What Kind Of Materials Should A Midtech Folder Posess ?

goldie

goldie

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I recently saw that Brian Tighe came out with a midtech line called Brian Tighe and friends.made in the U.S. his designs,which I'm a big fan of, but using 154cm and aluminum for the handles.A little disappointed in these materials,love the design,though.Was wondering other peoples thoughts on what materials should be used in a midtech knife costing 350 or more;is it justified to use aluminum and 154cm on a midtech,or should it be ti,s35,more premium materials ?
 
I know I would definitely prefer titanium over aluminum, but if the aluminum is done right I suppose it would be fine. I also like CPMD2 or S35VN over 154CM, but I'm not the most knowledgeable guy in the world.
 
I only have 2 Midtechs. One is a Les George Talos (CTS-XHP blade and full titanium frame lock) and the other is a Terzuola ATCF-EDC (CPM-154 blade and titanium scales, liner lock). The Talos retails for $400 and the Terzuola at $500. For $350 I would hope for better steel but even Emersons can reach that $300 mark with the same blade steel. If you like it I would pick it up, especially if you like the knife maker and don't want to fork up the dough for a custom. It's as close as you will get.
 
The issue here is the word "should", as if the designer is obligated to use anything other than what they want to. It is the consumer who decides whether the price matches the materials.

Todd Begg was cranking out $600 mid techs in N690 and selling out. Emerson is still charging several hundred for 154CM. Chris Reeve makes a living on S35VN and a reputation. It all comes down to what you value. If you prioritize economy, mid-techs are a bust nine times out of ten. Production knives give you a skewed perception of material cost because large operations can buy in bulk and keep overhead low. ZT can pump out S35VN and 204P Ti Framelocks for less than $175 direct to dealers. No mid-tech is going to get even close.
 
I like Tighe's designs but I won't pay that much for those materials. It's the same reason I don't buy Emersons anymore. There are too many better options for the money.
 
I should also mention that I did not pay retail for my Midtechs. I waited until there was a deal in the exchange for a basically unused/new one. And I saved a lot by doing so and still got the knives I wanted.
 
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Good analysis Comeuppance. It s hard to know when , if ever, a midtech is a good value purchase. Intangibles defined by individual personal values. I usually look for my bargains among less expensive knives.
 
Ruggdogg87 said:
I should also mention that I did not pay retail for my Midtechs. I waited until there was a deal in the exchange for a basically unused/new one. And I saved a lot by doing so and still go the knives I wanted.
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That's how I got almost everything but my two autos and a couple fixed blades - launch 6 (too well priced to resell) and Rat Worx MRX (nobody buys them in the first place for there to be a secondary market)

Secondary market prices are my bread and butter, and production knives can become insane bargains for material quality. I picked up a Cold Steel Master Tanto - 6" 3V blade with a fitted Kydex sheath - for 160 shipped from a dealer. On the secondary market, you can pick up a 204P framelock for less than $200.

Production is where it's at for value. Mid techs are how you get the same shape of a custom without buying a clone from China. Would I pay $350 for a 154cm aluminum auto? I paid 300 for CPM154 and aluminum with my RAT. If I was hard up for a Tighe design auto and didn't want to shell out $1400, the mid tech would be a perfectly reasonable choice.

I think midtechs exist for the broke fan, not the seasoned shopper.
 
I think it also depends on the definition of "Midtech". Both of mine were assembled, the final fit and finish, and the sharpening were done by the knife maker themselves. And I absolutely love the Terzoula, and it gives me something he made and put time into and it doesn't cost $2000 like some of the customs.
 
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People need to understand that midtechs don't give you anything better materials wise than high end productions. All you are getting is smaller run items made at larger costs.

It costs way more per item for Brian Tighe to have someone do a few hundred of his knives than it costs someone like ZT or Benchmade to pump out literally 10s of thousands of knives with comparable materials.
 
Scurvy092 said:
People need to understand that midtechs don't give you anything better materials wise than high end productions. All you are getting is smaller run items made at larger costs.

It costs way more per item for Brian Tighe to have someone do a few hundred of his knives than it costs someone like ZT or Benchmade to pump out literally 10s of thousands of knives with comparable materials.
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Hit the nail on the head. That's a great point. Some of the runs I have seen are like 50-100 knives. And it's just them putting them all together and everything. Not a huge factory.
 
Ive also gotten some insane deals on the secondary market as well. ,maybe ill wait for one of these to show up thereminstead of paying retail.Smaller runs at larger costs;i don't like the sound of that,good for the maker but not the consumer.I have half a dozen of his customs,and almost all of them ive gotten for around the same price as this midtech or slightly more.
 
goldie said:
Ive also gotten some insane deals on the secondary market as well. ,maybe ill wait for one of these to show up thereminstead of paying retail.Smaller runs at larger costs;i don't like the sound of that,good for the maker but not the consumer.I have half a dozen of his customs,and almost all of them ive gotten for around the same price as this midtech or slightly more.
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I wouldn't say good for the maker, the materials just cost them more to get and have manufactured versus the big boys that are making thousands instead of a hundred or so. They also assemble and do everything else as I talked about above and that is time consuming.
 
I don't think that any knife that costs over say $250 NEEDS to be a Titanium frame lock. I think the consumer base (us) have been conditioned to accept G10 and liner lock knives and "base models*", Aluminum handled knives are slightly "better*", and Titanium as a single "Top Tier*" knives. There are some knives that are lock backs that are very well made and inspire more confidence in the lock than a frame lock that has slippage issues.
As far as steel choice is concerned, there was a time as little as 10 years ago that most knife makers used 154CM exclusively on customs, some still do. I think the reason is because the steel has a better ability to be sharpened by the customer, can be finished better by the maker, and is affordable overall to work into a nice end product. I think the overall assumption is that if the knife has a Titanium handle then it will be good, regardless of who, what, when, where it is made.

*Apply your own definition to these words, as everyone has a different idea of what constitutes premium materials.
 
I haven't heard any complaints about Striders, which are production knives, selling for 400 plus in "inferior" steel. Or CRKs. If enough people want them they will buy them. Period. The CPM S35 in the new CRKs is awesome. I am definitely not going to look on on 154.
 
The whole midtech thing is nothing but marketing. Midtech is nothing but small scale manufacturing. Small scale manufacturing simply cannot compete with large scale production unless it is very close to quality custom production, and just as expensive.

The one thing Midtech does is make custom designs more readily available, and that is a good thing. As for a 154cm Brian Tighe knife, the number of people who will actually wear one out from use would not fill two rows in a standard size classroom.
 
I just saw the Brian Tighe and friends on GPKnives and it looks awesome. I may pick one up. The large are all $350 and small is $295.
 
I am gonna keep my answer simple;

It should contain the materials you like and want on the knife.
 
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