Stuff like this makes me appreciate John !

John's awesome. Kinda guy I'd like to have a beer with and shoot the crap sometime.
I keep ordering from him because he's reliable and makes solid tough knives.
Only problem I have with John is he makes more than one knife. If he made only one model with only one type handle material this would be a lot easier. :)
Each time I order another JK I'm thinking about what I'd like next.
 
Thanks, guys! I try to keep up with emails and phone calls ASAP. I make a point to come in from the shop every hour or so, to check emails, calls, and posts. (my wife says it`s just to warm up.) Ever since my newest ad came out in Backwoodsman with my phone number, I`ve been bombarded with calls to send a brochure (apparently no one who reads the magazine has internet), so I`ve also been sending a little four page brochure with some pics and specs out to these guys. If communication is the name of the game, I`m trying hard to do well at it.
 
You are preaching to the choir pit. However it never hurts to remind us to thank John for his attention to details and to his customers. :thumbup::thumbup:
 
I saw that thread as well. I guess John has spoiled us. No deposit, he answers e-mails,and you get a fast delivery time.

Also I have no idea what that other guy would say if I wanted a longer or shorter blade length than he offers.
 
Todd A said:
I saw that thread as well. I guess John has spoiled us. No deposit, he answers e-mails,and you get a fast delivery time.

Also I have no idea what that other guy would say if I wanted a longer or shorter blade length than he offers.
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I'm pretty sure he would say NO unless at a great premium as most his knives are cut by water jet once he has enough orders !
 
In truth I think Dan Koster seems a good guy and he makes a great product. I believe his problem is that he gets so many orders that he could almost be called a manufacturer and yet he is not quite big enough to justify taking on extra staff either secretarial or manual. That's just my opinion.
 
In my experience, John has always embraced the collaborative aspects of knifemaking - interacting with customers, making adjustments to designs, discussing various features and materials, etc. This translates into great communication, which, coupled with his ability to maintain a quick but realistic timetable for orders, makes for a consistently superior customer experience.

We are definitely a spoiled and loyal bunch.

Best,

- Mike

PS - nothing against Dan. I have one of his W&SS forum knives, and it's great.
 
John does a great job of taking care of his customers!!

Yeah, I still have a knife that is supposedly being made by another well known maker. I think we first spoke was nearly 2.5-3 years ago and only heard from him a few months after that. My tastes have changed since then so I don't really care if I get it(no deposit).

I actually received Dan's bushcraft a few weeks ago and it is nice! It did take 6-9 months to get it though.
 
pitdog said:
In truth I think Dan Koster seems a good guy and he makes a great product. I believe his problem is that he gets so many orders that he could almost be called a manufacturer and yet he is not quite big enough to justify taking on extra staff either secretarial or manual. That's just my opinion.
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I like dealing with "good guys," but when I'm spending my hard earned money I also want them to have good business practices and have decent and respectful communication skills. These are things that will keep me coming back to John.

I think making knives in batches can create problems for the unorganized. Throw a deposit in on top of it all and you can create some real problems. Deposit money comes in for batch no. 1 and the ball gets rolling. Batch no. 2 turns out to be a more popular style, which means more deposit money, so batch no. 1 gets put on the backburner. Money gets tight around the holidays so a signup list for the makers most super-popular knife gets posted...and batch no. 3 starts bringing in deposit money. Batch no. 1 gets so far behind that it sinks beyond the horizon. Easy to see how a maker without the proper business and communication skills could let this get away from him.
 
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Never will you see me asking for a deposit up front. I`ve even refused early payment for knives, when they are ready, I`ll let you know to send payment. 90% of the time the customer has the knife before I have the payment, only got "burned" once :mad:, but that`s another story. There was one exception to this. I had a Canadian customer who wanted to pay early because the Canadian dollar was strong at the time. He ordered four knives, which were scheduled for February. I felt so guilty having his money, that I worked extra hours so I could ship them in three weeks. I could drop dead tomorrow, and I would not want to leave my wife to deal with getting money returned. This will always be the JK Knives policy.
 
Stomper said:
Never will you see me asking for a deposit up front. I`ve even refused early payment for knives, when they are ready, I`ll let you know to send payment. 90% of the time the customer has the knife before I have the payment, only got "burned" once :mad:, but that`s another story. There was one exception to this. I had a Canadian customer who wanted to pay early because the Canadian dollar was strong at the time. He ordered four knives, which were scheduled for February. I felt so guilty having his money, that I worked extra hours so I could ship them in three weeks. I could drop dead tomorrow, and I would not want to leave my wife to deal with getting money returned. This will always be the JK Knives policy.
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I know whatcha mean, makes ya feel indebted to someone.
 
Top Notch John. Absolutely top notch all the way. That is why I keep coming back.... doesn't hurt that you are one hell of a nice guy too. :thumbup:
 
Wow, that has to be the fourth or fifth thread like that I have seen in Dan's forum. I sold my Koster knives after the last one and will not be spending anymore money with him. I have met John, dealt with him over phone, PM, email, and always been happy with his attitude and service. He puts the customer first and is always listening to the customer's ideas. I have a couple small JK knives, a Kephart on the way, and my JK collection will continue to grow.
 
I've sold knives from two different makes because I lost respect for them. That's just the way I operate.

I really appreciate John's service. My wife worked with him to get my Blacksheep to me for Christmas and even she commented how nice John was how he got back to her so quickly with communications.

I agree John would be a cool dude to have a beer with :thumbup: oh... and order more knvies from too :) In this world where it seems everyone feels as though the world owes them something it is nice to see that John shows the compassion for his customers that he does.

Keep up the good work John!
 
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