The 800 pound gorilla in the room...

Status
Not open for further replies.
DamnU said:
If I buy this knife I would be tempted to never use it. Beckers were made to be used.
Click to expand...
I'm sure I will pet it, oil it, sleep with it like my kids favorite teddy bear for a week...it has to be used at some point though for sure.
 
All good stuff on here. Business is business, yet as such, can't really say i feel sorry for a company that is SO busy they can't keep up. I live an hour away from Olean & can say without hesitation, there are PLENTY of people out of work in the area. Expand, hire, train, whatever it is that businesses do when they can't keep up. If it slows down, then lay off. Isn't that what has been going on in businesses for decades ? I'm just sayin. It's been the American way my whole 48 yrs. For the record, yes, an earlier heads up would of been nice. No customer like a loyal customer. I know it is a balancing act in business. No hard feelings here. Hope they continue to prosper. If i stay in NY State after retirement from current job, i may move down there & apply for a job. If not, i may apply at that evil giant (LOL) of a knife store in Tenn. I know i am sick & tired of doing something i don't like, but happy my bills are getting paid. Sure would be nice to work in a field that i truly enjoy.

I bought a BK15, BK16, BK17 of the first run. I am glad i did. Glad i could. I may buy more. The BK17 is a surprise for my daughter. The laser engraving does not bother me in the least. I have no safe queens as of yet. Hopefully that won't change. I know my daughter will be using hers. :D
 
C_Tanner said:
I don't know about THAT....It's not like there is something comperable to switch to.
Click to expand...

It is on these same forums that I read that you can buy other brands for similar or better prices once you figure in that you are going to have to purchase an aftermarket sheath and aftermarket scales. I have not researched the matter any further but I do see that scales and sheaths are pretty expensive.
 
I have not found ANY knife mfr, even customs, that include a sheath that i like 100%. None, zippo, nada. Many sure are pretty, but i am not into pretty by itself. To me functionality goes with beauty. But thats just me.

I think the sheaths that come with most knives are brilliant because it keeps the cost down. I can't stand a belt sheath, unless it is a very small knife. Baldric rigs rock for big knives. I personally like drop leg swivel kydex sheaths w/elastic legstrap w/buckle, no handle retention straps, nice tight handle retention, no blade rattle, thumb ramp for quiet removal & metal gromet holes on both sides of blade for lots of options. Point being, everyone likes something different. So keeping costs down, allows the buyer to put that extra $ towards a sheath they really want.JMHO.
 
Last edited:
TwinStick said:
All good stuff on here. Business is business, yet as such, can't really say i feel sorry for a company that is SO busy they can't keep up.
Click to expand...

They better be glad they have the business. Lots of people in this country don't, including me. I've been selling off everything that isn't nailed down just to stay afloat. If they alienate their customers they will look around one day and realize that they no longer have the business and they will wonder what they did wrong.

I'm not sure I've been following all of the talk about distributor 1 vs. distributor 2. I thought I had gathered that some distributor snuck in and bought the inventory out from under the main distributor, but then there was talk about another large distributor that had bought it. I suppose if people here had known about the advance sale more people could have gotten in on the deal. Is there any word when the main distributor will receive their allotment?
 
Bladite said:
...the BK10s? big hassle, and they really didn't sell well -- the number of people who kept them is VERY low too. imho, WE need to step up when special offers are presented, hold forth, and do good reviews too (esp on passarounds/contests - gripe gripe)...
Click to expand...

To expect every Beckerhead, or even a majority to jump on a special offer like that is unrealistic. BK&T is supposed to be about "knives that work for a living" and have a low cost. For many, that low cost was the initial attraction, and in some cases the continual attraction. Especially when you consider that the BK10 was duplicating the capabilities of knives already out (2, 12, and in some cases the 7) and many just couldn't justify dropping $100 on something that does that. Not all of us are collectors. At the end of the day , while I can eat ramen for a month to pay for an awesome knife, I will not force my family to eat ramen for a month just so I can get a knife. Was it awesome we got a limited run chance at them? Heck yeah it was, and there isn't a person here that didn't appreciate that. After the first week or two, we had, what, 65 of them or so going directly to Beckerheads? How many more were bought afterwards by Beckerheads? And yeah, some didn't keep them, but don't think that because we didn't enter your contest we don't still have them. I still have mine at least. I didn't enter your contest because I genuinely feel that I have won more than my fair share and some of the newer people deserve a chance at the awesome generosity that exists here. And while I may not say it enough to you (Bladite), or Moose, or Guyon, or most of all Ethan, I for one appreciate it greatly.

Ethan, I don't think an apology is owed on your part. To say that you have been anything less than an exemplary host both here and at your home would be a disservice to you and everything we have all been through up until now. Between yourself and the "Terrible Trio" we have had more fun than any subsection of the internet has a right to, and I know that because of this I have made a ton of friends and had some really great experiences I would not have otherwise had.

That being said, I don't think there is anyone that would disagree with me when I say that some loosening of the restrictions placed on the mods concerning communication about upcoming products would be a bad thing. You don't just light a fire, you gotta build it, and getting the word out about things before they happen could only help build that fire (IMHO).
 
