What do NIB and LNIB really mean?

trane fan

trane fan

Joined
Jul 25, 2002
Messages
3,527
I know this seems like a silly question but a recent transaction (not on BFC) caused me to wonder how individual sellers/traders arrive at the conclusion that their particular knife is "NIB" or "LNIB". Although those descriptions seem pretty cut and dry they can actually be much more subjective than objective. So what criteria do you consider when gauging whether your knife is NIB or LNIB?
 
From my perspective:

NIB means New In Box, never carried, never used to cut anthing, never polished, never sharpened, never cleaned, only admired. Complete with box, paperwork, and plastic bags if any.


LNIB is Like New In Box which to me means it may have been carried once or twice, lightly used to test cut, but to the naked eye the experienced knife person couldn't tell it from NIB. Has box but may be missing paperwork or plastic bags.
 
I don't own any NIB knives because I've taken them out of the box and handled them.
The ones I've carried out of the house, I call lightly carried.
The ones that I've cut with, I call lightly used - excellent/very good/good.
The ones I've used often, I call user.

This is applied to knives I've traded into, beginning with the describrd condition, and onward.

Any imperfections in function are pointed out. Kydex scratches are pointed out, the act of sharpening is pointed out, I keep quiet about whether or not I've walked around nekkid with it.
 
roshi said:
From my perspective:

NIB means New In Box, never carried, never used to cut anthing, never polished, never sharpened, never cleaned, only admired. Complete with box, paperwork, and plastic bags if any.


LNIB is Like New In Box which to me means it may have been carried once or twice, lightly used to test cut, but to the naked eye the experienced knife person couldn't tell it from NIB. Has box but may be missing paperwork or plastic bags.
Click to expand...

I agree with your definitions 100%.
 
NIB is exactly that. New. I have no NIB knives since I bought them all.

LNIB is never used, carried, sharpened, dropped, etc. To me, once it's been carried, it should be mentioned as such.
"LNIB, carried twice", "LNIB, cut some paper". If it's been anything but displayed, it needs to be mentioned.

just my 2¢.
 
i agree with what i've seen so far.

NIB: new, in box, and i expect the original documents. this should quite literally look as if it rolled off the assembly line (or otherwise), and was placed in my filthy little mitts. anything less than that should be described in detail, ie: "new in box, no documents", "new, but box is bent/crushed/water-damaged, etc.".

LNIB: this should appear new in all aspects, but the "like" implies that it has been carried or used, if ever-so-slightly. if i say something tastes like strawberries, then it better taste like strawberries. otherwise, i'm lying. same thing. i also expect that this includes all original documents and accessories, though many times, we find out that the seller is being literal, which i think is somewhat misleading.

abe m.
 
allyourblood said:
i agree with what i've seen so far.

NIB: new, in box, and i expect the original documents. this should quite literally look as if it rolled off the assembly line (or otherwise), and was placed in my filthy little mitts. anything less than that should be described in detail, ie: "new in box, no documents", "new, but box is bent/crushed/water-damaged, etc.".

LNIB: this should appear new in all aspects, but the "like" implies that it has been carried or used, if ever-so-slightly. if i say something tastes like strawberries, then it better taste like strawberries. otherwise, i'm lying. same thing. i also expect that this includes all original documents and accessories, though many times, we find out that the seller is being literal, which i think is somewhat misleading.

abe m.
Click to expand...

NIB: I totally agree
LNIB: this term should be dumped, in my opinion. "Mint" is ok, that was maybe carried once or twice, a test cut on paper, that's about all. "Mint with papers." etc. Like New in Box is sort of like saying "almost a real Randall." If it ain't, it ain't.
 
NIB means exactly as it came from the manufacturer in the original box with original paperwork, accessories, packing materials, etc., never carried, never cut anything, etc., etc.

LNIB means nothing. It has no definition.
 
NIB - Direct from the manufacturer. Never carried and has cut nothing more than paper. (Testing the edge.) Box and literature included.

LNIB - Carried or either a small imperfection. Has done some cutting. At least the box.
 
Gollnick said:
NIB means exactly as it came from the manufacturer in the original box with original paperwork, accessories, packing materials, etc., never carried, never cut anything, etc., etc.

LNIB means nothing. It has no definition.
Click to expand...
I agree with Chuck. LNIB means nothing, it is either new in the box or it's "used". A used knife should not command new pricing, maybe 99.9% of the new price but not 100%.
 
to me NIB means just that, new, never carried, etc, LNIB is maybe carried, maybe cut paper, but looks NIB, ie no scuffs/etc, not sharpened, if i didnt tell ya ya would think NIB. once the knife has even a small scuff/scratch it is no longer LNIB or NIB its a user.
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by roshi
From my perspective:

NIB means New In Box, never carried, never used to cut anthing, never polished, never sharpened, never cleaned, only admired. Complete with box, paperwork, and plastic bags if any.


LNIB is Like New In Box which to me means it may have been carried once or twice, lightly used to test cut, but to the naked eye the experienced knife person couldn't tell it from NIB. Has box but may be missing paperwork or plastic bags.



I agree with your definitions 100%.
Click to expand...
Same here. And in all honesty, I can't say I've ever been disappointed with receiving any traded knife here that was misrepresented, in accordance with those descriptions. :)
 
Marcelo Cantu said:
I keep quiet about whether or not I've walked around nekkid with it.
Click to expand...

I really don't want to know where you clip your knives. :eek:

I also agree with roshi's definitions.

Paul
 
I agree with Roshi. Excellent synopsis. For example, I traded a Microtech LCC D/A recently. I could have called it NIB becaue it is is in perfect shape, but I know the previous owner reprofiled the edge a little, which he said was dull (a first for Microtech), but he did a factory job and I would never have been able to tell, so I advertised it as "LNIB" and explained what I meant. To me, NIB is just like what Roshi said, maybe it's been played with a little, but that's it.
 
trane fan, can you tell us the condition of the knife that the other party said was LNIB? Did it have some scratches or pocket lint? Just wondering....

Kurt
 
Question...

All of my knives are unused, unsharpened, and in the original boxes. But I do tend to handle them on occation, especially the 'fun' knives. At what point is the transition from NIB to LNIB, or another classification?

-Bob
 
Bob W said:
Question...

All of my knives are unused, unsharpened, and in the original boxes. But I do tend to handle them on occation, especially the 'fun' knives. At what point is the transition from NIB to LNIB, or another classification?

-Bob
Click to expand...

I tend to think that that is a tricky kind of question. Different people can have different ideas of what NIB and LNIB mean, as this thread is already showing. Is a knife still NIB if you have only taken it out of the box and played with it a bunch of times? Or does taking it out for anything more than a through inspection constitute use? I would think that at some point enough openings and closings constitute use, even if the knife was ever actually used in the traditional sense.
 
roshi said:
From my perspective:

NIB means New In Box, never carried, never used to cut anthing, never polished, never sharpened, never cleaned, only admired. Complete with box, paperwork, and plastic bags if any.


LNIB is Like New In Box which to me means it may have been carried once or twice, lightly used to test cut, but to the naked eye the experienced knife person couldn't tell it from NIB. Has box but may be missing paperwork or plastic bags.
Click to expand...

I also agree with this, but I always sell a knive with a no questions asked return policy (less shipping) if the buyer is not satisfied; so it really doesn't matter.

I recommend ALWAYS ask for a 3 day inspection period. :)
 
Just for future reference.......anyone buying a knife from me needs to be forewarned; I DO carry my knives around the house naked! Just thought yall' needed to know. :D :D :cool:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top