So many knives, so little information

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MrFishead

Joined
Nov 15, 2011
Messages
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I've been browsing ebay looking at knives for a while now and I'm amazed at everything that's on there espescially the damascus knives. My brother sent me the link to this particular one and I wanted to know what you guys think about it. It looks really cool and of course they are going to hype it up. So what are somethings I can look for in these knives that tells me it's actually a good knife or that it's a total piece of garbage especially with the damascus since I don't know much about it?

Here's the link

(( link to live auction removed ))

(Browsed through the rules and found nothing about posting links so if this is against the rules, I'm sorry)
 
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Well....that "Ultimate Warrior's Custom Beautiful Damascus Full Tang Bowie Hunting Knife" is neither custom, nor beautiful, nor damascus.

It's silly design should set off the "garbage" alarms immediately.
That "Ultimate Warior" is in its name should set off the "garbage" alarms immediately.
It's low price should set off the "garbage" alarms immediately.

A real custom, damacus Bowie will cost hundreds if not thousands of dollars.

Don't take anything said on eBay about knives seriously at all. Hang out here, read a lot, and visit the Custom makers forums here, and visit the knife retailers who advertise here. That will give you a sense of what is decent and how much "decent" will cost.
 
I don't know the brand. I don't know the seller. But with that amount of metal that claims to be "Damascus" for that price from Pakistan, I think the odds are in favor of garbage rather than great deal.

Plus -- and this is just my subjective take -- what would you use a knife like that for anyway?
 
I figured the name, the lack of country of origin, and the price were all alarms. What is the blade if not damascus? Sure looks like it but what do I know :P
 
Gadfly22 said:
I don't know the brand. I don't know the seller. But with that amount of metal that claims to be "Damascus" for that price from Pakistan, I think the odds are in favor of garbage rather than great deal.

Plus -- and this is just my subjective take -- what would you use a knife like that for anyway?
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Brother in law was talking about always wanting a damascus knife so my brother thought about getting him that one.
 
MrFishead said:
Brother in law was talking about always wanting a damascus knife so my brother thought about getting him that one.
Click to expand...

Bottom line is this. If your brother in law would think its awesome looking...then definitely get it. If your brother in law is a knife junkie like the folks here....don't get it for him. Its a crappy knife. Or at least the vast majority of BF members probably think so. But again, we are knife geeks.
 
MrFishead said:
Brother in law was talking about always wanting a damascus knife so my brother thought about getting him that one.
Click to expand...

OK. If the knife is to be a gift and is being bought for looks or coolness factor alone, then I guess the utility and the steel quality are secondary considerations. But if the brother-in-law were going to use the knife, then I would question the steel quality (real good-quality Damascus wouldn't be that cheap) and the overall design (e.g., the weight of the out-sized blade and the squared-off handle that is unlikely to be very comfortable to hold).

Again, just my take.
 
Gadfly22 said:
OK. If the knife is to be a gift and is being bought for looks or coolness factor alone, then I guess the utility and the steel quality are secondary considerations. But if the brother-in-law were going to use the knife, then I would question the steel quality (real good-quality Damascus wouldn't be that cheap) and the overall design (e.g., the weight of the out-sized blade and the squared-off handle that is unlikely to be very comfortable to hold).

Again, just my take.
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The problem is is that it wouldn't just be for the coolness factor and he'd probably use it pretty rough as he basically lives in the woods. Even if he were to get it for him just to beat the heck out of, $70 is a bit much. Thanks for all your responses so far guys!
 
Just a thought: given the cost of good Damascus, the blade will likely be small if you're looking to spend $75-100. I'd do an internet search for "Damascus neck knife". You should find some cool-looking small knives that could still be functional in the woods. I'll email you a link to the kind of thing I've seen.
 
MrFishead said:
The problem is is that it wouldn't just be for the coolness factor and he'd probably use it pretty rough as he basically lives in the woods. Even if he were to get it for him just to beat the heck out of, $70 is a bit much. Thanks for all your responses so far guys!
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Forget damascus for a "woods user" knife. Real damascus would work fine, but its expensive. Fake damascus is cheap and is going to fail on the poor guy when he's out in the woods.

And...if he "lives" in the woods...he should know knives.

If you think he wants something to beat on stuff in the woods with, get one of the Kabar Becker knives or Ontario Ranger knives that people will start suggesting shortly.

If he wants something to slice stuff with....get him a Victorinox Swiss Army knife like a Alox Farmer.

But...most importantly...forget about the damascus. Anything functional is way beyond what you sound like you want to spend. Better off spending the 70 on a non-damascus very good knife, than spending the 70 on a "damascus-esque" crappy knife. Especially if its going to be used.
 
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