Opinion Needed on Whether to Get a Knife Maker/Seller Membership

D

dzlvs8

Joined
Jun 13, 2013
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I have been debating for a few months now on whether to invest the money in a knife makers seller membership. I don't have too many knives yet, but I will soon. I am looking for some honest opinions on how much I should expect to get out of pieces like what I have. I am moving on to 154CM shortly, but all my past work is just with 1080 steel and I still have a lot left to use. I have linked some videos to give you an idea of my work. I put a pretty high finish on my items, but on most of my pieces (espeicially the earlier ones) there is something that lets you know that the knife didn't come from a factory. Most of my knives are still the slightest bit hokey near the ricaso by the edge. Once in a while there may be a flaw somewhere on the blade too. The flaws don't seem to occur much on my knives now, but it's stressful to try to make something perfect. So, lets just assume every knife has some sort of telltale sign that lets you know it's not from a factory. :/ Those are the ones I can deal with parting with right now anyway.

So how much could these knives honestly go for in the videos? $25, $50, $75, $100, $125, $175? ...or will people just not be interested in these at all because of the imperfections. All of these prices could be possibilities to me. I really have no idea. So far I have just sold one knife for $75. (Please note the final pic of the Bigfoot. The pics throught the video were taken while work was in progress (see ricaso)). Please be honest, not unnecessarily mean, but honest.

FYI - Most of my knives are small and pocket friendly.
[video=youtube;Ho1TOiFT69Q]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ho1TOiFT69Q[/video]


[video=youtube;vM0CQvd_fQc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vM0CQvd_fQc[/video]


[video=youtube;lVy4EJJLlRI]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVy4EJJLlRI[/video]
 
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Most people find a Knifemaker membership will get paid for in the first sale in The Exchange.
 
bladsmth said:
Most people find a Knifemaker membership will get paid for in the first sale in The Exchange.
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Yeeeeah, but my knives don't look anything like yours! I know your knives have a lot more value than mine, but I guess another question I was concerned with was, is there a market for custom knives that look, "pretty good" and are of 1080? I would think that maybe the pocketable EDCs would hold some interest because there just aren't a whole lot out there (unless you go high $$$ custom).
 
Hi mate, as someone who has been here before, the forum has rules about "how much is this worth" questions you better have a look at em. My advice is go to the exchange section and look at other makes knives that are simpler to yours. This should give you an idea on what you could get for your work. Ultimately its up to you what you think your work is worth, and if its worth getting a membership or not. I will be if I ever get enough stock to sell.
 
LP Mac said:
Hi mate, as someone who has been here before, the forum has rules about "how much is this worth" questions you better have a look at em. My advice is go to the exchange section and look at other makes knives that are simpler to yours. This should give you an idea on what you could get for your work. Ultimately its up to you what you think your work is worth, and if its worth getting a membership or not. I will be if I ever get enough stock to sell.
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Ok. So, is there a market for custom knives that look, "pretty good" and are of 1080?
 
short answer yes as long as the are priced accordingly. I have seen newer guys with knives in 1080, 1084, 1090 and manage to sale them but they keep the prices down. there are people on here who will buy a knife from a newer maker to help them out of to see what the new guy on the market can do as long as the aren't charging the prices of the established guys.
 
Hmm. Taking a look at what I see on the forums. There are some pretty nice knives out there for sale. Some even seem like a steal at close to $200! I've also seen what looks to be a very similar knife sell for under $100. I know I wouldn't want o charge anyone $100 or more for my knives. but dang, if I didn't make my own blades, I would pick up some of those $200 ones and feel mighty happy!
 
My plan is to get things to a point where I'm happy with the quality, have a good inventory built up, and then buy a membership. As Stacy said, your first sale or two should pay for the membership. I'm constantly looking at knives in the knifemaker exchange to get an idea of pricing. The problem is that there are a lot of good makers on here and I feel like a good few of them price their knives for a lot less than what they're worth. It's great for buyers but you really gotta have your shit together if you're gonna make the jump and start selling.
 
A point a lot of new makers overlook is that, while this is the biggest and most active knife forum, there are also others where you can post a knife, don't overlook them or other avenues. Last summer I loaded up with simple hunters priced at $80 ea, and went to the local flea market. I walked away with a goodly sum. There's lots of ways to sell your work, BF is one of the most competitive places, and makers are bumping into each other trying to sell their work. But, with all that said, if you are serious, you need to jump in, you're quality will improve, as will materials and sales.
 
Even if you don't sell them the membership is some of the best money you can spend... but you can sell those too! Nice work...
 
In my opinion it'd be worth getting the membership. I am looking at taking the plunge in a month or two. I have around 60 knives in process right now, and will be looking forward to getting feedback and hopefully selling many of them on the forums.

While my designs and materials are different than yours, I believe the forums are full of a very diverse crowd, and your designs (as well as mine I hope) should be well received.

Here are a couple from my last run, I learned a lot from that dozen knives.
14688611024_d509229ec2_b.jpg
 
Interference Fit Co. said:
In my opinion it'd be worth getting the membership. I am looking at taking the plunge in a month or two. I have around 60 knives in process right now, and will be looking forward to getting feedback and hopefully selling many of them on the forums.

While my designs and materials are different than yours, I believe the forums are full of a very diverse crowd, and your designs (as well as mine I hope) should be well received.

Here are a couple from my last run, I learned a lot from that dozen knives.
14688611024_d509229ec2_b.jpg
Click to expand...
Yeah, your knives are way better than mine. I have no where near 60 of them! I've only made 8 knives so far and am already thinking I need to thin the heard! I don't know what's taken you so long to start selling yours. Even if you sell them for five bucks a piece, its worth it. Because you don't need 60 of your own knives. Yours are nice, btw. I am curious of how you do the deep engravings on your blades?
 
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duplicate post. the forums functionality is like half asleep or something today.
 
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The 60 are in process, one run. I have around 15 complete with the all sold but my first in each design. As far as selling price, I assure you I will be asking more than $5. I make Kydex sheathes for all my knives, and the tec-loc clips run me $9 each for the large knives. :)

I etch using a 5 amp variable DC power supply. Usually set between 9-14 volts with a fair number of hits with the etching pad. I like the subtlety of the grey etch, so I only do DC and I do it before blasting.
 
Interference Fit Co. said:
In my opinion it'd be worth getting the membership. I am looking at taking the plunge in a month or two. I have around 60 knives in process right now, and will be looking forward to getting feedback and hopefully selling many of them on the forums.

While my designs and materials are different than yours, I believe the forums are full of a very diverse crowd, and your designs (as well as mine I hope) should be well received.

Here are a couple from my last run, I learned a lot from that dozen knives.
14688611024_d509229ec2_b.jpg
Click to expand...

Finger loop looks like it's independent from the tang/blade. Was that added in as a separate piece or is it part of the tang? If added, how so?

Nice knives
 
creature7 said:
Finger loop looks like it's independent from the tang/blade. Was that added in as a separate piece or is it part of the tang? If added, how so?

Nice knives
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Thanks, I'd go into detail here, but I'm afraid I've already derailed the OP's thread too much already. Let's talk about his knives.
 
Yep, it should pay for itself quickly.

Determining how effective the membership is by looking at others can be deceiving. The majority of my transactions happen because I got a pm or email. I've also had non members order just from seeing my work on Google images.

I don't know that there is a better or even comparable sales strategy. As long as I'm making something I'll have a membership for sure.
 
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