Quality Control Variance

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laea7777

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Dec 16, 2010
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Hello. Do you think that there is a noticeable difference in quality control if you order directly from a manufacturer and pay the full retail price, pay less from a reputable knife website, or pay even less from Amazon? For example: the Ka-Bar Mark I is $108.44 with free shipping on the KA-BAR website, $82 plus $13 shipping ($95 total) on Knifecenter and $78 with free shipping on Amazon. In my personal experience, paying less on Amazon seems to mean less quality control. For example: I bought a Spyderco Endura on Amazon; the blade was not fitted properly so I returned it and paid more on Knifecenter and got a good one. I'm tempted to order a Mark I from KA-BAR since Knifecenter has been out of stock for a while, and I'm hesitant to order one from Amazon, even though it's in stock and less expensive. What has your experience been? Thanks.
 
I only purchase from reputable dealers.

There should be absolutely no difference in quality if it comes from the manufacturer, or the dealer.

The only reasons I can think of where there might be a QA issue is dealing with less-than-stellar distributors (Amazon), who may re-package a defective return and re-sell it rather than return it to the manufacturer for exchange/refund. Or it may be a counterfeit/fake.
 
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Amazon moves a huge variety of so much stuff from so many different sources that they can't possibly keep track of what is good or not in their huge stock pile. They are not specialists in the items they mass purchase and sell because they sell so much variety and quantity they can't be.

That is why the bad stuff is much more likely go unchecked for far longer on Amazon than an authorized dealer.
 
The QC department is the manufacturers department
Retailers rarely if ever take out the knife and give it one more look-see
If you are friends with one of the retailers, you may be able to swing it
But with the giant volume some of them have, they wont
It comes Boxed up from the manufacturer, they put it on some warehouse shelf and when you order it then they handle the same box and put it in another. They won't take it out and look it over again
Not practical
 
shane45-1911 said:
I only purchase from reputable dealers.

There should be absolutely no difference in quality if it comes from the manufacturer, or the dealer.

The only reasons I can think of where there might be a QA issue is dealing with less-than-stellar distributors (Amazon), who may re-package a defective return and re-sell it rather than return it to the manufacturer for exchange/refund. Or it may be a counterfeit/fake.
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This. I found the other safe way to buy is from a good seller here on the Exchange. Sometimes used is better than new.

Roland.
 
Concerning the price difference, the maker may be saying, sure we'll sell you the knife direct if we must, but we'd rather you go to one of our dealers. We don't want the hassle associated with individual orders.
 
I am an engineer at a facility that manufactures many things in the USA. We also manufacture in Europe, Mexico, Canada, China, and Taiwan.
Pretty much across the board nobody knows where the item being manufactured will be sold. It could go to dealers, to other companies that use the product in their production, to designers, or direct to the consumer.

I don't see how a knife would be any different. To set up multiple levels of QC for a single product depending on where it is sold would be a logistical nightmare (you'd have to control the parts of that knife through the whole manufacturing process, much of which is done in different sized batches at different facilities).

There are special editions of knives (such as the Space Force KaBar from SMKW) that only go to one retailer, however I would assume the QC process is the same but don't know that.
 
As some others have said, there shouldn't be different QC on knives depending on where they're sent dealer wise. I understand your concern as companies have, or atleast have rumored to sell lower quality items to Walmart or some such thing. Don't know if that's true (not talking knives). If you're concerned then look who the knife's shipped by on amazon. It'll say "Sold by: Amazone, Shipped by: ________" Whoever is shipping it is actually where it's coming from. Many businesses sell knives on Amazon. I have bought one knife that was "shipped by: Amazon", it was direct from amazon's warehouse, a ZT 308, and it's a fantastic specimen. However I also don't like buying knives from them as there's almost always a cooler company that has it for about the same price. I got it because I had a gift card. However, if that's the only place I could get a knife, I'd do it again.
 
Sounds like those stories about Walmart getting their own lower spec versions of things like televisions or "2nds" on name brand items.
 
If you are going to buy from Amazon, get the FakeSpot add-on, which is for spotting fake reviews, not fake knives, but it's very useful for lots of things.

In my limited experience, manufacturers do not like to do returns or refunds unless a knife is spectacularly defective. KnifeCenter and Amazon are very good about returns and refunds.
 
ShaiHulud said:
The QC department is the manufacturers department
Retailers rarely if ever take out the knife and give it one more look-see
If you are friends with one of the retailers, you may be able to swing it
But with the giant volume some of them have, they wont
It comes Boxed up from the manufacturer, they put it on some warehouse shelf and when you order it then they handle the same box and put it in another. They won't take it out and look it over again
Not practical
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What I meant was: is it possible that manufacturer's QC departments might send products that barely passed the QC inspection to bulk sellers like Amazon, and save the best of the best for the full-priced orders on their own website? Not to say that the bulk shipments are defective; just that the fit and finish might be a little better on the ones they keep in their own inventory. At least with the Ka-Bar and Spyderco example, I'm tending to think not, and that the issue with Amazon is more likely to come from re-packaged returns as others have suggested.
 
irsh said:
Sounds like those stories about Walmart getting their own lower spec versions of things like televisions or "2nds" on name brand items.
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I used to work at a gun store and the owner swore up and down that he knew for a fact that certain manufacturers do bulk runs specifically for Walmart and the QC on that run is more lax than normal and that's how they can get that many at a time to Walmart and how Walmart can sell it for so much less. If I remember correctly, he was specifically referring to a Mossberg 500. He also said, "No one believes you when you tell them that, but it's true." I can't prove it but I tend to believe him. That is probably where I got the notion of this post, now that I think about it; that, and my particular Spyderco Amazon vs. Knifecenter experience.
 
laea7777 said:
I used to work at a gun store and the owner swore up and down that he knew for a fact that certain manufacturers do bulk runs specifically for Walmart and the QC on that run is more lax than normal and that's how they can get that many at a time to Walmart and how Walmart can sell it for so much less. If I remember correctly, he was specifically referring to a Mossberg 500. He also said, "No one believes you when you tell them that, but it's true." I can't prove it but I tend to believe him. That is probably where I got the notion of this post, now that I think about it; that, and my particular Spyderco Amazon vs. Knifecenter experience.
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I bought a Colt M4 from Wmart. (pre everything)
The stock retaining nut, barrel, and flash suppressor are notch swedged in place.
It was part of an overrun order for an agency to prevent individual mods.
$950 new…so I really don’t care, but it proves a Wmart marketing strategy.
It doesn’t prove they order lesser quality merchandise, just that they’re opportunistic.
 
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laea7777 said:
What I meant was: is it possible that manufacturer's QC departments might send products that barely passed the QC inspection to bulk sellers like Amazon, and save the best of the best for the full-priced orders on their own website? Not to say that the bulk shipments are defective; just that the fit and finish might be a little better on the ones they keep in their own inventory. At least with the Ka-Bar and Spyderco example, I'm tending to think not, and that the issue with Amazon is more likely to come from re-packaged returns as others have suggested.
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Anything is possible I suppose but I would consider that to be a unscrupulous business practice and should be called out if they get caught
 
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