Most regretted knife purchase?

A stupid sogzilla i wanted a beater but man its worse , as much blade play as a cheap bailsong , im regrinding the blade for fun
 
KLJTech said:
The prices I've seen on some of the old Buck/Strider's are a bit crazy (to me) and far too often I see "some" guys listing (not here) their Buck/Strider as the "top of the line model" when what they're selling wasn't the top of the line model at that time.

You can easily tell if it was the top model by checking to see if its held together with Torx screws...if it uses any rivet construction (for lack of a better term) then its NOT the top Buck/Strider.

I can't recall what the most expensive model was named (it wasn't the Police) but it did have all Torx screws...I'll include some pics so you'll know what to look for if you do end up searching for one.

If nothing else, the Buck/Strider made me want to buy a true Strider as a user...which I did. I never had any lock issues BUT my son had the cheapest version and the lockbar went WAY over across the baled tang and almost ran off the back of the blade...you could see where it could be a big problem.

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I was not aware of that about the torx screws vs rivets. If I ever decide to take the plunge on one I'll definitely keep that in mind. Good info. I will probably just save up for the SMF though.
 
ALLHSS said:
I sincerely regret buying my GEC Tidioute Sheepfoot Barlow. I bought it because I was getting into traditionals, I like smooth ivory bone, and I like barlows. I have never liked 1095 (sorry EVERYONE on this forum), but I thought "hey, it'll patina and be cool". Well, it came. It is a very aesthetically pleasing knife, but I don't buy knives purely for looks (I want use). It had literally no edge. So I tried to put one on it with ceramic rods. Took forever so I took it to a professional sharpener, he said he didn't wanna do it and I should send it in. Well I called and they said to send it in but since I tried to sharpen it I would probably have to pay (for their mistake). I literally haven't had time to get to a post office yet. Basically I have a knife with outdated materials and no edge that I could have used the money ($82 before sending it in to sharpen) from to buy an EXTREMELY high quality modern folder (think g10 and s30v) or fixed blade or like 10 high value traditionals (which I wouldn't be afraid to use and sharpen). But it sure is pretty! hopefully I can sell it for a reasonable price.
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Send it to me, and I will sharpen it for you (hopefully you did not screw it up trying too hard). I have never had a 1095 blade that took more than a few minutes to sharpen.


My gec's have all been well ground. Nothing outdated about 1095, and GEC does a great job with their heat treat.

Sharpens easy, and holds a decent edge. I'm on the opposite side. I love a good patina. Ugly, dark. My favorite knives were carbon steel used by my grandfather.







My most regretted purchase? A sword and battle axe set. I have never used them for cutting anything. But hey, they made a hell of a haloween costume for many years. The only reason I really regret them, is I had all the items in my cart to start making kydex sheaths. Press, Rivet arbor press, belt sander, etc, etc, etc. I would have been set up to start making all my own sheaths, and for family and friends etc.

I would have gotten a lot of use out of that set up, and frankly, saved money from buying custom kydex. (I do make my own leather sheaths, but some times I just want kydex, for canoeing, snow camping, wet weather, etc, etc).

Now, a poorly ground D2 blade can put up more fuss!
 
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I can't say that I still have one that I regret. My first liner-lock though, I imagine if it was in front of me I would re-think. A colt python, aluminum scales and a recurve blade. Don't know the steel, wasnt that great. Am kinda glad it got lost at a show. Made me move on to better things. After that, I picked up a cheap crkt and started saving for my firt emerson. That cqc7 was my first high quality knife and it started me on this quest for perfection. Now I carry a sebenza; hard to excuse any other purchase just yet, but gec is looking good to me.
 
Bigfattyt said:
Send it to me, and I will sharpen it for you (hopefully you did not screw it up trying too hard). I have never had a 1085 blade that took more than a few minutes to sharpen.


My gec's have all been well ground. Nothing outdated about 1095, and GEC does a great job with their heat treat.

