I really don't understand selling knives...

"It's not for me" sums it up nicely doesn't it? What don't you understand about that?

Example:

I bought a couple Benchmades - a Griptillian and a Rift.

Did not like them at all. Cheap plastic scales on a relatively pricey knife. Decent blade but,,,, hated the hand feel. Even with Wilkins scales on the Grip.

Sold them both.

Bought a ZT.

It's for me.

Keeping the ZT.
 
Since i went from cheapo knives to higher quality knives i sold most of my cheap ones. I just knew i would never use them again and i could make some money to put toward a nice higher quality blade. Out of what i consider to be, my higher quality knives, i have sold nothing. I imagine i will when i start acquiring more and more though. Time will tell.
 
The rule I've tried to follow is don't sell something that you really love just because you *think* you've found something you will love more. In that case keep the one you have. For example, in 2000 I bought a 1977 Trans Am Special Edition (ie, Smokey & the Bandit car--black & gold, documented legit!) w/ 23k miles on it... 400/4spd, BEAUTIFUL!!! My dream car. I had been chasing that car since 10th grade (I am 46 now)! I had it 1.5 years then *thought* I found another Trans Am I wanted even more, so I sold the Bandit! I was wrong... should have never sold it! I regret it to this day (as a matter of fact I am getting mad at myself all over again just telling this story!) and know I will always regret it (BTW, the prices on those cars has tripled since then so there's no way I will be getting another).

On the other hand... there are knives (or cars) that you get and you realize that it's not really all that special to you from the start. In that case I have no problem selling and trying something else. So my rule is never sell something that you absolutely love/loved to just to try something new... but if you never were all that into it from the start... then all bets are off. :)

That said, I have sold some knives I wish I'd kept. Luckily they were too expensive, so if I REALLY want it back I can just buy it again.
 
It's hard to explain why we do many things. I mentioned earlier that I "toss" my unused knives in a box. They are actually stacked pretty neatly and I dig back through them and handle them from time to time. I don't think people's tastes change that much over time unless they simply don't know what their tastes are and buy a little of everything. That is sort of what I did at first. I started with slip joints as a kid, carry a SAK all the time, but wanted to learn about the modern folders and so forth. Plus, fixed blade knives always had a strong appeal to me even though I could never see what I needed one for.

I was interested why folks wanted the pocket clips on knives for example?
How they carry these large folders these days?
What makes the modern folders so appealing?
What are the discernable differences between the "big brands"?
Is a $200 knife that much better than a $50 or $100 knife? Is the $850 custom "better" than the $300 custom?
Can I actually tell a difference between the different types of steel used to make knives?
Why are certain knives so popular? For example, why are Kabar Beckers popular? Spydercos? Benchmade? Emerson? Zero Tollerance? You name it. There is always another one to catch your eye.
What is the difference between the different scale or handle materials?

You can take this journey if you are interested. The knives you bought as part of the journey are important too even if you don't use them or collect them. You can sell them or give them away and say... yeah, I used to buy those 20 years ago or whatever. Or you can keep them and periodically look at them and handle them. So, selling knives is somewhat of a foreign experience for me. The cost or accumulated cost is important, but in my mind, once I spent that money for a knife... it's gone.
 
EldoEsq said:

Just askin...why does everybody sell knives?
Click to expand...



If I don' try all the knives that I find interesting, how will I know which ones work for me?

Selling and trading knives is the best way I know to sample a wide variety without going broke.




Big Mike
 
The Logical One said:
Why does anybody sell anything? Just like how you don't understand why people sell things..... I don't understand your concept of, "NEVER SELL ANYTHING!" I'm one of those people who tries to buy things that has resale value, because it's nice to be able to use something for a while and get half your money back or more. And then using that money to buy something else with it.

IMO the best things about knives... well high end knives is that they either hold their value, or you can sometimes sell them for more than what you bought it for. Unfortunately for me, there are a lot of knives I want, but don't have the money to own a large number of high end knives. So usually in order to buy a new knife I want, I sell off one (or multiple) knives that I like the least. Plus I don't understand why anybody needs 50+ knives, especially those guys who have 50+ low end knives. If they consolidated their collection down to 10, they can have 10 nice knives instead of 50 crappy ones.

And your "NEVER SELL ANYTHING!" mindset kinda scares me..... makes me wonder if you're a hoarder or something.
Click to expand...

Exactly.
 
Because certain knives don't fit me, and probably never will. I've sold a few I've regretted selling, but I own more and more great knives every month. My collection continues to grow if anything!
 
