I appreciate your perception here Cliff, as you have outlined all too well what I feel ATC is all about!
In terms of MAX, let me take a moment to describe why the price point where it is....
MAX is a Paul Ehlers' design. It marks the first time any of his designs have been accessible to the public at a price point less than several thousands...AND as a functional, production piece...Paul's custom pieces have historically been made by Gil Hibben and Paul Fox...purchased by celebs and heads-of-state. An Ehlers' piece accessible by all (comparitively speaking) is certainly a cutlery industry first.
MAX, the NG Ranger Spike, and some new products coming very soon are completely machined...no laser jet cutting, water jet cutting, or outsourcing other than heat-treatment...as a result, this consumes a great deal of time in terms of execution...it also results in a perfectly executed high performance piece that we can make in small runs...which is one of the reasons why ATC can be flexible with new models brought to market in record time.
On the performance issue of machining vs. laser cutting, there is no heat treat distortion at the edge bevel, producing consistency in performance from piece to piece...and they are ALL the same...exactly the same. Water-jet cutting produces very similar results, but in most cases, requires large runs to justify machine time and cost.
MAX is a totally unique design...to our knowledge, there is nothing like it...while there have been a few references to the UUK, MAX stands alone in terms of its design specificity and performance applications...it works as a knife, or a small Hatchet, or a dagger....VERRRRRRY unique.
We feel MAX is a true piece of "designer" cutlery, offering quality performance, unique design, and true value to the owner.
Hope this helps!
Do I destroy my credit rating??? 
I would simply add, if you don't feel it's worth it, there are lots of cheaper tools on the market. I don't think Andy and ATC will have any trouble selling this model.