knife company conversation (anything goes)

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kunchi97

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hey guys. I just got int collecting knives recently. I'm pretty young, so I don't have alot of money lying around to exeriment with my purchases.

I just recently read (another) cold steel hate forum, and was kind of discouraged at how quickly it turned into a grudge match.

I'm honestly on here looking for information. so here it is.

let's just talk about whatever. what companies you hate, which ones you love. which designers are your faves and whatever else. and what's yor reasoning behind your decisions.

anything goes as long as we can all remain civil. I honestly do genuinely want to learn from you guys
 
Just to get the ball rolling, I will offer Buck Knives for your consideration.

I live only a few miles from the Buck factory. I pass it every day on my way to work. I visit there every chance I get. I have met several of the employees there, and met and talked with Chuck Buck and his son, C.J. Buck.

I have had the opportunity to use more than a dozen different knife patterns from Buck, and I have found them to be consistently well made and sharp out of the box. As I type this, sitting in my bathrobe, I have three large Buck folders sitting on my mouse pad: A Buck 110 (marked as 1992) with the classic wood-and-brass handle, a Buck 110 EcoLite (green PaperStone handle) marked as 2011, and a Buck 426 (orange ETP handle) also marked as 2011.

Why are they there? Last week I wanted to clarify their differences in a post, and I needed to weigh them, and that's where they landed. I should probably put them away. Maybe later.

For what it's worth, I do not have an accurate count of my Buck knives. The closest I can come without doing a survey of several drawers and boxes is "dozens."

Buck makes more than 85% of their total production right here in Post Falls, Idaho.

The company is still a family-run outfit four generations after its founding.

They have achieved "icon" status as an American knife manufacturer.

They make good stuff, and I'm pretty sure they make something you'll be able to love.

 
I would support the statement of buck knives, however my two favorites have to be spyderco and kershaw. Spyderco makes a fantastic product, and kershaw knows how to crack out useful and affordable blades. You can't go wrong with most companies, it's more specific models you should ask questions about. For example, I love the delica but I hate the native
 
My favorites are Spyderco and Kershaw/ZT. Benchmade is hit or miss for me. Not a fan of Cold Steel, they just aren't for me.

For fixed blades, BK&T, Swamp Rat/Busse are my favorites.

As for knifemakers and designers, there are a ton. Respects must be made to innovators and craftsmen such as Bob Loveless, Bob Terzuola, Michael Walker, Chris Reeve, Bo Randall, and many others I have failed to mention. I am also a big fan of the late Bob Lum.
 
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I like well built, solid folders that hold a great edge and feel great in the hand. There are a number of great companies that make knives I like and some of those same companies make knives I don’t like. What really annoys me is the whole “Tactical” fad. The term is thrown around like a cheap prom date. There are that guys review knives on YouTube that likely have never so much as had to take someone to the floor in performance of their job to affect an arrest, or have never had to aim a weapon at anyone except in a video game yet they talk so eloquently about how “Tactical” a knife is. A person or group of people can be tactical or use tactics to achieve a goal... A knife is not tactical, but throw black coating and some expensive materials on it, use terms such as tactical to describe it’s intended use and all the ninjas come out of the wood work to buy one. I’m not saying these specific knives that are built to be used in certain types of environments are not nice or lose any credibility but the marketing and terms used to describe their intended use makes me laugh. As I said above, I like well made, strong knives that hold an edge really well. I am no longer in a job where I need to be “Tactical” but I still like knives that are made for hard use and can be counted on in a pinch even though I may never find myself in that kind of situation ever again. Man this whole “Tactical” trend makes me think of the big fart-can mufflers that people like to throw on their little 120hp, gas thrifty cars. It’s louder now and looks cool so it must be a race car :p

So you said you want to learn from us. OK I’ll teach you something. Don’t fall for marketing hype. A good knife is a good knife because of proven design, materials and construction. Don’t fall for the latest and greatest, start with simplicity and solidity and work your way up. Buy something you like to look at and carry every day. A knife you enjoy becomes the knife you won’t forget to leave the house with and the one you end up going to the most to cut stuff with. Then you’ll really appreciate what it is and does. If it so happens to be black and or have tiger stripes or a carbide glass breaker, some spike for a pommel or some fancy name then so be it :lol:
 
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USAFSP said:
... Don’t fall for marketing hype. A good knife is a good knife because of proven design, materials and construction. Don’t fall for the latest and greatest, start with simplicity and solidity and work your way up. Buy something you like to look at and carry every day. A knife you enjoy becomes the knife you won’t forget to leave the house with and the one you end up going to the most to cut stuff with. Then you’ll really appreciate what it is and does. If it so happens to be black and or have tiger stripes or a carbide glass breaker, some spike for a pommel or some fancy name then so be it :lol:
Click to expand...

