Who else misses the old Kershaw, and the old Kershaw subforum?

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scotchleaf

scotchleaf

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Kershaw used to be the standout, in my opinion - great USA made knives at great prices - knives like the Bump, Ram, Tyrade and Tilt. I like the ZT knives, but only own one - I just can't stomach the extra $100 or so they added to knives along with a "ZT" logo. I have a drawer full of older Kershaws.

Likewise, I miss the old kershaw sub-forum on bladeforums - it was a great place to spend time until Thomas got pissed off and shut it down.
 
I miss it too, it had some great info on ZT and Kershaw.

Its sucks its no longer on here. I think the ZT/Kershaw reps took things a little too personal when they left. Your always going to have chronic complainers and crybabies on the internet.
 
I wish there were a ZT forum!
I know they are KIA.
Again, why did the Kershaw forum go away?
 
The knives that ZT are putting out are 2nd to none in my novice opinion. As far as production goes anyways. And Im a Spyderco guy. The 0804CF, 0452CF,0562CF - all are just remarkable imo.
 
MacLaren1 said:
I wish there were a ZT forum!
I know they are KIA.
Again, why did the Kershaw forum go away?
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They were unwilling to ask people with negative opinions of them to take their opinions to General, and, at the same time, they were unwilling to hear negative opinions of them in the KAI forum.

Its an untenable position, and so they took their ball and went home.

In my opinion.
 
marcinek said:
They were unwilling to ask people with negative opinions of them to take their opinions to General, and, at the same time, they were unwilling to hear negative opinions of them in the KAI forum.

Its an untenable position, and so they took their ball and went home.

In my opinion.
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Yeah, this. I never got the feeling the KAI mods had a handle on administrating the forum and I think that significantly contributed to their decision to leave.
 
Insipid Moniker said:
Yeah, this. I never got the feeling their mods had a handle on administrating the forum and I think that significantly contributed to their decision to leave.
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I think so too. Also I experienced them taking their frustration to General and making demands of people who posted negative opinions of them there.

The whole enterprise seemed to perplex them, and, in the end, appeared not worth the effort to them, but it always struck me that someone with a passing experience with "forum dynamics" could have advised them.

Though, in a way them leaving was a positive for them in that it further cemented an "us vs them" loyalty among their fans. "Those haters, trolls, and crybabies drove our knife brand away."
 
I miss it! I liked buying knives I thought were great at reasonable prices. Now I'm buying Benchmades for what I used to pay for a Remington 870 shotgun with 2 barrels... Nice? Yeah. Value? NO.
 
Thomas Welk (director of sales and marketing at KAI) has declared in his infinite wisdom (and characteristic amiability) that the "mid-market" in the knife world is dead, so KAI is not interested in it anymore (at least for the time being):

WxGjswy.jpg


In the Gear Geeks Live episode that he was on, Thomas keeps insisting that the Cryo's high sales volume is proof positive that Anthony's negative review of the knife is objectively wrong. That should give you an idea of where Welk's mind is, and the direction he apparently wants to steer Kershaw (i.e., high sales volume is the only factor the company needs to worry about). Probably good for KAI's bottom line, though.
 
brancron said:
Thomas Welk (director of sales and marketing at KAI) has declared in his infinite wisdom (and characteristic amiability) that the "mid-market" in the knife world is dead, so KAI is not interested in it anymore (at least for the time being):

WxGjswy.jpg


In the Gear Geeks Live episode that he was on, Thomas keeps insisting that the Cryo's high sales volume is proof positive that Anthony's negative review of the knife is objectively wrong. That should give you an idea of where Welk's mind is, and the direction he apparently wants to steer Kershaw (i.e., high sales volume is the only factor the company needs to worry about). Probably good for KAI's bottom line, though.
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Wow, that guy sounds like a real piece of work. Glad he's not around here anymore.
 
Thomas. He is a peice of work, not unlike a lot of us. In that post he makes some great points but they get muddled in the arrogant insults. There is no secret to running a good sub forum. Benchmade and especially spyderco do it successfully on a daily basis. Kershaw could never figure it out. This is a better place without a company who can't figure such a thing out.
 
IMO, Ken Onion leaving was a big hit, Kershaw's glory days of US made, affordable designs. ZT was the tilting point, KAI focused on overbuilt knives and less on Kershaw. Here we are. The forums? Which iteration? The first was pretty cool, then the second version came along and I'll just say that it wasn't the same. Rabid brand loyalty, people taking things seemingly personal, it was ugly.
 
So, getting back to the OP's original question of why isn't there a KAI subforum anymore... just read the above comments and try to understand that the above BS times the number of threads equals no more KAI forums here.

And as for the comment about a business trying to make money... "(i.e., high sales volume is the only factor the company needs to worry about). Probably good for KAI's bottom line, though."...why else do they exist!?!?
 
wobly said:
So, getting back to the OP's original question of why isn't there a KAI subforum anymore... just read the above comments and try to understand that the above BS times the number of threads equals no more KAI forums here.
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Just to clarify, who do you claim is spouting the BS? :confused:
 
As Wobbly stated, KAI decided to close their forum because they felt it was best for all parties to do so.

As for the idea that KAI no longer produces a mid-range product and are wrong for it...look at CRKT. Ben Peterson, then with CRKT, stated that the budget range was their main focus. Yes they made a few higher end pieces, but they figured there was more to gain staying in that lower end price range. KAI made the same decision and they used actual sales figures to come to that decision, as I'm sure most cutlery brands do. KAI felt it made more sense allocating resources that could have gone to the mid-range market to their ZT line, and from the looks of it, their decision has them happy.

I for one miss Thomas on the forum. He was always open with information, never gave anyone the "corporate line" to my recollection. As far as him being emotional, well clearly he cares for his brand. If he didn't, no reason to care what anyone says about it.
 
Despite the reasoning for their leaving the forum, Thomas kind of does make sense regarding mid-level knives in the market. Now, I'm not a sharp enough cookie to know if it's more to do with people racing toward other ends of the spectrum or the fact that if there are no mid-level priced knives that consumers HAVE to go one way or the other.

Personally, I can appreciate a good ZT. However, had KAI continued to make affordable work knives in the $50-80, I may not have ever taken the plunge. My JYDII, Shallot, Needs Work, etc. They all seemed just fine. I didn't feel like I NEEDED anything "better" than those.

Then as Kershaw became more and more of a budget line of KAI, I had a harder time discerning which models were mid-grade and which were entry level. I stopped buying Kershaw.

A couple of years later a local Outdoor Sporting Goods store picked up the ZT line. Having a bit of money in my pocket to spend and actually being able to handle one before I bought it, I decided to go check them out.
I walked out with an 0454cf and a grin on my face. A couple of weeks later I bought a 350st for work. It was the first time in my life I actually planned on using a folding knife costing $140 hard day in and day out. A month later I had to have the 909. It became my woods walking folder. Several weeks back I decided I needed a full on "tactical" knife. They had the 630 in stock, so I snapped it up. I have a couple of dressier events coming up, so just last week I decided to drawer my go-to slip joint for a sleek little 450 titanium number.

That's a long drawn out list, but truthfully, I probably would not have spent $800 or $900 on ZTs this past year had I still have a glut of mid-range Kershaw knives that I honestly really do like.

I never frequented the KAI forum, but I do think they could still be benefiting from the community with a bit more work. Then again, maybe the Us v Them angle is working for them.

In short, as long as it's productive for the manufacturer and the community, I hate to see a break in the forum. That said, I'll keep buying ZT as long as they keep up the quality and I can afford them;)
 
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