Sold my first knife: opinion needed

Alarion

Alarion

Joined
Nov 26, 2001
Messages
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Sorry if this post will come up double, but the first time I posted it the forum apparently just gobbled it...:confused:

I'd like the opinion of you pros who charge for what you make.

Last saturday I sold my first knife to a friend of mine that, after seeing the knife I made for my wife for historic reenactment, wanted a similar one.
The knife has a blade patterned out of a book which describes several hundreds archeological finds, most of which in the river Thames.
It features a C70 blade I cut out of a 3mm plate. I forged in the edge bevels and final edge and tip shape, as well as a certain degree of curvature my friend wanted, then annealed twice, for stress relief, ground it to convex edge. Will anneal once more, quench in 15W40 oil and temper to about 55 Hrc and finish. The blade has full tang grip, which will receive olive wood scales pinned with german silver or brass pins.

Considering that I need 2 gas bottles for this (about 4$ each), 4 new belts (7$ each, and a lot of time to get them :rolleyes: ), scales (5$) do you think that charging 100€ (about 100$) for it I asked the right sum?
Or did I ask too much /too little?
If you think I asked too much, I'll cut it, if it was too little, well, next time I'll ask more :D

Let me know.
 
That is a lot more than I got for my first knife, which was in all probability was not as good as your first knife. If you and your friend feel it was right it is right. Only one rule, enjoy what you are doing.
 
I'm definitely trying to enjoy it :)
Well, I showed my first knife to some people who said it was not bad at all. It has some defects, obviously, but no blatant or functional ones. You'll see them at close examination though. It was a difficult design, though, with bolsters with a curved shape projecting onto the blade itself and then coming back (you know, one of those things that are so cool when you imagine them and thenm are a real pain to carry out decently...:). I'll never do something like that again D
I think I'll get down the price if this is the general opinion.
 
Work the defects out, then sell it for what you are comfortable with, and don't feel at all bad for charging more for a good knife. You have to figure what your knives are worth by the work you put in them. Many makers, including me, don't charge enough for the real total of work time. We get a decent price for the finished knife, and the customer gets a good deal if he has any comprehension of what goes into making a good knife. From the price and work you put into the knife you described and sold, you didn't get hurt. But I would certainly get the flaws out of the rest of them before I sold any, if you are serious about making knives and selling them.You will develop your skills and customer list by trying to make "the perfect knife" everytime. Good luck,and welcome to the Forum, and the best bunch of folks I've ever known.
 
Alarion you said "Considering that I need 2 gas bottles for this (about 4$ each)" are you using the small 14oz. or 16oz. propane bottles? if you are you may consider getting an adapter to run from the bigger 20lb BBQ type tanks. I got one from Wal-mart for $9, seems to run forever now. :D and it is cheaper to refill the one bigger tank than buy and throw away the little ones.
 
Alarion,

Welcome to the horrible world of pricing your work!!! :)

It is still one of the very hardest things in the knifemaking process for me to do.

I still have not settled on any standard models, so it makes it even harder to figure. I made a few knives before somebody asked to buy one, and when they asked I was so excited somebody wanted one I couldn't see straight.

The problem with trying to figure prices in the very beginning is that there is no set formula. I tried to figure things the way you did...I had $$$ in belts, $$$ in handle material, etc. etc.... BUT, that doesn't work very well. The buyer could really care less how much it cost you or how long it took you. I've often mentioned to customers that I ruined 2 blades before finally getting it right on the 3rd try...of course they have sympathy, but they're sure not going to say, "Hey, for your troubles let me pay you more!!!"

They are interested in the final product. Which is where what Ed said is perfect. If you AND the buyer are happy...then all is well.

I think in the beginning the buyer needs to be the happier one. I've eaten a lot of low balls in order to try and get my knives out there and in users' hands. Everybody who's anybody has done that (not to say I'm anybody yet :) ).

So after all that rambling...the only solid answer I have...is the knife is worth what your buddy is willing to pay you and still be your buddy :D !!!!

best of luck!
Nick
 
I think it was Bob Engath who said to charge 3 or 4 times what the knife cost to make. That gives you enough to pay for the knife, save toward better equipment and give yourself a small reward.

