Questions about custom vs production knife/makers

[foofie]

Let me preface this saying I am asking this question in earnest.
I have been getting into fixed blades - and have been staying with production blades. However, after upgrading scales and sheath, I am getting into the same price range as a custom.

So my question - what am I gaining, and what might I be missing out on with a custom.

Let me be more specific - I know with a production, I am getting QC, reasonably predictable heat treat, good weighting/balance, and good design (hopefully).
Custom offers, well, more custom obviously. More handle material choices, more steel choices. But might I be compromising on the design and functionality of the knife?

I also realize there is a huge range of custom makers, from someone like Phil Wilson (wish list) to my neighbor in his garage (no offense Mark:foot. It makes me a bit nervous when I read knifemakers grinding away to see what they get. I appreciate the creative process, but I guess I must be looking for something tried and true and most importantly, refined.

Thoughts?
Start out with more established makers and patterns?
Throw caution to the wind?

Thanks for any perspectives.

 

[Chris Larrikin]

Going with a custom, mid-tech or small run knife maher doesn't necessarily mean throwing caution to the wind. If you have a look at the fixed blades for sale area here you will notice that a lot of makers have a particular style, prefer certain materials and heat treat processes. That often means they become very practised and good at what they do. Also some do their own heat treats while others go to specialists including experts like Paul Bos.

I think the big thing about custom makers is that you can have direct access to the person making your knife. If you have any questions or concerns ask them. It's also always good to know why a maker uses particular materials and what they can do with them. For me that's half the fun
Edit: erm that's not to say I think a custom maker should be fielding endless questions about their process

 

[dsimmons]

If you go with a well-known and trusted maker you aren't sacrificing anything. Any maker that can attain any sort of name among the hard-headed a-holes that make up the greater knife enthusiast community is doing SOMETHING right.

That said, you aren't really gaining anything by going with a custom knife except for said customization. There are production knives that absolutely destroy any custom in terms of fit and finish, and there are custom knives that look like they were bandsawed by a fourth grader. Custom is not a guarantee of quality, or even of service. It's just a way of getting exactly what you want rather than having to look for a production knife that's close to your specs and modding it.