So what's up with Olamic?

View attachment 2246209View attachment 2246210

Olamic knives are excellent in terms of build quality, ergonomics, and materials. They operate flawlessly. The company is family owned, and they are a pleasure to deal with. Almost every knife they make is unique. In fact, that is their intent. They certainly are different from every other brand.

It is petty and childish to call them ugly, because that is just a subjective opinion. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Either you like them or you don’t. They are not designed to be bland knives intended to appeal to the masses. I could call out lots of knives that are unappealing to me, based upon my own aesthetic and opinion, but why would I want to go out of my way to be rude? Again, these are subjective opinions. It is not much different than telling your best friend that you think his wife is not attractive. Why be an ass?

I have sold a few Olamics, and I did lose a little money. However, it is the rare knife that always delivers a return on investment. Unfortunately, I usually sell knives for a bit less than I paid regardless of the brand, but knife collecting is not a business for me. I view my loss as a rental fee for being a able to try out lots of different types of knives.

Bottom line is that if you like the way Olamics look, don’t hesitate to buy one. They are of the highest quality and customer service is excellent. If you don’t like the way they look, go get something else. There are lots of options. I can understand why someone would not like a knife with holes and wild colors. It is simply a personal choice, neither right or wrong. In my case, I appreciate the Olamic touch. I like having these knives that look like they could have come from a different time and place, yet still function like a hard using knife should.

I fell for the brand after meeting Eugene Solomonik and checking out the knives at Blade Knife Show a few years ago. The Wayfarers appealed to me the most. They feel so solid when you flip them open. Definitely a bank vault type feeling.
 
Last edited:
Leslie Tomville said:
It is petty and immature to call them ugly. Either you like them or you don’t. They are not designed to be bland knives intended to appeal to the masses. I could call out lots of knives that are unappealing to me, based upon my own aesthetic and opinion, but why would I want to go out of my way to be rude? These are subjective opinions. It is not much different than telling your best friend that you think his wife is not attractive. Why be an ass?
Click to expand...

If my best friend asked me if I found his wife attractive or not, I would be honest with him because he’s my best friend, I wouldn't skirt the subject to protect his potential hurt feelings.

I’m glad you enjoy your knives but I think if you tried to sell them, they most likely would sit for sale for awhile as you reposted them over the weeks, finally not bringing near what you paid for them. This is what the OP asked about, reasons why they see this happening, my reasoning is because most of the knives ordered by people are an “acquired taste“, “only a face a mother could love”, “homely“ (but holey as hell too), or in more simple terms, ugly.
 
Jsega51 said:
If my best friend asked me if I found his wife attractive or not, I would be honest with him because he’s my best friend, I wouldn't skirt the subject to protect his potential hurt feelings.

I’m glad you enjoy your knives but I think if you tried to sell them, they most likely would sit for sale for awhile as you reposted them over the weeks, finally not bringing near what you paid for them. This is what the OP asked about, reasons why they see this happening, my reasoning is because most of the knives ordered by people are an “acquired taste“, “only a face a mother could love”, “homely“ (but holey as hell too), or in more simple terms, ugly.
Click to expand...

They’re just not basic, while the majority of people are.
 
mak1277 said:
They’re just not basic, while the majority of people are.
Click to expand...

I just checked out the previous handful of pages of the “What knives are you carrying today” thread and I gotta say that the members here are anything but basic! All sorts of colors, blade shapes, handle and lock designs, slipjoints, autos, etc!

I know you agree with me on some knives just being ugly lol….

View attachment 2246547
 
Jsega51 said:
I just checked out the previous handful of pages of the “What knives are you carrying today” thread and I gotta say that the members here are anything but basic! All sorts of colors, blade shapes, handle and lock designs, slipjoints, autos, etc!

I know you agree with me on some knives just being ugly lol….

View attachment 2246547
Click to expand...

Oh I am basic as hell though.
 
Leslie Tomville said:
View attachment 2246209View attachment 2246210

It is petty and immature to call them ugly. Either you like them or you don’t. They are not designed to be bland knives intended to appeal to the masses. I could call out lots of knives that are unappealing to me, based upon my own aesthetic and opinion, but why would I want to go out of my way to be rude? These are subjective opinions. It is not much different than telling your best friend that you think his wife is not attractive. Why be an ass?

