productions, what's the point? (fixed blades in particular)

It's a risk you take when you prepay.

Personally I don't care how cool a piece a maker creates. If he makes me pay before he even starts on my knife I'll find someone else to spend money on.

It's not as if you don't have any choice in the current market.
 
Price. Yeah I said it!

I don't have much disposable cash so it is very important to me. For example, I paid $89 for my Becker BK-9. What knife would you recommend in a custom that would replace the BK-9? And how much would it cost?

Eric
 
I can't just skip past price. I like the idea of customs; I have one small one. But I've not come across a single custom maker who could/would make me a sgian dubh-type knife for under $25. The original custom version of the production neck knife I wear costs $100 more, and that wouldn't even include my choice of handle material. Price *is* a factor for me.

And if I lose/break the production version, it doesn't hurt nearly as much as losing the custom version.
 
atavist said:
This post is inspired by Pat's previous post about mid techs....

As a knife maker I'm obviously biased... when you like a custom design and want a knife like it but can only afford a mid tech I get that.... but why production knives? ever?

And don't say price...
My custom blades are fairly priced (not meant as a self-promotion) and I know a handful of local craftsman who make knives just because they love making knives and practically give them away...

Granted with folders there is a certain level of machining involved to get a slick action (that's why I don't make them)... so not talking about high end folders here... but why on earth buy a production fixed blade when every town has a handful of local craftsmen who make quality knives and will sale them at close to materials cost to be able to keep doing it?
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For the same reason I don't need a custom made hammer or screw driver.
 
ourgon said:
Majority of USA made customs are too expensive especially for someone who live in Europe.

For you $450 is maybe not such big deal, for me it's like for you $1800. I don't want to use such expensive blade which often offer nothing more in compare to cheaper custom or production knife beyond fit and finish.

I can afford generally to custom knives made in my country and fixed blades only. And I don't want to wait for it year or two. I buy ready custom blades or I order knife from proven maker who made it in a month.
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Not sure what part of Europe you are from, but I travel extensively to Germany for work. The buying power of 450 euros is a tad bit more than what 450 dollars buys you.



Why production? I'd say availability and marketing induced "want" factor.
 
atavist said:
This post is inspired by Pat's previous post about mid techs....

As a knife maker I'm obviously biased... when you like a custom design and want a knife like it but can only afford a mid tech I get that.... but why production knives? ever?

And don't say price...
My custom blades are fairly priced (not meant as a self-promotion) and I know a handful of local craftsman who make knives just because they love making knives and practically give them away...

Granted with folders there is a certain level of machining involved to get a slick action (that's why I don't make them)... so not talking about high end folders here... but why on earth buy a production fixed blade when every town has a handful of local craftsmen who make quality knives and will sale them at close to materials cost to be able to keep doing it?
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Price has nothing to do with it for me.

Most of my fixed blades are Customs. ;)

There are a lot of great makers around, a lot of them here on BF. :thumbup:

But then there are a lot of hacks around that don't have the proper equipment and or skill to properly HT blades and or the equipment to actually check their work so I am extremely careful who I choose to buy from.
 
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stabman said:
I like being able to go and buy a knife now, when I want it.

I don't always feel like waiting, and some of the production knives have the fit, finish and materials I want.
Some of them have great warrantees as well. :)
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+1

I own custom and production knives. Most custom makers out there, can't supply a knife, with what I want, instantly.
If a production company doesn't make what I want, then I move along.

That's the joy of owning a custom; Having a knife you like, made by someone you like. If I could call DPx or ESEE and get a custom, I would.

Oh yea... PRICE too
 
Why buy production?
PRICE - Sorry, maybe others a rich, but i cant afford $450+ for a simple pocket knife. I get it, your work doesn't come cheap, but it is painful to pay that much, for zero gain..
Availability - Something happens, and heaven forbid i need to replace my knife- i have (quality) options just down the road at any number of stores.
Quality - Yeah, ill say it; aside from very specific makers here, most customs really are an unknown quantity. How is your heat treatment? What is the source of your steel/titanium/aluminum/etc? A beautiful knife still doesn't guarantee me that it will hold up to actual use.
Variety - Didn't see this one said alot, but its nice for me; I dont want to try just one blade style, or handle style, length, etc.

Lemme put it this way - if i could get a custom knife with better quality than say, my BM Contego (quality being both work and material quality), for the same price i got it for ($150), and for the same time frame (a few days shipping); sure, no brainer.
 
