OMG: The National Knife Museum Commentary

The Museum used to be in Chattanooga.

It is now located "up the road" in Severville TN.
 
tell 'em how much the current museum inventory is worth; and i'm sure there will be a renewed interest and a healthy respect for the old slip joints...
 
The value of the museum's inventory doesn't really mean that much to me. And I don't have anything AGAINST slip joints. I just don't care for them as much as I do fixed-blade knives and folders that contain locking mechanisms. And when it comes to those preferences, my guess is that I've got lots and lots of company.
 
Well, I for one, am very glad that they(SMKW)are there for us common people. You see, I dont give a rats a** how they talk. I am sure I sound wierd to some folks, when I speak. I stop there every time I am Smoky Mountain bound. I value them for what they are. I always learn a little something when talking to the reps in the store and listening to Knives Live TV. These are good people who seem willing to answer any question I throw at them. Remember, this is a business first! Sorry for the rant. Just had to....
 
grins000 said:
Remember, this is a business first!
Click to expand...
Don't get me wrong. I'm also very glad they're in operation. Some of the best knife values I've ever gotten have come from Knives Live/SMKW. And my DISH Dual DVR makes the Knives Live hosts' "interpretation" of the English language bearable for me. You see, I record their broadcasts in real time on my second TV channel while I watch other programming on my first TV channel. Then every 15 minutes or so, I switch to the DVR and fast forward through their broadcasts until I see something that looks interesting to me. That way I hardly have to listen to them at all. And I've never missed scoring a knife I wanted, either. I just wish they'd give me a reason to slow down the replay more often.

Where there's a will . . . :)

.
 
Last edited:
If you're going to use my DVR technique with Knives Live, there's a risk and a trick you need to know. The risk is that sometimes, the Knives Live hosts will run a discount on multiple knife purchases that doesn't show up on the screen. That pretty much only happens on their low end knives, however. Second, the hosts will occasionally give shipping discounts that don't appear on the screen. The trick is, whenever you call in to purchase a knife, ALWAYS ask the operators if there are any shipping discounts or special offers (gifts with purchase) in effect.

Happy hunting. :thumbup: :D
 
I don't know how much merit should be given to this, but the new catalog had a small selection of Spydercos for sale, with a tagline that read "due to overwhelming requests from our customers, we have started selling Spyderco products again". Not a direct quote, but something similar. I for one thought they always sold Spydercos. Maybe just not in their catalogs. Somethings come up from time to time that really interest me. My buddy and I used to watch the Friday night knife show from time to time, and they sometimes had good stuff on there. I would really like to visit there one day, and pick up some of the good stuff they have. A buddy of mine is going to be going to the Cherokee reservation, and needs a copilot. We will make a day of it at SMKW. This trip has been in the works for several years now, so we'll see ;).
 
I Became a Life Member of the NKCA in 1984...at the time it was the world's largest knife organization in the World. I think membership topped out at about 18,000 members.

They had numerous shows through out the year. I used to attend about 8 NKCA shows a year.

While it primarily started out as a factory knife oriented organization. In the late 1980's Bob Cargill became President and I believe Doug Casteel was the VP...and eventually became the President.

The organization really grew...as the aging factory knife collectors were being supplemented by the custom knife makers, dealers and collectors joining the organization.

Unfortunately, there was a change in leadership that wanted the NKCA to refocus on the older factory knives. That was the beginning of the end for the NKCA.

Now the NKCA is trying to comeback. Perry Miller is now the President. Perry has been around for at least 20 years. He is a Randall Expert and is very knowledgeable about custom knives and other factory knives. He is fortunate to have Lisa Davis Sebenick helping to run the business aspects. Lisa has been around for at least 25 years helping the NKCA.

I think we can all agree that we can use more organizations promoting knives. The NKCA has a long history of doing just that.

Hi Sidehill...thank you for your kind words!
 
I was there 2 weeks ago and spent about three hours looking around. I enjoyed it a great deal even though I don't collect slipjoints and have no interest in fantasy knives or the crappy stuff they sell. But then again I don't collect dinosaur bones but still enjoy a trip to the Smithsonian every now and then. I ended up spending over a $100. $10 on a Kershaw OD-2 and the rest on mostly Victorinox Kitchen knives.

The week before I visited New Graham and the knives there were much more interesting to me.
 
If you do not like anything about it start one your self in your back yard.You build it and see if they come.
 
Balislinger said:
But I've been a knife collector for close to a decade and know most of the manufacturers.
Click to expand...