Sharpens easy, and holds a decent edge. I'm on the opposite side. I love a good patina. Ugly, dark. My favorite knives were carbon steel used by my grandfather.
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I might take you up on that! Thank you for the offer. I don't think I would have hurt it, but I am no expert. I didn't use any power anything.

Oh and just to make sure I don't sound like I'm bashing traditions in general or GEC, I understand that not all GEC come dull and that 1095 is a good steel. I was and am pretty disappointed, and $82 is quite a purchase for me that I could have used towards other knives with which I am pretty sure I would have been more satisfied. I do understand that 1095 has its perks and that the knife was extremely well crafted and a beautiful piece.

I like patinas too. I was actually looking forward to working up a patina on it (one perk of 1095 for me, I guess I wrote that wrong).

Do you think maybe the person I spoke to assumed that I had used power sharpening and that is why they suggested I would most likely have to pay to have it redone?
 
ALLHSS said:
I might take you up on that! Thank you for the offer. I don't think I would have hurt it, but I am no expert. I didn't use any power anything.

Oh and just to make sure I don't sound like I'm bashing traditions in general or GEC, I understand that not all GEC come dull and that 1095 is a good steel. I was and am pretty disappointed, and $82 is quite a purchase for me that I could have used towards other knives with which I am pretty sure I would have been more satisfied. I do understand that 1095 has its perks and that the knife was extremely well crafted and a beautiful piece.

I like patinas too. I was actually looking forward to working up a patina on it (one perk of 1095 for me, I guess I wrote that wrong).

Do you think maybe the person I spoke to assumed that I had used power sharpening and that is why they suggested I would most likely have to pay to have it redone?
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People do horrible things to knives "sharpening them"

People own bench grinders, Dremmels, etc.


They probably are thinking they will get back a nub of a knife.


I sharpen with either sandpaper on a backing, or with my belt sander (I have a diamond stone but don't use it on my pretty knives much, except to break a corner on a pointy tang, or on my fishing knife etc.)

I don't think GEC will charge you if all it needs is a little sharpening. For me, the cost of shipping a knife means no knife will ever go back for sharpening. I can get my knives sharp enough to whittle hair, so no need to send them out.
 
I would have to say the sog trident folder, I paid $50 but it has unexcuseable blade play and because its also zytel only handles it feels flimsy, especially as fast as it opens, like its gonna fly apart or something. If sog put full steel liners in it I would really like it a lot, but blade play and flimsyness are a deal breaker for me, therefore it was kind of a waste of money because I dont use it. Also the pivot screw stripped when I tried loosening it to fix the blade play and blade in the handle centering so yeah
 
It's my kershaw blur. It's the AO knive that made me realize I just hate AO. Nothing wrong with the blur, just my lack of experience as a buyer at the time.
 
ALLHSS said:
I sincerely regret buying my GEC Tidioute Sheepfoot Barlow. I bought it because I was getting into traditionals, I like smooth ivory bone, and I like barlows. I have never liked 1095 (sorry EVERYONE on this forum), but I thought "hey, it'll patina and be cool". Well, it came. It is a very aesthetically pleasing knife, but I don't buy knives purely for looks (I want use). It had literally no edge. So I tried to put one on it with ceramic rods. Took forever so I took it to a professional sharpener, he said he didn't wanna do it and I should send it in. Well I called and they said to send it in but since I tried to sharpen it I would probably have to pay (for their mistake). I literally haven't had time to get to a post office yet. Basically I have a knife with outdated materials and no edge that I could have used the money ($82 before sending it in to sharpen) from to buy an EXTREMELY high quality modern folder (think g10 and s30v) or fixed blade or like 10 high value traditionals (which I wouldn't be afraid to use and sharpen). But it sure is pretty! hopefully I can sell it for a reasonable price.
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Brother, you just need to learn to sharpen properly. I have read time and again that GEC applies good edges, but this has not been my experience. I will say that I've only purchased one GEC so that's not exactly conclusive evidence to the contrary, but I'm not about to cry about their product. I love my one whittler and hope to own more one day, including a knife just like yours.

