Some people just don't understand.

killgar said:
Friends don't let friends buy crappy knives.

A difference in taste is one thing, but there's no way I could in good conscience stand silent and let a friend spend hard-earned money on a piece of junk, or worse, a knife that might be unsafe.

I'd rather give a friend one of my GOOD knives than see them using a crappy or dangerous knife. And on occasion I have done just that.
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I have a buddy who bought a cheap Smith and Wesson knife. He was very proud of the knife. He is not a knife guy, yet. When he showed it to me I congratulated him on a new knife. I did not talk bad about the knife. He used the knife a few weeks and I decided to get him an Endura. So, I carried mine and the one I planned to gift to him on a fishing trip we were going on. I pulled out my knife to trim some line. He instantly wanted to check it out. He liked it and noticed the quality difference between his S&W and the Endura. So I pulled out the scond one and handed it to him. Ha ha. The expression on his face was priceless. Now he carries the gifted knife all the time. And he is thinking of buying a Para 2, cause he saw me using mine. I may just turn him into a knife nut yet!!
 
Some 'no-names' might have a subtle maker's mark, and turn out to be some kind of custom or collectible, just sayin'.
 
If he thinks it's cool, and it's worth the money to him, who are you to tell him he's wrong?
He didn't tell you that your beloved Griptilian was junk and hassle you about what you paid for it.
I have a Sebenza, most people think I'm crazy for paying a cent over $50 for it. They don't get it. As long as I'm happy with it, that's what matters.
Some people carry Gerber's, I think they're crazy for paying a cent over $10 for them. As long as they're happy with it, that's what matters. It's not my place to tell them that I think Gerber sucks. If it's what they like and they think it's worth it, who am I to say that they are wrong?
 
It pays to be knowledgeable when your out there going to flea markets, yard sales and auctions looking for knives. You are one step ahead of the next person who isn't.
 
Many people on these forums may know the difference between better and poorer quality knives, but there are other things that all of us don't have the same awareness of. We're all ignorant of SOME things. Some person may not know anything about knives, but may know a lot about a subject you don't. As long as the person isn't an idiot about it, i.e., someone who asks to use someone else's knife and tries to destroy it doing something ridiculous, it's okay with me. Sometimes and some ways of sharing what we know (whatever it is) can come across as snobbish if we aren't careful, then it can completely turn off the person we're trying to 'enlighten'.

Jim
 
A foot and a half long lobster claw knife? I think that would look awesome in my collection! Ive had plenty of novelty knives in my time. You need to learn how to walk before you learn how to run.

I own and ride a bad ass HD Roadking but i started out 25 years ago with a POS Honda 175xl, i enjoyed riding that old Honda back then and didnt care what it was. Of course i wouldnt want to go back to the old Honda but honestly the Joy of riding is still the same for me. Some of the guys i ride with bag on anyone thats not riding an HD but i think thats BS, i wave and give a big smile to evryone no matter what they ride. Sorry i dont mean to make this a bike thread, just thought it was a good analogy.
 
Dr Heelhook said:
Why is this a problem? If those people would have known better, they might have take the good knives before you did. :D
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This is where I fall in this. Let them buy what they want, then, if they are your friends as you say, you can show them better quality knives and help educate them.

Being on bladeforums for a few months helps, but an expert it does not make.

I have been collecting knives for 35 years, and I still learn something new almost every day.

You have gotten the advice in different flavors above, but essentially, if you don't have something nice to say, don't say it.

Be polite, assist when asked, and try not to be insulting. BTW, Maui Jim Typhoons and HTC Evo 4g here. Does that make me bad? ;^)

At the very least, you got to go through the knives first, glad you were able to pick out some nice stuff!

best

mqqn
 
Some people just have poor taste. When I was around 10, I knew most gun show knives were junk, I didn't even own a knife or have interest. I would have just laughed at them, and bullshit reasons for the knives cosmetic features.
 
