Jim Merritt

Bladeandbarrel said:
I know people who collect clown portraits on black velvet too....:foot:
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Disgusting. Anyone who has anything on black velvet other than Elvis or a busty black girl with a big afro clearly has no taste.:rolleyes:
 
The Virginian has an interesting point.

If your knife buying philosophy is "to buy and sell what I consider the "right" knives from the 'right' makers at the 'right' times" this makes you a speculator.

If your knife buying philosophy is to buy "the 'right knives' from makers such as Jerry Fisk, Bob Loveless and others...that are/will be good investments no matter the length held" this will make you an investor.

If you buy it at Blade and flip it within weeks or months, this makes you a "profiteer."

I like that distinction and believe it has merit.
 
Brownshoe, some where, sometime I read a post in a thread that had something to do with you having attended the Little Rock Show. Its coming up very soon, Feb. 12 and 13, and I will be there. If you do attend please seek me out and introduce yourself. I would love to meet you face to face and have a friendly conversation.

Paul
 
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brownshoe said:
The Virginian has an interesting point.

If your knife buying philosophy is "to buy and sell what I consider the "right" knives from the 'right' makers at the 'right' times" this makes you a speculator.

No, this makes me a custom knife collector and short to mid term investor.

If your knife buying philosophy is to buy "the 'right knives' from makers such as Jerry Fisk, Bob Loveless and others...that are/will be good investments no matter the length held" this will make you an investor.

No, this makes me a custom knife collector and a longer term investor, I practice a combination of both, and both help drive my love for knife collecting.
I able to run a report from my "collection database" (there's quite a few collectors,who are using my data base by the way), which tells me that my average duration of ownership for all the knives I have sold is about 3.3 years years.

you buy it at Blade and flip it within weeks or months, this makes you a "profiteer."

\I like that distinction and believe it has merit.
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I never buy a knife just to flip it, I have sold knives after a few months or so when someone has made me a good and unsolicited offer. I'm a collector first, investor second.

Brownshoe, just what is it that makes you and some other collectors (I assume you are a collector) get so infuriated when other collectors sell knives from time to time and profit from them? I don't understand it. It's like every time the "investment" word get mentioned you go on the war path. So can you explain it to us.
We don't condemn those who only buy what they like and never sell any knives. So why the hostility towards knife collector /investors? It's just another avenue in which some collectors enjoy custom knife collecting.
 
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Guess Brownshoe has enough money where he can buy whatever he wants and then keep buying more.

I also disagree with your post. I make a good living, but I do not have the ability to buy every custom knife I want and hold them for the rest of my life. I'm proud of my collection and my tastes change. Many times, I buy a custom knife and hold for a few years because I enjoy it, and at the end I hope I can make a profit off of it, assuming I sell it, so that I can buy another knife that I enjoy as much or more than the first. Some I may hold for 10 years...and during that time I enjoy the knife...and when I sell it I buy another knife that I will perhaps enjoy for another 10 years. Some I may never sell. Then there are times where I buy a knife at a show because I think it is a great deal...with every intention of selling it, for a profit, so I can get a knife I really like. I'm not a profiteer...I'm just doing what needs to be done so that I can continue to enjoy knife collecting. If someone offers to sell you a porsche for $50,000 and you can thereafter sell it for $100k, would you not do it? Maybe drive it around for a few days, enjoy it, and then take your profit? THen take that profit and put it in a savings account so you can benefit from it down the road?
 
I am enjoying this thread, paying attention and maybe even learning something. Please show me some good examples of "brass backed Morans and Loveless fighters" so that I can compare what we are talking about, I am pretty sure I know what a Brass Backed Moran looks like, it's been a long time since I seen one though. Thanks
 
Nordic has two older Loveless's with the brass back-

CF_2060.jpg
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http://www.nordicknives.com/GenGAL1.php?id=7534 .



CF_2048a.jpg
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CF_2048.jpg
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http://www.nordicknives.com/GenGAL1.php?id=7533 .
 
tltt said:
Nordic has two older Loveless's with the brass back-

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Thanks, I was always interested in the reason for the brass back. Does anyone know? Also interesting to me is the choice of brass all the way around except for the butt, any speculation on that? Not picking them apart, just curious. How about some Morans, anyone got pictures.
 
Paul, thanks for the offer. I try to go to Little Rock, but it's so near a loved one's birthday and Valentines day, I usually play it by ear. Plus there's the AK weather and I like to drive whenever possible...more money for knives. :) If I show, I'll stop by and introduce myself.

If I bought a porsche to drive for 6 months and then sell for a profit, I would not be a car collector, I'd be a speculator.

