Spydercoites or Benchmadians?

Thing that sold me on Spyderco after bouncing around from Kershaw, Benchmade and Spyderco, is they hold their value so well and go up fast when discontinued. I like to collect NIB knives and Spyderco is where it's at for an investment of production knives. At least in their higher end models.
I still like Kershaw and Benchmade and carry a big B/M 630 in a belt sheath while hiking, but I just think Spyderco has more of a collector following and if I buy their sprint runs and find discontinued models, I feel I could get my money back someday (and maybe a little more, makes me feel better about buying them) Benchmade and Kershaw just doesn't have the legions of collectors willing to pay for discontinued models IMO.
 
I like Kershaw too and i bought a Ti Bump in Blue. It's a pretty nice knife, well made and very attractive. But, I paid around 165 for it and it's one of 1500 (#1111) has been out of production over two years now and I see them still for less than what I paid for mine!
That would never happen with a well loved Spyderco of such low numbers.
 
jill jackson said:
I like Kershaw too and i bought a Ti Bump in Blue. It's a pretty nice knife, well made and very attractive. But, I paid around 165 for it and it's one of 1500 (#1111) has been out of production over two years now and I see them still for less than what I paid for mine!
That would never happen with a well loved Spyderco of such low numbers.
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I have a Ti Bump in green. I bought it secondhand for $125. The reason they are still available for less than you paid for it is because Kershaw dramatically overpriced them when they were introduced. Was the Bump at $180 (what I saw one priced for at a gun show) twice the knife that the typical BM or Spyderco sub-$100 offering is? Not hardly.

I bought a full sized Persian a few years ago ($90) and decided it just wasn't my cup of tea. I sold it this spring for $170. I bought the first Mel Pardue aluminum Benchmade w/ the Axis lock (model 720 I think) back in 2000 or so. I think I paid $80 for it. I sold it at the same time as the Persian and it went for around $150. Those are similar appreciations, though the Sypdie gained more and did it a little bit quicker.

I think the merits of the individual piece matter as much as the brand: try to find a reasonably priced Benchmade AFCK Axis 806. They routinely go for over $200
 
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Large Persians are bringing between 240-265 at this time on eBay. 3 years ago you could buy them for new 87. Same with the Yojimbo and the Dodo. Benchmade does a second best as far as going up quickly when discontinued. It takes them longer and less models do go up, than Spyderco. Kershaw IMO isn't even in the running.
 
elkins45 said:
I have a Ti Bump in green. I bought it secondhand for $125. The reason they are still available for less than you paid for it is because Kershaw dramatically overpriced them when they were introduced. Was the Bump at $180 (what I saw one priced for at a gun show) twice the knife that the typical BM or Spyderco sub-$100 offering is? Not hardly.
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Typical sub-100 dollar offering from B/M or Spyderco is G-10 (or less) not solid titanium multi colored anodized handles, with assisted opening.
Case in point the ATR Spyderco in Ti handles sold for about the same, with no assisted opening and no 1500 piece numbered runs. It is discontinued and is it selling for less than they went for when available, today?
No, it's going for more. I just see Spyderco as being a better investment (the only to me) for a production folder.
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Do not have Benchmades, but want one. I handle both at work (work for Bass Pro Shops), and enjoy both brands.
+1 on the need for more domestic Spydies. They had no issue with the QC on the Golden Natives.
 
elkins45 said:
The D'Allara drop point comes very close to being the perfect knife if only it weren't so fat. It has an axis-like lock (ball lock), full liners and a round hole opener. If only it were made with slimmer G10 instead of fat FRN it would be the functional equivalent of spending $140 on the G-10 Griptilikin scales plus $70 on a Grip itself.
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I think your dream might come true Elk. I think Sal just said they have a D'Allara II in the works with a thinner handle (G10 i think too) and a caged ball lock (like the one on the P'Kal).
 
jill jackson said:
Typical sub-100 dollar offering from B/M or Spyderco is G-10 (or less) not solid titanium multi colored anodized handles, with assisted opening.
Case in point the ATR Spyderco in Ti handles sold for about the same, with no assisted opening and no 1500 piece numbered runs. It is discontinued and is it selling for less than they went for when available, today?
No, it's going for more. I just see Spyderco as being a better investment (the only to me) for a production folder.
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But is that because it's a Spyderco or because it's just a better design? I don't know the answer to that, but I know the ATR feels better in my hand and actually is less odd looking than the Bump. My love for the round hole opener also factors into that decision.

