Is shopping by price a fundamental mistake?

"the pain of not getting exactly what you need lasts a lifetime; the pleasure of saving a few bucks is forgotten after a month."
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And knowing that you wasted hundreds of dollars for a knife that performs no better than the $30.00 dollar knife you already had is a lesson you will never forget.
 
yablanowitz said:
Like it or not, all of us without unlimited funds shop by price. The perfect knife is only perfect if you can afford it.
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Yep, if you only have $50 to spend then thats it. I have a swiss army knife I have used for over 15yrs and it still goes like a champ. You can only spend what you have.
 
I think the only effect is buyers remorse when you find out either 1) the knife you bought is not worth the price you paid, or 2) The knife you bought was available for less, but you paid more.

Those effects occur after the knife has been bought, before the knife has been bought then overpricing is just hypothetical.
 
Three adages come to mine.

1. Moderation in everything.
2.
What is one getting for monies spent?
3.
There is hardly anything some man cannot make cheaper and sell for less; and those whom shop based on price alone, are this man's prey - John Ruskin


A person should have a budget, be honest and sensible.
Upon investigation and verifying what anything costs for the price, then they have to be brutally honest and make the determination if spending more monies is actually going to give them that that much more quality, service, pride of ownership, or whatever.

Iwannacoolitemvirus is infectious and gets a lot of folks into trouble.
We have Internet, and credit cards.
Back in the day there were no credit cards, and one saved money, or did a lay-a-way to get those things locally or from Montgomery Ward, Sears Roebuck Catalogs.

Simple example is a SAK Classic SD.

Wal-Mart has a red one for $7
This fits a need for a person for a key chain, and if they mess up and forget, losing it to TSA is still going to tick them off, still it was only $7.

A girl wants the Edelweiss one at Target, so that one is $9.
To her the extra $2 is worth it.

Alox one fits a niche for someone needing a HS grad gift...

Sterling Silver is the one for College Graduate, Sterling Wedding Anniversary.

Same knife, each person has a task for the same knife and a budget to consider.

The Sterling one is not for the little girl to use when out with grandparents at the pond fishing, nor is it the best choice for someone to carry if they travel by air.

The rinky-dink SAK knockoff at the gas station for $6 is not the best choice either.
It will break, no customer service, the quality is not there, and so for $1 more, the Wal-Mart knife is the best one.

For $3 more the little girl can wait, and get the Edelwiess one she really wants and not be disappointed because she had a bad case of "gotta-haves".
Life lessons on waiting, or having to pay mom and dad back borrowing $3 because she has $6 burning a hole in her pocket.

Applicable to anything in life - not just knives.
 
There is nothing wrong with setting a spending limit, and letting the folks you have asked for recommendations from know what that limit is, is a good thing.

If you personally don't want to set a spending limit, that's okay too.
 
Set a budget,stay within that budget and buy the best blade you can afford, a $2k knife maybe high priced does not mean it is worth a hoot out in the field,who needs a jewel encrusted handle or gold highlights...decorative blade....several different factors on the knife cost....higher cost does not always equal better.
 
I think both sides are at least partially right....for the potential buyer, choose a quality tool that fullfils the need you're buying it for. One that makes you happy to own and use it. For instance I have a $9.00 Case Sodbuster in my tool box that I bought at a pawn shop that does what I ask it to do which is trim insulation off wire or clean a fish beside the river as versus the very expensive Busse BM that I used a couple of times but mostly hung on a peg and subsquently gave away to a freind without regret because he will actually use it. True beauty and value is in how much you like that tool and not in its price tag.
 
wutitiz said:
Is shopping by price a fundamental mistake?
What do you think?
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I do not think it is a mistake. If it is, I have gotten very lucky, for I continually set limits on my spending and am generally happy with the knives I have bought.

I buy knives for specific purposes, sometimes just to see how that style works for me or to try an alloy firsthand. At the same time, knives are tools and pocket tools at that. Tools get used up. I bought a set of top-of-the-line electrician's tools a long time ago. Over time as I used them, some of them have been used up (a 220 short does quite a bit of damage to steel.) and I have replaced them. Over time, I expect to have to replace a knife or two, so there is only so much I am going to spend on it.

To me a knife is a tool A tool should not be so expensive that you hold back from using it. I fear I would shy away from hard use of a $350 folder. Maybe others don't shy away from it but I would. "A man's got to know his limitations" (points if you can ID the quote.) About $50 is mine.
 