Yalius said:
Consistency, predictability, availability, replaceability. And "every town has a handful of local craftsmen" with virtually no reputation to speak of and could be utter flakes as far as I know. And I know you say to ignore price, but when a $20 Mora or $50 Kershaw or $90 Becker will handle every conceivable need I will have for a knife, what's the reason for me to invest 2 to 10 times as much for a custom? When I use a fixed blade, chances are I'm doing something a bit rough-and-tumble and I'm not overly concerned with the aesthetics of my blade. And no matter how willing you are to make something right, how willing are you to work with me if, instead of damaging my knife, I lose it in the woods somewhere or drop it over the side of the boat?
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:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

That about sums it up very nicely.

The factory production knife is king when it comes to a real world using knife that can be used and even beat on, and can be replaced at the next Dick's you come to. Add in the fact the most peole really don't care about the knife, it's just a tool to the end result like field dressing that deer on opening day. Millions of sportsmen use an off the shelf Buck knife to do what they need to do, and it works fine. It has a generations old reputation for working just fine. Their daddy's used a Buck knife, so it's a known quality. So the question really comes down to it; why bother to spend the money on a custom knife is the factory production Buck knife works so well? The Buck knie is a good example of a knife with a generations old rep for good service. I bought one in 1969 and it gave me 30 years of great service from field dressing deer to cleaning a mess of trout, to camp chores. When it was worn down to a steel toothpick, my better half bought me a new one in 2000. I still use it for fishing and camping, and it works. What kind of custom can I get for the 40 dollars a new Buck 102 woodsman will run me?
9902483144_165fa09b0b_c.jpg



And the Buck knife is just one example. Factor in how many Benchmade's, Spyderco's and other well known and respected brands have given the owners such great service, and you have to ask yourself why spend the money on a custom?
 
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atavist said:
and I know a handful of local craftsman who make knives just because they love making knives and practically give them away...
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I sure as hell don't know any knifemakers who "practically give them away". But hey, if these guys love making knives so much that they're willing to provide me with a 7-8 inch blade, a sheath, and a warranty for $50 or so, damn man, hook a brother up and put me in touch with em, I'll even be willing to wait longer than the 3-7 days it would take me to get a production Ontario, Condor, or Ka-bar from BladeHQ, Amazon, etc.
 
Price is a huge issue. Just because you make affordable knives does not negate the point that many customs are much more expensive than a production equivalent. Then you throw in availability and a bunch of the stuff other people have said and customs don't make sense in a lot of circumstances. Don't get me wrong, customs can be very nice and I am always checking the exchange for one that catches my eye.

atavist said:
... as to warranty though most guys i know (including myself) warrant there knives for the life of the smith, and make making it right a priority.
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You do of course see the problem with this, right? A maker steps off the wrong curb and gets hit by a buss, there goes your warranty.....
 
ev13wt said:
Not sure what part of Europe you are from, but I travel extensively to Germany for work. The buying power of 450 euros is a tad bit more than what 450 dollars buys you.



Why production? I'd say availability and marketing induced "want" factor.
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Germany is rich country. It's irony they have lost war they started and now they live much better than eastern Europe. ;) In Poland 450 euro is a lot of cash, almost average month salary for many people.
 
you can't throw price to the wind. the majority of knife buyers, other than us fanatics and collector types buy like they do anything else. on the cheap.

walk into a home depot or lowes, or whatever and watch in the tool section someone grab that made in america wrench for 35 bucks....they almost buy it, but then they see the whole set of chinese made wrenches for 15 bucks.......and 9.99 times out of 10 they walk to the register with the chinese set. why? because they are only going to use it a handful of times and don't need the high quality and they aren't willing to pay the high price. price is the major driver,....outside of collectors and fanatics.

if we are talking folks here....price still ranks high. there are other reasons and many already said them and many already said the obvious....and it's price.
 
After owning custom fixed blades, I will not go back to production fixed blades. It's amazing how a steel can perform with a different heat treat and that will only come from a custom. I like choosing handle material/ style as well as the steel being used. For me, it's worth the wait to have a quality knife.
 
As much as I agee with the OP the availability of production stuff is probably the biggest reason, the next reason I'd figure is that the average guy doesn't even know custom makers exist. Plus is on the maker to make himself known somehow. I agree with you as far as price goes iv seen a bunch of very reasonably priced fixed blades in the last few months so I don't think that's the reason.
 
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