In your own words explain buying higher priced vs. lower priced.

whitty said:
Someone new to knives comes to you and says "Why should I pay XXX dollars for a knife when I can get the same style knife for XX dollars."
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If you are asking, then I guess you shouldn't.

When you are no longer "new to knives" you will.
 
Esav Benyamin said:
I buy the knife, not the price. If the knife matches my aesthetic preferences and fits the user profile I have in mind, I will compare it to others.
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I agree completely.

If the knife ticks all my boxes I'll buy it.

As a blue collar guy it may take a little while of saving up the cash. But why settle for less?



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I'm not really into run of the mill production knives anymore. Rarely I'll be question on what said knife cost, and why would I pay so much for a knife.

Most of our "hobbies" are like that though. We are willing to pay a premium for certain qualities, whether aesthetic, functional, or personal reasons.

I basically tell people that this is a hobby for me, and ask them what their hobbies are. From there, you can make it easier to understand. Say the person asking is into guns ( I am too) I will inquire into what they have, etc. Say they ask you why your CRK is better than a Spyderco Sage? The same could be said to them about why their $1200 Kimber is better than a $500 para ord?

Why do I need 6 Infinity speakers and an 800 watt four channel MTX amp powering them when the stock speakers work fine?
 
In my opinion, guys looking for the lowest price are buying tools. Guy looking for higher priced are buying art. All based on how much it take for you to call it money.
 
If someone asks me personally, I usually try to find out what their expectations are in terms of price and design. Then I go from there. My break point on expensive versus inexpensive has risen over the years, but I seldom look at knives that cost much more than $200 unless it's a fixed blade. My recommendations to people reflect that bias. For example, I doubt I would ever recommend most Busse's. I have never seen the value.
 
Most "production" Busse are only good for 2 things... Smashing stuff and holding value.
 
I look at a number of factors, price being only one. Material grade, manufacture quality, ergonomics, finish, warranty, previous experience with manufacturer, and price all play their part. For the past 15 years or so this has led to all my OHO folders being Spydercos and all my traditionals being GECs. Haven't been disappointed yet with these two manufacturers; although the scale at which they operate couldn't be much different.

My excursions into fixed blades have been much wider ranging. Started with "combat" knives, then went for concealment (mostly neckers), and now I am looking at a small fixed blade for EDC. I've tried Cold Steel, Brous Blades, Old Timer, CRKT, Bark River. (I've had a custom knife made before, but it was essentially a fixed-blade version of a folder I liked. Nice, and I liked it, but it still wasn't perfect.) None have quite been what I wanted, which is why I am currently in the process of having a custom knife of my own design made. Probably would have saved a lot of money if I'd just gone that route in the first place, although the previous attempts did provide useful information on what I did (and didn't!) want in a fixed blade EDC. And it's fancier than it needs to be (Damascus steel, desert ironwood scales), because its mine and I want it to be perfect. I am hoping it will be the last knife I ever buy. (Not that it will... ;) )
 
For me a knife is a tool, but I don't buy the cheapest because of that either. I try to buy what I call 'best for the buck' keeping in mind what I want to do with it.
 
That curve of diminishing returns video is really good. For knives we are buying to use as tools, everyone has a different sweet spot on that curve. For example, I got the Rat 1 for a construction work knife in 2009. Then in 2010 I bought my first Paramilitary 2 for personal use. A funny thing happened. I didn't want to carry the Rat at work anymore. The PM2 just took over my pocket. I fought it awhile, then just surrendered and started carrying the PM2 all the time and the Rat became the backup knife in the truck. For me, the PM2 sits at the perfect place on that curve of diminishing returns. I don't desire anything fancier, nor will I be satisfied with lesser tools. The Rat 1 is a very good knife and an outstanding value, but I can't go back to it. So to sum up, for a user blade one needs to discover the ergonomics he prefers, as well as where on that curve one is most comfortable.
 
I just need help identifying a knife and can't find where to go to do so... Can someone anyone please tell me what brand of knife this is?
 
stabman said:
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Some get used. ;)
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I can agree with this. I've had the 0804cf for several weeks now and it has yet to leave my pocket and gets used for every knife task. Definitely exceeded my expectations.
 
Can anyone in here please help me identify a knife. For the love of GOD. it's driving me nuts
 
I like Nick's videos and subscribe to his channel. What he does not address is resale value and durability.

A high quality tool made from more desirable materials will always be worth something to someone down the road. Plus, it should (all things being equal) hold up better to use given the better materials and craftsmanship.
 
whitty said:
So we were sitting around the shop tonight having a few beers and avoiding the work that needed to be done. We found ourselves in an interesting conversation that basically comes down to this:

You are a knowledgeable knife knut. Someone new to knives comes to you and says "Why should I pay XXX dollars for a knife when I can get the same style knife for XX dollars."

The best example I came up with, hopefully without offending anyone, is Kershaw/ZT/Hinderer. So the question would be "Why should I buy a ZT0566 for XX dollars when I can get a Kershaw for X dollars." Then to the next level. "Why should I buy a Hinderer for XXX dollars when I can buy a ZT for XX dollars?"

