When buying a lightly used knife do you prefer ....

texmex03 said:
Care to elaborate on what's behind Kentucky mint ? Just curious
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texmex03 said:
....(under 1 year old)...
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Kentucky mint is mostly a problem with antiques and you did say under 1 year old.

Some sellers will lie and say that knives are "mint" or "new" or "unused" after they've ground or buffed the rust off them. A lot of folks that buy antique knives on eBay don't have any idea of what they are doing. They are unable to recognize an original crocus or glaze finish on a knife. They only understand *shiny*. Novices want to believe and unscrupulous sellers are happy to oblige with stories. Some fluff and buffers don't even bother with the stories since *shiny* is enough to mislead many novices.

I call some of these knives "ice cubes" since they resemble their original form in much the same way as a half melted ice cube. You'll find a lot of ice cubes on eBay. A LOT of the antique knives on eBay have been resurfaced to some extent.

Not all of the resurfaced knives were originally junk. A lot of very nice knives have been completely ruined by sellers that want to make a quick buck by picking the pocket of novice collectors. The fluff and buffers have also made life easier for fakers selling parts knives, reworks and counterfeits since they both use similar finishing steps. It can sometimes be difficult to distinguish the Kentucky mint knives and fakes/reworks for this reason. And novices often don't appreciate the difference between them and legitimate antiques.
 
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My knives are used but kept clean and polished. Even the carbon steel ones, since I don't like patina. I also like shiny nickle silver and brass. Plus they are oiled, thus oily. I don't personally agree with power buffing an old knife, but totally agree with a scrub, clean, and polish with Flitz..."Don't carry no ugly knife." :)
 
brownshoe said:
My knives are used but kept clean and polished. Even the carbon steel ones, since I don't like patina. I also like shiny nickle silver and brass. Plus they are oiled, thus oily. I don't personally agree with power buffing an old knife, but totally agree with a scrub, clean, and polish with Flitz..."Don't carry no ugly knife." :)
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i gotta get me some of this flitz stuff! sounds like a miracle
 
Personally this depends on the vintage of the knife for me. For instance, I buy a GEC that's 2 years old that some dude stuck in an apple and sharpened once. I'm going to leave that alone. I buy a vintage imperial, case, boker etc with excessive wear, blade loss, etc. I usually clean those up. If i buy a vintage knife with little to no blade wear and just patina im going to leave that alone.
 
I prefer the knife be in the condition described by the seller. But I also feel that terms like; "brand new in box, lightly used, great user" to be somewhat misleading terms as those descriptors are very subjective.
I'd prefer the seller said (about brand new in box knives), "this knife has never cut anything and has only been removed from the box for inspection of imperfection and/or photos."
All "user"comments, I like to know what they cut with it; "this knife has been used to open boxes, cut food, cut wood" etc etc. if the knife has patina or been cleaned I'm ok with that just as long as the seller tells me so.

But Im really picky so I like to handle the knives before I buy. Only bought off of BF a few times from trusted sellers. Never purchased off fleabay.

Also, I'm weird about patina. Some times I like it on, others I do not. Just depends on the knife.
 
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I like old knives and most of mine have been bought from yard sales, estate sales and places like that therefore they are usually in as is condition and sold by folks that just think of them as old knives. I have bought a few off of fleabay but I stay away from ones described as "mint or like new". I also check the feedback of sellers on the exchange before a purchase and so far (knock on wood) I have not been ripped off. I like to clean and sharpen my knives for myself and though certainly not and expert I'm very careful and get really good results. I do buff some knives with the little white buffing pads on my dremel tool at low speed. As far as metal polish I have used White Diamond, Mothers, Weimans and other brands but have never found anything as good as Flitz. To me there is something very rewarding in taking an old neglected $5 knife spending an hour or so on it and turning it into a fine looking and functioning knife I'm proud to carry.
 
Assuming it's patina and honest wear marks, not signs of abuse I'm fine with leaving them. A little honest wear and character never hurt anything.

Patina is part of the reason why I love carbon steel.
 
I don't like an obviously used knife that has been polished up by some ham handed amateur with a buffing wheel.
 
I too would prefer the used knife to be in its as it unaltered condition to provide a more clear understanding of its use and care. Plus I prefer to do my own reconditioning if necessary.
 
Coonskinner said:
I don't like an obviously used knife that has been polished up by some ham handed amateur with a buffing wheel.
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Right, no knife needs to go to the buffer. A light cleaning by hand with rags etc is more than enough to smarten it up, if wanted.

Lightly used is the key here. I've bought fairly new knives (under 2 years) deemed near mint or lightly used that have clearly been in pockets with keys and change or dropped on the ground, the bolsters having deep gouges on them that won't come out with hand polishing...:(

So that's a description thing. When I get a near new knife, I do like to sharpen it, oil it, wash it out and polish the scales and bolsters. But I do the job as I like, that's the point :D:thumbup:
 
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