Warning about dealing with TOPS Knives....

S

Samuel

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I purchased a Firestrike Jr knife from TOPS at the Sept 8-10 BLADE show. $140. Unfortunately, I didn't look closely enough at what I was buying. When I got home, I inspected it more carefully and found that 1. both sides of the blade were not symmetrical, 2. the grinds were not even, and 3. the blade itself was not a straight edge (looking down the length of the blade showed it to be S curved). In retrospect, I should have purchased either a Peacekeeper II from Cold Steel or a Pathfinder II from Al Mar, would most likely not have had any quality control problems, and would still have had money left over.

My friend paid in full for a same model knife at the show (remember, it was back in the first week of September) on the promise that it would be shipped within 10 business days. It is now basically November and he has yet to receive it. They claim that they have been waiting for a Kydex sheath to be made for the knife. I didn't know that Kydex had a month and a half "curing" time...

This company advertises in BLADE magazine.
Just thought someone would like to know...
 
Samuel,

This forum is best used as a last resort. Have you discussed this with TOPS? Mike Fuller has a very good reputation about standing behind his product. Every company lets a few bad ones slip by once in a while and they should be given the opportunity to remedy the situation before being dragged through the mud.

Jim McCullough
 
Samuel, I have had a couple of well know production pieces that needed to be returned for warranty service. I also had three fairly high end custom pieces with problems such as uneven edge grinds. In each case, production & custom, the makers corrected the problems to my full satisfaction. IMO, the way in which a company handles a problem speaks volumes regarding their commitment to customers. I agree with Jim here. Give TOPS an opportunity to correct the problem. I'll be interested to learn how they take care of it.

Regarding the delay caused by the unavailability of sheaths, unfortunately, such delays occasionally happen. I could name three other companies whose product deliveries were delayed this year alone for one problem or another. (FYI, one happened to be due to a backorder on their sheaths.) It can be frustrating to have to wait for an order but, IMO, it is not cause to condemn a manufacturer.

------------------
Cheers,
Brian

He who finishes with the most toys wins.
 
Have you spoken with Mike or Helen Fuller since the show? If there is a problem with the knife in question, I bet they make it right if you talk with them.

Stay Sharp,
Sid
 
Gentlemen,

Thanks for your responses. I am glad to know that you have had positive experiences or have heard good things about TOPS/Mike Fuller.

When I met him at the show, he seemed open, amiable, and knowledgeable. Even though I am not as happy with my knife as I would like to be, I do not hold any grudges or feel any type of animosity towards Mr. Fuller as a person; I am just chalking up the incident as a learning experience so that, in the future, I will be more careful in selecting and inspecting goods before buying and remember to consider other uses for my money. I decided to keep the knife and am attempting to re-shape the blade on my own. If that does not work, it will be yet another learning experience for me.

It is for my friend and soon to be brother-in-law, however, that I have feelings of regret. No, I did not force him to purchase a knife from Mr. Fuller, but I was the one who dragged him down to the show. None of us, including Mr. Fuller, foresaw any difficulty or delay in my friend receiving his knife in a timely manner. Being a patient and easy going person, my friend has called TOPS perhaps twice since the show. TOPS has not initiated any contact with him.

I have worked customer service type positions for most of my adult life; my methods of handling this situation would be a little different. Still, I am not giving up hope that things will be resolved satisfactorily. Hopefully, soon.

Regarding quality control, yes, I agree that you will find flaws, even with some of the products that the Big Guys manufacture. Some of you may sneer, but $140 is about as much as I have ever spent on a knife; my other "expensive" knives may also not have been perfect, but they were good enough so that I was not tempted to send them back or "fix" them myself. I have never even owned a new vehicle; I am accustomed to dealing with some imperfection.

I guess it is hard for me to justify spending a great deal of money on a knife when, in a knife fight, I could probably fare just as well with a $20 kitchen or cheapy boot knife. I might as well start seriously collecting though; everytime I buy a knife, I say ok, that will be the last knife that I am going to buy. Yeah, right. I already know that I am going to eat my words when the axis lock AFCK comes out.
 
Supplemental:

Someone notified me by email that they thought they knew who was supplying TOPS with their sheaths. They told me that this person/company made very good quality sheaths but that they also had a reputation of being very delinquent in their production/shipping. In that case, it would just be good to know about a delay (beyond one's control) and possibly an expected due date.
 
Samuel, Samuel, Samuel... As webmaster for TOPS as well as handling all incoming e-mail, (as well as responding to them) your complaint must have slipped by me.For that we are deeply sorry you felt we treated you unfairly. This comes to you 10-30-00 after a TOPS fan notified me today of your troubles. TOPS, from the beginning has and will always treat the customer and fellow knife lover with respect and fairness. I assure you we will do our utmost to satisfy any illfeelings and or buyers remorse on your part. Just in case you forgot (as we met at the table with Mike) my e-mail is john@topsknives.com Anyone who knows us will assure you that when we "claim" as you put it, problems with the kydex or shipping, WE MEAN IT!!!! It is not just a brush off.
Our growtn has been exponential, and sometimes our humble, small but growing company is overrun with orders that can not be shipped, sometimes just because a rivet order has been delayed by weather)surprise. We can only hope you will give us the chance to make it all better. This response is for you Samuel, pls let me know what I can do for you and your future brother-in-law. I assure you, had we received your e-mail firstly, your letter would have been one of praise rather than warning for TOPS.
With thanks,

TOPS
John Schrab

Supplemental: 110100
To Allen, In no way shape or form were you our Kydex problem we were refering to, the U.S. Mail lost the shipment if everyone must know. O.K.! We are moving on. Hey Have you guys seen the new Dawn Warrior? What do you think?
John http://www.topsknives.com



[This message has been edited by Topsknives (edited 11-01-2000).]
 
Hello,

I want to say for the record that i did make sheaths for tops knives in the past but i have not made there sheaths for almost 7/8
months so the current reference to the above current delinquent sheath problem does not invlove myself.

Had a few emails asking if this was in reference to me so i though i would just set the record straight.

As to TOPS having service problems, this sounds odd to me as Mike has always strived to run a customer oriented buisness , ever since the time i have known he and the Tops Crew.

Regards,,,,,Allen Blade
 
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