I have an answer/opinion for each of these questions based on my own personal experiences, but I want to hold my thoughts back and hear what you guys have to say? Hopefully we will hear some personal opinions on this and thoughts from those newer to knives and those who are total knife fanatics! There are no wrong or right answers. We hope to hear opinions on the personal experiences you have had buying and using knives at different price levels.
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Charlie Mike said:
There's a point where you no longer have a knife... Just a piece of art that looks like a knife.
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Charlie Mike said:
Chrome is a bitch to keep looking good. That's why you never see a scratch on the more expensive knives that some people post. They never use them.
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Chrome don't get you home. :) I use everything I have as it was meant to be used, someone designed that knife with a specific function in mind and if used within those parameters I expect it to perform flawlessly for what I spent.

Matt, anyone who marks your tools like you, (knives, watches) know the real value of the tool and looks are secondary to performance. My motorcycles were like that growin' up, they looked like hell but they were up there with the fastest bikes in town. That's not to say they were cheap bikes, all the money went into the places you didn't see, camshafts, roller chains, carbs, exhaust, the bike wasn't pretty but fast and safe, we used to take 'em down to Raceway Park in Englishtown to race the 1/4 mile track.

Same goes for knives, they don't have to be pretty to be worth a lot but they do have to live up to their claims.

stabman said:
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Some get used. ;)
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Good to put a face to the name finally, an unused tool is nothing more than a historical artifact with no functional value if all it does is sit on a shelf behind glass. The value of art is totally subjective and what was worth $5k today could very well be worth half that 5 years from now because of the economy, is it worth the $5k? To someone it as at one time but that's no guarantee it stays there, even rarity or age won't guarantee value.

Charlie Mike said:
I just spent almost $600 on brakes and associated parts/labor this morning. More important than a knife for sure. No new knives this month!
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The more you can do for yourself, the less you have to pay someone to do it for you the more you'll have to spend on the knife you want, $600 for a brake job to me is insane, it would only cost me parts and my time, now an interesting question. What do you tell the by who asks you what's the difference between $20 brake pads and $80 pads, they both stop the vehicle, how do you justify spending $600 versus $80? I'm using you as an example Matt because you're a man with mechanical aptitude and that's apparent in your blades. You're a very intelligent man and I have no doubt with the right tools and someone to show you how you'd do it fine. The question is what would you rather spend your time doing, making blades or doing brakes? I know the answer ;) . My point is that to you it's worth the money on the brakes for the peace of mind and to free you up to do what you'd rather be doing.

Esav Benyamin said:
I buy the knife, not the price. If the knife matches my aesthetic preferences and fits the user profile I have in mind, I will compare it to others. At that point, price might be the deal maker.

Not long ago, the Spartan Pallas caught my eye. Way too much money for a knife I might not use all that heavily. But it really looked good to me, so ... USA Made Blade got my business. :)
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There's an old saying that goes something like spend the money and cry once rather than buy cheap and cry every time you replace the inferior tool. My Old Man always told me when it came to tools (and knives) always buy the best quality tool you can afford.

Now to answer the OP's question...

I have a buddy who bought the $100 start your own knife store package off Mr Frost's late night knife show, he's given away about 20 of the knives as gifts, unfortunately I have one and I use it in the garage as a letter opener and it barely does that. Now his argument over buying a 100 knives for 1/4 the price of my one Sebenza. Now in the year since he bought his box-o-knifes he's gone through at least a dozen.

He actually bought a WorkSharp sharpener to put an edge on the blades because he can't sharpen them any other way. Every night he has to put a new edge on his current knife and has taken to carrying 2 now, one as a back up because the other one barely stays sharp beyond cutting his bagel. Yet in his mind he's still saved $350 over me, who has the one knife and use it all day, most times the week without anything more than a quick strop or touch up on a ceramic stone.

Still I tell him I'll have the knife long after he's gone through all his 100 cheap knives that "cut and hold an edge as well as my knives". I've shown him how the tight tolerances of a higher end knife makes for better blade centering and lock up time and again upon disassembly and reassembly, something you won't find in many knives under $100. The bottom line on BNIB knives you'll get what you pay for a far as materials and craftsmanship, it's either that or you pay for the name.

Will more money buy you a better knife? Of course it will but there does come a point where the money no longer has an effect on the quality and functionality as a knife and becomes more an art piece than a knife and there's nothing wrong with collecting art but that's all it is till you use it and once you use it you see what the real value is when you try to get rid of it again. A used Sebenza bought new if not abused holds a majority of it's value in resale and that's due to the quality of materials and the experienced hand of the cutler who finished the knife.

I think that only people who actually realize what goes into a knife and have done their research will understand the concept of getting what you pay for but there's always someone out there who succumb to the hype and want it because other people want it. There are always gonna be those people who feel the more they pay the better it is as well as those who believe that it's a knife and anything with a sharpened edge can do the same job, cut.

It's the people who understand what goes into the making of a quality knife that you never have to explain it to, just the uneducated knife user who just wants something to cut with and for them a box cutter's sufficient and no amount of explaining will convince them that there's a difference between a ZT and an Opinel.
 
Exactly! Well put.
 
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