So, why high-end knives?

First off I think if someone has a knife made for them then that person should be ready to spend some money. Custom knives are just that; custom for a particular buyer. That is the big draw to customs for me. On the other hand a person can buy a custom knife from a retailer just for bragging rights but it's very, very rewarding to contact a maker whose work you like and work with them directly. Now that's a treat!
A friend of mine once told me after I showed him my latest knife that, " No matter how much money someone has there is someone out there that can make something to exchange for the cash". That's true for cars, watches or anything in general. I don't think the friend that said that really understands custom knives.
 
Steel Sprocket said:
First off I think if someone has a knife made for them then that person should be ready to spend some money. Custom knives are just that; custom for a particular buyer. That is the big draw to customs for me. On the other hand a person can buy a custom knife from a retailer just for bragging rights but it's very, very rewarding to contact a maker whose work you like and work with them directly. Now that's a treat!
A friend of mine once told me after I showed him my latest knife that, " No matter how much money someone has there is someone out there that can make something to exchange for the cash". That's true for cars, watches or anything in general. I don't think the friend that said that really understands custom knives.
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I am looking into having a custom piece built in the future but haven't decided on a maker yet. I am sure though that its a very satisfying feeling to get a knife that you pretty much designed.
 
Yeah...You have to spend some time figuring what you want and someday it'll hit you. Wally Hayes made a sweet little neck knife for me, double hamon, partially sharpened top edge. He's easy to talk to. All depends on you what you are looking for.
 
For me, in the last few years I've kind of gone to quality over quantity, anything that I plan on buying that I expect to last me more than a year I research thoroughly and save up to buy the best I can, instead of buying one that will last me a year for $25 I buy something that will last me 20+ years for $200. (mostly applied to camping/hiking/gun/tool stuff). I got into high end knives around 2008-2009, and started around the $75-$100 area, my last purchase is my most expensive knife yet (ZT 560 should be here tomorrow or tuesday!) though I've bought several lately around the $200 mark, I've found I really like new/interesting steels and sprint runs, and recently started selling lower priced stuff (sogs, gerber, schrade, FRN spydercos) because I don't really use them (why pick a SOG Flash 1 in AUS-8 for the day when there is a Spyderco or Benchmade in M390 or CPM-M4 sitting right next to it without blade play?) Time for some pics...
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michaelm466 said:
For me, in the last few years I've kind of gone to quality over quantity, anything that I plan on buying that I expect to last me more than a year I research thoroughly and save up to buy the best I can, instead of buying one that will last me a year for $25 I buy something that will last me 20+ years for $200. (mostly applied to camping/hiking/gun/tool stuff). I got into high end knives around 2008-2009, and started around the $75-$100 area, my last purchase is my most expensive knife yet (ZT 560 should be here tomorrow or tuesday!) though I've bought several lately around the $200 mark, I've found I really like new/interesting steels and sprint runs, and recently started selling lower priced stuff (sogs, gerber, schrade, FRN spydercos) because I don't really use them (why pick a SOG Flash 1 in AUS-8 for the day when there is a Spyderco or Benchmade in M390 or CPM-M4 sitting right next to it without blade play?) Time for some pics...
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I have been focusing a lot more on quality over quantity for the past few months. I've started thinning out my more inexpensive ones too. It's been working well so far. Beware though, once you break that $200 (for me at least) $400 knives don't seem bad haha. However, I still can say that I'm more satisfied with my collection this way even though it hurts the wallet a bit more every time you add another to the collection.
 
Tony8179 said:
The back and forth of what a $500 knife can do compared to a $50 knife will go on forever. The basic answer is nothing.
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This, to my mind, is like saying that a beater car is exactly the same as, say, a Lambourghini. After all, they both accomplish the same task. They get you from point A to point B. I find it difficult to believe that anyone can honestly make that argument. All knives are not created equal. There's a HUGE range of differences in design, from the usual things like durability and fit and finish, to performance, to ergonomics, to suitability for any given task, to aesthetics. Maybe you're happy with your Ford Pinto, and don't have the budget for a more expensive car, or else just don't care about the things that make the more expensive car (or knife) cost more. But that doesn't at all mean that they're in the same league.
 
