Purchasing for Other than Quality

C

Carthage

Joined
Sep 11, 2004
Messages
249
Do any of you purchase knives from specific manufacturers for reasons other than quality?
Mission statements, family traditions, business practices, community involvement, etc.?
 
Quality is definitely the number one reason I choose a certain company to purchase from, But coming in a close second is customer service. I will go with a company that has good quality and great customer service over one that has great quality and mediocre to poor customer service.
 
For me, quality is always the first consideration. I won't buy anthing of low quality from anyone, period. And the quality "scale" is relative, so I consider a $35 dollar Calypso Jr. lightweight to be a quality knife, as well as a $350 dollar Sebenza or a custom. On the other hand, there are quality knives that I won't buy because I don't like something about the company that sells them. I thought the long wait and difficulty involved in getting a Skirmish was just ridiculous, so I don't buy Benchmade anymore.
 
I collect Busse knives for their quality, toughness, and design. However, there is an extra element to the loyality I feel toward Jerry Busse and the whole Busse "family".

I suppose it started with the second Busse I ever ordered, back about 1995.
It was the only one I ever sent back because it did not meet the standards I expected. A few days later I got a call from Jerry to discuss the issues and to assure me that he would either refund my money or send me a knife that I would be satisfied with. Happily, I chose the latter.

It really escalated after 2002, when my then 21 year old daughter Kim was struck by a hit and run driver. Not expected to survive, and then to always be in a persistent vegatative state, she has progressed beyond all doctor's expectations. As she lay in the nursing home, half aware, I showed her my new Busse Active Duty and promised her that I was putting it away for her to use when she could again deer hunt with me. I told this story on the Busse forum, and about a week later a package showed up with another Active Duty from Jerry and Jennifer Busse, to replace the one I gave to Kimberly.

One day a red cap inscribed "Semper Fi" showed up in the mail for Kim, from Bill, one of the special group of people who hang out on the Busse forum. He sent it to her in note of her toughness and persistence. She still wears it proudly.

My wife and I took Kim to Blade 2004. Jerry invited us to dinner on Friday night, where he surprised us by presenting Kim with a specially inscribed Steel Heart E, a Busse T-shirt, and inducted her as the second ever Busse "Hoggette". The reception of and attention to my little girl by Jerry, Jennifer, the Busse staff, and the special group of "Hogs" was overwhelming.

A few weeks later a custom sheath for the Steel Heart showed up, from Okuden.

Yeah, my affinity for Busse Combat is about more than just the knives, although they can't be beaten, either.

I must mention that there are other special people out there, as well. Kim kept wheeling her chair back to Bobby Branton's table at Blade and admiring a Brend designed knife. On about her third trip there, he smiled, put the knife in a sheath and handed it to her.

The is a display case in a prominent position in our den. It contains four knives - the inscribed Steel Heart, her Active Duty, the Branton-Brend, and a small Ek skinner that I bought for her at age five, the first time she went hunting with me.
 
Good question - hadn't thought about that and was surprised when I did! I discovered that the knives I buy most come from companies run/owned by people I admire: Mike Stewart of Bark River Knife & Tool; Chris Reeve; Sal Glesser (Spyderco); and the Ruana crew in Bonner, Montana. I'd conclude that good people produce a good product. All those named have been, in my experience, thoughtful, responsive and concerned with their product's quality and their clients knife needs and satisfaction. Now I'm wondering why I was surprised!!
By the way, I'm sure there are others and I'm not consciously excluding anybody, but I have some knowledge of the people I named and their knives.
Steve
 
Do any of you purchase knives from specific manufacturers for reasons other than quality?
Click to expand...

As a matter of fact, yes I do. I buy knives from CRK&T many times for the particular design of the knife. More often than not, it seems, they use that sub-par AUS-6M :barf: as the blade steel on a particular design that suits my fancy. I lie to myself and say "I don't mind sharpening a little more often" and shell out my dollars. While I'm happy with the overall design and many aspects of the quality, excluding blade steel, I end up tossing the knife into the collection because I expect more from a blade steel than what AUS-6M has to offer. :grumpy:

This is changing as I no longer have the capital to waste on cutlery that will not perform as I expect. Three major hurricanes and another on the way and chronic health problems have conspired to rob me of my disposable income. Too bad. So many knives so little money. :(
It's probably a good thing anyway. How many knives is enough? :D




Mike H.,

Your testimony above nearly brought me to tears. You may not know it but your family has powerful faith. I pray that God continues to richly Bless both you and your family for your faith in your daughter's recovery.

All the best,
Mike U.
 
Well, I won't buy Ben & Jerrys ice cream cause I don't like their political stance.

But I WILL buy Buck and Victorinox because I've had VERY good responses from their excellent service departments. I'll buy Kershaw for the same reason, although I've not had first hand experience with their service. I'm sure there are other knife companies and makers that have great service that I don't know about yet, but I'll find out I'm sure as I get more knives.
 
