Attention The CPK - Buy, Sell & Trade thread - Closed

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Mike, you write very well with a very special flair and style to your writing which always comes across, at least to me, from the mind of well educated person who also is blessed with a very good soul.

I would like to take this opportunity to insert an anecdotal tale hoping that I will not be leading a hijack of this thread!

You can walk into a Porsche Dealership and purchase a 2017 Porsche 911 GT3 (the designation model is 991) for somewhere around the MSRP of $145K give or take + or - whatever $$$, depending on availability and some other factors both extrinsic and intrinsic! However, if your heart is set on one of the last of the aircooled Porsche 911 Turbo, say a 1997 (designation model 993), if you find one in mint condition and take $145K cash with you, you will most likely get a boot up the arse and be thrown out of the dealership! I've seen those cars to sell for upward of $200K whereas IIRC their original MSRP was somewhere in the 90K range brand new in 1997! However the newer 2017 GT3 will kick arse and run circles around that 1997 Turbo, literally! Now if you desire a complete ground up restoration on say an original 1965 911 (original designation 901) which is like an upside down bathtub on wheels with a lawnmower but had Ferdinand Porsche's DNA all over it, time to pay upwards of $500K and I had seem them in excess of $800K for a car which barely sold for $6K back in 1965! Why? Don't ask me, ask the collectors who are willing and able to!

There are certain patterns that Nathan is done with producing and has retired, for whatever his reasons. I am not insinuating that CPK is the Porsche of knives or that Nathan is Ferdinand, but by drawing parallels, there are certain retired Carothers patterns which will fetch multiples of what they sold for and they don't even make it to the open markets! I do not think of this as price gouging and profiteering on the backs of hard working folks like Nathan and Jo. Let's say that 10 years down the road CPK has expanded to 20+ employees and they will have Shiv 5.0 which literally is a light saber! However, you will always find that kooky collector type who will pay 5 x as much for a Shiv 1.0 which Nathan had made. Sometimes this is actually a tribute to the maker even though the maker will not have any further financial gains in that secondary market.

Again with apologies for taking over the thread for WTBST, but the collector's mind is a really weird beast that I have experiences with in another realm. Otherwise by and large you will notice that most of the folks who dwell on the subforum not only wholeheartedly agree with you but also practice what the Carothers have set by example :thumbsup:
 
MikeKu825 said:
I have an opinion on this that will probably be unpopular.. What I follow with is my opinion.. (disclaimer)

The greatest strength of Carothers is Nathan and Jo. They set the bar for how this community behaves by example, not authority. The second greatest strength is our shared respect for them, and because of that, I feel it is our responsibility as contributing members of the community to maintain it. We have to individually make decisions that support the ideals and values that they have established, or this group will lose the identity that we all seem to enjoy so much.

Charging so much more because someone will pay it makes sense on a business level. But I think most of us get more value out of the comraderie and passion we share than we could get out of selling a knife at a heavy premium.

As the Carothers name grows and brings in new enthusiasts, we will need to collectively decide how the community develops based not on our words, but our actions.

I personally would much rather sell a knife to someone who I know enjoys and supports how Nathan and Jo do business. The dedication and integrity they show to us needs to be returneded to them, and each other.

Not everyone will be so invested, and that is expected. But what we have here is special. Lets do our best to keep this group together. Gutting people on secondary markets is selfish and impersonal. It flies in the face of what Nathan and Jo have worked so hard to achieve.

I will not disrespect them or dishonor myself by trying to turn a profit on their hard work. I would encourage you all to respect them and each other in the same way.


Rant over..
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:thumbsup:
 
I can appreciate Mikes opinion, but Casinostocks is more realistic. Does anyone remember when the a certain Mazda RX7was selling for 75 to 100% over MSRP and the Corvette R1 was selling for over $100K when the MSRP was about $59K? (1990ish) People wanted them and there weren't many available.

I remember Bob Loveless complaining that when he delivered a knife (after a 4 year wait) the customer could sell the knife and make more money he did. Right or wrong, it's just a fact of life.
 
Cough.. Dark timber cough.. but seriously these knives have gone through the roof. the midtechs which sold originally for $280-300 are now selling for almost $1000 on the open market and people are happy to pay it. The last custom i saw sold for $2500. Theyre great knives and i want one myself but thats just crazy.
 