This is really good advice if you're just starting out with knives and you don't have a lot of disposable cash to play with. There are many good entry level knives available from different companies that will give you a chance to experience how that company designs and executes their production knives. As you try out these less expensive offerings, you'll learn what you like and don't like, what works for you and what's just gonna sit in a box, and you'll find out some things about each company's customer service and warranty that may or may not make a difference to you down the road. As you get more familiar with what you want and will use, you can begin spending more $ on knives that have a better chance of being useful to you.

I would also suggest considering upgrading your membership here to a gold or platinum level so you can take part in the F/S & F/T subforums. You won't want to keep everything you buy and this is a good place to sell or trade them for something else that you want to try out. Enjoy the ride!
 
This forum is for the discussion of actual knives. Discussion on companies - Good Bad and Ugly.
 
My fave is ZT

There's nothing wrong with CS knives, I also have some. Some are good for what you pay

Just many people make more about them than they really are. If you think about it, if you keep bragging about a toyota corolla to a guy who owns a ferrarri he will eventually get fed up with you.
Also the marketing is seriously corny and some knives like the Espada are ridiculously overpriced
 
I'm being dead serious here.
So far, my favorites are Cold Steel and Kershaw.
Really.
Not everyone hates Cold Steel 'ya know.
Im hoping to pick up a Spyderco here soon though.
 
Here are some quick and dirty opinions:

  • Spyderco - owner participates here; great reputation for customer service, great knives, own many, never had a problem of any sort; probably my favorite company; prices are moderate although they seem to be getting more and more pricey.
  • Kershaw - great company participation on the forum here; lots of designs in lots of categories and prices, something for everyone; I have used there customer service and it is second to none; the biggest flaw for me is that several of their knives that I've owned have developed rust
  • Benchmade - really well made knives; AXIS lock is great; designs have been relatively unexciting lately and the pricing keeps going up; the company doesn't participate here and the two times I have emailed with a customer service question, I didn't get a reply.
  • Victorinox - modestly priced; ultra reliable; honor their waranty; anonymous around here
  • Buck - the US version of Victorinox to me, although I have owned that many; the Buck 110 holds its own against any knife made by any manufacturer, I wish I could say that about more of their models
  • Cold Steel - crazy videos; they make some really good stuff and some really bad stuff; the most inconsistent of the major companies that I can think of; some of the good stuff is incredibly overpriced; wide variety of innovative offerings
  • Emerson - great owner, great designs; not-so-great liner locks
  • Strider - very poor customer service reputation and spotty QC; great designs and great materials; I love mine, but they are very expensive
  • Leatherman/Gerber/SOG - mass-marketed; mostly junk
  • Chris Reeve - well made and will last a lifetime, but even as an owner of several, I'm not sure they are worth what you pay
 
I'm a real fan of Al Mar's and have owned quite a few. I currently have 3 or 4. Ive never seen a poorly made one.--KV
 
I would like to support Buck, but find the price not in range of the materials in most offerings.

Cold Steel- like them, mostly buying used to decrease price, I've had good luck with customer service- unlike others. Their advertising doesn't bother me. Great for tomahawk fans, they offer a wide range of products to hit most aspects of the hobby. Owner is very proud/boastful/blowhard- depending on opinion

Spyderco- great designs, great diversity, solid ownership who listens to customers. Downside is prices are getting higher than some customs I've bought, plus sprint runs seem to be bought by people looking for profit rather than users, so most are not on my radar any more. I second the Native love, my G10/abalone version glows green under black light!

Kershaw- much the same as Spyderco, prices seem a bit better.

Bark River Knife and Tool- great diversity of knives produced, great selection of handle material choices. In my experience owning 5- shoddy QC, and I was disgusted at their customer service/warranty I experienced. Long wait between runs of certain models. I cannot support them further, the owner IMO epitomizes the last word in their name.

Columbia River Knife & Tool- good company to start collecting with IMO. Diverse designs, good value. Not high end steel, but solid working knives. Quality dipped early 2000's but seems to be back on track. I own more CRKT knives than any other company but have never bought one- my wife banned me from buying them so she knew which ones she had gotten me already!

Benchmade- higher end comparable with Spyderco/Kershaw. Some complaints of QC and customer service issues. Price and designs are moving them away from my likes. Only way to try axis lock, which I like.


Chris Reeve Knives- high value, consistent production. The be all end all for some, boring and overpriced for others. I like mine, won't get rid of it but don't drink the Kool-Aid either. My recommendation is to wait until you know more about the knife you like and dislike before trying them out.

Swiss army (Victorinox/Wegner): a staple knife company- everybody should get a few. Most consistent production in the world IMO, especially when taking volume of production into account. One of the best values in knifedom

Mora- great user knives at great prices. Another classic, a bit boring perhaps, but very functional and comfortable.