I've bought a Glazers Knife(looks like a Camp King excepy it has a glass cutter instead of a can opener), and a cheap Electricians Knife with a Bubble Level built in for leveling electrial panels.

They're cheap but pretty unusual, that's why I collect them, for their unusuability :confused: is that a real word?
 
Hey Guys..

I bought a Cheapo $1.99 Swedish Mora, China made knockoff,for the specific purpose to Stump a friend who's a Mora Knuttjob.

Actually it was a very well made knife,, other than no markings on it,, it would be very hard to tell it wasn't a Swedish Mora...

Other than that I buy Quality,,99.999% of the time

ttyle

Eric...
 
I guess I never weighed in on this thread I started.

I got my first Buck pocket knife when I was a junior in high school. Inside was a message from Al Buck (see below). I had recently become a Christian and was impressed that the company still included this in the box. I've been a huge Buck fan ever since.

Message from Al Buck
(In memorium, 1910 - 1991) (As written in 1976)

If you are a new Buck knife owner, "welcome aboard." You are now part of a very large family. Although we're talking about a few million people, we still like to think of each one of our users as a member of the Buck Knives Family and take a personal interest in the product that was bought. With normal use, you should never have to buy another.

Now that you are family, you might like to know a little more about our organization. The fantastic growth of Buck Knives was no accident. From the beginning, management determined to make God the Senior Partner. In a crisis, the problem was turned over to Him, and He hasn't failed to help us with the answer. Each product must reflect the integrity of management, including our Senior Partner. If sometimes we fail on our end, because we are human, we find it imperative to do our utmost to make it right. Of course, to us, besides being Senior Partner, He is our Heavenly Father also; and it's a great blessing to us to have this security in these troubled times. If any of you are troubled or perplexed and looking for answers, may we invite you to look to Him, for God loves you.

"For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten son; that whoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." John: 3:16
 
I purchase a knife only because I like it and quality plays a role certainly.

I have never to my knowledge bought a knife only because of Mission statements, family traditions, business practices, community involvement, etc.
 
Carthage said:
Do any of you purchase knives from specific manufacturers for reasons other than quality?
Mission statements, family traditions, business practices, community involvement, etc.?
Click to expand...

My favorite brand (has something to do with spyders) I buy from actually does all of the above, including quality!

To me it's a big pro if a company is involved in the community, as in, is present in a forum somewhere and has a good attitude there.

Still planning to get a Bark River. For the reasons above.

Ted
 
Reasons other than 'quality'?
With new knives there must be that special indefinable design style that says 'Cool knife. Buy it.'
With used blades there is some indefinable connection to the previous owner that attracts me.
If the above do not apply and it is a good deal, I'll buy it for a gift or resale. Very rare. Somehow this category is enveloped by the others after I play with a blade for a few days.
 
If I ever buy a knife for a reason other than quality, it would be a Fehrman. I know they are awesome knives, but wile looking at their website, I saw that they recomended OTHER knives on their website! I think that is pretty cool, to tell folks where to get a cheaper knife, or one of a different style. I also was glad to see that they were willing to state their faiths and beleifs on their wedsite. They might loose some sales due to that, but I think that it was a really cool thing to do.

Thor
 
I've gone both ways. I prefer to buy from places I have developed a personal relationship with. I like Bob Dozier. I think that Bob the man is more impressive than the knives he makes so I support him and his work. I like his wife and his help too. They have come through for me by heat treating my D-2 projects besides helping me with purchases and tips on my own knife making.

I've grown quite fond of Paul Bos who heat treats all of Bucks knives. I can't say enough good about the man or the way he has gone out of his way to help me out. I buy Buck when I can and I try real hard to send Paul as much as I can too.

I still collect and admire Case knives and price is not a concern in most cases. I buy what I like period. I'm just now starting to take more of an interest in Schatt Morgan/Queen and have recently obtained one of the D-2 Congress knives from them. Very nice indeed.

I too have come to admire and like Mike Stewart. I like his knife work and his new company. I have a Mikro Canadian on order.

Overall, quality means a lot to me. But name recognition does too. I like the history behind the names and what it means to us these days. That is why I nearly cried when Schrade went under. Not that I bought enough Schrade or was ever a big fan but just because of the loss historically to all of us. It was a sad day for me to see that company die.

But anyway, unique is also something I look for. I like weird lock mechanisms. Or weird or unusual patterns or designs. Spyderco Q knives, Rolox, the new CRKT Rollock is another one I just recently got just because it was unique and because I liked it even if it is made in Taiwan.
 
There are plenty of quality knives out there, so I sometimes look for more than quality, too.
I'll also mention Bark River, I have met Mike and he is a very genuine person! It's cool that he listens to his customers, and treats them very well! His distributers are good people, too!

I think everyone will have a favorite, maybe based on personal experience, like MikeH's fine experience with Jerry Busse, or from good customer service they have recieved. So far, in my limited exposure to the knife world, I haven't met or ran into too many bad apples yet. Most everybody seems to be pretty cool people! :cool:

I would not buy from someone who's ethics questionable, though.
 
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