed and pay them $1/1000 components assembled. Thats one of the reason why Ist world countries stopped making cheap knives.
 
not2sharp said:
That is only partially true. They borrow the styling but not the engineering.

n2s
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Right, because borrowing the engineering would improve the quality.

Back in my pre knife-knut days, I remember seeing a lot of Frosts and Pakicrap that looked exactly like Spyderco jesters and delicas.
 
that is because they cut them out of aluminium foil (yes, the same material some peoplemake hats of).
Plus they must have a cheap ever-so-high LSD junkie (one that wears aluminium foil hats) who designs them.
 
i know a guy whose wife bought one of those "50 knives for 70.00" type deals hoping to sell them to guys at work and turn a profit. those peices of crap are still sitting in his garage.
 
Revierler said:
that is because they cut them out of aluminium foil (yes, the same material some peoplemake hats of).
Plus they must have a cheap ever-so-high LSD junkie (one that wears aluminium foil hats) who designs them.
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You seem to be making some rather broad hints here, why not come right out and say what you mean?
 
I am sure they make up the difference with the "shipping and handling fees", together with poor materials and slave labor.
 
Great timming on this post. I was just going through my Smoky Mountain catalog and thinking what great deals these knives were. Some of the fixed blades caught my interest. Thanks Guys for the eye opener.
 
I onlymean that someone who designs that kind of knife (and even has his name advertised...!) must be heavily under drugs.

Just kidding.

Some of these Frost Cutlery designs ar rather.... strange.
 
I came across an enormous load of these QVC Frost knives...for free! There had to be 200 knives total and about 20 diffrent kinds. The only ones I took and found useful were the small keychain knives...sharp and tight, and if I lose one, it's not like I dropped $50 on it.

The larger fixed blades were garbage, although I did take some huge Pakistan made thing because it looked cool:D
 
Revierler said:
I onlymean that someone who designs that kind of knife (and even has his name advertised...!) must be heavily under drugs.

Just kidding.

Some of these Frost Cutlery designs ar rather.... strange.
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Sorry, I totally misunderstood what you were saying in that last post. My tin foil hat was maladjusted! :)
 
I don't know why I watch those shows, but I do. It usually just starts as background noise, but I get sucked in every time. Something about 200 knives, all poked into wood blocks, all for $100...
 
Is anyone else really annoyed when someone is talking to you and sais:

"Your into knives; you should check out the cutlery corner on shop at home you could get 300 knives for $300."

They just don't understand that i might spend $300 on one good knife, but never on 300 pieces of junk.
 
My question is: How have they stayed in business for so long with such low quality products?
 
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