san mai copyright ????????????

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J. Hoffman said:
In case this is just a publicity stunt, I believe we should stop using the name of his company and him, so he doesn't get a bunch of free advertising/publicity. This being the case, I believe we need to come up with a "code name" for him/company so everyone knows who we are talking about, without actually mentioning his name. Of course, I would never condone anything derogatory ☺ Anyone have any suggestions?
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How about Mild Steel, makers of Sans Mind III?
 
The amazing part to me is, these nitwits apparently really do think it's worthwhile to pay someone to sit around all day looking for knifemakers who use centuries-old techniques and harass them. That's a sure sign of having too much money to throw around, and not enough brains to put it towards something actually innovative.

As for boycotting certain companies, and calmly informing their customer service dept, FB page, forum etc with a (as in one, no trolling) polite and detailed explanation as to WHY you will be boycotting them and encouraging everyone you know to do the same... well, I suppose that's entirely up to each individual.
 
Joe Cabaup said:
Perhaps someone better let this guy know that TANTO is a trademark for a laundry detergent company, KATANA is trademarked by a motocycle company and KUKRI is trademarked by a luggage and watchband company?
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What would be funny is to contact those companies and somehow convince them to send a cease and desist letter to Culled Steel. Maybe offer to pay their lawyers to do it for them. I would be willing to kick in a few bucks for a lawyer to draft a letter. Go fund me page? :D

I don't know why but this really rubs me the wrong way. I know I shouldn't let it bug me, but I just can't help it. I've always had a very low opinion of that company and the Chinese crap they pedal. Up until now I would just laugh at it along with that red faced pig man stabbing through boots on their cheesy videos. But this is a whole new low.

Now they're going after real knifemakers in the US. The audacity of these people!! :mad: A company that has it's knives mass produced by machines in China is going after knifemakers in the US, who toil for hours to make knives by hand. I guess this is just one of those things that's so screwed up that the only you can do is laugh at it, or go crazy for not being able to legally destroy it.
 
Why do we have to boycot them over poor, dishonest and aggravating business practices? Are we still allowed to do it for poor products and customer service?
 
Someone should collect signatures and send a letter back claming all these people are being harassed and intimidated by mild steel.
 
hardingknives said:
no one use my trademarked HIDDEN TANG technique ok or my fitted guard
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Hey, you can't trademark that. That's been done in Thailand. Not just with knives - the world's oldest profession has been using Poon Tang for centuries.

พูน poon pile up ; heap ; accumulate
 
Karl B. Andersen said:
And they are just dancing all around avoiding direct answers.
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I checked out this thread on fb. https://www.facebook.com/ColdSteelKnives/posts/10153596374403730 It seems like Coiled Swill is saying these weren't cease and desist letters from their lawyers...they were just polite letters from their president who took it upon himself to personally ask a bunch of knife makers to respect the company's trade marks.

SOooo if you received a letter you have been graced by a few minutes of time by the PRESIDENT of Coiled Swill! Maybe a letter back asking for a direct phone number to talk in person would be in order. I believe people could have some fun with that!

It makes me suspicious that he was hoping to get some publicity out of this that would translate into sales. If he was serious about the trademark it would have been from the lawyers. Not a "personal letter." I wonder if he was hoping to get Coiled Swill's name associated with Forged in Fire and get some free advertising out of it. Any other guesses what he was aiming for?
 
I guess I'm still trying to figure out what Lynn or "Cold Steel" seem to think they're going to lose, even if every company in the world uses the term "San Mai".

It's clearly not a new process, a new term, or even something that they innovated, changed, or improved in any appreciable way. Ok, so they invested millions in a NAME of a product.
Seems like they should just let that product speak for itself. I doubt that anybody gives one second thought to what it's called, or that there are three lines after it.

Seriously, what is to gain from having a generic term trademarked in the first place? i can understand promoting "San Mai III" to an extent, as it's specific to the company's line of VG-1 core "san mai" knives (or whatever steel they use these days). It makes sense to build up and protect that particular piece of their brand... but to trademark a term that describes a process?

Seems like Lynn just made a seriously ignorant mistake 30 years ago, and is too prideful to admit that hey may have wasted "millions" protecting something that didn't need protecting or trademarked to begin with.

Now instead of protecting a brand and making sales, he's losing them, as far as I can tell.

Until the CRKT lawsuit, which I believe was not only ridiculous but absolutely hypocritical, I actually liked Cold Steel, and have purchased SEVERAL of their knives and products over the years. In fact, their original large clip point Voyager was/is one of my favorite knives, and I carried it daily until I broke the tip off (long story). Sure, their marketing can get a bit gimmicky and over the top, but I genuinely felt like they were mostly a good value for the money and made good beaters and users.

Now after the lawsuit and these asinine threats, I just don't see ever spending another dime to support the company or their products. That's a shame, because they actually have a few models out (or coming out) that actually appealed to me.
 
John "Q" public will never be aware of any of this. Their business will never be affected by a very few of you knowing their reputation or practices. Sorry. I wish you all the best. I know how difficult it is to fight for what is truly right.
 
If John "Q" Public use amazon or facebook, then I guess it is a good thing that we aren't posting 1 star reviews due to their treatment of their clientele base and how they treat their prospective customers, isn't it?
 
A dirty fat tick that sucks the blood of honest crafters for profit will get the exact response he did not want. Through social media this will become known, I am going to link every single thread I can find asking about mold steel blades back to the words of the turd who wrote the letter. Internet stink like this never goes away.
 
The guy feeds off this stuff. Somehow I think he's angry because he doesn't get the respect he thinks he deserves from the community.
 
Lieblad said:
What about a guy whos name is "San Mai III" ?
Any knife they made could be justified as a "San Mai III Knife"
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Believe it or not, he couldn't use his name on anything for sale.

If anyone is old enough to remember J.R.Ewing in the TV show Dallas, the man was head of Ewing Oil Company. The series was a big hit. After a few years, a man in Texas sent a cease and desist letter to the producers. His name was Ewing, and he ran a little rural gas station. His registered trade name was Ewing Oil Company. The show had to pay him millions to get the right to use the name and for past trademark infringement. If he had not had the registration, the show could have made him not use his own name in the name of his shop.
 
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