mley1 said:
I have a buddy who bought a cheap Smith and Wesson knife. He was very proud of the knife. He is not a knife guy, yet. When he showed it to me I congratulated him on a new knife. I did not talk bad about the knife. He used the knife a few weeks and I decided to get him an Endura. So, I carried mine and the one I planned to gift to him on a fishing trip we were going on. I pulled out my knife to trim some line. He instantly wanted to check it out. He liked it and noticed the quality difference between his S&W and the Endura. So I pulled out the scond one and handed it to him. Ha ha. The expression on his face was priceless. Now he carries the gifted knife all the time. And he is thinking of buying a Para 2, cause he saw me using mine. I may just turn him into a knife nut yet!!
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Nice work! :thumbup: Just think, if it weren't for your friendship he may have never known the pleasure of owning a quality knife. You may have also saved him from stiches if the lock on his knife had failed.

For the record, I don't consider knives to be junk based on their price or maker, I consider a knife to be junk if it's unsuitable for the job it was clearly produced to perform, or if it is clearly unsafe. I don't see anything wrong with buying or even using inexpensive knives if they are of suitable quality. And I don't see anything wrong with people buying knives just to look at. But I wouldn't want a friend to unkowingly waste their hard-earned money on junk when that money could be spent on true quality. And if a friend, or even a stranger for that matter, were about to buy a knife that was unsafe, I would consider it my duty to speak up, no different than if a person were about to step off the sidewalk and into the path of a bus.

Sometimes being a true friend means that you have to risk bursting your friends bubble, like saying "Hey Bro, that knife your looking at is really a piece of junk".
 
muradtexas said:
You have to understand that people with no knowledge of knives can't tell the difference in features, qualities of steel, geometry, none of that. But they don't care, either. I have friends with knives duller than a broomstick, but they won't know because it "cuts," sorta. They always cut themselves on my knives because they are used to testing their knives by dragging their fingers along the blade (yes, as if they are seriously trying to cut their fingers) and they wonder why I keep them so sharp. People just have different standards. The same way I don't see any difference between blu-ray and DVD, and they make fun of me. The only difference is I don't cut my fingers on blu-rays. :)
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You've just revealed yourself. We can never be friends...
 
I think the OPs reference to the $150 shades and smart phone weren't to insult those who have them, but rather to make the point that the other gent looking at the knives was willing to drop that much money on shades and a phone but gawked at the cost of what a "good" knife starts at. The same case can be made for the shades themselves. I know many people that won't spend more than $20 to $30 on a pair of shades and gawk when I tell them the cost of my Maui Jims or Oakleys. As others have posted, some people are more educated on certain items/products and just as ignorant on others.
 
NaturalMystic said:
I think the OPs reference to the $150 shades and smart phone weren't to insult those who have them, but rather to make the point that the other gent looking at the knives was willing to drop that much money on shades and a phone but gawked at the cost of what a "good" knife starts at. The same case can be made for the shades themselves. I know many people that won't spend more than $20 to $30 on a pair of shades and gawk when I tell them the cost of my Maui Jims or Oakleys. As others have posted, some people are more educated on certain items/products and just as ignorant on others.
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Exactly. Thank you for helping me clear myself up. :D
 
I am only assuming this woman was selling these items because they belonged to a deceased family member. If this is the case your comments could be seen as an insult to the previous owner of these items. People buy what they like. More power to them. Just be glad that you choose to spend your money wisely and got some good toys. I never tell people what I spend on knives unless they ask. I never insult someones choice of knives or other tools. I will tell them if I think it is unsafe and usually trade them a good inexpensive knife for theirs. To the gadget and golf people who think 100+ for a knife is outrageous, I ask them a few questions. How much did they pay for their toy? Always more than I did. How long before they are obsolete and need to be replaced? Six months, maybe 1.5 years as opposed to decades. Do they have a life time warranty, some unconditional? No. They stop asking after that.
 
For most people a knife is just a sharp piece of steel that they can use to cut stuff and to pry with. When I was working in a construction job, a lot of the guys carried cheap sodbusters or other cheap knives. The guys used them, sometimes even for years, because the knives worked for them and they used them hard.

If I were into knives back then, I think I would have educated them about better quality knives. On the other hand, the knives did what they were expected to do....
 
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