Question. How to money from my knife hobby?

R

raschalt2000

Joined
Apr 20, 2010
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Just wondering if there were any good ways to turn this hobby into a system were it could pay for itself?
When I kept aquariums I would sell coral frags to bring in a few extra bucks. Unfortunately my knives don't have babies that grow up.
I'm not artistic in the least. I don't have the patience to make knives.
I'm a biologists and a natural green thumb.

I'm hoping someone will give me that crazy idea I never thought of. I'm open to any suggestions.
 
If you can't build them, then you gotta profit from selling. Buy low, sell high. Pretty much only option.
 
Like most hobbies, it is a financial black hole. It is possible to make money selling discontinued knives, but when you buy for that purpose, I think you'll have more misses than hits. Hence, it remains a money pit. I don't mind the money pit in the least. At least it is nothing like the firearm money pit. A couple hundred bucks buys you a good knife. A couple hundred bucks buys you almost nothing in the firearm area except Mosins which I dislike.
 
Unless you want to upset the natural order of things and start a chain reaction that will have catastrophic effects on our planet ending in a full out zombie apocalypse don't even think about it. It's a hobby, and as rimfire noted hobbies are black holes. There meant to be black holes. What kind of world would this be if we could all make money off things we enjoy? Can you imagine the effects of waking up every morning and wanting to go to work? What's wrong with you man!

Mike
 
Resale of knives is viable (for some).

You buy rare or highly sought after knives and you resell them.

I could do this myself but I love them so much I'd keep them instead of selling them afterwards.

This is difficult because most knife enthusiasts are on forums like this one where people sell for very nice and fair prices, and you won't sell an overpriced knife to someone that doesnt like or know that knife in the first place, so it's very difficult.

What I might try this year is making Kydex sheaths, more out of necessity (I need a ton of them and I dont like what people around me make) than for business value. I'll make some and if they work I might sell them.

That's still nothing compared to what the knives I like cost though.....
 
22-rimfire said:
I think you'd make more money making good sheaths personally.
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This. I can make pretty good serviceable leather sheaths ( not works of art) and would probably go that route also.
Plus, I plan on selling off about half of my production knives when I retire ( keeping the expensive ones, customs, discontinued, and one-offs)

22-rimfire , you had a good idea about selling them in bulk for a good price to a gun show dealer. It would save a lot of hassle paying for my own table and trying to sell them one at a time myself ,plus the time spent.

Either way , after years of accumulating ,it would be nice to recoup some of the money in my later years. The clocks ticking and in all reality , I'll probably never use all of the 200 or so knives I have. I know I'm not alone in this and some others here have probably had the same thoughts.
 
It all becomes "just stuff" after a while if you don't use them. I have lots of stuff as my wife keeps reminding me to clean up my office area where a lot of the knives are stored. I have no idea about "good prices" from a dealer at a show. With guns you get about 50-60% of the value if you're lucky. But.... the important thing from my point of view is that a pile of them go in one chunk and the money might actually be useful for something other than groceries. With firearms, it could amount to a fairly big chunk of money.... like enough to buy a small house or new car. Added: I am much more attached to my firearms than just about any knife I own.
 
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I had to sell all my knives several years ago for economic reasons and was somewhat surprised that I came out just a tad ahead. I would guess if your knives are top quality and qualify as "new in box" you should do okay. You're not going to pay the bills with profit but may at least break even.
 
i have had to the same a friend owns a knife store here he travels all ovr the us buying knives that were collections and resells them what he pays and resells them for i dont know but he still in business so he must do ok
 
It ceases to be a hobby once you try to profit from it. I will never make back what I put in because I will never sell many of my knives. That money went to the hobby. On knives I try out and don't like I only hope to break even when selling, though I mostly sell for less. On knives that I like but want to sell because I want to pay for other things I can only hope to break even, though I mostly sell for less. Again, if you wish to profit from it then it is no longer a hobby and you have the wrong membership level.
 
Firearms are probably more lucrative than knives on the secondary market. I know a fellow who buys and sells guns all the time and in talking to him about it , he pretty much always made a small profit, but it took up a lot of his time.

I think it would be pretty difficult to break even on selling factory knives that are commonly available , when any informed person could just go on-line and get them shipped to their door. (customs and such notwithstanding) , but if it's just sitting there collecting dust and you have a buyer , at least you got something for it if that knife is something you could let go. Some knives have personal attachment also , which goes beyond money.

I'll confess I have went pretty overboard buying knives, especially since I joined BF. I know I'll never be able to get my money back , so I totally agree on the black hole thing. Of course I get a lot of enjoyment from having them as anyone else on here , so I just live with the fact I have a lot of knives. I never bought them to sell to begin with , but after over-accumulating the last few years I realize that some I could probably do without. It's a lot easier buying them than selling them , that's for sure.
 
craytab said:
It ceases to be a hobby once you try to profit from it. I will never make back what I put in because I will never sell many of my knives. That money went to the hobby. On knives I try out and don't like I only hope to break even when selling, though I mostly sell for less. On knives that I like but want to sell because I want to pay for other things I can only hope to break even, though I mostly sell for less. Again, if you wish to profit from it then it is no longer a hobby and you have the wrong membership level.
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Totally agree, if I worried about making a profit from buying and selling knives it would no longer be fun for me it would become stressful.
 
Simple.

Watch Cutlery Corner on late night TV.

Buy one of their big lots of a few hundred knives for like a buck a piece.

Sell them for a few bucks a piece.

Profit.
 
Seneca18 said:
Totally agree, if I worried about making a profit from buying and selling knives it would no longer be fun for me it would become stressful.
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Yep. You begin buying for the purpose of selling and all of a sudden you are thinking... I need to sell X amount this month to make the car or insurance payment. It isn't fun anymore and would be stressful.

If I was really trying to make money, I would have a special order or two (maybe 500 knives) by GEC and sell them via a website. Waynorth essentially does that himself and through dealers. I feel sure he makes money at it, but it does take money to make money.
 
In my approximate 40 years as a CPA I have never seen a client successfully turn a hobby into a viable business. I have seen a couple of clients help pay for their hobby, but not profit to any great exent. Horse breeding, grape growing, guns, diving. antiques, cooking, sewing, crafts, baskets, etc. have not succeeded. I would guess that if you can overcome the hobby mentality and look at something only as a business, then maybe - I just have never seen it.
 
raschalt2000 said:
Just wondering if there were any good ways to turn this hobby into a system were it could pay for itself?
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There certainly is a way...

Use any and every knife you buy without mercy. $200? Use it. $500? Use it. $1,200? Use it...

It's a rewarding feeling and pays itself off by knowing that you get your money's worth out of your precious knives.
 
It's not gonna happen.
Like my other hobby; building a hot rod.
Lots and LOTS of money gets dumped into it, with no return.
Its a love/or hate thing. If you like your knives, then don't feel bad that you're not profiting.
Like my hot-rod, I COULD sell it and get most of my money back.
Just like you could sell all your knives.
Its a hobby, not a job.
 
Sell corals. Or make something that someone can use, can you resin cast corals so a custom maker could use them a scales? The only way I can see to make money at a thing is to have a skill or knowledge that is not common. So designing the ultimate coral grafting knife (do you graft coral? I have no idea, just spit-balling) or using your knowledge to make something someone wants, that can work. Trading, buying and selling knives might work a little bit for some. But thats only if you don't count your time. As soon as you count in your hours, its almost certainly a loss.
Better to just enjoy it.
 
What about looking up odd materials for scales/handle slabs?

Cactus, different cones, and other plant matter that you are familiar with to sell to those who make custom handle material?
 
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