Joecleo86 said:
Cough.. Dark timber cough.. but seriously these knives have gone through the roof. the midtechs which sold originally for $280-300 are now selling for almost $1000 on the open market and people are happy to pay it. The last custom i saw sold for $2500. Theyre great knives and i want one myself but thats just crazy.
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I sold a pair for almost $900 and that was cheap.
 
What first attracts people to Nathan's and Lorien's knives are the performance and reasonable prices!
Second Reason is Nathan's and Lorien's interaction on this forum! Explaining the steels used, how they perform, design philosophy etc!
Third Reason is Mama Jo the Ninja Machinest! She Provides great Communication's and Correspondence! Super nice Lady!!!
Fourth Reason is there are mature and well Behaved personnel (for the most part) participating on this particular Forum!

I do not Buy Nathan's knives to flip and make a profit-However we live America
Capitalism- an economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state.

If an individual is selling a LC for $600 and you think this is too much-you do not purchase it! Simple

My Mother had a friend who bought a house in California (Cannot remember exactly where-LA Area) in 1975 for $245 Thousand. Sold it in 2001 for over a million! Was she taking advantage of the Buyer?

Supply and Demand-the amount of a commodity, product, or service available and the desire of buyers for it, considered as factors regulating its price.
This is America Baby
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Any chance of finding someone who would allow me to take a spot on the NASK preorder? Something about a new baby just eliminates the time available for other things. I couldn't check the site for a bit and next thing I know the preorder had come and gone. Anyway, please let me know. Thanks.
 
TommyGun56 said:

My Mother had a friend who bought a house in California (Cannot remember exactly where-LA Area) in 1975 for $245 Thousand. Sold it in 2001 for over a million! Was she taking advantage of the Buyer?

Supply and Demand-the amount of a commodity, product, or service available and the desire of buyers for it, considered as factors regulating its price.
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Exactly. We bought a house near Santa Barbara in 1976 for $59,500. We sold it in 2004 for 11 times that. There were exactly two houses for sale in our area that were less than $1M and ours was the cheapest. We had 19 bids the first day and sold it for $32k more than the asking price. I know a guy who put his house on the mesa in Santa Barbara for sale and sold it for $200K over the asking price.:eek:

When I see people pay $$$ for a simple pry bar or some little useless doodad, I just shake my head and think about the saying about a fool and his money.
 
I agree with everything you guys are saying about capitalism in principle.

However I don't come to CPK or any knife to make money. In fact I've lost money on many a transaction.

I've sold lots of knives and probably close to 20 CPKs and very rarely do I make anything on it because the sale usually isn't about liquidity. It's usually to help someone build a collection, or get a user in their hands.

I like the community here, I like what Nathan, Lorien, Jo and Mark are doing.

There are lots of people here I'm happy to, and have sold knives to at above original cost but still close to my net cost, some time below my cost and there are some people I wouldn't sell a CPK to even at a hearty profit. In this realm social capital is still valuable to me.

If I want to make money I will go to work. I will always feel like knives are a hobby and hobbies are about fun. In that spirit, if CPK becomes the next super hot knife everyone is flipping, I guarantee it will damage the atmosphere and camaraderie of the community.

Now to keep this on topic, I'm looking for any Field Knifes out there with rare handles, TeroTuf, wood or similar. Older steel is fine.

Thanks!
 
Well guys I tried my luck for an edc in today's sale but was unsuccessful (a slow number 16). If anyone has a 3v edc they are willing to part with please contact me. Thanks.
 
You were one ahead of me i got 17. I got a call the second i went to post and my phone just reloaded the page. Just like everything else in life timing is everything
 
johnnytoxin said:
Well guys I tried my luck for an edc in today's sale but was unsuccessful (a slow number 16). If anyone has a 3v edc they are willing to part with please contact me. Thanks.
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I hope Bigalmalloy Bigalmalloy is able to help you out. :)

I was able to score another EDC, but it's reserved to be a gift for someone. I'm especially glad to get in on this last batch, since it sounds like the pattern might be getting retired (for now).
 
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