I have sold a few Olamics, and I did lose a little money. However, it is the rare knife that always delivers a return on investment. Unfortunately, I usually sell knives for a bit less than I paid regardless of the brand, but knife collecting is not a business for me. I view my loss as a rental fee for being a able to try out lots of different types of knives.

Bottom line is that if you like the way Olamics look, don’t hesitate to buy one. They are of the highest quality and customer service is excellent. If you don’t like the way they look, go get something else. There are lots of options. In my case, I appreciate the Olamic touch. I like having these knives that look like they could have come from a different time and place, yet still function like a hard using knife should.

I fell for the brand after meeting Eugene Solomonik and checking out the knives at Blade Knife Show a few years ago. The Wayfarers appealed to me the most. They feel so solid when you flip them open. Definitely a bank vault type feeling.
Click to expand...

Just because not everyone wants holes in their knife, doesn’t mean we don’t find them attractive. I do NOT like the holes in the handles. At all. On any model they make…
But I think the 247 Bowie and “companto” look really cool, with a regular CF or TI scale.
Just like my other favorite knives, they aren’t my favorites because they look all crazy, just nice sort of normal knife lines/shapes.
The 247 is unique enough that even a plain Jane full titanium or CF/Ti model, in a single color, (without holes) is a good buy in my opinion.
I guess what I’m saying is I think these knives are worth the ~$500 price regardless of how crazy you go with the mods. Mine seems perfect, with PREMIUM materials, and it’s still unique as hell.
I love that purple one you have, but I think it would look even better with a matching show side…to each their own tho, which is the whole point. That said, I wonder how much $$ it would cost for a new show side scale and a color change on the lockside ….?
 
Last edited:
Leslie Tomville said:
View attachment 2246209View attachment 2246210

Olamic knives are excellent in terms of build quality, ergonomics, and materials. They operate flawlessly. The company is family owned, and they are a pleasure to deal with. Almost every knife they make is unique. In fact, that is their intent. They certainly are different from every other brand.

It is petty and immature to call them ugly. Either you like them or you don’t. They are not designed to be bland knives intended to appeal to the masses. I could call out lots of knives that are unappealing to me, based upon my own aesthetic and opinion, but why would I want to go out of my way to be rude? These are subjective opinions. It is not much different than telling your best friend that you think his wife is not attractive. Why be an ass?

I have sold a few Olamics, and I did lose a little money. However, it is the rare knife that always delivers a return on investment. Unfortunately, I usually sell knives for a bit less than I paid regardless of the brand, but knife collecting is not a business for me. I view my loss as a rental fee for being a able to try out lots of different types of knives.

Bottom line is that if you like the way Olamics look, don’t hesitate to buy one. They are of the highest quality and customer service is excellent. If you don’t like the way they look, go get something else. There are lots of options. In my case, I appreciate the Olamic touch. I like having these knives that look like they could have come from a different time and place, yet still function like a hard using knife should.

I fell for the brand after meeting Eugene Solomonik and checking out the knives at Blade Knife Show a few years ago. The Wayfarers appealed to me the most. They feel so solid when you flip them open. Definitely a bank vault type feeling.
Click to expand...

Just because someone thinks Olamics are “ugly” doesn’t mean they are “petty and immature.” It is their opinion just like you have yours.

Try not to take things personally or be over sensitive. Just a thought.

And my opinion is that they are not ergonomically comfortable. Haven’t had one yet that felt good in hand.
 
Jsega51 said:
If my best friend asked me if I found his wife attractive or not, I would be honest with him because he’s my best friend, I wouldn't skirt the subject to protect his potential hurt feelings.

I’m glad you enjoy your knives but I think if you tried to sell them, they most likely would sit for sale for awhile as you reposted them over the weeks, finally not bringing near what you paid for them. This is what the OP asked about, reasons why they see this happening, my reasoning is because most of the knives ordered by people are an “acquired taste“, “only a face a mother could love”, “homely“ (but holey as hell too), or in more simple terms, ugly.
Click to expand...
I have a different theory, which I've seen mirrored by at least another in this thread.
The thing is, you can go, right now, to Olamic web site and have one build e-x-a-c-t-l-y to your taste and desire. So why would you settle for one that's already been built, purchased and used, that might have some things you like, but also some you don't, just to save a few bucks?
Personnaly, when we're talking knives of this caliber, I wouldn't settle; or if I did, the money savings would have to be very
substantial.
So the feature that make them attractive, also make the secondary market value sink.
Now, if they had a 6 years waiting list like some other makers, that would be different, and I'm sure secondary market value would rise accordingly.
 
