I'm getting more and more skeptical of GEC knives.

[rockgolfer]

I had to pay a restocking fee for the one I returned, wasnt much but worth noting. I returned it because the pattern was new to me and did not feel right in my hand. Nothing wrong with it.

 

[hookblade]

name me a traditional knife company that builds a better looking and more functional knike than GEC and i will start buying from them. no one comes close. hookblade

 

[timberweasel]

I've been very happy with my GEC purchases and won't hesitate to buy more in the future or recommend them to others who may be in the market for a quality traditional knife. Try one and see for yourself! :thumbup:

-Brett

 

[22-rimfire]

My first GEC was a nail breaker. The other ones have been all consistantly very good. My 2012 forum knife would have been perfection for a factory knife if the one blade had been sharpened. Other than that, I love them. If you never handled one or two, I would suggest that you go to a store that sells them or a knife show and handle a couple.

My very first experience with GEC was at Smoky Mt Knife Works on the Manufacturers rep day and the two main owners were there. I looked at a couple and thought they were overpriced "Case knives". I have come to learn that I was a bit hasty in my judgement. I bought one at the GEC booth at 2012 Blade and have been very pleased with it. They were even willing to negotiate.

 

[rma100]

I had to pay a restocking fee for the one I returned, wasnt much but worth noting. I returned it because the pattern was new to me and did not feel right in my hand. Nothing wrong with it.

Restocking Fee? I think you're dealing with the wrong Distributor?

 

[markpmc]

... the finest stag in the industry.

I have 4 GEC knives in my EDC rotation. A #23 Pioneer, #53 Cattle knife, #48 Western Trapper and a #61 Congress. All have incredible stag, I haven't seen another maker that comes close for the last 5-6 years. In fact 2 of my 'users' are the genuine stag collector models.

Notice that my rotation is 4 different models/sizes. Truth be told I'm still looking for my perfect pattern.

Mark

 

[rockgolfer]

Restocking Fee? I think you're dealing with the wrong Distributor?

I think your right. Not because of the restocking fee, I understand the gas it takes to go to the post office and time and all that. I am done with said dealer because I cant see the knife I am going to buy. Their are enough distributors out there to pick from and I just need to stop visiting the site. I already have to buy it without handling it, I need to see what the covers actually look like. Not a big deal for a bullnose or an ebony(well some do have lighter streaks) but not something wildly different from knife to knife like acrylic or stag.

 

[whetrock]

My #56 Dogleg Jack as well as my # 33 Conductor are quite possible the finest finished production slipjoints I've run across. This might not be a testament of great magnitude seeing as I'm no connoisseur by any stretch. With that being said I've had fine experiences with Case and other comparable brands, however I feel like GEC isn't trying to reach a certain price point, but rather making a great knife, with excellent fit and finish and charging accordingly. I'll gladly pay for the quality I'm not going to lie, I have run into a couple that were less than stellar, one was a #72 lockback and another was a #12 Toothpick, both had pretty sad blade play, still overall I'm very impressed with GEC. I feel that they try and produce knives that are comparable to what our grandfathers carried and used. Variances in quality are just inevitable, no matter how good the quality control is.

 

[67nick]

name me a traditional knife company that builds a better looking and more functional knike than GEC and i will start buying from them. no one comes close.

Couldn't agree more. If GEC doesn't measure up, you'll probably want to look at custom makers.

 

[Fanglekai]

The 2012 forum knife is just about perfect aside from the dull blades out of the box. The 85 easy open I have also had bad grinds and it has a couple sunken pins but everything else on both knives is spot on. My two queen knives are great but they have small gaps and came with that awful edge. From what I've seen GEC makes excellent knives that are close to perfect in many cases.

 

[coffeecup]

Restocking Fee? I think you're dealing with the wrong Distributor?

A couple years ago, I purchased and returned a number of GEC knives; every dealer had restocking fees in the range of 10-15%, plus shipping both ways. I just checked out about a dozen dealers listed on GEC's website. About half had return policies that included restocking fees ranging from a flat $10 to 20% (though that one did give the option of a 100% refund as "store credit").

As to the OP's questions, having had problems with more than one GEC, I'll never buy another. I kinda look at it that I spent a fair chunk of money to be allowed to do QC on their rejects. So I don't think he's nuts, or seeing things, or being too cheap.

