Likes and dislikes

Keith Montgomery

Keith Montgomery

Joined
May 9, 2000
Messages
29,205
What is it that draws you towards the knives that you purchase, and what turns you away? I'm not just referring to the physical aspects of the knife, but to the whole decision making process.
 
It is not necessarily the maker, it is the looks, I do collect a lot of folders from various makers, I like the shapes, the handle material, like slippies, but do have a lot of liner and button locks. I guess you could sum up my likes by saying, "If it is sharp and pointy, I like it" Makers are a consideration, but I bought one from a maker I had never heard of before until BF. "Todd Davison" got my first one then another and I was hooked. I ordered the next 7 numbers, If my money had not run out, I might have put him on the payroll. Looks, Fit and Finish, Handle Materials. Sharp and Pointy, I am consumed by greed for knives. :D:D

Like the man once said, just how many more knives will it take to make you happy, I replied, just one more.:D

James
 
Generally, it's the first impression as I walk up to a table, or scan a website... Sometimes, however, I do manage to restrain that first impulse and ask myself a few question...
Like who's the maker, how well is it made... Can I afford it? :D
Than I give into the impulse! :p:D

Dang - some of those makers really know how to push my buttons!!! :o
 
Number one for me is always the wow factor. Then I calm down and ask myself some questions. Can I afford it? Is it made by someone I'm familiar with and can trust to provide the quality I appreciate and demand? Occasionally I'll pull the trigger pretty quickly if the answers are yes and the wow factor is huge.

Most of the time I'll think about it long enough to lose the opportunity or lose interest, which is good for my bank account. :D

Gary
 
Very interesting question. It made me think of what Don Guild states on his web page-

"When a certain knife hits my eye and says, “nice composition”, I just cave in and say, “yes”. ... pretty weak for a grown man to fall in love so easily and so often!"

Pretty much sums it up for me and I can't say it any better than Don.
 
I think I go by-
1. Appearance- it has to catch my eye
2. Feel- if it doesn't feel good when I pick it up, back it goes
3. Steel, grind, edge- if I don't like any of the above, off I go
4. Price- All of the above probably came about because I have limited funds so if I wanted to ever have anything nice I had to learn to be picky. That, and buying a few knives just so I could take something home from the show and then not being happy with them.

I would add maker but I don't know enough about them, and the ones whose names I recognize I usually can't afford!
 
Turn ons:

- Great fit and finish.
- Excellent symmetry and balance in the design.
- Top quality materials.
- A maker that has a great reputation, is excellent at communicating and is easy to get along with.
- Good value in the price that is being asked.

Turn offs:

- Poor fit and finish.
- Poor materials.
- A design that doesn't come together.
- A maker that has a bad reputation, doesn't feel that getting back to customers is important, or is unpleasant.
- Knives that are priced outside of a reasonable range for that particular maker and pattern.

I have seen knives that I love the design of, but materials are used that don't do it for me. The reverse has also been the case; you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.
 
How many of you would say that future resale value would be something that is a motivator when you are considering a purchase? It has definitely become more of a factor for me over the last couple of years.
 
You guys have covered quite a bit, soIwill throw in a couple of things that I don't like.
1. wrong material for the knife. I generally don't like stone handle material. Even the really old stuff like carved jade handles on old Indian and Persian blades. One of the exceptions is I have seensome interframe folders done in Malachite that looked cool. I do NOT like turquoise spacers, etc. I guess paracord handles would fall into this category too.
2. Knife is too busy/has too much embellisment. File work maybe the worst offender. Too much is too much. Some knives fall into the category I refer to as "Early Baroque Brothel" style.
3. Clunky grinds. I don't like big thick blades with no taper and I especially dislike ones like that with partial grinds, such as a saber or scandi type grind. I no longer like the big Randall bowies for that very reason. I favor flat grinds over hollow, but don't get my wrong. A Loveless Big Bear still makes me slobber.:D
4. Parts out of proportion. The one that usually gets me is a guard that is too larg, too small or too thick.
5. square handles. I do like octagonal, etc handles like a coffin handle bowie or a Robbin Hudsson knife, but not the square ones.
6. Any knife that looks like a prop from a Star Trek movie, a Conan movie or claims to be highly effective at something like "covert de-animation"
6. The big one......knifes that look like they would be either impossible or difficult to use as a knife should be used. I'm not talking about knives that are too pretty or expensive, but ones that look uncomfortable. This covers everything for uber-pricey customs fantasy knives to cheapo mall ninja crapola.
 
Likes: (True for all styles of knives. Hunters, bowies etc.)

-Great fit and finish
-Thin and sharp edges (hollow and flat grinds)
-Canvas Micarta
-Utilitarian, yet classy
-Vertical Dozier/Hartsfield styled belt finishes
-The use of micarta for guards and bolsters
-Military styling
-Japanese styling
-Leather stacked handles
-False edges
-Full flat grinds and high hollow grinds
-Single finger grooves
-Hamon
-nice, useful, versatile and comfortable sheaths
-proper handle pin placement



Dislikes:

