Pakistani Randall "clones"

[Olumin]

Ive come across a lot of these over the last few days on the bay. Many of them just use pictures of real Randalls in their listings, often with the stamp badly covered up or using very low res images. Some don't bother to hide it at all. They usually claim to be made of D2. Most of them are in the 50-$80 price range. You can easily find them by using search words like "custom", "handmade", "D2" followed by stag, leather or micarta. I'd imagine they're all made by the same company, since the same "knives" are listed by several different sellers.

Has anyone here ever ordered one of these? I'm curious as to what one actually would receive. A bad copy on the knife shown, or something else entirely? Could they actually be made of D2, or some other mystery steel? Ive seen some Pakistani fixed blades that look pretty decent for the money. If these "clones" at least try to resemble anything like the real deal it might be worth ordering one just out of curiosity.

If any of you own one of these blades, pictures would be highly appreciated. For research purposes...

 

[eveled]

Don’t do it.

 

[Olumin]

Don’t do it.

Don’t worry. But I simply have to know if someone here has taken that bullet.

 

[Arathol]

Fake Randall with fake D2 and fake heat treatment. What could possibly go wrong there?

 

[Olumin]

Some of those listings show knives which are clearly clones, meaning not doctored actual Randalls. I'm just curious to hear what the quality is actually like for $50. Id imagine someone here must've bought one at some point.

 

[eveled]

I doubt you’ll get your money’s worth. In the long run a Randall is a better deal. Just bite the bullet. Put the $50 down design your knife and wait the 5 years. I wish I had done it sooner.

 

[MolokaiRider]

I regrettably own a few IPak (CKF) knives. They are Pakistan made.

Fit and finish is poor, steel rusts when looking at it cross-eyed, very poor edge holding ability, and zero sheath retention in sheaths sewn lop-sided.

About 80 to 100 bucks each, and 100% regret on the purchases.

 

[Olumin]

I doubt you’ll get your money’s worth. In the long run a Randall is a better deal. Just bite the bullet. Put the $50 down design your knife and wait the 5 years. I wish I had done it sooner.

I wasn't planning on purchasing one, for obvious reasons. I'm simply curious as to what quality they can deliver for 50-$80. Surely I cant be the only one curious about that. Im not looking for a Randall substitute, I didn't think this needed clarification.

 

[jbmonkey]

waste of money. they won't be good steel or even actual steel it claims. they won't be heat treated properly. likely not at all. it will be useless as a knife. you will get nothing out of your money.

 

[Olumin]

I regrettably own a few IPak (CKF) knives. They are Pakistan made.

Fit and finish is poor, steel rusts when looking at it cross-eyed, very poor edge holding ability, and zero sheath retention in sheaths sewn lop-sided.

About 80 to 100 bucks each, and 100% regret on the purchases.

Thanks for sharing. Still got any pictures somewhere?

 

[Locutus D'Borg]

I'm active on Instagram, posting knife and watch photo's. Just the other day I got a DM saying "Hi." That is always a scam. I ignored it, and the next DM was full of Paki Damascus knives, etc., and he offered the service of making me custom knives. Well, it was a change from the OnlyFans hookers DMing me. I tell them I'm gay and never hear from them again.

 

[Olumin]

I did find this thread. There really aren't many real-world images of these knives around aren't there?

 

[Danke42]

I don't need to dig a hamburger out of the McDonald's dumpster and do a quality check. I don't need to buy a knife that's a rip off at $5 never mind $50 to do a quality check.

But if you insist on reviews you'll get 2 kinds.

First will be the pure shills that work for the knife company and pretend to be random citizens that love their new Bowie knife.

Second will be the suckers that got one without checking the facts, are angry they got fleeced and really won't give a glowing review.

 

[DustinK]

I can see where this is going. Update us in a few weeks on how much of a waste of money the clone you buy is.

 

[Danke42]

I should have said 3 types of reviews!!

Third is the people who paid for one and are now panicked about what they've done and need some random strangers on the internet to reassure them it's all going to be OK.