But dang it, man--if you want one, get it! But do it the right way. Buy it in person if you can. If not, don't mess about with dealers who charge "re-stocking fees," or pull knives from stock with no inspection, or expect you to be the one to deal with the factory if there is a problem. (Who has more pull with the factory: a guy who buys one knife, or the dealer who buys in quantity? Why should you be the one to deal with the factory?) Give serious consideration to maybe paying a bit more, and buying from a small dealer who knows his stock and will work with you, or a private party who will send you pics of the actual knife and answer any questions.

Done like that, you are almost certain to get a good knife.

 

[Jack Black]

Buy it in person if you can. If not, don't mess about with dealers who charge "re-stocking fees," or pull knives from stock with no inspection, or expect you to be the one to deal with the factory if there is a problem. (Who has more pull with the factory: a guy who buys one knife, or the dealer who buys in quantity? Why should you be the one to deal with the factory?) Give serious consideration to maybe paying a bit more, and buying from a small dealer who knows his stock and will work with you, or a private party who will send you pics of the actual knife and answer any questions.

Done like that, you are almost certain to get a good knife.

Good advice on buying any knife. Manufacturers shouldn't be sending out duff knives, but neither should dealers. To then charge a fee because of THEIR incompetence is disgraceful.

 

[Will Power]

I still don't see how the OP can be getting more & more sceptical of GEC knives when he hasn't actually owned one.......the proof of the pudding is in the eating, surely?

 

[Corso]

For someone who loves traditionals and yet based in the UK GEC are one of the few brands I'll buy without handling one - never been unhappy with a single purchase

 

[rinos]

lately, i can feel some of Case models in hand before buying,but all of GEC knives(5 pcs) i bought online,and i will buy some more without fear

 

[TLARbb]

I have 4 GEC knives in my EDC rotation. A #23 Pioneer, #53 Cattle knife, #48 Western Trapper and a #61 Congress. All have incredible stag, I haven't seen another maker that comes close for the last 5-6 years. In fact 2 of my 'users' are the genuine stag collector models.

Notice that my rotation is 4 different models/sizes. Truth be told I'm still looking for my perfect pattern.

Mark

I've already got my perfect pattern; I just haven't figured out which one it is. But, I have narrowed it down a lot. I'm currently leaning toward the Case mini copperhead. (Surprise! Surprise!) That hasn't and won't keep me from trying different patterns in the future. Actually, the new GEC Barlows or Boy's knife may turn out to be that knife. But, maybe not...

Now back to the thread. I can understand the OP's point, but in my mind it's a bit harsh. Compared to making a quality traditional slipjoint, it seems to me that a "modern" one hand opener is easier to build. And I've seen quality issues with some of them as well. In my experience, and it is not a huge experience as I don't have nearly as many GEC built knives as I do Case, GECs are a higher quality knife on the average and worth the bit more that they cost.

Unfortunately, as consumers we "get to be" the last QC inspector. This is not at all limited to GEC, but sending a knife out the door that has to be sharpened before it can be used, or has a major defect should be unacceptable to any company as well as us consumers.

Sure we can fix a dull blade or at least we should be able to fix a dull blade. But that does not, in my mind, relieve the manufacturer of the responsibiltiy of putting an sharp knife in the box before it ships. BTW, Queen is the worst offender in this regard that I have had experience with. Will it keep me from buying a Queen built knife? No, but I may not buy as many of them. All of my GECs and most of my Case's have been usably sharp out of the box.

We owe it to ourselves, the manufacturer, other consumers to hold manufacturers accountable for poor quality. If the manufacturers are going to assign us the responsibilty of final inspection, then they must address the legitimate issues we bring to their customer service. And I think that all of our manufacturers do a decent job of that; some of them have to do it more often than others.

I just went into my burrow (doesn't really qualify as a cave) and looked over my 2012 BF trapper. You know, I sat there mesmerized by this knife. I love the color of the bone; the fit and finish is excellent; the jigging is great. In short it is a wonderful knife that I am happy that I purchased. Is it perfect? No. But it is very acceptable; I'll buy again... ...when they take a blade out. Which reminds me, I have to add the 2013 forum knife to my list of "What knife are you going to buy in 2013?".

