Online purchase vs In person purchase

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pogo

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I recently ordered knives online. I have done this many times before without any major problems. My last order was for three knives that came pretty dull. I emailed the company and their response was: " we cannot check for sharpness of every knife we ship ". I think this is a lame excuse & will not order from them again. In all fairness they said ship them back for replacements but, wait a minute..they said they dont check em anyway so why bother plus the expense to ship them back! If I purchase knives at a retail outlet at least I can check them first for problems & have the important option of not buying them. What does everyone think? :confused:
 
In person purchase defenitely has more advantage than purchasing knives online. You get to check the knife already for defects ( if any ) :eek:

However, online purchase is more convenient. The good gets delivered on your door steps. You just have to be more picky on the online merchant. If it is a reputable one I guess you won't have any problem :D
 
So far I've had NO problems with on-line ordering, but I always ordered from the same company and I only order knives that I can't get locally at a store, and all I've ordered have been Spyderco and they are know for great QC. However I do much prefer buying in a store and getting to examine a knife before paying for it. Believe it or not where I live Spydercos and Benchmades, and anything else anything non-Case, Buck, Gerber, or Victorinox are hard to come by.
 
These guys are supposed to be reputable as they are in the top four online suppliers. I do not want to name the company for a fear of being taken to court. I think if I was in this business, I would check every knife before I ship it out. I guess I would go broke though, as I am too honost to ship crap! :)
 
It's a tough call for all of us these days. The knife dealers that were local for 'hands on buying' have long closed their doors in my area so the only way is to buy on line with good knives anyway. There is a dealer in the mall if you want China and Taiwan made crap. I wouldn't mind so much if the ones he had were the decent ones from those places but what he sells is anything but decent.

I loved it when I could examine what I wanted and all examples of it before buying and I still do that at Wal-Mart but I rarely find anything I like there anymore. I did buy a Kershaw or two there in the past this way but I am not a big fan of the 420HC or 440A steels so that is really not the ones that count in my book.

I'd love to have a local Spyderco dealer but there is nothing close to me. For me I just deal with places I trust. I've never bought a bad knife from Fred at the knife outlet and/or new graham and both are members here so, as long as guys like that are around I'll give them my business because they take care of me.
 
Yep...I hear you STR! The ones you listed were not the one I ordered from as they are another major player. I will consider ordering from them in the future. I have heard good comments about both but, didnt take note of it until now!
STR said:
It's a tough call for all of us these days. The knife dealers that were local for 'hands on buying' have long closed their doors in my area so the only way is to buy on line with good knives anyway. There is a dealer in the mall if you want China and Taiwan made crap. I wouldn't mind so much if the ones he had were the decent ones from those places but what he sells is anything but decent.

I loved it when I could examine what I wanted and all examples of it before buying and I still do that at Wal-Mart but I rarely find anything I like there anymore. I did buy a Kershaw or two there in the past this way but I am not a big fan of the 420HC or 440A steels so that is really not the ones that count in my book.

I'd love to have a local Spyderco dealer but there is nothing close to me. For me I just deal with places I trust. I've never bought a bad knife from Fred at the knife outlet and/or new graham and both are members here so, as long as guys like that are around I'll give them my business because they take care of me.
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I order online when it's inconvenient or I can't easily get a knife locally. I used to save a few bucks by going stateside, but after I got a couple seized, I've been staying to Canadian suppliers or buying locally and biting the bullet on the extra bucks. Haven't really had any problems with anyone I've dealt with online, but have had experiences where the dealer would not tighten the pivots before shipping. I'm at the point in my collection, that I'm getting stuff that I know that I'm going to use. Not so impulsive - sort of ;) Nice thing about local purchase - no waiting :D

- gord
 
I do not even consider the factory edge when I purchase a knife. They are never sharp enough and I do not trust the integrity/strength of an edge unless I know exactly how it has been created. The first thing I do with a new knife is completely strip off the factory edge and get it really sharp. The thing that has been a problem for me is the fit of locking mechanisms on locking folders. When I buy a knife I like to check that the lock engages as deep as it should and doesn't start to creap out of engagement under presure. I also like to check that the blade doesn't have excessive play when it is open. I have only had one knife arrive with lock problems. I was surprised that the manufacturer shipped it.
 
pogo said:
These guys are supposed to be reputable as they are in the top four online suppliers. I do not want to name the company for a fear of being taken to court.
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I don't think you have anything to worry about there. I'd say retailers have better things to do than sue their customers unless the circumstances are extreme. Besides, it ain't libel if it's true, right?

