Pretty disappointing Blade Show

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godogs57

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Apr 16, 2004
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Got in today at noon and was saddened to see about a third, perhaps more, of the show was now devoted to the "Tactical" crowd...also the doomsday preppers also. We are slowly losing the best and largest knife show of its kind. Less makers...less supplies, less knives, etc. Sad.

It seemed each supplier brought half to 2/3rds of what they usually bring. Used/vintage knife dealers, such as Case knife guys,etc, were not there in their usual numbers...desert ironwood was scarce..just a handful of mammoth ivory dealers. I could go on....I hope the show survives. It in no way resembles the Blade Shows of years past. Don't know why.....can't explain it.
 
Bummer man I feel you. All that prepper stuff is cool and all but its a BLADE show not Apocalypse show!
 
That's a real downer..

I used to think all that crap was a fad linked to 2012 bull snot but now that it has passed I am starting to wonder. The problem is all that junk is cheap and easy to produce and sells like hotcakes with a huge profit margin. As long as that continues you will see it continue to eat up the market.

Aside from the well planned and thought out tactical knife (really, not mall ninja tactical) I am making for a friend and fellow tac team member, I have sworn off ever making anything like that. I prefer traditional, and a lot of people still do.

I like to think we are the silent and steady, ever-present driving force behind design and innovation in this industry. The mall ninja crowd will soon turn to high speed low drag but plugs or something and leave the knives to the real enthusiast. There will always be that element there as it is a legitimate demand, but hopefully the bandwagon will break a wheel.

These days if you put velcro on it and paint it black, someone will pay top dollar for it. I saw a package containing 2-36" lengths of 550 cord calling them tactical/survival shoestring and priced at an appropriate $12.95...?!? I already use paracord a boot laces simply because it works and is a handy way to have some 550 on you, but I don't think I paid $12.95 for 100 feet of it... I thought it was a joke, and asked the sales person, but no... they insisted it was a real product...
Hell, blackhawk (who's products I use and endorse for the most part) is selling a 20# sledge as an entry tool for some obscene amount of money (over $100). It has a collapsible handle, but geez, I can get a sledge for $20 at home depot!

Sorry, this is a real sore spot for me. Dang. That sucks. I was already bummed SMKW went that way...
 
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As a slipjoint maker and a materials supplier the prices are just getting to be too much to handle. If you fly or drive it can cost anywhere from $300 for gas to several thousand to fly, table cost are ridiculous, hotel cost for 4 nights, meals, etc. It can add up to well over 3 grand. You need to sell a LOT of stuff to recoop costs and then actually make a profit. It is not in the cards for many people and some maker friends have just stopped going for the above and other reasons.
 
Although I haven't been to Blade, I have seen the same thing happen to a lot of the better gun shows. That's why I really love the Wannenmacher Gun Shows. Their application states right up front no stuff like candy, jewelry, scentsy, no survival food, etc, etc.

The promoters have the power to allow or deny what types of businesses buy tables at their shows. Blade could curb the number of non-knife related tables if they wanted, but I'm sure the all mighty dollar has something to do with that decision. Only when the dollars brought in are affected will they change the way they do business.

FWIW, I've seen several knife makers that have attended say that it's been a good show for them so far.
 
TomTerrific said:
Money talks.

What exactly can be done about the problem as perceived?
Click to expand...

Nothing really...this problem is not limited to Blade, but rather is a societal and economical problem that is affecting much more than the knife-making/selling industry. That is all I will say at the risk of this thread being moved.
 
^^^ I agree. I saw this with the reptiles I used to breed, and never even bothered trying to sell and of the custom bicycle frames I make. Off shore manufacturing makes it very difficult for a craftsman to make a living making things. We are limited to niche markets, and typically have older customers who understand quality.
 
John L said:
As a slipjoint maker and a materials supplier the prices are just getting to be too much to handle. If you fly or drive it can cost anywhere from $300 for gas to several thousand to fly, table cost are ridiculous, hotel cost for 4 nights, meals, etc. It can add up to well over 3 grand. You need to sell a LOT of stuff to recoop costs and then actually make a profit. It is not in the cards for many people and some maker friends have just stopped going for the above and other reasons.
Click to expand...