I’m not saying ugly is their only downfall here, there’s several factors as pointed out above. I’ve spent more time here on the subject than the knives are worth to me, no gifts please!! 🍻
 
Jsega51 said:
If my best friend asked me if I found his wife attractive or not, I would be honest with him because he’s my best friend, I wouldn't skirt the subject to protect his potential hurt feelings.

I’m glad you enjoy your knives but I think if you tried to sell them, they most likely would sit for sale for awhile as you reposted them over the weeks, finally not bringing near what you paid for them. This is what the OP asked about, reasons why they see this happening, my reasoning is because most of the knives ordered by people are an “acquired taste“, “only a face a mother could love”, “homely“ (but holey as hell too), or in more simple terms, ugly.
Click to expand...

It’s like a CRK Unique, most of the time it appeals to one person. It only sells when it’s heavily discounted.
 
Hope you received enough positive feedback to make an informed decision here. Notice the only negative things mentioned were over personal preference within the looks department. I've never seen a thread created about their quality or fit/finish lacking. They're made well and with pride so I think you'll be happy if you do happen to pull the trigger on one. Every piece I've owned by Olamic has great action and detent. I would never grade a knife by its resale value. If that was the mindset then we're probably talking about a person who buys whatever is trendy or popular. They may not buy based upon the uniqueness of the invention. Everyone has their philosophy for collecting or spending. I think Olamic really happen to shine in the tailoring department.
 
Bought a Olamic Voykar Compact about 10 years ago. Really liked the looks and it felt so good in my hand it was hard to put it down.
Bad news is the "stabilized maple burl" scales were not stabilized and one cracked at the front rivet hole after about 6 months. I never used or carried the knife. It just sat on a shelf on display.
Figured I'd just put some new scales on it so I started drilling out the rivets. The knife broke in half at the front rivet hole while on my drill press. Worse news is I was using a Dremel drill press so not a huge amount of downforce there. Brittle as glass. OMG the grain size in the steel was huge!
You live, you buy online, you learn. That was my take away on the experience. Your results may vary.
 
The rainmaker is the only folder that I would entertain thoughts of buying but only in a liner lock...
ArchVV ArchVV ' s is gorgeous!!!
I do like their fixed blades,especially with a stacked birch bark handle and their Damascus....
 
I always dug the Olamic Suna fixed blade. For the longest time it was featured prominently on their website so I’ve come to think of as their signature style. Old Tsarist pre-revolution Russia maybe.

IMG_0175.jpeg
 
Last edited:
I really, really, really don't care for titanium. I own one full Ti knife, and it is DLC. If I could get a swish with a carbon fiber scale, I would.

I like the whippersnapper except the choilish part of the blade. Not a fan as it's not really functional.
 
It's absurd to say that Olamic is anything but top tier.

I can't think of a single other manufacturer where you can have a vision for what you want your knife to look like and a week later - without even a deposit - they will offer you 2 different versions of what you just dreamed up and offer to sell you one or walk away.

Then there's the fact that the Wayfarer 247 at least is as tough as any other knife in the same dimensions, with absolute reliability, action on the flip that is as smooth as most custom knives on high end bearings.

And then to top it all off, if you want anything at all changed a decade later, they will just tell you to send it in and do whatever you want including change the blade shape for a different shape or steel.

But going even beyond THAT, they are constantly innovating wild new things like proprietary mokume damascus and zircuti scales, carved backspacers, and clips.

They also aren't afraid to apply whatever finish you want.

Please, someone tell me another company that checks off all those boxes.

The reason you don't see them getting what people paid is because they are so customized and even more often because they are absolutely beat up from being carried every day for years.

I edc'd my Wayfarer for 5 years and only switch it out for a bigger knife when I don't carry it. It's one of only 3 flipper knives in a pretty good collection spanning over 40 years that I will never sell.

"If you have to ask, you'll never know."
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top