Ok, so you didn't like what you saw, you're entitled to that. I don't doubt that the whole operation needs to be at least somewhat updated to include the tactical super knives of today. Then it would be an even better, more up to date, representation of our shared USA knife history.

Up till the mid 90's, before the widespread internet and prior to Benchmade, Spyderco and such gaining center stage, those classic pocketknives (slipjoints - never heard that term till the internet) were what there was. Custom makers were operating but they were rare and few were making folders.

As far as your quote above I guess it's Ok if you don't give any kind of a nod to the 10's of thousands of knife nuts and collectors who were in it for decades before you came along, bought those knives, supported the companies, created the demand, fueled the research and developement and helped pave the way for all the awesome stuff we have now.
 
Balislinger said:
Hey guys, had time to drop by our National Knife Museum in Tennessee this past week, and also wandered around the Smoky Mtn store for a good while. Both the museum and the store are located in a huge 20,000 sq ft building that is for sure the biggest knife store in the country. Here are my thoughts, I'm curious to know yours, even if it's just in reaction to my reaction.

First off, I thought the museum was really unimpressive. Maybe it's because it seems focused on slipjoints, peanuts, Case, etc and I don't do those types of knives, so maybe I just don't get how awesome their collection is. But I've been a knife collector for close to a decade and know most of the manufacturers. They had knives in display cases in this "museum" I wouldn't even consider purchasing. The customs section was way too small and not very historical in terms of the important custom makers than have contributed to the history of cutlery in our country. The museum collection just seemed sub-par, small in size, and lacking a true timeline of how knives have developed in this country (how custom makers have contributed to innovations of design and technology). I would classify the "museum" more as a nice private collection of vintage slipjoints with some other odd and ends thrown in for good measure, but nothing serious or impressive. Now, again, maybe I missed stuff, a did walk through it rather quickly, but I was expecting much more out of a "National Knife Museum."
Don't get me wrong though, I'm real glad it's there and hopefully developing.

As for the store, I thought it was also pretty lacking. They had the standard fare from the mid-grade manufacturers, some but not alot of selection from the better makes, no customs, and a very sorry antique and hard-to-find knives section. Second-hand product was extremely limited. Accessories like sheaths and such were sub-par. Prices were good and staff was friendly, but there's no official in-store education on how to evaluate a knife, for example, the difference between their Kershaw and their United Cutlery fantasy knives sections.

Am I riding these places too hard? I mean, as a collector who hangs out on this forum, maybe I've just become too much of a knife snob. But dang, c'mon, "National Knife Museum" and "Largest Knife Store in the Country," it's even billed as a "Destination for Knife Enthusiasts." Shoot, I know many private collections that put the museum to shame, many stores cooler and more progressive than this one, many purveyors who stay on top of the market and showcase the work of real artisans, and "destinations," like shows, that provide alot more in the way of education. I guess I was expecting a whole lot more from the mecca of knives in the U.S. Made me kind of sad, but also helped me to realize that we can get waayyy more into knives on this forum than even the general retail and collector sectors of the hobby venture into much.

Your thoughts?
Click to expand...

I agree with your assessment. When I saw it I was disappointed as well, not only as a knife collector, but as a museum goer as well. For a museum, it was poorly organized from a historical and informational standpoint. Way too random to get a good historical viewpoint. I suspect that they do not have a professional curator on staff, and I am sure that they have thousands more knives available that they do not even have on display. They need someone like A.G. Russell to use his knowledge, along with a professional museum curator to get it right! :) As far as the SMKW's store, it was the first time that I ever went in a knife store, and came out without a purchase. For a second, I thought I walked into a Cracker Barrel restaurant. Overall, I was disappointed with both.
 
To me SMKW's value is in their buying power. When manufacturer's or dealers go broke or decide to sell their overstock/closeouts, SMKW is there to scoop up their inventories. Every once in awhile, they buy up inventories of knives I'm interested in. That doesn't happen very often. But when it does, SMKW's resale prices are practically unbeatable.

I have almost no interest in visiting SMKW or the National Knife Museum. But I do have a very selfish interest in keeping SMKW alive. So I'm all for them selling slippies and housing disorganized museums if that helps them maintain their cash flow and profitability.

Last but not least, there's no possible way SMKW could cover the production costs of Knives Live if they weren't selling slippies by the boatload. I suspect FAR more slippies are being purchased by Knives Live customers than non-slippies are being purchased by those of us who frequent this forum.

.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top