How should Collector Knives sell GEC SFO's

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Oh well, 0-5, but that’s okay...it was fun! Congrats to all who scored one and I’m looking forward to seeing some awesome pics.
Thank you again Mike, for all of your hard work and your customer service...well done! :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:
 
It really didn't occur to me when I started out that there would be so many that didn't even get standby. I know that most people understand it is just the luck of the draw; but that is not a consolation to me. I will keep working to come up with some enhancement that will result in a more consistent spread.
 
knifeswapper said:
It really didn't occur to me when I started out that there would be so many that didn't even get standby. I know that most people understand it is just the luck of the draw; but that is not a consolation to me. I will keep working to come up with some enhancement that will result in a more consistent spread.
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Keep it up Mike, great job with the draws and all :thumbsup:.
If you drop all 500 in one draw next time, almost everyone can score one. There were about 450-550 participants between the draws. Either way, it was entertaining to participate. Hope my standby on the ironwood converts.
 
knifeswapper said:
It really didn't occur to me when I started out that there would be so many that didn't even get standby. I know that most people understand it is just the luck of the draw; but that is not a consolation to me. I will keep working to come up with some enhancement that will result in a more consistent spread.
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And this right here is why every single customer should be thanking you. You constantly do more than is expected and always look for ways to improve the experience for your customer.

Frankly, the behavior from some customers that you've had to put up with is shameful. Thanks for always taking the high road and staying focused on the big picture. Some people just suck.
 
knifeswapper said:
It really didn't occur to me when I started out that there would be so many that didn't even get standby. I know that most people understand it is just the luck of the draw; but that is not a consolation to me. I will keep working to come up with some enhancement that will result in a more consistent spread.
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I would just offer simply that once a contestants name is drawn for either a guaranteed reservation or a standby spot then at that point they are excluded from entering during the rest of the contest if you were to split it up by cover choice like you did this time. Possibly offering a contestant the option to "trade" a standby spot to someone for the right to participate in another shot at a different cover choice. It seems though that most of us agree that your definitely doing your best to see happy faces and I think a majority of us truly apprecitate that.
 
4 4thpoint

Can someone please explain the Forum Knife to me? I am fairly new to all this. Who decides what the 2018 Forum Knife will be, and how do you get one? Is every Forum member guaranteed an option to buy one or will it be another free for all?
 
0-5, so I'll wait until another time for my first 77. Until then, other hunts will keep me busy. Look forward to pics, though.
 
Even though I scored nothing, I wanted to say "Thanks Mike" for your efforts. It's greatly appreciated by most of us! -Lance
 
Leslie Tomville said:
4 4thpoint

Can someone please explain the Forum Knife to me? I am fairly new to all this. Who decides what the 2018 Forum Knife will be, and how do you get one? Is every Forum member guaranteed an option to buy one or will it be another free for all?
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As not to detract from the conversation at hand I’ll keep this as brief as possible. A thread will be formed and discussions will begin on possibilities for the pattern of the yearly forum knife. All of this of course with Sparks blessing and the help of some very well versed cutlery aficionados ( last few years Waynorth) who help provide us ideas, direction and possibilities based off the projected production schedule.

Once a pattern is established discussions continue and the aesthetics like cover material, shield, color, blade configuration, name( if a new pattern) etc. are voted on through member polls. After all that dust has settled one of our fine members handles the tube artwork and one very patient dealer takes on the burden of the pre order/ payment/ distribution.

The forum knifes numbers are based off polls and falls within the 500 SFO maximum. They always eventually all sell and it is not a hectic free for all as all (500?) or the established number are the same design causing most folks to only buy 1-2 vice trying to complete a set.

4thpoint said:
If a #77 NF Barlow were offered as the 2018 BladeForums knife that would help satisfy the itch for many.
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In my personal opinion I’d highly doubt the #77 would be chosen as the 2018 forum knife, if we are fortunate enough to have one, but anything’s possible. I only say this because last years knife was a Barlow and the #77 is Mikes design and currently being run. GEC doesn’t cater to the forum knife, we work within their capabilities and schedule.

