- Joined
- Feb 4, 1999
- Messages
- 5,786
Wow! I was sure surprised to see the 32 messages that resulted yesterday on my closed thread while I was at the Badger Show! I wasn't surprised to see the whole thing decompose into an argument on who is lying and who isn't, but on Bladeforums this seems to be the norm these days, especially in the case of a few certain people. Anyway, let's see if we can keep this thread unlocked for a while...
So, I did take the broken knife with me to the show, and I stashed it in my backpack (boy am I glad I brought that along!) for an opportune time to show it to John. I perused the entire show first, and it was really hopping when we got there. I waited until around 2:00 when there was a pretty good lull at the tables, and I went over to the Greco table. John was off playing with other makers, as he was for a lot of the show, but Sherry was dutifully manning their table, so I talked to her. I told her exactly what had happened with the knife, and she was somewhat surprised, but seemed disappointed that I didn't have the knife with me. I told her I actually did have it, and she asked right away to see it. She thought the knife looked great in its broken-in state, and we chatted for a while about sheaths while she wrote a repair ticket up. At that point John walked up and we shook hands and talked for a while. He checked out the knife and didn't seem overly surprised, nor concerned! He said it would be pretty easy to fix, but that the knife would have to be reconditioned because of the damage the grinding would do to the finish. They were both bummed out because the finish on the knife and handle had a beautiful patina, but he said there was no way around it! Anyway, his explanation is that the MST II has a surprisingly thin point due to the way the swedge is ground. He showed me another knife, a fighter, with a point that is a full 1/4" all the way to the tip, but from the side it looks like a very thin tip! Anyway, they were both incredibly nice about the whole thing. I am paying a reasonable fee to have the repair done, and the Grecos were both happy with the outcome. They both looked at the knife and said no problem! I had taped the point to the side of the knife in case he wanted to see it, and he took it off and said "Here, you keep this as a reminder to NEVER do anything like that to one of my knives again!" We both had a good laugh and he went off to play with other makers again. I did exactly as I said I would, and purchased a second Greco. This time I ended up with a LIttle Baron, which is a small version of the GReen River Camp Knife. It had black paper micarta handles and a nice sheath, as usual! I was pleased with the entire exchange with the Grecos and they were more than happy to repair the knife for me. In closing, Sherry said their knives are all meant to be used very hard, and as such damage will occur on occasion. She said it was no problem and they would have the knife back to me within a week or two. VERY, VERY nice folks indeed! Sherry was so nice that later in the show she chased me down to give me a card to enter into a contest that only people who bought custom knives could enter. She had forgotten to give me the entry card earlier, so she kept her eyes peeled for me! What great people.
So, as you can see, it worked out for the best, and I didn't have to try anything sketchy to get the knife fixed. I told them what happened, they offered the repair at a good price, and I accepted their offer. This is how mature people do business in the real world, and this is also how people insure that customers won't be there for one knife and then never return for repeat business.
In other news from the show, there was an overwhelming amount of knives there! I ended up buying a little Damascus kit blade for $30, and I got great deals on a lot of materials for finishing some knives. Also found good prices on padded cloth knife cases. There was a ton of everything there for everyone, but the tables were packed too close together. Also, our very own BRian Turner proved to be a prophet among men...he purchased a Dale Reif Folder on Friday night that won BEst of Show on Saturday! He was beaming with fatherly pride, of course...
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My Knife & Sheath Pages:
http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/Lab/1298/frames.html
Palmer College of Chiropractic
Sheath Makers Referral Directory
agocs_s@dd.palmer.edu
Madpoet (Mel Sorg, Jr.) Tribute page:
http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/Lab/1298/madpoet/main.html
So, I did take the broken knife with me to the show, and I stashed it in my backpack (boy am I glad I brought that along!) for an opportune time to show it to John. I perused the entire show first, and it was really hopping when we got there. I waited until around 2:00 when there was a pretty good lull at the tables, and I went over to the Greco table. John was off playing with other makers, as he was for a lot of the show, but Sherry was dutifully manning their table, so I talked to her. I told her exactly what had happened with the knife, and she was somewhat surprised, but seemed disappointed that I didn't have the knife with me. I told her I actually did have it, and she asked right away to see it. She thought the knife looked great in its broken-in state, and we chatted for a while about sheaths while she wrote a repair ticket up. At that point John walked up and we shook hands and talked for a while. He checked out the knife and didn't seem overly surprised, nor concerned! He said it would be pretty easy to fix, but that the knife would have to be reconditioned because of the damage the grinding would do to the finish. They were both bummed out because the finish on the knife and handle had a beautiful patina, but he said there was no way around it! Anyway, his explanation is that the MST II has a surprisingly thin point due to the way the swedge is ground. He showed me another knife, a fighter, with a point that is a full 1/4" all the way to the tip, but from the side it looks like a very thin tip! Anyway, they were both incredibly nice about the whole thing. I am paying a reasonable fee to have the repair done, and the Grecos were both happy with the outcome. They both looked at the knife and said no problem! I had taped the point to the side of the knife in case he wanted to see it, and he took it off and said "Here, you keep this as a reminder to NEVER do anything like that to one of my knives again!" We both had a good laugh and he went off to play with other makers again. I did exactly as I said I would, and purchased a second Greco. This time I ended up with a LIttle Baron, which is a small version of the GReen River Camp Knife. It had black paper micarta handles and a nice sheath, as usual! I was pleased with the entire exchange with the Grecos and they were more than happy to repair the knife for me. In closing, Sherry said their knives are all meant to be used very hard, and as such damage will occur on occasion. She said it was no problem and they would have the knife back to me within a week or two. VERY, VERY nice folks indeed! Sherry was so nice that later in the show she chased me down to give me a card to enter into a contest that only people who bought custom knives could enter. She had forgotten to give me the entry card earlier, so she kept her eyes peeled for me! What great people.
So, as you can see, it worked out for the best, and I didn't have to try anything sketchy to get the knife fixed. I told them what happened, they offered the repair at a good price, and I accepted their offer. This is how mature people do business in the real world, and this is also how people insure that customers won't be there for one knife and then never return for repeat business.
In other news from the show, there was an overwhelming amount of knives there! I ended up buying a little Damascus kit blade for $30, and I got great deals on a lot of materials for finishing some knives. Also found good prices on padded cloth knife cases. There was a ton of everything there for everyone, but the tables were packed too close together. Also, our very own BRian Turner proved to be a prophet among men...he purchased a Dale Reif Folder on Friday night that won BEst of Show on Saturday! He was beaming with fatherly pride, of course...
------------------
My Knife & Sheath Pages:
http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/Lab/1298/frames.html
Palmer College of Chiropractic
Sheath Makers Referral Directory
agocs_s@dd.palmer.edu
Madpoet (Mel Sorg, Jr.) Tribute page:
http://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/Lab/1298/madpoet/main.html