It's fairly typical that traditional folder makers sell a less than super sharp knife, but fortunately they also typically use steels (and blades) that are easy to sharpen, and take a killer edge. Your knife very much falls into that category.

It sounds like you may be in need of better sharpening equipment. A lot can be done with wet/dry sandpaper with a steel like 1095 though.

For an example of how I got mine absolutely razor sharp check the Carving Knife thread in the Workshop forum. It should be somewhere toward the end. Otherwise, shoot me an email or pm if you'd like advice on inexpensive sharpening equipment.

marcinek said:
The only reason to regret a "bad buy" is if you don't learn anything from it and continue to do it.

They are all learning experiences, man. :thumbup: No regrets.
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Could not agree more. I have bought a few knives that really never got much use because they turned out to be low quality or impractical, but they were all learning experiences.

The knives I would absolutely buy all over again is a long list though. Sebenza, Opinel, Southard and almost every Benchmade I've bought are all at the top.

Striders, most S&W's (from my early buying days), and some Spyderco and Kershaw knives probably not.
 
Spyderco Tenacious.
Sometimes I get nauseous thinking about how much cash I could've banked if it weren't for that blasted knife.
 
Strigamort said:
Brother, you just need to learn to sharpen properly. I have read time and again that GEC applies good edges, but this has not been my experience. I will say that I've only purchased one GEC so that's not exactly conclusive evidence to the contrary, but I'm not about to cry about their product. I love my one whittler and hope to own more one day, including a knife just like yours.

It's fairly typical that traditional folder makers sell a less than super sharp knife, but fortunately they also typically use steels (and blades) that are easy to sharpen, and take a killer edge. Your knife very much falls into that category.

It sounds like you may be in need of better sharpening equipment. A lot can be done with wet/dry sandpaper with a steel like 1095 though.

For an example of how I got mine absolutely razor sharp check the Carving Knife thread in the Workshop forum. It should be somewhere toward the end. Otherwise, shoot me an email or pm if you'd like advice on inexpensive sharpening equipment.
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I definitely do need to get better at sharpening, as I admit I am not an expert. An email will be headed your way soon. However, I have taken chips out of s30v with no problem and routinely sharpen steels with a reputation of being more difficult than 1095. Yes, I should be able to put an edge on it and use it, but I DEFINITELY shouldn't have to. In my opinion, putting a good edge on a knife is part of good knife making. If a knife doesn't come with an edge it either is a poorly made knife or is meant to be a collector's piece, again this is just my experience. This knife is definitely not poorly made (I can recognize that it is supreme quality). If the description of this knife had designated it as a collector's piece with an unsharpened edge I would not have bought it. The additional time I have eput into this knife puts it well above the $100 mark. This is compounded by the fact that you can get a Kershaw for half the price that will come pretty darn sharp, a Spyderco for quite a bit less that will come just stupid sharp, and a Benchmade for around the same price that will come pretty darn sharp too.

So I know this is a knife of very high quality, it's just definitely not worth the money and time put into it when I consider what I could have gotten.
 
Bigfattyt said:
I sharpen with either sandpaper on a backing, or with my belt sander (I have a diamond stone but don't use it on my pretty knives much, except to break a corner on a pointy tang, or on my fishing knife etc.)

I don't think GEC will charge you if all it needs is a little sharpening. For me, the cost of shipping a knife means no knife will ever go back for sharpening. I can get my knives sharp enough to whittle hair, so no need to send them out.
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I have been wanting to try sand paper. Would a home improvement type store have high enough grit?

IOne of the reasons I bought the knife is because it is made near me, so shipping shouldn't be too bad.
 
I own several knives that in retrospect were a waste of money, if that's what you mean. Most useless knife was a Gerber Mark II Survival knife that I bought in the late 70s when I was in college. Silly thing to own.
 
I think I'm rather lucky, because out of hundreds of knives there are only a couple that I regret buying. I've had my fair share of disappointments, but I managed to sell, trade or give away most of those and kept only the knives I really like.