At a certain point, everybody needs to declutter, otherwise, they end up on some reality show about hoarders... ;)

In all seriousness, at the end of the day, it's just stuff. Have I gotten rid of things that I wish I would have kept, or taken better care of? Sure.
Is my quality of life and happiness dependent up whether I own a particular object? Absolutely not.

In fact, I'd wager that most anything I "wish I never got rid of" would undoubtedly end right back up on the chopping block if I were to get it back. I'd probably think to myself "Now I remember why I got rid of this thing!"

My biggest regrets (and I use the term lightly) are not the things I've owned and gotten rid of, but rather the things I waited on buying only to see them discontinued or ramped up in price. Even still, however, there's nothing on that list that I'm losing any sleep over.

It's only stuff.
 
The de-clutter aspect is a good reason especially if you aren't particularly attached to them.
 
Over the past 15 years or so I've been involved in uncluttering a number of households from relatives who have passed. These were people that believed stuff is good, not hoarders but people who had stayed put and accumulated large amounts of stuff. The saying that everyone gets organised in the end whether they are alive to see it or not very much applies. No way I am leaving a mess like that for my kids.

Then there is moving house. I find myself moving either my own stuff or someone elses stuff at least once or twice a year. What about remodelling the house? You guessed it more stuff to move. The point is that accumulating a vast pile of stuff is a massive headache.
 
stabman said:
Me neither...because I ain't having kids. ;)

"Oh, bury me in a huge pile of stuff, and if it isn't enough, throw all of yours on too..." :D
Click to expand...
Cremation for me and they can throw my stuff on the pyre too if the flames aren't hot enough. :D
 
My wife and I will be moving to a new house in a few months. In preparation, we threw out junk we don't need. Filled up three full sized city dumpsters in one day. Very liberating to be rid of clutter.
 
sideways said:
Cremation for me and they can throw my stuff on the pyre too if the flames aren't hot enough. :D
Click to expand...

Absolutely.
Make it so future archaeologists wonder at the strange funerary practices of our times. :thumbup:
 
I guess some buy knives as toys and some as tools.

also, I tend to want to handle the knife in my hands and even pocket them before purchase.

you should of seen how nervous the clerk was when I pocketed high valued sebenzas and striders and walked around the store to get a feel. But I am that way and ended up eith a small sebenza.
This is how I disliked ZT, too bulky for pocket, hadnt I pocket them in store I would of purchased online and force to resell.

find a shop that will let you handle the knife amd you might not have to buy so many, or maybe youll buy twice as much ;)
 
stabman said:
Absolutely.
Make it so future archaeologists wonder at the strange funerary practices of our times. :thumbup:
Click to expand...

They'll have a hard time finding the funeral sites among all the washing machines and fridges sticking up out of the ground. :D
 
sideways said:
They'll have a hard time finding the funeral sites among all the washing machines and fridges sticking up out of the ground. :D
Click to expand...

Indeed they will. :)
Sometimes I wonder at what future humans will think of our times.
 
Clutter, they'll will likely bury me in it or I will die and someone will find my rotting carcass amongst the clutter. Of all the reasons given, the de-clutter rationale seems to fit me the best since I am most comfortable in clutter (clean clutter, but clutter all the same). May have to give that some thought.

I loaded up a large rolloff from stuff in my garage. I threw away stuff that had been moved three or four times and never even opened the boxes after several moves. Why do I need computer manuals for stuff that is totally outdated and I don't even have the software any more or likely to ever use it in business? The garage became a lot more organized, but there is still a lot of stuff that many would consider "clutter". One side of my two-car garage consists of rows of heavy duty standing shelving containing all kinds of things. Do I really need three pressure washers? (maybe) Do I need 20 5-gallon gas cans? (Maybe). Do I need the weed eater that I can't repair and get running? I'll probably dump the weed eater but it lived past the first cleanout.

With knives, yeah, I could see this if you will never use them and have no intention of "collecting". But I haven't reached the point where I throw up my arms and finally say... this stuff has got to go.... And more than likely, I'll throw most of the less expensive factory blades in the trash rather than selling. How many actually want a SOG Tigershark? I do associate value with this stuff, hate the selling routine, and refuse to give them away if I am selling. That's why the stuff may go in the trash... gone in one fatal swoop. One day.... gone. The important thing is I'm not to that point yet.

I actually cleanout houses as part of my business tasks and when I am dealing with other people's stuff, I am ruthless. I don't sort through drawers of clothes, filing cabinets, pictures.... most of this stuff just gets dumped in a big pile and goes to the landfill. Cheap knives... go to the landfill.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top