Collectors that sell knives to foster their collection is one beast. Those that sell knives for profit, not for reinvestment in their collection, are not collectors in my book.

cnas122, you are kindof correct, I have enough money to buy what I can afford (not want). As I become a more discriminating collector, I buy less in quantity so I can afford what I want. :)

Kevin Jones, I am not in anyway infuriated. I just find it kind of sad that so many "collectors" are concerned with value and resale. I often stay out of the investment threads, because I don't EVER invest in knives. I participate, when I think a different perspective may be interesting. Such as this thread, where the "investors" have heaped scorn on an old "investment" and the Virginian says "Don't know if I would ever fit in here, because I clearly don't think like you with all the talk of marketplace, and contacts, and premiums, and value, value, value, value, value . . . ad nauseum. It just comes across like most or all of you are just all about money. I'm about knives. I like knives." It's a shame that this subforum is so dominated by the investor, because they often seem to be lacking in a love of knives. I feel sorry for those that cannot enjoy a knife w/o knowing they will make a profit on resale or at least break even. The recently formed Custom Knive Collectors Association often appears to exist more to asssure "collectors" that their investments will hold value than to be a positive force in the "art" of knives.
 
brownshoe said:
Kevin Jones, I am not in anyway infuriated. I just find it kind of sad that so many "collectors" are concerned with value and resale. I often stay out of the investment threads, because I don't EVER invest in knives. I participate, when I think a different perspective may be interesting. Such as this thread, where the "investors" have heaped scorn on an old "investment" and the Virginian says "Don't know if I would ever fit in here, because I clearly don't think like you with all the talk of marketplace, and contacts, and premiums, and value, value, value, value, value . . . ad nauseum. It just comes across like most or all of you are just all about money. I'm about knives. I like knives." It's a shame that this subforum is so dominated by the investor, because they often seem to be lacking in a love of knives. I feel sorry for those that cannot enjoy a knife w/o knowing they will make a profit on resale or at least break even. The recently formed Custom Knive Collectors Association often appears to exist more to asssure "collectors" that their investments will hold value than to be a positive force in the "art" of knives.
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Obviously, regarding the CKCA and participants here, you only see what you want to see.
And I bet that the many folks (members and non-members) who have benefited from the CKCA in our 2 -1/2 years will tell that it has little or nothing to do with them profiting on knives.
 
I heard that the brass back was intended to snag the edge of a knife that was being swung at the holder of said brass backed knife. I don't know a thrust from a parry, but it sounded like a plausible explanation.
 
tiguy7 said:
I heard that the brass back was intended to snag the edge of a knife that was being swung at the holder of said brass backed knife. I don't know a thrust from a parry, but it sounded like a plausible explanation.
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Yep, that's the modern intrepretation. That being said, the brass back is never found on legit old knives. One popular theory among antique collectors is that the brass back is a mis-interpretation of the gold escutcheon plate that is featured on a very famous Schively Bowie.
 
tltt said:
Yep, that's the modern intrepretation. That being said, the brass back is never found on legit old knives. One popular theory among antique collectors is that the brass back is a mis-interpretation of the gold escutcheon plate that is featured on a very famous Schively Bowie.
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tiguy7 said:
I heard that the brass back was intended to snag the edge of a knife that was being swung at the holder of said brass backed knife. I don't know a thrust from a parry, but it sounded like a plausible explanation.
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Thank you, very cool. Does anyone have a picture of that Schively Bowie?
 
No Schively but a Searles.

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That gold 'cartouche' embem is reflected in the mirror.

^^^
This post (from Coop:thumbup:) shamelessly borrowed from a Searles thread a few years back. :)

Doug
 
RogerP said:
Really? What about the Musso Bowie?

Roger
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lots of folk like that one, but almost all of the big time collectors of historical knives agree that it's much younger than it's reported age. I wish I had it handy or they posted it online, but Knife World magazine had a series of articles when the knife first became public where a few pointed out all the problems with the knife and the story.

@ Doug C, Thanks, for some reason, I had Schlively on my mind.
 
brownshoe, your ideas always have personal merit, and I see where you are coming from. I don't agree 100%, but I'm not a hater.

(My HP collection may be the biggest non-investment in knives I've undertaken, but it gives ME joy.)

If the original poster hadn't come in with an estimated perceived 'value' of $20,000, that sent the 'investment' smoke alarms screeching, it may have taken another direction. he he he!

If we didn't discuss the 'I' word regularly we'd all be simply foolish. It's human nature to purchase and enjoy carefree, and human nature to monitor financial success. Neither is going away.

What's happening with this knife anyway? When's it going to eBay? :D

Doug: Nice find. I see a new method for my insets now. Smoke and mirrors.... ;)

Coop
 
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