As for this run of #77’s I’d be curious to see the stats of how many folks went 0-5 through 4-4 with a random draw. Tons of variables and no two draws will ever be the same but I enjoy statistics.

Mike you are a true gentleman and outstanding businessman. I appreciate your efforts and constant attempt to adapt and make this system as fair and evenly spread as possible.
 
r8shell said:
I scored an elderberry (in Thursday's draw) That's my third choice of covers, but I'm happy to get one. :) I'm sure there will be lots of trading going on....
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I might be up for that with my micarta when the time comes.
I origially wanted a sawcut and a camel bone. Won the sawcut. Entered the next day for the micarta and won that too. Refrained from the other lotteries.

I know Mike mentioned that this lottery process was more expensive and more time consuming than anticipated bit I think it worked well for customers. Probaby Not feasible but it would be cool if there was an algorithm that weights entries. For instance, everyone has the same chance for the first lottery. The second time, the losers from round one get slightly higher odds and anyone that won in the first round gets their chances cut in half for the next round. So each time you lose, the odds improve for the next drawing and each time you win, the chances get lower.

I realize this is not feasible due to the costs but I think it would be great. I would have entered the last two contests except I felt guilty. Knowing that previous losers had better odds would have allowed me to enter more guilt free.
 
Mike has reiterated a few times that it wasn't his intent to implement a system that only allowed one knife per person. The early reserve system has always allowed folks to reserve all cover variations if they so chose.

I suppose if there was only one cover option amongst the entire lot of 500, we probably wouldn't be having this conversation and would likely be grumbling about something else to do with the process....

Personally, I found it thrilling to be able to put in for the different cover options. Though this process has been rather painless for me as a customer, I recognize the proverbial hell that Mike has undergone and my heart goes off to him for his incredible patience.
 
First of all, kudos to Mike for a job well done! He did all he could and more to make this as fair as possible. The rest of the burden is upon the purchasers. While I was fortunate enough to win an elderberry, I have zero idea if this will even appeal to me? If it doesn't, I will attempt to trade it for one that does. If that is not possible I will simply peruse this thread for those wishing for an elderberry, do my own random drawing and offer it to the winner at my cost. Anything less does not only do a huge injustice to Mike, but the entire traditional forum karma we all claim to enjoy. Time to man up.
 
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StoneBeard said:
As for this run of #77’s I’d be curious to see the stats of how many folks went 0-5 through 4-4 with a random draw. Tons of variables and no two draws will ever be the same but I enjoy statistics.
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There a still a lot of variables in that many people entered the consolation, but did not meet all the criteria because of prior disqualifications over innocent issues (ERS restriction, not the email address on their account, etc.). But, of the entries in the consolation, 75 met all the criteria. Of those 75, 10 got reservations. Of those 10, 3 had standby's that they relinquished to consolation standby recipients. 8 of those that entered the consolation already had standby reservations, but did not win. So, 54 people came out of the consolation drawing with not even a standby. I can't do a unique sort on email addresses, but my guess is there were 800+ unique email addresses across the 4 main drawings.

I will tell you there are many people upset over disqualifications, because they were innocent mistakes. Several were upset over disqualifications because they didn't take time the read the rules and insure everything was sorted before entering. And a handful were upset because they were disqualified for entering SEVERAL times under different email addresses or from different devices. If it weren't for this thread, this would be the majority of the folks I got to hear from - so I want to thank you very much for actual support.
 
I wonder how many new sign ups there were for the Early Reserve system just prior to the lottery draw process commencing. That’s a giveaway on how many people had friends or family (or on their own) register so that they could have multiple chances in each drawing.

Shame that people have to be so greedy and not care about honoring the system and acting fair.
 
I’m wondering where all these people came from. Based on what I’ve seen in this thread, forum members didn’t have much success at all. The forum members who did win might be keeping it quiet so as not to rub it in though.
 
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