I also agree that being "in or associated with" this group of folks means that I am one of the "picky, finicky" knife buyers. So, I recommend to the OP go ahead and order a GEC of his choice and give it a try. They are very knice knives. Chances are very high that you will be pleased with your purchase. Do the final QC and if it has a problem, let GEC customer service take care of it for you. You are not likely to need it. None of my GECs have a quality problem; yours probably won't either.

Ed J

 

[burnside]

In the few months that I have gotten into GEC knives, I have definitely become hooked. My first few purchases were not the best, and I did end up sending a few back to the dealers. One was a #72 with very minimal blade play. In fact, if I had the knife again, I wouldn't return it. I was coming from collecting and testing out Sebenzas, so my standards might have been unrealistically too high while comparing GEC to CRK. The fact that I could even begin to compare GEC to CRK speaks volumes about the quality GEC puts out. The other knives I returned had blade rub on the liners, a few gaps, and they were completely dull (both were from 08 or 09), and I stil do not think they were worthy of being returned, and I was probably being too nit picky (again...coming from the Sebenza).

Currently I own 6 GECs, and I love them all. Some of my latest are two of the recent Barlow Sawyers that were just released. The fit and finnish on the new GEC Barlows is superb and seemingly flawless. Zero Blade play, perfectly centered blades, no gaps, and good snap and walk n' talk. The double bladed sawcut antique yellow bone Sawyer Barlow is currently my main edc and my favorite knife. My other favorite GEC is a #72. The #72 has very small amount of up/down blade play, but nothing that I will allow to bother me. It is a good feeling to know that I can send it in to GEC to have it tightened up at anytime.

My latest GEC is a Serpentine Jack #66 yellow rose, and it does have issues. This knife definitely has more issues than the first few I purchased, and it is definitely worthy of returning. I really like the yellow jigged bone on the yellow rose, and I love the #66 jack pattern, so sending it into GEC to be fixed seems like it would be worth it. The knife has considerable wobble on the main blade, and the secondary spear point blade's tip is not flush and can catch on my finger when closed. I also noticed that there are a few factory blemishes/nicks on the spine of the secondary blade as well. Both blades are pretty much dull out of the factory, and there are very noticeable long gaps between the spring and liners. This is the first GEC that I have had that has serious issues which are not acceptable to me. That being said, I do not think that is the norm for GEC, and I plan on buying more GEC patterns that suite my needs and tastes in the not too distant future.

Although I have run into a few problems with some GEC knives, I think that for the price, they are one of best (if not the best) production folder companies that currently exist. When it comes to quality control, fit and finish, and variety, GEC cannot be beat. Because there is so much variety that GEC puts out, it is hard not to find something that will suite your needs. I thought I would never find 'the one' knife for me, but after carrying the new two bladed barlow for the past week, I think I might have found it. Still... I'm sure that my search will never end, and thankfully GEC provides enough variety to keep me going for a long time

 

[Pipeman]

"or pull knives from stock with no inspection"
IMO, if dealers did what I consider to be their Jobs, threads like this would never occur. There will always be the rare knife that slips through QC but the dealer could stop that piece before it gets into the buyers hands. GEC would be very wise to teach their dealers how to inspect a knife. If it's something like a hard pull, that could be discussed via Email with the buyer. If on the other hand there are obvious flaws that can hurt GECs reputation it would be wise not to pass it on.
I think these folks make the best slip joints on earth, a reputation worth protecting at all cost.
A note for the OP. There are quite a few GEC knives that get sold here on Blade forums. The folks who sell them will tell you exactly what the knife is all about. I got my 85 harness knife on the for sale site so I knew exactly what I was getting. My favourite knife ever.

Best regards

Robin

 

[jakemex]

I'm going to try one. Thanks to all for the paragraphs written and thoughts well explained. The difficulty now lies in the final choice. I'll let you all know what it is when it happens. May not be today, might be tomorrow. This is a great place to hang out.

 

[VCM3]

For a company which is only 5 years old, and which caters to some very knowledgeable (cough finicky cough) collectors, GEC does very well.

"finicky" Now that there is a perfect word to use . I like that Frank.

I've seen some GEC knives that were fantastic. I did get an early one that was not,but hey who's perfect