For example, a few weeks ago I saw a Spyderco Remote Release at a gun shop. I bought it just because it was a discontinued Spydie at a good price. I almost immediately knew I wouldn't use it, I kept it in the box and gave it to a friend for his birthday. He loves everything I didn't like about it.

There are two Queen folders that I absolutely regret buying. They are beautifully made knives, one is Schatt & Morgan from their File and Wire series, and the other is the RAT stockman. Fit and finish is top notch, but the blades had no edge. Returning them is not an option because I live thousands of miles away. I never bought another Queen knife again. I'm a good sharpener, but these knives needed grinding not sharpening. I boguth them a few years ago, and spent around $80 on each of them. I stick to Case CV knives for my slipjoint needs now.
 
Thursday45 said:
I regret not picking up a Buck Strider while they were being produced and around $50.... Or several of them.
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I did, the 420 with FRN grips. Worst knife ever. The G10 and high alloy versions at $100 were the bargains, the $50 ones might as well be made in Pakistan for export because even they know trash when they make it.

Buck went too far with a value reengineering, all they had to do was make a reliable lock up, what they did was make the best example of how to do it wrong ever. The liner is too thin, and the leaf is so short it has too much angle - which isn't helped by the shallow match up with the lock cutout on the blade. The leaf is another piece of stainless, which gets polished meeting the stainless blade, not galled which actually helps lockup. The blade is mounted on loose washers, the result is a blade that wobbles, working the liner out of engagement so that it closes on your fingers. In profile it only looks like a Strider - the extra martial stippling on the upper edge of the blade for fast one hand gravity opening just hangs up in a cut, the FRN scales will saw a slot in your jeans with the extremely sharp checkering. It's riveted - it will loosen up and you can't do anything about it. It lacks the G10 and titanium framelock of the original - which is like getting a Fiesta chassis with a Cobra body kit. All show and no go.

Worst ripoff copy ever, even more so because it was "authorized." Once this knockoff hit the market, the desire to make one like it overseas never went further, Nothing like it ever showed up on our shores, even the Chinese and Korean knockoff makers have some sense of right and wrong. They make knockoffs of the framelock, not something like this.

$50 for a 420 blade and riveted FRN handles? Got to say, I could have gotten a Griptillian and every penny spent would be worth it in comparison.
 
I have come to regret pretty much every purchase of large tacticool knives. Large tacticool does not do it for me in real world use...
 
tirod3 said:
I did, the 420 with FRN grips. Worst knife ever. The G10 and high alloy versions at $100 were the bargains, the $50 ones might as well be made in Pakistan for export because even they know trash when they make it.

Buck went too far with a value reengineering, all they had to do was make a reliable lock up, what they did was make the best example of how to do it wrong ever. The liner is too thin, and the leaf is so short it has too much angle - which isn't helped by the shallow match up with the lock cutout on the blade. The leaf is another piece of stainless, which gets polished meeting the stainless blade, not galled which actually helps lockup. The blade is mounted on loose washers, the result is a blade that wobbles, working the liner out of engagement so that it closes on your fingers. In profile it only looks like a Strider - the extra martial stippling on the upper edge of the blade for fast one hand gravity opening just hangs up in a cut, the FRN scales will saw a slot in your jeans with the extremely sharp checkering. It's riveted - it will loosen up and you can't do anything about it. It lacks the G10 and titanium framelock of the original - which is like getting a Fiesta chassis with a Cobra body kit. All show and no go.

Worst ripoff copy ever, even more so because it was "authorized." Once this knockoff hit the market, the desire to make one like it overseas never went further, Nothing like it ever showed up on our shores, even the Chinese and Korean knockoff makers have some sense of right and wrong. They make knockoffs of the framelock, not something like this.

$50 for a 420 blade and riveted FRN handles? Got to say, I could have gotten a Griptillian and every penny spent would be worth it in comparison.
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only thing is you take your chances with the axis lock on the griptilian.
 
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