I gotta Chime in here.
Ethan and Kabar have shown a lot of class, and a great deal of appreciation for us the whole time I have been active in the forums and have been a Beckerhead.
They are both in business to make money, and when something like what Ethan described happenes their reaction to it was perfectly appropriate.
I get that people would have liked a heads up, Heck I am one of those people, but I forget what I was about to ask members of my team some days 2 min after I was about to ask it.
When you are as busy as they have all been, not stopping and saying Jeeze I need to get on the forums and tell everyone whats going on is an understandable over site, especially if SMKW did in fact break the street date and release early.
That wouldn't have really allowed anyone to give us a heads up at all, besides SMKW.
I would have LOVED some non laser embellished, non "Collector" versions of these to come out because I want to beat the 16 i ordered to death, but I am not sure I will be able to bring myself to with the collectors etch on them. But in truth, I believe that the FFG 16 will be an even better knife sooo I can beat that to hell when I get one or two of those..lol

Anyway No blood no foul as far as I am concerned, "I'm just happy to be in the band."
 
Thanks EB and Bladite for coming on here and offering explanations when none is owed. I personally am pleased at the success of BK&T and KBar. I ordered a really cool knife, paid a fairly decent price, and should get it tomorrow after paying 5 for shipping. I got no problems:)
 
DerekH said:
After the first week or two, we had, what, 65 of them or so going directly to Beckerheads?
Click to expand...

How many of this production batch are going to Beckerheads? I notice that some people bought 3 or more of them, maybe that explains why they didn't last long. Too bad one of us couldn't pony up the cash to buy the whole batch and resell them for a profit, then everybody could have won.
 
No issues here. I'm just happy to get the chance to even get one or two.


Just to see is said next.
 
I feel grateful that another member was kind enough to post that these were available, and that I had a chance to order a "one of" BK16. I remember that noone thought that there were more than 2 or three or so of these BK2 Jrs. around and had no expectation of getting one unless it was a giveaway or contest. I still want to order Mr. Becker's grail (the production model) for a user. Thanks for the chance.
 
DamnU said:
If I buy this knife I would be tempted to never use it. Beckers were made to be used.
Click to expand...

That is why I didn't pull the trigger on them. Figured that I would wait for the users to come out and let others collect these.
 
Its almost comical how everyone gets riled up until Uncle E comes in here and then everyone feels bad. I think all sides have made good points. Kabar DOES get a lot of free advertising here. It's all part of that "viral" marketing thing. You need a core group of enthusiasts.

Consider this: THIS forum sold me on Beckers. The Becker line up got hardly any press that I ever saw. The most I usually saw them was in the Cheaper than Dirt catalog. Honestly? I thought they were fugly. The stock knife in a picture doesn't do it justice. I don't even remember how I ended up here. But I saw this enthusiastic group of Becker freaks, and saw all these awesome mods...and was like "Whoa! These knives ARE cool!" Then I saw what they could do. Finally, grudgingly...I ordered a BK2. Then I got it in my hand and saw for myself what plain jane ad pics could not do. Since then, I have converted many people to Becker, some to Beckerheads. This forum does what Kabar does not...giver the Becker lineup some FLAIR.

Beckers are tough as a rhinos ass and made to be used. I don't think Kabar quite appreciates that yet. Instead I see great effort to promote a line of knives made for a make-believe use...killing zombies. News Flash! Zombies don't exist. And if they did, I would use a Becker on them before one of those ZK knives. It kind of worries me that they are taking off so much. I'd rather see Kabar put more emphasis in building the Becker name than fall into fantasy land. I don't want to see the 2013 Kabar catalog and see Dragon Slayer Swords. I want stuff you can USE!

Maybe spreading some of that new money around in Hollywood to get a Becker in an action movie would help the attention of the unwashed masses. Other companies do it, and it works. Right now it seems like they are riding on the cult following. But what I am getting at, is we here drive a lot of that following through the web.

Not saying that like "They owe us"....they don't. Just want to point out where the strengths are, and areas I think more attention could be paid. I sometimes don't think they realize what they have in Ethan Becker. Maybe they do, but I don't see it anywhere.
 
I want to point it one GOOD thing out of this SMKW debacle nobody has mentioned.... If they are being sold now, that means that they HAVE SHEATHS... And that means that should be out on time!
 
I get my BK16 thursday, do you think its going to be a safe queen because of the first production run or the sig?
Hell no, its gonna get the coating ripped off and used hard.

Well unless I pick up the blade and hate it, then it will be for sale for the same price I picked it up for.

The reason I jumped on it was the grind on the blade, thats what I wanted in the first place.

Now if Ethan signed the knife himself that would be a different story.....
 
DerekH said:
Ethan, I don't think an apology is owed on your part. To say that you have been anything less than an exemplary host both here and at your home would be a disservice to you and everything we have all been through up until now. Between yourself and the "Terrible Trio" we have had more fun than any subsection of the internet has a right to, and I know that because of this I have made a ton of friends and had some really great experiences I would not have otherwise had.
Click to expand...


Ditto.

I gots no beef, but I must say I enjoy beer!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top