:thumbup: This.

As a purely fixed blade knife maker for almost 10 years now, I have watched some of the material I use regularly increase in cost between 30% and 50% in some instances. Shipping costs are what kill me, last year I spent almost $8,000 in tools, material, and heat treating services(+40%), and an additional $3000 in shipping costs. Also more and more people are less willing to spend top dollar for things, so many makers are unable to raise their prices to combat the raise in cost of material.
 
I dont do knife shows yet but we have done a lot of craft fair shows in the past...Ive seen the same tyhing happen..Shows destroyed by flea market junk vendors..We almost lost our local show because of that..All of the craftsman finally got together and told the even organizers that if you let one more flea market junk vendor in thats it, we'er all gone for good..Then they saw we were serious and stopped it..
 
The unfortunate reality is that all of these "flea market junk vendors" generate large amounts of revenue for these trade shows by selling cheap, gimmicky stuff that attracts the ignorant masses. This apocalyptic/doomsday "FAD" which started with the new millennium(2000) is 13 years strong, and shows now signs of slowing down(getting worse IMHO).
 
Perhaps a new show is in order that accepts cutlery, supplies, makers, dealers, and related items only.
It would take a tremendous amount of advertising to pull it off, but it could be done with the right promotion.
 
Bill DeShivs said:
Perhaps a new show is in order that accepts cutlery, supplies, makers, dealers, and related items only.
It would take a tremendous amount of advertising to pull it off, but it could be done with the right promotion.
Click to expand...

If someone had the capital and connections to do this and do it right BLADE would be history. I haven't been yet but look how well the A. G. Russell show has taken off. If I remember correctly the next one will only be #3. If it continues to grow at the same rate, think of what it may be like in 10 years. I've never been to either one but if I were gonna attend one I'm pretty sure I'd choose the Russell showover BLADE for the reasons listed above.
 
Not knowledgeable about the Blade show, but it looks like one size doesn't fit all after all.

My pet theory on the "tactical" thing is for one thing, being a soldier is cool now. I was in my teens during the end of Vietnam, when it wasn't seen as "cool" by a lot of people. Anything soldierly is going to have appeal.
Another, pocketknives have been banned as potential weapons in schools for a generation now, so those kids are going to want something "badass" looking when they can carry a knife, since all knives are called bad.
Another, and I don't mean to slam the gun industry cuz I love em, but SOMEONE is making bank off of keeping us scared that they're coming after our guns. I don't know who it is, but we all have more access to good guns than ever, so between the paranoia and the best supply of the best weapons ever made, any kind of weapon is going to sell like hotcakes.
It's only natural for Blade to cater to what their readers want. They're only partly putting on the show out of the goodness of their hearts.
 
Have to say that the crafts people in my area also rebelled against the junk sellers too. I know I wouldn't want my craftwork to be associated with the the end of the world crowd whenever any one thought about my product. Doesn't sound like Blade is putting the interests of knife makers at the fore.
 
Not all of us are selling tactical stuff, ya know. Come to the back of the ABS section. We have cookies.........and sambar stag. :D
 
So I guess at the 2013 Blade Show some would be happy to see more "1830" era tactical knives and less 2013 tactical knives? :)
 
Dave Behrens said:
The unfortunate reality is that all of these "flea market junk vendors" generate large amounts of revenue for these trade shows by selling cheap, gimmicky stuff that attracts the ignorant masses. This apocalyptic/doomsday "FAD" which started with the new millennium(2000) is 13 years strong, and shows now signs of slowing down(getting worse IMHO).
Click to expand...

I personally believe that a big part of what is still pushing doomsday therories is the peoples fear of their own government. Here in America at least. The zombies and natural disasters went from being scary as hell, to normal every day types of things. However more and more people see that the government is pushing us toward a cliff. It they completely devalue our currency or destroy the economy... well doomsday is here. You might want to keep your tinfoil hat close when I get going!
 
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