Correct me if I'm wrong, but is there anything about shipping a knife sharp that precludes one from reprofiling it, if that's what they really want to do (other than an exceptionally thin grind)? If I ever received a new, high-end fixed blade knife with the sort of edge that my last Schatt & Morgan had on it, and then was told that it was on purpose, so that I could "profile it how I liked," I would promptly pack that knife up and send it back and look elsewhere. As was pointed out before - even Buck manages to ship a $40 knife with a wicked sharp edge. Is that because their users aren't as discerning as those of us who buy knives that cost 3 x that much?
For me, it doesn't have anything to do with my abilities to sharpen and reprofile, which I can certainly do, and have done many times. It has to do with my admittedly subjective opinion about how a knife should leave the manufacturer, if it is a company that takes pride in their work.
Certainly could not agree more with that. Not only does it make perfect sense, but we all know that if they could sell
a feature like most manufacturers do these days,
(that's right folks, we are now offering cars with NO tires on them so you can design the ride to your own personal specifications!) , in other words, if less product for more money becomes a new "feature", they would certainly do it.
I know that some feel that spending hours reprofiling to a useful edge, resetting grinds and sharpening build a bonding experience between them and their inanimate object. After testing out how easy it is to put nice razor sharp convex edge on a knife with a slack belt, it makes me even more surprised that manufacturers don't have that extra minute or less per blade to spare to make their products first class. It is simply too easy to do.
I have very different memories of buying knives in the '60s and '70 than many around here do. Back then, I bought only Case, Boker and Buck. All of them came sharp out of the box. Granted, none of them were collectors, but all were work/utility patterns, almost all some variation of the stockman. All were ready to take out of the box on the way to the truck when leaving the store, and drop in your pocket for come what may.
And think how important that was in those days. At the house, we had a coarse and a fine Arkanas stone. That was it! The only other component was a can of 3 in 1 oil and a rag. Now we can reprofile or re-edge something as soft as 1095 with a guided system or a powered system that employs multiple grits and polishes in just a few minutes. But back then, we all labored free hand over stones for hours to get the edge we wanted. Literally hours... that was why you didn't lend your knife and only used it as a cutting tool. Sharpening was quite the skill, and some of my friends paid me to keep their blades sharp. Others just tossed a knife in the drawer and left it when it became so doggone dull it wouldn't cut anything. I had a friend that confessed to me that he had 3 Buck 110s in his drawer at one time as well as a few others because he couldn't get them sharp. Got him a Lansky, and he sharpened everything he could get in the jaws.
I cannot imagine anyone, ever, telling my Dad or Grandad that a factory fresh knife was left dull on purpose so that they could take it home and put a few hours into it to make it a useable knife. I can hear my grandfather growling now " I thought I was buying a knife, not a cold chisel ". He would never have stood for it.
My personal experience is indeed different, and thankfully no one did me the favor of selling me a poorly ground, unsharpened knife and passed it on as "what I wanted" without asking me. Using that logic, soon manufacturers will be selling knives that you grind yourself from a flat blank so you can decide if you want full flat grind, hollow grind, saber grind, or anything else you want. Then you can fully customize the knife with a V edge, convex edge, micro beveled, stropped or unstropped as you desire.
My American made Kershaws (got a few) all came razor sharp. As did the two Spydercos. All have significantly harder/tougher steel than 1095, which I would think would require more skill to sharpen. Some of the Chinese knives I have purchased or have been gifted came with sharp to super sharp edges out of the box. My last two Carl Schliepers (Eye Brand) came respectably sharp, as did my Bulldog sodbuster.
Head and hands sharper than the brand names favored here. Since it is so dang easy to profile an edge with a slack belt, my conclusion from many years ago still stands for me. New knives don't come sharp because the manufacturers are too lazy to put the last three minutes into the knife they should to get a great edge.
We all know this isn't the end of this discussion, or even the beginning of the end. (
*tip of the hat to WC!*) There are those that are comfortable paying more for less, and there are those that are more comfortable getting what they pay for. If I buy a piece of kitchen cutlery, it is always sharp, so why not my pocket knives?
Robert