Chris
 
I have the luxury of one the top knife stores about 30 miles away. By top I mean quailty not quantity. If I am after something special I will go there. Typically pay a lot more at the store but on the flip side can usually take the best of 3 or so in stock so it is worth it to me to be able to look them over real good as I usually buy bone or wood handles.
 
I'm a small time dealer. I check everything when it comes in from the supplier/maker and when it goes out to a customer. That being said, if I had to deal with hundreds of orders a day I dont think I could cope, although a quick check would be possible as they come into stock. This makes more sense too as its easier then to send them back in one package.

The top and bottom is, not everyone cares as much about your stuff as you do. I have been appauled with the stuff that has slipped past the so called 'QC' inspection. I dont check particularly for a razor edge, but F&F, blade lock and grinds are the main points I look into.
 
I have had this problem before but it was usually with lower end knives. I have never had it happen when ordering quality higher end knives.
 
I probably buy 90% of my knives (and a lot of other stuff too) online. I am very much in favor of online purchasing. You simply can not beat the prices, selection or convenience. I live in a major U.S city and would still not be able to own half the knives I have owned if I limitted myself to local retailers only. I deal with the same online knife vendors almost all the time. I order almost all of my knives (so far anyway) from either www.knifecenter.com, www.ragweedforge.com, or www.truenorthknives.com. I have received 100% top-notch excellent service from each of them. I would love to see the members of this forum compile a list of top-notch online sellers so that we can all benefit from their services without having to risk running in to a bad seller in order to find the good ones. I am sorry for your bad experience. I wish you luck in the future. As for me I will continue to buy online and do my best to research new vendors in advance of first purchase a thoroughly as I can. That being said. A lot of knives come less than sharp from their manufacturers and the vendors really can't be blamed.
 
Very few, if any knives, have ever come sharp enough from the factory to suit me. With the very rare exception, the first thing I do when I rec'v a knife in the mail (or UPS) is to sharpen it.

Unless the grind is off I don't give a new knife that is less than sharp a second thought-and if the grind was off I would ship it back to the factory instead of the dealer.
 
Same here... With the exception of CRK almost all of my new knives get sharpened as soon as I receive them. I think I'm a lot pickier than the average knife buyer though when it comes to sharpness. Shaving is not enough. I like for the hairs to jump off of my arm and run across the room then hide behind the couch for fear of being cut again. :D
 
A lot of people are not confident in their sharpening skills and expect a good edge. On the other hand, it's important to learn in the event you use your knives. The edge starts to fade and needs to be maintained or restored.
 
I definitely prefer to order online. Better selection, better service, and better prices. Of course there's the chance you're going to get a bummer in the mail once in a while. Probably the same chance as getting a dud in a retail store.

The question is moot for me anyway. The only stores that carry knives here are ACE, K-Mart, and a poor sporting goods store. Crappy selection, crappy knivs, crappy service.

-Bob
 
When i was younger, ok a fair bit younger... :)

There were 4 hunting good stores on one main avenue, now there are sporting good dealers all over, of course they only carry sports related items and camping gear if you hit a larger vendor.

Not one Hunting good dealer left,we now have gun ranges and a solo knife dealer, that dapples in hi end, but not much nor enough, oh an a couple surplus dealers that are a bit higher priced.

Looks like online is a savoir for me, Now i fear only the dreaded border and related shipping woes between my closest and best neighboring country.

WR
 
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