Is Perfection Possible on a Handmade Knife?

Megalobyte

Megalobyte

Joined
Jun 5, 2002
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I own and have owned some very nice, high-end customs, by some of the top makers and i have yet to see a knife that i couldnt find at least one flaw on, admittedly, these flaws can be very tough to notice and are often only visible upon VERY close, very anal inspection, and many of these flaws are so trivial that i believe many collectors wouldnt even see them, but im a little more anal than the typical collector and i look VERY closely. Are there perfect knives out there or is that simply not possible on a handmade object?
 
I think the short and obvious answer is that "perfection" is impossible to achieve.
 
Blues, of course youre right, actual perfection is impossible to acheive in the material world, so i should rephrase my question a bit, to better address the issue im having.

If you just bought a high-end custom, and upon close inspection, noticed a VERY minor flaw in the fit/finish, or maybe a VERY small, faint scratch or scuff that you can barely even see, that very few people would even notice, would it bother you, or would it take nothing away from the knife assuming it was beautifully made in all other regards?

Im always trying really hard to accept these tiny flaws on my customs, whether they be a minor flaw in F&F, or an extremely faint, nearly invisible scratch on the bolster, whatever it is, i keep trying to not let it ruin the knife for me, but its hard, im such a perfectionist! Do you let minor imperfections lessen the satisfaction you derive from owning a fine custom? Have you learned to accept them, SHOULD they be accepted?

I submit though that if you tell me you own a custom that has not one scratch, blemish, or flaw in F&F, a truly perfect knife, that you just havent looked closely enough. :)
 
If I have to look for a flaw to find it,,,then for me, it doesn't exist.


Phillip:)
 
Each "imperfection" or "flaw" needs to be evaluated on its own merits in relation to the piece of work in question.

On a knife I intended to use I most probably would overlook more than on a knife I purchased with the intent of keeping in pristine condition.

The bottom line is that if you can live with it then it's perfectly acceptable. If it bothers you to the point that it's distracting or ruins your enjoyment of the piece then you either shouldn't buy it or you should return it to the maker to see if it can be fixed. If it can't then you might ask if it may be returned for refund.
 
Megalobyte -
Being such a 'perfectionist' will drive you crazy! Accept the tiny imperfections & flaws or make the 'perfect', unblemished knife yourself! I'm sure, you as a 'perfectionist', would find blemishes in your own creation. :D
 
I think notdos hit the nail on the head - if I have to search and strain and make the light hit the knife just so to see a so-called flaw, then for my purposes it doesn't exist. I think we can often overlook the obvious - these knives are made by human beings who are themselves imperfect. Is it reasonable, then, to expect perfection in their product? And then there's the question of who defines perfection, for there is no small amount of subjectivity that goes into the assessment and appraisal of a knife. I may pick up a knife and declare it to perfect, and another may disagree - citing, say, a lack of proportion between blade and handle. Who's right?

And then there's the guys who want to stick the knife under an electron microscope and determine the quality of hand-craftmanship on the molecular level. OK, that's an exaggeration, but I have seen knives inspected with a magnifying glass, which is for me an equally pointless exercise.

What attracts me to custom knives is the blend of art, science and emotion that goes into creating each piece. For me the question of whether perfection can be achieved, while debatable, is entirely
irrelevant.

Cheers,

RogerP
 
Maybe what you need to do is to find a maker or makers that are even more anal than you. Of course if they're as anal as you their production would be very limited, their work much sought after and their prices beyond the reach of your average buyer. Perhaps the 25 members of AKI would be a good place for you to start.
 
Well since all my knives are users custom or production and have WAY MORE imperfections from me abusing the hell outta them knives that when they arrived lets just say it doesnt bother me, it adds character. For example, my first custom i wanted in a real hurry, I talked to the maker and the only steel he had on hand was a old L6 sawblade but he said he wasnt using it because it had some minor pitting on one side, and that he was going to be away for college for 6 months. I told him to use it anyways since the minor pitting didnt bother me at all and i didnt want to wait 6 months, sure it wasnt perfect because of it but it did not effect the useability at all. I still look at the pitting sometimes and remember when i got it and the good experiance of buying it. And now it has a lot more marks on it anyways, its been through hell and back. IMO it doesnt have to be perfect it has to work and work well.
 