Opinel- see Mora, but folder. Watch out if in very humid conditions, swelling of handle material may hinder opening the blade.

Strider- not for me, "tactical" marketing, high prices, variable quality. One owners past history is an issue to many.

Case- a standard of American slipjoints. Massive range of products, long history. I've had issues with quality, customer service did not ever return my emails about issues, will not ever buy new again as a result. I do not like their selection of stag (antler) used, quality is too low for me. Heard some quality of construction issues have been resolved. Many models geared toward collectors vs users.

Great Eastern Cutlery/Tidioute/Northfield- my choice for slipjoints new. Each "brand" of the company offers similar knives with different treatments. Great diverse line that keeps growing, many handle choices, newer company that has really taken a corner of the slipjoint market. Some models can be difficult to open, have heard good thing when these models are returned for repair.

Ontario- wont deal with them due to their past dealings with other makers. Good machetes, decent folders/fixed blades in my experience. Make Queen knives slipjoints- horrid, horrid finishing on the blades is often reminiscent of butter knives requiring great amounts of reprofiling to get them to cut.

Boker- German traditional slipjoints with long history, modern folders out of my price range. Some QC issues, good products overall.

Sog- generally seen as overpriced, lower QC than should be, I believe had issues concerning design copying of other companies knives. Not on my radar.

Ka-bar- good work knives, moderate price, traditional military fixed blades.

Mcusta- a knife I would love to try. Nice looking designs, heard nothing negative about fit and finish, have never seen one to hold. Approaching boutique status IMO.

William Henry- expensive, top notch materials with more fanciful designs. My wife confiscated mine when it arrived, as I expected her to! Top price for manufactured knives.

Condor- budget line of outdoor work knives. Somewhat variable quality but from all accounts great working knives. I only have a solid steel neck knife of theirs so can't comment beyond they seem to listen to customer feedback as a newer company.

Of course these are just my opinions gathered from using the knives and taking stock of opinions presented here. Some will agree, others won't but I tried to give a fair impression.

I would recommend getting a Mora, opinel, SAK for sure. If you are into choppers grab a Cold Steel machete/hawk, or Ontario machete, or Condor machete. For slipjoints look at GEC and case (there are others), and for modern clipped folders (I don't use the word tactical) try out CRKT/Kershaw/Spyderco- my suggestion is in that order. For fixed blades look at Spyderco/BRKT/Ontario/Ka-bar.

For vendors I would avoid direct from factory. I've used Collectorknives.net (won't ship internationally any more), new graham knives and knivesshipfree. The owner of bf is owner of onestopknifeshop, so could try him out as well. Honestly most of my new knives come off of the bf exchange- a bit of risk but great deals to be found.


I just realized I'm not sure why you are getting into knives. I collect knives for diversity and to use, so my take will be different than somebody conscerned with pretty and resale value (although I like attractive users). Good luck and happy knife collecting.

Oh, and wait until you get into customs......
 
Les George: Solid Communication, great product
Chuck Gedraitis: Awesome product, awesome customer service, very nice guy
COld Steel: Decent for the price if you get it on sale, otherwise slightly over priced for what it is
Benchmade: Used to be prime time for me but now its just another large scale producer ++++Customer Service
DDR: Cool ass designs, usually well built, slow or lacking customer communication
Chris Reeve: Very Good designs, expensive but worth it!!!!! customer service is awesome
Rick Hinderer: Awesome customer communication; Overpriced on secondary market in my opinion but fantastic product.
Zero Tolerance: Well Built, usually reasonable in price, Pretty good designs.
Kershaw: Reasonable for mass produced items, usually good product
 
It may not be the answer you're looking for, but you'll never know what you like in a knife or a company until you start using it (not just hold one in your hand). Asking opinions is a good start, but even "disappointing" purchases will provide you valuable input into what you like/want/need. Everyone's wants and uses are different, and sometimes what you want/like with differ from what you actually need. Ultimately you start out with what you can afford and what you like aesthetically, and you learn from there.

With that said here are the brands I prefer based on what I have owned:
Bark River
Spyderco
Victorinox
Benchmade
Kershaw
Leatherman

The ones that didn't do it for me (also based on what I've owned):
SOG
Emerson
CRKT
Ontario

The ones I'll know more about soon (just got, or on the way):
Cold Steel
Becker
 
As a dedicated lefty, I am very choosey about my knives. If a company offers designs that cater to my left-handedness, I will look at them. If not, then I usually pass them up.
For that reason alone, I am not interested in companies like MCusta, Microtech, Emerson, Chris Reeves Knives (I know they offer a left-hand model), Puma, Buck, a lot of Kershaw designs, a lot of CRKT knives, Fox Cutlery knives, Hinderer, Strider, Hogue, H.E.S.T., Camillus... the list goes on.
 
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