Some Musings on Brand Loyalty

FANBOY - Deny any and all flaws or problems with a brand--rationalize them away if necessary; Screw anyone who doesn't like the brand. Virtually all knives owned are one brand.

BRAND LOYALTY - Will acknowledge the flaws but vigorously defend the brand in general. Most knives owned are one brand.

BRAND PREFERENCE - Acknowledges the flaws and offers constructive criticism. Likes the brand even though there is room for improvement. Many knives owned are one brand.
 
Hi Moniker,

Thanx for the response and kind words. FYI, my "Shiny footprints" philosophy, is primarily, "Please don't bitch about other makers on our forum".

sal
 
I get a (sad) kick out of the fanboy brand warfare. The either or, love or hate, no in between ridiculousness.
Ford or Chevy
Country Music or Rap

The whole, "all Spyderco is awesone and so therefor Benchmade sucks" and vice versa, and for many brands... "ESEE 1095 is awesome, anyone else making anything in 1095 is therefor junk".

Never could understand why one can't acknowledge good craftsmanship despite lack of preference? I know I've more then once stated I am not a huge fan of Spyderco knives, they are not for me, many models that others love feel awkward in my hand, and aesthetically they don't do anything for me, but I've almost always went on to give them credit for being finely crafted and well built knives. Just because other knives feel better in my hand and look better to my eye, doesn't mean I have to "hate" the brand I don't prefer... I can certainly still respect them for what they are. Just because you prefer one doesn't mean you have to hate the other.

Is it wrong that I can Bump some WuTangClan in my DodgeTruck on my way home from work, and then enjoy some Merle Haggard while relaxing out by the pool when I get there? And then maybe some Skynard when I'm working out, and some Dead when I'm cleaning around the house?

What's with it with such be it ignorance, arrogance, or insecurity, that folks feel they need to bash others to defend their own preferences, rather then simply acknowledging their preferences and letting it go at that is beyond me. The whole "it's one or the other, my way way is the only way and your way sucks" mentality is beyond me, but it sure does make for some entertaining reading along the way. So all guilty parties, please do proceed.
 
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EChoil said:
BRAND PREFERENCE - Acknowledges the flaws and offers constructive criticism. Likes the brand even though there is room for improvement. Many knives owned are one brand.
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That would be me for the most part especially if you look at my knife accumulation in terms of brands.

I have mentioned Benchmade in my previous post... I know they make a good knife. I don't put them down. I just don't own any. That goes for many brands. I don't casually purchase $200 knives just for the sake of buying something new. I like a particular style of knife generally and usually look to that style first because I know I will likely be satisfied with it. Looking at the Boker Urban Trapper. I like it. Don't need it for anything other than having one. I have not bought a Boker knife in years.
 
There's going to be snobs in every hobbie, if you think the fanboys are bad here try hanging out on a watch forum....haha

At the same time, I also don't see a problem with defending a certain brand that you favor.

Every product made is a piece of shit in one way or another, everything breaks and everything has issues, nothings perfect, same goes for knives.
 
Is it ok to have a preference for multiple brands? The majority of my folders are CRK, Spyderco, and Benchmade and have legit criticisms of all 3 brands, some of which have gotten under some skin of the loyalists before. I've owned Hinderers and Striders too and would defend them in some ways, but have very legit criticisms about those too. But I own both Victorinox and Leatherman too, and they both make good products, but I thought the way Leatherman changed up the Juice line was stupid.

I have a LG and Vizio TV in my house and they both work fine and great and am about to purchase a Samsung. I believe in buying what you like and what's going to suit you best. I might would've went with LG again, but they're missing a key feature I want and won't sacrifice it just to have an LG. The Samsung had features and appearance I'm looking for and good reviews so that's what I'm going with though I've never had one before. With guitars, I've got both Fender and Gibson. They serve different purposes and have different tones. I just think one of the biggest wastes of breath is getting all worked up over this brand or that brand. Truly first world problems. Just my 2 cents.
 
For sure multiples are fine. It's just something different in your personal quiver.

That mindless mono-brandism really hurts the person afflicted with it the most.
 
I won't say anything about a specific company because each has their pros and cons and they all vary depending on personal preferences.

All I can really say is that I respect a guy like Sal Glesser. He doesn't have to stay as involved as he does, yet he shows up in random places to drop some words that a wise person should at least consider. And I truly believe that he does his best to give people a fair shake and accept them despite their faults unless the person demands to be dismissed.

I've held knives as good as Spyderco's offerings, but I have yet to see any large scale maker care that people genuinely like and use what he oversees the building of. A lot of small scale makers don't stay as involved with their products as what Sal does.

All of us would do well to try to emulate what he does on a professional level, regardless of what we do for a living.

Edit: Ok, I'll do it. As far as design and materials, I prefer spyderco knives. That doesn't mean I love everything about everything spyderco offers. Hell, I've even had some problems with some stuff I've gotten from them. But as I would want someone to be patient with my shortcomings, I'll try to be patient with others'. That is, unless they demand otherwise.
 
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EChoil said:
FANBOY - Deny any and all flaws or problems with a brand--rationalize them away if necessary; Screw anyone who doesn't like the brand. Virtually all knives owned are one brand.

BRAND LOYALTY - Will acknowledge the flaws but vigorously defend the brand in general. Most knives owned are one brand.

BRAND PREFERENCE - Acknowledges the flaws and offers constructive criticism. Likes the brand even though there is room for improvement. Many knives owned are one brand.
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We're all here for the knife groupies.
 
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