Made in the USA

[Frotier76]

Which knife companies are actually made in the USA? I’ve read reports that some companies outsource and are assembled in the USA which still allows them to market as “made in the USA”.

Many answers behind this and it's a complex answer because it translates to how much imported involvement seperates this barrier.A few examples...

*Schrade Cutlery (to my knowledge) only outsourced their bolsters from Germany...beyond that USA made.

*Leatherman no longer can use the word 'USA made' on their products.I think this became an issue in 2005 when they started changing their Wave to a wider format from the new pliers and they started bead blasting the internal tool parts steel instead of satin finishing...the bead blast generates rust between the joints.The steel didn't seem as tough also.I asked them about this and they would only say it's an "imported proprietary steel".I hear some of their stuff began being blanked overseas but edged and finished at the Leatherman factory as part of this change in 2005.

*It is very possible the Bucklite knives from the early 2000's began dabbling in China on the injection molded side of manufacturing.I got my hands on a 442 model that Buck re-released (most likely for a dealer to burn out the inventory on)or a buildout.The blade is stamped USA but the label on the box indicates the typical made of USA and imported parts indication now seen on the Select Series.In the past this factory packing indication notice just said "Made in USA" in the late 90's/early to mid 2000's.I gather at some point Buck stopped using Valox and went to China for an alternate at some point.

*Those old USA made Genesis knives by EDI (Edge Design Inc.)...those real low carry pocket clips come from China.Look at some Master Cutlery fare and you'll see it's the same exact pocket clip design.

A good majority of any USA brand either stopped buying synthetics from Dupont and switched to China for generic facsimiles that are cheaper.Pivot screws to pocket clips.Even with the whole clones issue I'd bet these certain parts from Microtech and Strider (pivot screw) are made in China as well.

 

[PirateSeulb]

I have a tough time keeping up with Schrade and whose hands it is in currently but last I checked Schrade didn't have anything made in the USA since sometime in the 90s maybe as late as early 2000s. Last I checked Leatherman still labeled and stamped everything USA made I am not sure if they do have blanks or foreign steel. Which as I understand raw materials do not disqualify the Made in USA but blanks certainly fall into that grey area for my understanding of "Made in USA" requirements.

 

[James Y]

In a Walmart the other day, I checked the knife display (locked cabinet), and the Buck knives (like all the other brands) were all in clamshell packages. The USA-made models all had a prominent 'MADE IN THE USA' logo printed on the packaging. The packaging for the made-in-China Bucks did NOT have that logo on them.

Jim

 

[Frotier76]

Schrade Cutlery (as an American made brand) went out of business in 2004...it's been entirely an imported brand since 2005 by Taylor Cutlery then BTI Tools for the past 2 years.There's a reason USA is no longer stamped on the plier head of Leatherman or on their knife blades.

 

[Someone1]

Is a quality tool made from imported parts from a quality US company less desirable than a quality tool made from imported parts from a quality Swiss company? Asking for a friend

 

[brownshoe]

Is a quality tool made from imported parts from a quality US company less desirable than a quality tool made from imported parts from a quality Swiss company? Asking for a friend

Personally, choosing a knife based upon country of origin of the parts or knife is a political decision and is not related to product quality.

 

[Someone1]

Has anyone ever come up with what Sal Glesser would need to do to produce a midtech? Seems odd that there is no answer to this question yet.

 

[jstrange]

Schrade Cutlery (as an American made brand) went out of business in 2004...it's been entirely an imported brand since 2005 by Taylor Cutlery then BTI Tools for the past 2 years.There's a reason USA is no longer stamped on the plier head of Leatherman or on their knife blades.

What’s the connection between Leatherman and Schrade?

 

[Velitrius]

Has anyone ever come up with what Sal Glesser would need to do to produce a midtech? Seems odd that there is no answer to this question yet.

Seems more odd that you hold on to this question for a quarter of a year, when nobody really cares.

I really hadn't looked at my recent Leatherman stuff to see if it had a "Made in______" label or not. I'll have to check.

 

[Someone1]

Seems more odd that you hold on to this question for a quarter of a year, when nobody really cares.

I really hadn't looked at my recent Leatherman stuff to see if it had a "Made in______" label or not. I'll have to check.

Seems like people care quite a bit when a knife they like claims to be a midtech and when they can insult a different company for having parts made by a third party. Companies doing the same thing and it depends on whether you like the company or not dictates whether you insult them or praise them for performing the same actions. So I'm trying to nail down what's good and what's bad and what it even means because people don't seem to know how to even define what a midtech is, let alone what makes it good or bad. So maybe if we could nail down what it would take for a guy like Sal Glesser to make a midtech, who would need to be involved, who would need to make what, and who's name would need to be engraved on top of another maker's work for it to be a midtech.

Then we can find out why a company using parts from another company, in the US or not, is bad or good.