-Horizontally scratched 400 grit hand rubbed finishes
-Mirror finishes (Loveless, Lovett and a few others are exceptions)
-Recurves
-Turquoise/stone spacers, pommels etc.
-Filework
-Mosaic pins
-Fat edges
-Stainless steel
-Patina
-Brass
-Ugly stag handle material
-SERRATIONS
-sharpened pry bars
-ugly blade coatings/effects (Strider)
-metal bolsters
-no symmetry or flow
-proportions are off
-people thinking that expensive materials make a nice knife overall.
-knives that are a result of people working with materials beyond their skill level.
-square and sharp edges on a handle
-general handle discomfort
-general tackiness (anodizing, stone, odd deer antlers/deer feet/bear jawbone for handles, filework, mosaic pins, mirror finishing or a combination of them all)
-dymondwood/pakkawood, any dyed wood
-gut hooks
-Americanized tanto designs
 
Keep in mind that I don't buy many knives, but these are my dislikes and likes:

Dislikes:
-a grind or edge type that doesn't suit the purpose or aesthetics of the knife (eg. heavy convex edges on 1/8" thick utility knives or skinners, grinds that don't cover at least 2/3 of the blade surface - I personally detest most scandi grinds)
-belt finishes on anything but a user (a high grade satin or mirror finish shows the extra time, effort, and skill of the maker and should cost more because of it). A belt finish on a blade with high end handle materials (burl, stabilized woods, etc.) looks like a partially finished knife to me.
-any type of finish that can hide flaws (low grit satin, bead blast, coatings, bluing, artificial patina, belt finishes in some cases)
-any type of bone or stag that has the marrow showing (usually from "making do" with whatever was available rather than finding a piece that fits the knife without grinding it down to fit the guard) including using slabs without bolsters or crown without an end cap.
-bartering - a fair price is a fair price, take it or leave it - it's only a good deal if both parties walk away happy, make an offer if you must, just don't argue if/when it's refused

Likes:
-dealing with people who have my respect because of their approachability, experience, communication, and business practices
-customers who are open to suggestions, or have done their homework as far as design and function (a customer recently asked me about making a 14" bowie with a 4" handle - may work okay, but it won't look balanced and I could tell by the size of his hands it wouldn't fit - politely suggested increasing handle length to 5-5.25") this is why I make scale drawings of everything first, so you can actually see the proportions before committing.
-details, I want to see the small things in the blade that show the skill in it's creation (the finish inside the choil, filework and plunge, evenness of the etch or stamp, consistency of the edge angle and depth). I would take a perfectly executed basic blade over a highly embellished one with mild construction defects anyday.
-makers who aren't afraid to expirement or innovate

Just my thoughts,
Nathan
 
Keith Montgomery said:
How many of you would say that future resale value would be something that is a motivator when you are considering a purchase?....
Click to expand...

Very little for me. I have only sold 3 knives in the 8 or 9 years that I have been collecting. Being anal-retentive, fit and finish are what grab me when I first look at a knife. :)
 
I'm with Holger........I pretty much like just about everything I see that is well made.......unfortunately, I cant afford any of it!!!!! :(
 
Likes:

makers that make great knives, that care, that promote, that communicate, that educate, that are honest, that stand behind their knives, that are energetic, that honor commitments, that are open minded and are just basically good people.

forged hunters and bowies.

excellent execution, fit, finish.

top quality materials.

innovative yet classic designs.

great lines, ivory, stag, especially amber stag.

excellent symmetry.

damascus, damascus, damascus, damascus

knives that at the very least hold value, but preferably appreciate in value.

well executed filework, engraving and inlay.

bowie/hunter; fighter sets.

primitive/early american heritage style knives & sheaths.

collectors that look for more than just the beauty of the knife.

Dislikes:

poorly designed and constructed knives.

poorly executed hand sanded finishes.

forced design elements that don't add to the overall.

gaps/cracks

poor materials.

non-proportioned knives.

abnormally large handles.

makers that just make knives and don't make the additional effort to do the things that most successful makers do to promote the industry and to improve the collector experience.

makers that go to shows, but act as they don't want to be there.

micarta, G10.

knives that don't look like knives.

knives that start dropping in value as soon as they leave the maker's hands.

knives that are hot or "in demand" for other reasons that the knives themselves.

bluing

uncomfortable and/or unbalanced knives.

tacky maker's marks.

bazaar "S" and "D" guards.
 
I think kevin has hit on all of my likes and dislikes, he has some that I do not share, like I like micarta especially on user hunters. I love hunters/fighters/bowies. I'd say hunters are my core collection focus. One HUGE thing is like Kevin said "makers at shows that dont look like they want to be there" If your not happy and having fun.....LEAVE. Even if your stuff is nice I will walk by. I would say kevin hit on all my dislikes besides the micarta one.....and likes. GREAT JOB KEVIN!
 
There are a couple of other things that attract me to certain makers, and those are that they take part on knife forums and show their work, or that collectors that have their knives show them off on the forums. Also, if the makers have good websites with good photos.

One thing that I really don't like is when it is hard to find any examples of a maker's work, and/or when it is difficult to find contact information.
 
barrabas74 said:
One HUGE thing is like Kevin said "makers at shows that dont look like they want to be there" If your not happy and having fun.....LEAVE. Even if your stuff is nice I will walk by.
Click to expand...

The reason I mentioned this was that while eating breakfast at Blade, must have been two years ago a very well known maker whose knives were and are still VERY much in demand sat at the table beside mine. If you have had breakfast at the Waverly during Blade you will know the tables are about 24" apart at best.
I recognized him so introduced myself, and asked how his show was going. Boy, what a mistake. This guy went on for about 10-15 minutes about how much a waste of time it was, how much it cost, how bad traffic was, how many orders he had and how much time he was losing.
I don't know if I caught this guy on a bad day or what, but I wanted to say then just go home. Others heard this too, so he could have had customers listening.
 
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