FYI Benchmade did once make a sub-$100 solid titanium framelock called the 750 Pinnacle. It was, for all practical purposes, a Sebenza for the rest of us. It was the best bargain I can remember since I've been interested in knives.
 
All I know is my Dad has bought all sorts of knives all his life and I started collecting them at around 15. At first I just would get whatever appealed to me. After while I noticed some of my Spydercos (Dad had gave me some of them) were going for a lot more than the rest of the stuff I had. I liked that! So now I try to collect the higher end Spydercos and the ones they discontinue.
That Benchmade 750 was around a good while before the Ti ATR or the Ti Kershaw Bump. Number of years I don't know exactly but it was a around far enough back to be cheaper, by virtue of the time difference IMO. The Benchmade 630 is Ti and i paid a lot more than 100 for it, so maybe inflation caused the price increase.
 
Joshua J. said:
I go for Spyderco and Kerhsaw, with a few Benchmades on the side.
It's really hard to say that I like one more than the others, because they all put out good designs...

Nevermind. The Spyderco Military is the best knife ever made, and it comes in S90V. I love Spyderco.
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+1

I bought a CRKT M21, and then a M21-SFG, then I found the D'Allara and Spyderco has hooked me as a customer for life. :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:
 
There is nothing overpriced about the Ti Bump. It's price was right in line (or even cheaper) for when it was available. The only reason Spyderco goes up so fast when they are sprint runs or discontinued is because there's so many collecting them.
 
I may have come off as being against Benchmade in my above comment but I'm not, I kind of want a Rift but I have to hold one again.
 
Thomas W said:
What should a LE KO designed anodized Ti frame-lock in 440V MSRP for?
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I have no idea: I'm not familiar with the MSRP of any of the knives that I own, since nobody buys knives at MSRP these days. I do know this: if dealers still have NIB stock three years after it was released then it was obviously overpriced relative to what the market will bear. I first saw one in the stock of a dealer I know who priced it at $180 new. As of November 2008 he still has it in his display case. Regardless of what he paid for it, nobody seems willing to pay what he's asking. By that metric it is overpriced.

Sometimes the whole is greater (or less) than the sum of the parts. When you look at all of the objective factors about the Bump such as materials, features and designer's reputation then those lead you to make a certain pricing decision. The final value judgement, is ultimately made by the buying public and is often based on subjective factors of taste. The Bump really isn't a mainstream design, either in blade or handle profile and it would seem that the knife buying public didn't choose to embrace it. That's not a reflection on the quality of design or production, just a reflection of how fickle people are.

Kershaw made an objective decision that was overruled by subjective factors they can't control. It's not the first time something like that has happened and it won't be the last. Microsoft thought the Zune would outsell the iPod if they priced it $10 cheaper and look how wrong they were.

Keep in mind that I'm not saying that the Bump is a bad knife: quite the contrary. I wouldn't have spent $125 on one if I didn't think it was well-executed. But I wouldn't have spent $180.

FWIW, my green Bump (#1194) says S30V and not 440V.
 
Green was always the less popular color and it's the only one I see at that price now. (120 and up)
My blue says S30V as well and I know there was a blade shape change at some point and maybe a steel as well.
 
jill jackson said:
Green was always the less popular color and it's the only one I see at that price now. (120 and up)
My blue says S30V as well and I know there was a blade shape change at some point and maybe a steel as well.
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Hey: I just noticed your location says Northern KY. I live in the Northern KY area as well. Are there any storefront knife dealers you deal with in the NKY/Cincy area or do you do all of your buying online?

Sorry to disrupt the thread with this tangent---my Christmas present to myself will probably be to upgrade my membership so I can PM.
 
There never was many storefront dealers around here. The one in Florence Mall closed (it was almost always full retail) and there's one in Clarksville In., that used to sell a lot of law enforcement gear and they had knives at a discount. My Dad used to go there a lot and he hasn't been for a long time so I don't know what they have now. I think you can get a better deal online, myself.
(I'm closer to Louisville than Cincy, plus I live in the country I hate the big cities)
 
I'm a Spydercoite. But it took me some experience with other brands to realize and appreciate how good Spyderco's designs are. Plus, when I first flipped through the Spyderco catalog I thought they were ugly. Now I just love that big round hole and classic Spyderco hump.

I can't argue that Benchmade isn't good quality but the majority just don't feel good in my hands. The one Benchmade I did really like was the 530, but I gave it to my dad as he was looking for a lighter knife than his current one.

I do like Kershaw, but for the most part I don't like assisted openers and a lot of their designs don't resonate with me. Of knives I own right now the Shallot has quickly become one of my favorites so I'm eager to try out more.
 
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