RevDevil said:
Some people are perfectly happy and very well served by economy knives. Others get into the hobby to the point where it turns into a natural progression, you go from low to high. as your exposure to various knives increases, your tastes in steel, handle materials, design, and manufacturer becomes refined. Some won't own or carry anything but a CRK, others love the $20 Gerber. There is a point of diminishing returns at work, and it varies from person to person.
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Very well put.
 
Bottom line, most high end knives really aren't that expensive.

The fact that your expenses may be more than your income is another issue entirely.
 
My knives are for using. I don't buy knives as status symbols or to impress people or to fill some emptiness inside me. As far as "pride of ownership", I take pride in any knife I own that effectively and efficiently does the job I require of it. I judge "quality" the same way.

I have several folders between the $100 - $300 range. And yet, I recently came to the realization that all the cutting I've done with a folder throughout my entire life (42 years) and I'm talking about A LOT of cutting, could just as easily been done with my old Buck 110. It's not a one -handed folder, it needs to be sharpened more than modern steels, it doesn't have a smooth as butter pivot, but, I don't imagine there is anything a person can cut with a Sebenza, or other more expensive folder, that I can't cut just as easily with my 110. And it only cost $25.

My 110 is just as usable today as it was when I got it 32 years ago (and I still use it). Based on how well it's holding up, I imagine it will probably outlast me. That fits my definition of "quality".
 
I progressed from Benchmade to plain Sebenzas, then annual inlay Sebs then to a couple of XM-18's and now in Lambert mode with an Inferno and a Flare. Also have a Lightfoot being made for me. The Lambert's are my first customs. They are art as much as a cutting tool. In my mind I have a cutoff of about $600 for a knife. After that, I doubt I would use it for fear of damaging something so expensive.

I admit I don't use my knives much at all. I also have an off-duty firearm and don't use that much either. But if I need it, its there!
 
crimsonfalcon07 said:
This, to my mind, is like saying that a beater car is exactly the same as, say, a Lambourghini. After all, they both accomplish the same task. They get you from point A to point B. I find it difficult to believe that anyone can honestly make that argument. All knives are not created equal. There's a HUGE range of differences in design, from the usual things like durability and fit and finish, to performance, to ergonomics, to suitability for any given task, to aesthetics. Maybe you're happy with your Ford Pinto, and don't have the budget for a more expensive car, or else just don't care about the things that make the more expensive car (or knife) cost more. But that doesn't at all mean that they're in the same league.
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Did you really snip the very first sentence of my post and only comment on that? How about the rest of the post where I put a bit of an investment into the first statement?

The comparison of cars to knives is getting old. I hear it all the time and it never makes sense to me. How do you compare a complex piece of machinery like a car to something as simple as a knife? There is a lot of thought, ingenuity, and mechanics that go into creating and producing a knife from the ground up, but no where near as much that goes into creating and producing a car from the ground up.

I love my custom folders and my other folders that most folks would think are way too expensive, but I am under no illusion that one of those will do something that one of my cheaper knives won't. If I have to cut a zip tie at work or strip some wire then my Kershaw Leek will do the same think that my RJ Martin Overkill would. Now, if I have to cut 1000 zip ties or strip 1000' of wire then I know that my Overkill is going to make the job easier due to the better ergnomics, thicker handle, better blade steel, and more solid overall build of the knife. Do you and I understand the difference? Yes. Does the layman who knows nothing about knives understand? Probably not without learning the hard way.

In general, what does the $500 knife do that the $50 knife won't? Not a damn thing. Add a flamethrower to the $500 knife and now that knife will set things on fire better than the $50 knife.
 
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