Nice knives cost too much?

I care what a knife costs I am not made of money but I will pay whatever it takes to get what I want. there is value at both ends of the price scheme. Shoot I have a small custom fixed blade in the works for 350ish bucks. will it be better than a becker necker or rat izula? well yes and no both will do the job but this one fits the bill of what I am looking for.
 
Do I think that the nicest knives are the most expensive? Yes. I also think the nicest cars, watches, guns, clothes, and living quarters are the most expensive. They're also worth it.


very good point
 
monger4142 said:
For a production knife with similar specs to the sebenza you will pay $250-$300 (s30v, ti frame lock, etc)

Sebenza fit and finish is much better, and the knife holds its value very well. an extra ~$85 for a sebenza is nothing, considering what you get.
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Not really, I just got a Spyderco Titanium Military for a little over $200. A large sebbie would cost around $400-$500 new. To me, a Sebenza isn't 2-2.5 times better than a titanium Millie.
 
Reeper22 said:
Not really, I just got a Spyderco Titanium Military for a little over $200. A large sebbie would cost around $400-$500 new. To me, a Sebenza isn't 2-2.5 times better than a titanium Millie.
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Exactly, and that's the problem for most people. You pay twice as much for those last drops of quality you can squeeze out. Of course, it IS a better quality, but whether it is worth that is completely up to an individual. This is not a topic you can argue about.

I have an Ontario RAT1, it cost me $25 because I got it second hand (brand new, though). It is infinitely more satisfying FOR ME to have this fine knife for a great price, than it is to have a 'slightly more' fine knife for 15 times the price.
 
Which brings me back to the way I buy knives. For me, it's far more challenging to set a spending limit (in my case, $200 for a fixed blade and $100 for a folder) and work on squeezing out ever last ounce of quality I can than it is to, as you put it, pay twice as much for those last drops of quality. Anybody can buy a great knife if they're willing to spend beaucoup bucks on it. But learning how to buy the very best knife you can while keeping within a budget is an art.
 
Life is short. My only hobby is knife buying and collecting. I could be buying and collecting vintage cars or motorcycles. All my knife purchases added together wouldn't buy me the first car or m/c.

If I went on annual gambling trips to Vegas I would lose more in one trip than I have spent all my life on knives.

My knives have resale value - granted it may not be as much as I paid for them, but they do have value.

I say buy what you like. As long as you stay within your respective limits go for it.

Just make sure you get value for your purchase - whether it's great fit and finish, great resale value or extreme pleasure.

Yes, I'll say it again - life is short.
 
Reeper22 said:
Not really, I just got a Spyderco Titanium Military for a little over $200. A large sebbie would cost around $400-$500 new. To me, a Sebenza isn't 2-2.5 times better than a titanium Millie.
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for the record, a large sebenza costs $385. just sayin, and you could have probably found a nice used one for less.
 
USCGGM said:
But still...my only idea would be labor costs and volume sales, i.e. they sell far more Glocks than Sebenzas. That, and supply and demand...people are just willing to pay that much, whether it is worth it or not. At least that is my take on his question.
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Labor costs, sales volumes, supply and demand - any one of those things can account for the price.

I suspect that primarily the biggest difference is the production line manufacture of the Glocks which makes a considerable difference to the price of producing one. Without a high enough sales volume you just can't get the mass production needed to bring the price down.
 
They do and they don't. You can make this same statement about any luxury or collectible item. Part of the reason is limited production, part is cachet, and part is demand.

They do cost too much: Could Chris sell a Sebenza for less, absolutely. Does he need to, no.

They don't cost too much: It takes money to toss a knife with a minor flaw, to offer an unlimited warranty, or to get a knife ground by the guy who designed it. None of the cheaper alternatives offer that.

The funny thing is how relative it all is. When you have $10 the $50 knife seems excessive. When you have $50 the $100 seems excessive. And so on.
 
Life is short, so today I carried and used this...

IMG_3956.jpg


I wish it was cheaper then the $800 it cost, but whatever... I wanted it, so I got it :D
 
Yeah you bet nice stuff is expensive, if it wasn't, then it'd be already sold before you ever got to it.

I had a lot of knives (ok not a lot by some of your standards) but was I using all of them, no. So I figured why keep on adding new and new blades, maybe I should save up and buy one good one. that was few years ago now I bought and traded my way up to $630 knife with $130 custom sheath for it. Is the combo over prised for what it is? I don't know, all I know is that I love it, and I didn't pay that much for it. And I don't regret giving up those old blades of mine. I'd rather have this one knives then my old ones. And another thing about the expencive knives, I can right now go put it up for sale and it'll be gone within a week.
Not to mention the kind of warranty you get when you buy these kind of knives, you break one get a new one hustle free.
 
USCGGM said:
maybe I am reading this a little different but I think I see his point...why does a Sebenza cost just as much as a Glock (granted, with the LE discount)? I walked out of my local gun store a year ago with a Glock 19 with 3 mags for around $480 with tax! One would have a hard time claiming there is more engineering, raw material
and production costs in a Sebenza than a Glock. A Glock has 34 parts to engineer, machine and finish. I know, a Glock is not made of titanium. But still...my only idea would be labor costs and volume sales, i.e. they sell far more Glocks than Sebenzas. That, and supply and demand...people are just willing to pay that much, whether it is worth it or not. At least that is my take on his question.
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Why does a Glock cost so much , after all , 1/2 of it is plastic ;)
Plus mass production of the Glock parts brings the price down
 
Sounds like OP has never tried an Opinel before... Or good Victorinox (some nice pioneer model with alox handles or alox soldier) :D
 
I think people are always going to come up with some justification for buying what it is they want regardless of the cost. Luckily for me, most knives I lust after are under $ 300 or so. I also usually have enough faith in my aesthetic choices that I'll buy what I like regardless of what others say.
For example; I'm not at all attracted to Sebenzas, although I should be, according to all the praise those knives get on this forum. I like my six Emerson folders way more [not that they're cheap either] and I also like my [don't faint you guys] CS folders more, including my Spartan which I bought for considerably less than $100.
Still ,I'm not immune to exorbitant impulses; I have days when I think I just HAVE to have the CS Natchez Bowie.[$500 Canadian in my local knife store]
 
Yes, 300 USD maximum for a folder at MSRP is a limit which I don't intend to break for production knives.

I can get really good folders within this self-imposed limit barring certain gentleman knives and the Sebenza.

This limit also makes me think long and hard about which folder to get as I intend to keep and use every expensive folder for as long as possible.
 
The gun/knife cost comparison is interesting. From a value stand point I believe the gun to be a better value. I would rather spend $400 on a lower end RIA .45 than a knife at the same price. Not to say I don't like higher end knives, I have them, but really how good can a knife get. At some point they become art and safe queens which nobody but the owner can put a price on which keeps the house of cards standing. I've run this same gauntlet with everything from cameras to stereo equipment and it's the same but knives are a pretty one dimensional tool. Make your own and get off the consumerism materialistic merry go round.
 
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