About 4 years ago I saw Jason Knight apply what he calls his "adventure" finish.
Yes, the price was lower as there was less work involved in finishing the blade...which makes perfect sense.
The reasoning Jason used for this finish was not to create a "cheap" knife...but to provide a knife that was usable!
Being a user, like so many other people here. Scratches or dings, etc don't matter as much as performance. If you combine a "user friendly" finish along with a reduced price you are going to make a knife that people will want to buy...and will actually use.
Several years ago I had a client buy a knife from me in 3V. According to him he used it for several hours to clear brush on his property. At the end of the day he noticed a few scratches on the blade. He was disappointed...not in the performance of the knife. But that after several hours of use it no longer looked "new" and wanted to return it. His expectations of what a steel or finish could provide were unrealistic. Perhaps a lesser grade finish would have been exactly what he needed.
So if you are looking for a user grade custom knife perhaps a knife with a "adventure" type grade finish or a 200 grit or less finish or a machine satin finish or whatever you would like to call it may be what you are looking for.
With the dimensions, ergonomics, blade geometry and the sharpness of the edge are all the same as the more expensive knife. You get a quality product that the only two differences are the level of finish on the blade and the price.
Sounds like a win/win for those who are actually looking to use their custom knives.