Places to buy knives?

D

Dude Crush

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Nov 22, 2004
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The best I can do locally is a very general sporting goods store. Most of those won't let you handle the knife before you buy it (it comes in plastic packaging). That leaves the internet. Ebay stores seem to be a good place. Then there’s Froggle. I hate not being able to handle a knife before buying it, but what are the options? Are there other popular places I’m missing? Better prices? Better customer service? Where do you get your knives?
 
Basically you are limited to the stores in your area, the internet, and knife shows.

B&M stores will generally have higher prices, if you can even find one in your area that has a decent selection of knives that you are interested in. On the plus side you usually get to see and handle a knife in person before buying it. That is if you are lucky enough to have one in your area. The best I can do is a couple of local sporting goods stores, which sometimes, might possibly, have a knife or two in stock that I can check out. But don't ask to buy it because then you need to find someone who knows the prices and can tell the cashier how to charge you for it. :mad:

The internet has many options, eBay, online stores, or through the For Sale Forums. I pretty much buy all of my knives online for this reason. The way I see it I am saving a good deal of money, if I could even find the knife I wanted locally, so if I decide I don't like it I can always sell it. You can always rely on other peoples opinions of knives to decide if it might be worth a shot or not.

Knife shows are also an option if you ever have one that you can get to. You get to handle the knives a bit, but you will probably have to pay close to full retail. Also you can only buy what is there, so that can be a pretty big limitation depending on what you want.
 
DC, since you don't have many options other then the Internet, make sure that what ever Internet business you buy your knives from, they will allow you to return them with out any grief. Scott
 
I've started going to local stores to handle what I am looking for, then if I want it, I buy it new off of eBay. I always pay less than MSRP, and usually get a good deal.
 
You can also check out the Passaround forum. You usually get about a week or so to test out a knife, and then send it on to another person on the list. I love it!
 
Slvgx said:
You can also check out the Passaround forum. You usually get about a week or so to test out a knife, and then send it on to another person on the list. I love it!
Click to expand...

Who pays for the knife in a passaround?

:D
Thanks,
Fisher of Men
 
I don't really like the idea of going into a store, wasting the employees time and handling the merchandise without any intention of buying form them. If on the other hand you go in, play with a few different knives, and leave with one of them, or at least something, then yeah it is cool. That way you can handle a few different knives that you are interested in, and you aren't taking advantage of the store. It will also help the store to still be around for the next time you want to try out a knife.

Passarounds work in different ways depending on the actual one. There are a few going around where they are free, and the knife is owned by someone, or just a passaround knife. In others the participants all chip in some money, and will raffle off the knife in the end. It is a good way to test out a knife before buying.
 
I buy online almost exclusively. Here are shops I've patronized within the few months, with excellent results:
Ag Russell
Northwest Knives and Collectibles
Smoky Mountain Knife Works
Knife Outlet
DLT Trading

There are dozens of other quality online knife shops. Search around these forums for more complete lists and other recemmendations.

Best Wishes,
Bob
 
i am right behind bob with agrussel is very good if you want like lock backs and rustic looking, i didnt find a big selection on tactical. www.amback.com seems to have good policy and better prices, but i never ordered from them so dont quote me on it.
 
Justin at www.gpknives.com is a straight-up dealer with good service. I have bought several BMs from him. He has fair pricing. You can find his posts in on this forum at For Sale: Production Knives (Dealer). I am not sure but I'd bet that if you got a knife you handled but did not like he would accept it on return. That way you would only be out the postage both ways. ;)
 
New Grahm Knives is fast, with fair prices. A G Russell is good ,but a little bit pricey. On the other hand, they will let you decide the warranty. I once had a Spyderco Delica that I broke the pocket clip off of after two years of carry. They let me send it back for complete trade value. I traded it for a BM Leopard Cub. Knifeart is good, very fast service. Some of the Ebay sellers are pretty good too. Very fair to excellent prices and very reliable and trustworthy. Just be sure to check their feedback rating, 99% or higher is a good sign.
 
Another place to go are knife shows, if the dealer has only new knives, still in the box, your chances of haggling a better deal are low. If they are selling their own collection along with the other wares on their table, obviously, they are going to be more open to offers. Farmers markets are a great place to get deals, but a lot of junk abounds. As for wasting store employees time, most of them are getting paid hourly, I usually walk out of the store a couple dollars poorer and one knife richer :D.
 
This site is funded by a pretty good store also and they are not wandering around in here hyping themselves. ;)
 
The unfortunate thing about passarounds is we don't have a great variety, unless you're looking at Spyderco.

Of course on the flip side, if we had more companies participating, we need more people to coordinate.
 
Bastid said:
This site is funded by a pretty good store also and they are not wandering around in here hyping themselves. ;)
Click to expand...

It would be nice if you supported in some way the place that keeps this forum open. This page and every page on BFC should have a link to "STORE" and bring you here...

http://onestopknifeshop.com/
 
Yeah, why is it that the store link is only visible on the very front page? When I try to navigate back to the main page, it doesn't let me.
 
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