More money more problems?

J

J Skillz

Joined
Aug 23, 2012
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63
Ok so is it just me or is the old saying apply to knives? My 100$ benchmade didn't have a sticky lock like my 220$ ZT560... And my 70$ Manix didn't compromise blade play for slow deployment like my 200$ EKI cqc8..... Hell even my cold steel recon 1 tri ad lock was ready to rock within an hour where my cqc 15 had the same issues as my 8... I've even had Chinese SOGS with no problems... I understand that titanium needs to be broken in but I'm paying more then double my BM 710 which BTW is rock solid and smooth as butter.. ill admit after some time my ZT560 worked out great but still.... Am I the only one that thinks this?
 
There will always be that chance for a flaw in production knives... And I've learned that goes for all price ranges.
 
You can have sticky locks with Striders and CRK's (I have had) but my ZT0550 and 0551 were great. Sometimes it "works in" on its own; sometimes not.
Not sure that money is the problem. I've never had a problem with any Spyderco, and I've had a bunch. And my BenchMade 690 was great also, just like the 710's are reputed to be.
 
That's my point though.... Are benchmades and spydercos really just super companies or is it the better the materials the higher risk of a flaw?
 
The fact is that knives are simple tools and it does not take long for diminishing returns to kick in,
a good $40 knife can a lifetime the same as a $400 knife.
 
Sounds like you're comparing apples and oranges. Are the knives you're comparing of the same type of build? Framelock/Framelock? Linerlock/Linerlock? Axis lock / Axis lock? If not then the comparison is kind of useless.

Each type of construction brings with it different risks and problems. Liner and Framelocks bring sticky locks and lock failure, the axis lock bring the failure of the so called Omega spring, lockbacks often have bladeplay.....

Looks to me like you're trying to compary sports cars with pickup trucks.
 
A lot of times with production knives, higher dollar doesn't always equal higher quality control.

For your Emerson, I recommend disassembling to wash all the parts and use a decent lube. They're notoriously gritty out of the box.
 
I think it's a mistake to think more expensive = better. People do the same with cars and wine.

I carried a $200 Benchmade for many years and just recently purchased a few of the high value knives touted here on the forum like the Rat1, Utilitac 2, and the Chill and they function just as well as the higher $ knife for me. With that said I wouldn't hesitate to purchase another Benchmade if it had the features that I like in my EDC. (tip down, manual opening)

I say, buy the knife with the features you require.

It has surprised me, but the $15.00 Chill has become my go to blade.
 
I find the opposite to be true, but I no longer buy Emerson, and don't buy Strider.
I've only bought about 10 or 12 Sebenza's, but have never got one with a problem. I've also bought several customs, and have never got one with a problem.
I've gotten more sticky locks with Spyderco than any other brand, but at the price I'm not complaining. I've also bought more Spyderco's than any other locking knife, so that's one reason I've gotten several with a sticky lock.
 
From what I've found, if you're expecting to get 200$ worth of knife every time you spend 200$ on a knife, you're setting yourself up for some major disappointment. Just because a knife cost a lot doesn't mean its quality will match its price tag, and it's still entirely possible to run into lemons / defects, regardless of the price you pay.

There's also definitely a point of diminishing returns when it comes to the quality of a certain knife for the price you pay for it. For myself, I don't really like to spend more than 100$~ on a single knife anymore - I've found that that happens to be the sweet spot, for me, where I can get pretty much everything I want or need out of a knife for a price I'm willing to pay, and still get the quality I expect. Most of my knives cost a fair bit less than that - 60-70$ is probably the average for me.
 
Dorito Monk said:
From what I've found, if you're expecting to get 200$ worth of knife every time you spend 200$ on a knife, you're setting yourself up for some major disappointment. Just because a knife cost a lot doesn't mean its quality will match its price tag, and it's still entirely possible to run into lemons / defects, regardless of the price you pay.

There's also definitely a point of diminishing returns when it comes to the quality of a certain knife for the price you pay for it. For myself, I don't really like to spend more than 100$~ on a single knife anymore - I've found that that happens to be the sweet spot, for me, where I can get pretty much everything I want or need out of a knife for a price I'm willing to pay, and still get the quality I expect. Most of my knives cost a fair bit less than that - 60-70$ is probably the average for me.
Click to expand...

Yep. More money just means greater expectations, imo...
 
timberweasel said:
Yep. More money just means greater expectations, imo...
Click to expand...

That's a great point. Look at Spyderco's Gayle Bradley for like $140. Very well built knife. You can go up about a hundred$ and get a Southard or a Tuff or even more for a Lionspy but will these knives be much nicer? No they won't. The titanium is a big part of the price increases.
 
Yea I suppose I do have greater expectations when spending 200$ on a knife and I do believe I'm entitled to. and I would believe it to hold true due to the way these knives are being advertised .. no don't misunderstand, what I'm saying I am NOT knocking any knife companies whatsoever , in fact my Emerson is actually quite better after its second cleaning . but would you have to take apart your engine block on your brand new Corvette to make it perform the right way ? I'm really not complaining just curious to see if others felt this way as well
 
J Skillz said:
Ok so is it just me or is the old saying apply to knives? My 100$ benchmade didn't have a sticky lock like my 220$ ZT560... And my 70$ Manix didn't compromise blade play for slow deployment like my 200$ EKI cqc8..... Hell even my cold steel recon 1 tri ad lock was ready to rock within an hour where my cqc 15 had the same issues as my 8... I've even had Chinese SOGS with no problems... I understand that titanium needs to be broken in but I'm paying more then double my BM 710 which BTW is rock solid and smooth as butter.. ill admit after some time my ZT560 worked out great but still.... Am I the only one that thinks this?
Click to expand...

Yes Chief, I think you are alone in this one. Most knife hobbyists can tell you that comparing one manufacturer to another with such broad strokes (different designs, lock geometry, lock style, etc) is like comparing bananas to hammers. Just because you think you perceive a flaw, doesn't make it a flaw. The actual flaw might be your manner of perception. There are a lot of people running around with varying degrees of unrealistic expectations, just have to see where you fall into the spectrum. ;)
 
My original post wasn't so much comparing brands it was more curious to why my higher end knives seem to have more issues out of the box then my lower / average knives... For what is considerably high price and even out of the question to pay for a lot of users, I feel like my product should be trouble free without having to spend much time working on it.. bottom line is different expectations for different people although the knives mentioned ended up being great users after a little elbow grease.
 
This always seems to be a problem with me. But it's nothing some Torx bits and some Blue 242 can't fix.

My BM 710D2 had bladeplay, my BM 551 had bladeplay, my PM2 has bladeplay (and I can't fix it), my BM 275 has bladeplay. I don't get why they have bladeplay, but usually loctite fixes it. Sometimes it doesn't.
 
...and the search for the perfect knife ever continues. Trouble is there is no such thing.
 
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