The only thing I'd add to all the above is if it's possible, agree in advance what the price will be. It would be much easier for everyone to get "happy" with the exchange then than later, when someone might feel they're getting the raw end but they have to follow through anyway out of honor.

But in that case, I'm with Nick - let the maker get the raw end - for the first knives anyway. :D

Wish I had something worthwile to share, I've been struggling with this for a year. One thing that might help as you start selling more: If you can't keep any in you might not be charging enough; if you start to see a number of knives going unsold you're probably charging too much.

Dave
 
One more 2 cents worth, figure what you want for a standard hunter with sheath, as in my case, $175 without very expensive exotic wood or handle material. This is using a 440 or near priced steel. Most anything else is added on and agreed to before any work. This will give you a base to work from, and you will have your feet wet enough to know what you are going to HAVE to charge, by then. My knives used to start at $250 because of the hard to work materials I was using, and the knives were pretty much handmade. And I had plenty of work, though. With the machinery and tools, plus easier material to work, I can turn out good knives much easier and pass this along to the customer.Works for me.
 
I got $300.00 for my very first knife. I was lucky though, my customer bought all of my materials for me. The materials were over $300.00. If I had to but the materials, I would have lost money.

It's never easy trying to determine what to charge.
 
Way to go Alarion. You will do just fine, I am sure. With a little more experience we (you and I) will find out how to price according to those interested in buying.

Roger
 
My personal point of view on worksmanship is "to make such a knife, without flaws and dumb mistakes it takes X hours". Anything more, it's my fault and goes to my detriment, not the customer's.
So, I have to scrap two blades because I messed 'em up? Too bad for me. :)
I agreed on the price, any detail and "optionals" before starting, so that we both know where we stand. I plan to do the same every time.

The gas bottles are the ones like those of MAPP gas (its propane/butane mixture, though).
I'd like to use a bigger tank, but it won't fit my current rig and I have to find the adapter, moreover I really don't want to have a big gas tank in my attic. There's already the armored locker with my guns and reloading powder in there (which is always safely locked away during forge operation). Living in a city apartment I have very little room, and I consider myself very lucky I can have a one brick forge and a coffee can forge there. Can't do any major forging due to noise, and am limited to small knives (no more than about 10 inches long) :rolleyes:
I'm planning to build a serious (big, with big anvil, at least 150 pounds or more) forge in my wife's country home. Only problem: I'll have the forge there and the rest of my shop here at about 100 mls distance :rolleyes:
I guess I'll have to do all the forging and then all the finishing.
It's the best set up possible for me right now.
 
I am not a pro by any definition of the word, but I have sold two knives. Alot of people laugh at me when I answer their question of how much I would charge them for a knife. I have the luxury of not having to sell knives to make a living, my day job provides the cash for that. Damn day job gets in the way too, but that is another topic.

The two knives that I sold were small hunter/skinners patterned off of the Schrade Sharpfinger. They each had damscus blades, Amboyna Burl handle, mosaic pins, and came with a hand tooled personalized leather sheath. Each sold for $250.

It was a great experience, but it really freaked me out to have orders that needed to be filled. They were both for X-Mas presents and the people wanted them quick. I did not like that kind of pressure, so I don't think I am going to take orders anymore. I will just offer what I have available to those that are interested.

Anyway, as long as you are happy and the buyer is happy, all is good. I get more satisfaction right now from the look on a friends face when I give them a knife, then the cash being in my pocket. Don't get me wrong though, I will gladly take the money if you want the knife.:D

I think you did good, but you can always try to get more in the future. But either way it is a great feeling to sell your first knife. Congratulations!
 
Charge as much as the market can bear, without lying, and keeping in mind that your long term reputation in the business will in part depends on your pricing. The cost + formula is fine at a specific time in your career, but if you're lucky / good enough to get a 90% margin, I would recommend you do so. Needless to say, I think very few artisans make good money selling their ware, and more often than not "as much as the market can bear" doesn't even cover for the costs.
 
Oh, I too have a job that provides for supper :)
Actually one "real" job (computer programmer) and a "collateral" one (guns and knife magazines writer).
I'd like to get an income from knives, but I think my skill has much to improve before I can sell more than the occasional low priced one.
BTW, I think I'll reduce the price. For what I've seen 100 is way too much for the knife I'm making, which is very simple.
 
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