A big part of what attracts me to knives is the possibility of owning an object that possesses exceptional precision and fit and finish. Yes, the design is equally important to me of course, but when i see a knife that is lacking in F&F, it bothers me, even if i like the design, and i know i wont derive much satisfaction from owning it. My ongoing bit of soul searching then, is about how much imperfection i am willing to accept and still feel the knife has excellent F&F and is of extremely high quality. It's my ongoing quest to add only knives to my collection that do exhibit exceptional F&F and so, im always wondering, any time i notice a flaw in an otherwise well made knife, how much imperfection should i be willing to accept and still consider the knife to be of extremely high quality.

So, here is my question: Is it possible for a knife to have one or 2 minor F&F flaws and still be regarded as being an exceptionally well made, very high quality knife? Would anyone accept a few small flaws on a $5000 Loveless?
 
Perfection, what for? If you wish absolute perfection with absolutely no cosmetic flaws, they are out there. If you want a knife you can use, you enter another realm. Many of the cosmetically perfect knives are to me as sterile as a spayed heiffer. Nature knows no bilateral perfection, she doesn't mind a flaw now and then, still some species survive and do well. Look at the crow and the rattler, both hated by man and many seek to exterminate them, they coyote is included in this group. To me they are heroes.

Same goes with the natural knife, it may not be perfect to many eyes, but when it comes to function, she shines. Perfection is a goal to work for, but when it becomes the primary driving force, sterility is the usual outcome. The knives become so simple there is no room for perfection.

Just my thoughts on the matter.
 
In my experience yes depending upon the flaws. On the second question the Loveless knives I have seen have had a flaw or two. I am of the opinion that if you look hard and long enough you can find flaws in just about anything especially if it is handmade.
 
I have never even looked for a perfect knife. Not sure I would recognize it if I saw one. Small flaws in handmade products are part of their charm, as far as I am concerned.

As far as perfection goes, are we talking only about fit and finish? I doubt this is be attainable, but I am not sure. I also don't care. Or are we also talking about the perfect knife for the job it is to do? There are knives that I think are about as close as possible to being perfect for their intended usage. These knives may not even be that well finished.
 
Originally posted by Megalobyte
...but im a little more anal than the typical collector...
Click to expand...

Oh yea? Just ask dealer Neil Ostroff who is the most anal in the land! I challenge you, Meg! Anytime, anywhere!;) :D :D :D ;)

Seriously - I have been told I own quite a few customs. There's not a knife I own, on which I can't find at least 1 or 2 flaws just by looking at them (to me, that ability is a curse that I have to live with;) ) Do they bother me? Nope. They give the knives "character". Then if I want to see a "perfect" knife, I just pull out my MicroTech LCC. Great knife, but no "personality".
 
On the other hand does anyone know of a factory made knife that does not have flaws?

Quality handmade products are usually less prone to flaws than factory made product because of the personal interest taken by the artist in each and every piece. In fact the standard to which the handmade knives are held far exceedes the quality standard for mass produced knives.
 
Originally posted by george tichbourne
On the other hand does anyone know of a factory made knife that does not have flaws?...
Click to expand...

George, that LCC I referred to was inspected with a loupe by a nit-picking jeweller friend of mine. He couldn't find a single flaw. (of course, that applies only to THIS sample).

I'll bring it with me next time I drop by the shop and you can check it out.
 
Our local paper has Sunday Comics, in those there is a little deal that has two drawings of the almost same scene. The challenge is to find six differences between the two. I got into playing the game searching for minor differences. One day after the challenge I asked myself, what was the picture about? I had not seen the whole picture, just disected it looking for the minute insignificant differences.

It is the same with anything we meet, the whole is much greater than the sum of the parts. If we can see and not let the small stuff overcome greatness.
 
If perfection was possible everyone would be doing it. Its what you shoot for. Its like counting to infinity.
Dan Farr
 
like others here, I believe I have an incredible sense of perfection.
There are all kinds of "perfection" because "perfection" obviously lies in the eye of the beholder. For some reason, I too have selected metal objects to seek perfection in. HOWEVER. My funds are limited. really limited.

I currently own 2 (real) knives.

-A Sebenza and a Will Stegner custom handmade.

The Stegner is what I would call "flawless by design," as it is symetrically perfect... the lines flow, dip and curve in all the right places. There are, however, things I would now have done to it if I had the extra funds. For Perfections sake.

The Sebenza is near perfect. One side of the blade is ground a TINY bit higher than the other... that's it. There are a million things I could to with the handle shape... many. I would consiider "perfect." Chis has nailed one of them. The thing about the blade grind has no effect on my hankering for perfection. At first, a tiny nag... for some reason it now just makes it more MY KNIFE.

go figure
 
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