 

[killgar]

I'm curious as to what one actually would receive.

Answer: Disappointment.


The people you're asking have a great deal of knife knowledge, some of it firsthand knowledge, some of it collective knowledge that they have gained over the years being a member of this forum and seeing/reading the experiences of others.

The reason you might not find many here who will say that they have purchased Randall clones off of ebay, and share their experiences with them, is because they know that such a purchase is far more likely to be a total waste of money, in part because they have seen countless people over the years get burned by purchasing clones off of ebay and elsewhere.

For many here, there is no curiosity regarding such knives. Cheap clones have been around a long time, and there is a long line of people who bought them and regretted it.

 

[Olumin]

I detect a lot of hostility here. It is blatantly obvious that these are a waste of money & a scam, but I nonetheless was genuinely curious as to what kinda knife & sheath you would get for your money. Whether it would look anything like what's advertised, what kinda steel it is, finishing etc. I suppose that's illegal here? Well girls, sorry for bothering you.

I do however thank MolokaiRider for his contribution.

 

[tltt]

Ive come across a lot of these over the last few days on the bay. Many of them just use pictures of real Randalls in their listings, often with the stamp badly covered up or using very low res images. Some don't bother to hide it at all. They usually claim to be made of D2. Most of them are in the 50-$80 price range. You can easily find them by using search words like "custom", "handmade", "D2" followed by stag, leather or micarta. I'd imagine they're all made by the same company, since the same "knives" are listed by several different sellers.

Has anyone here ever ordered one of these? I'm curious as to what one actually would receive. A bad copy on the knife shown, or something else entirely? Could they actually be made of D2, or some other mystery steel? Ive seen some Pakistani fixed blades that look pretty decent for the money. If these "clones" at least try to resemble anything like the real deal it might be worth ordering one just out of curiosity.

If any of you own one of these blades, pictures would be highly appreciated. For research purposes...

If you're lucky - https://www.arizonacustomknives.com/products/1066101/ . That's what a "high end" Pakistani Randall copy looks like. There is no "Andre Ronald" it was pen name the Pakistanis used to sell their higher ended stuff.

Usually though, they just send you something that kinda sorta looks like the photo they're stealing. And if you complain, they start playing "let's make a deal", they'll send you a few more knives or give you some money back. When the feedback goes bad, they just switch names.

There was a guy that wound up with a handful of those "Andre Ronald" knives and tested them, in general the fit and finish as ok for the $75-125 they were selling for at the time, but the Rc hardness was all over the map mid 40's - low 50's.

 

[Olumin]

If you're lucky - https://www.arizonacustomknives.com/products/1066101/ . That's what a "high end" Pakistani Randall copy looks like. There is no "Andre Ronald" it was pen name the Pakistanis used to sell their higher ended stuff.

Usually though, they just send you something that kinda sorta looks like the photo they're stealing. And if you complain, they start playing "let's make a deal", they'll send you a few more knives or give you some money back. When the feedback goes bad, they just switch names.

Their was a guy that wound up with a handful of those "Andre Ronald" knives and tested them, in general the fit and finish as ok for the $75-125 they were selling for at the time, but the Rc hardness was all over the map mid 40's - low 50's.

Thanks, that is exactly the sort of info I was looking for.

 

[killgar]

I detect a lot of hostility here. It is blatantly obvious that these are a waste of money & a scam, but I nonetheless was genuinely curious as to what kinda knife & sheath you would get for your money. Whether it would look anything like what's advertised, what kinda steel it is, finishing etc. I suppose that's illegal here? Well girls, sorry for bothering you.

I do however thank MolokaiRider for his contribution.

There hasn't been any hostility here, at least not yet. People have given you honest opinions on Pakistani clones, educated opinions.

There's isn't anything "illegal" about asking about or discussing such knives, or even posting pictures of them.

And referring to members as "girls" because you don't like how they respond to your question won't gain you any acceptance around here, just the opposite.