Inexpensive/Value Customs

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martinlutherbling

Joined
Oct 10, 2014
Messages
457
Hey folks,
I’m getting into traditionals after not owning any for a few years, and some of your custom slipjoints have me absolutely drooling. I’m starting off with some GEC’s and such, which I know provide tremendous value. But once I figure out a pattern I really like, I plan on picking up a custom.

I’m wondering if you guys can recommend me any “up and coming” custom makers. I’m looking for someone who’s work may not be completely perfect, someone who doesnt have a big name, but represents a solid bang for the buck.

I LOVE Todd Davison’s work, but at that price point I’m more used to buying fancy South African flippers with lots of bells and whistles. Maybe I’ll get to that point eventually with slipjoints, but I’m not there yet. Ideally I’d like to spend $2-300 on a single blade, ~4” closed knife in some sort of lovely wood. Is that at all realistic?
Thanks in advance, and pics are always welcome!
 
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John Lloyd is the first name that comes to mind, but I'm sorry I don't have any contact info. He does post on Bladeforums, but not sure what his handle is. VCM3 is a BladeForums member who works with John, you could PM him.
 
I believe Hiroaki Ohta's single blade models fall near that price range if I remember right...my custom pattern Whittler was only $725. Check out the thread currently running in this subforum for some examples.

I love my Whittler!

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~Chip
 
Both are already well established but Gene Wiseman and Mike Alsdorf come to mind in your price range.

I don't own a knife from Gene but this Gunstock Interframe in Mother of Pearl and CPM154 from Mike was about a tank full of gas over your limit. Wood inlays would probably put one right in your price range.

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This one in Maroon Micarta and 440C was about $95 less.

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I've been checking out vanreenen (forum handle) in the custom folders section for a while now.

Amazing looking stuff.
 
Another option to consider in the middle ground between production and custom is to have a production knife customized to your preference. There are some craftsmen active here, like @glennbad and @Markesharp (Markesharp also makes custom knives) who can upgrade the handle materials, or alter blade shapes, etc. to give you a unique version of an existing pattern. :thumbsup:
 
You're in for one helluva tough choice! I know I wouldn't be able to decide on just one, haha.
 
Cool, some great makers to look at. Van Reenen, Lloyd, and Alsdorf all look very promising. Ohta as well, although his traditystyled knives seem to be slightly more expensive. Would love to hear some more!

And yeah, if I find myself actually carrying my slipjoints this time around, I’ll definitely end up buying more than one. But as of right now I mostly carry modern knives, and I’m thinking one or two very nice traditionals would keep me quite happy.
 
r8shell said:
Another option to consider in the middle ground between production and custom is to have a production knife customized to your preference. There are some craftsmen active here, like @glennbad and @Markesharp (Markesharp also makes custom knives) who can upgrade the handle materials, or alter blade shapes, etc. to give you a unique version of an existing pattern. :thumbsup:
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Exact what I was going to suggest.
 
Mike Alsdorf builds a very fine knife. He has not built any knives in the 4" range though. He was on hiatus for a while and I've not seen any recent knives.

Gene Wiseman closed his books last week. John Lloyd would be a great choice.
 
If you love Davisons, watch the exchange. He’s raised his direct prices but they sell for much less on the secondary market and pop up regularly.

Be careful with skimping out on a cheap custom. There’s a lot of subpar work that isn’t better, or worse, than you’d get sticking with a production knife.
 
Jsega51 said:
If you love Davisons, watch the exchange. He’s raised his direct prices but they sell for much less on the secondary market and pop up regularly.

Be careful with skimping out on a cheap custom. There’s a lot of subpar work that isn’t better, or worse, than you’d get sticking with a production knife.
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I've been kind of thinking about that as well, although from the looks of things they're still a bit pricier than I'd like to spend. On the other hand, I'm more likely to find something I really like that way. There's one on the exchange right now that is quite lovely, but not what I'm looking for. I've heard about some CS issues with him as well, can anyone speak to that?
 
I have a couple of Davison knives and have nothing but good from Todd. You might also consider Joe Allen; he makes some really nice knifes for the money.
 
martinlutherbling said:
I've heard about some CS issues with him as well, can anyone speak to that?
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I’ve heard of a few things as well and mostly dismissed them, until I had a friend get a knife from him that had the spring snap after a week. Let’s just say it took a lot to get a refund.

I had a nice collection of his knives, about 12, and sold them all except 3 because of what happened. I’m tempted at times to buy another but I’m not putting myself in the driver’s seat if I were to have an issue. Not worth the risk to me.
 
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