I think there's a good point in here, but when talking about a $2000 knife, things change. To buy a $2000 knife when you are a undergraduate or recent college grad is folly if you don't have already deep pockets, as you are getting much less return on the money than you otherwise would. When you're in that age range, then suddenly every dollar you spend has more value- "pay for an extra course or not", "put myself into debt and hurt credit rating", etc. One should buy within reason; meaning that you probably should spend no more than 1/8 your income on knives (that's generous) when you can find a better place to spend the money- meaning, if you could use that $2,000 to invest, and double your income in 2 or 3 years, then by all means, get by with a cheapy and you save. That being said, I did buy an endura when I wanted a 710, lost the endura, bought a 710, got another endura, been happy and haven't lost either. You shouldn't settle for less, but within reason. Don't settle for a crappy car if you like cars, but don't go buy a Lamborghini.
Zero
 
You could do the $10 a year, for twenty year- but I'm a high school student living on allowance. I don't have $200 for a knife- I'm saving up for a good revolver, and need money to do things like see movies or go out to eat with my friends. (And gas, if I could drive :) )
I have bought over $200 worth of knives, out a graduated time of about a year and half. But I'm confident that a Buck 110, Case Medium Stockman and Soddie Jr in CV, my Mora and my KaBar bowie will last me if I take care of them. Probably most of my other knive will too, but those are the ones I'd be looking out for most.
The point is: I don't buy cheap, I buy value. A $10 Mora will last you a lifetime, while a similarly priced Frost won't.
 
There are good knives and bad knives. You should look for what YOU NEED in a knife, and if one of those requirements is price, then it is. My three favorite knives are all considered cheapies, a Spartian SAK, Kershaw Chive and Spyderco Delica, with the most expensive being around $40-50. I love each of these and they do everything I need in a knife.

If you are looking for a nice slicing kitchen camp knife a Busse would probaly not be as useful as a Mora. If you need a heavy do anything chopper that you would trust you life to, then the Busse is a much better choice. Just because one costs $200 and the other $10 doesn't mean they both don't have their place.
 
Your theory has some flaws that were already pointed out. You also have to take into account that sometimes you might lose a knife or have one stolen, etc. And that stings a lot less with a cheaper blade.

My main gripe with it, is that it only applies to somebody that is looking to use 1 knife for a "lifetime".

I like collecting them, I like variety.

I would rather have ten $50 knives than one $500 knife.
 
hmmm. i suppose its possible but personally cant rationalize buying a 2000 dollar knife but thats just me, maybe if i struck it rich then had 2 g's of mad money:D look out! But im happy to buy what i like and the best that i can afford. Ebay is full of knives that were a couple of bucks a piece when new and now they fetch $$$$:eek: i realize there are alot of factors at play there but its not just high end customs that appreciate in value. Its only worth what somebody is willing to pay for it. High price is not a guarantee of absolute quality and durability.
I love gawking at all the super talented beautifully crafted customs, but i'm just as happy to sharpen and oil my old breadbox full of old slippies, some of which outlasted their respected owners, a few probably 50-60 years old.
Not too shabby for affordable tools used by regular people:)
cheers
ivan
 
I have a modest collection of 90 knives.All but a few are sub 100$.I bought those ones because I had the money and I really liked them.My Fallkniven S1 is my most widely used knife and I paid 85.00$ for it.
Some knives I have for the history like my USMC KA-bar.Others I bought for the reputation like my Fallkniven F1.
I keep a budget when I shop for knives.But it's fun to stray once and a while funds permitting.
 
Buy what you can and what you like. I personally try to skip the hype of Hinderers and Emersons selling for 2x table price. I can be happy with a Mora and a Sodbuster and it'll probably last, but I WANT something "nicer" if I could afford it
 
If you are buying an expensive knife and reluctant to use it for fear of scratching it, you are better of with many $10 mora like me.

price doesnt always equate quality steel. An m2 could hold an edge much longer than many knives and yet not cost a lot.
 
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In my buying I always have price limits I am comfortable with for anything, including knives. If it is too expensive for me I would hesitate to use them and probably many people the same.

coop1957 said:
Never ever buy from spydieguys.com. Ripoff artists.
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I think it is wrong Forum for this statement. But if you started I would to add that I bought from them on at least six occasions winning their auctions during last two years, will buy again and recommend to my friends. I have only very good experience. Good communication and fast shipping.
 
THG said:
Same here.
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I agree also.

Why? I have had $50 knives that took a lot of hard use and when I look at the more expensive knives I am not that much more impressed. I will admit there are some $150 - $200 folders out there that Zero Tolerance has that I want and will use when I get one but they are the first and only ones I have seen that make me want to spend that much. I have never seen a folder that I would give over $200 for but hey I am Mr Elcheapo. The performance to price hike must be there.
 
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