Why "catch and release"? (re:wait times and pricier knives)

J

jceckrosh

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Mar 2, 2016
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Just curious what y'all's experiences or thoughts are.

I guess I'm asking because I see knives go up for sale right after people get them, and I know some of these makers turnaround times are long. Is it that the knife just isn't what was expected? Disappointment after all the wait? Is it to make a profit? Kind of a bad long-game if thats the case.

I know sometimes people sell something they just got because they are going after something else that just came up, so there is that. And for some folks I guess their collection is always in flux, knives in/knives out. Anyway, just curious since something I just saw for sale had to have just gotten into the individuals hands and I know what the wait was like, since I have something from the same maker.
 
Half the fun for me is trying a bunch of different knives. So the way my collection has worked so far is knives in knives out, and some end up sticking. if i kept every knife i've bought this year, i'd have 20+ knives

instead, i now have 8 keepers, and 3 that are currently being tried
 
jceckrosh said:
Is it to make a profit?
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Sometimes, which is a pretty easy assessment to make and therefore pretty easy to avoid those folks.

As for others, in addition to the other reasons you mentioned, my impression is that there are a bunch of people around here who like testing the waters with knives they aren't sure they want in the first place.

Also, sometimes people get surprised by the ergos or mechanics of a knife that they otherwise really wanted.
 
I guess I'm talking pricier stuff, like 1K+. I don't have the money to sit on several 1K+ knives while I figure out if I want them. All that said, I have bought a few more expensive knives that I have debated some. But that usually takes months and months...
 
Definitely not for profit with me. I usually have to try a knife out, so I take a loss because they are sold used. When I first got into knives, I tried tons of different knives out to see what I liked, and what I did not. After a while my assortment of knives has changed and narrowed. Now my knife assortment are just knives that I REALLY like, and I let the rest go. I only keep knives I carry, if I notice I am not carrying one, it gets released. I used to lie slightly fancy knives, now I like EDC worthy knives, so that is what I kept most of. I have 2 tough yet fancy/edc knives that I am going to keep, the rest are quality knives of all price points and sizes, fixed and folders.
You learn a lot looking for what you like!
I usually take weeks or months to find out if I like a knife, but there were a few that I turned around and sold within a week. Mostly an overwhelming feeling that this knife is just not for me. Feel, blade geometry, poor fit and finish, poor quality, etc. Some were just too flashy. Just depends. All price points.
 
I don't believe anyone's under an obligation to lose money on resale for a knife. You'd be a fool to sell a knife for less than it's worth, and it's basically impossible to prove that someone bought a knife specifically to flip for a profit.

Which I don't think is really within the spirit of our hobby, but people flip houses for a living and no one really disrespects that, so I don't know.

I've only ever made a profit on a couple of knives that I've sold, and after accounting for Paypal fees and shipping, I made maybe 10% over the original price.
 
jceckrosh said:
I guess I'm talking pricier stuff, like 1K+. I don't have the money to sit on several 1K+ knives while I figure out if I want them. All that said, I have bought a few more expensive knives that I have debated some. But that usually takes months and months...
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Some guys are just in that price bracket, I suppose. They're liquid enough to have several thousands of dollars tied up in knives that they maybe want.

I'm just guessing, of course, but I imagine there are plenty of people who find it ridiculous that I might have a grand or two tied up in knives that I maybe wanted, decided I didn't, and am just too lazy to sell off at the moment.
 
madcap_magician said:
I don't believe anyone's under an obligation to lose money on resale for a knife. You'd be a fool to sell a knife for less than it's worth, and it's basically impossible to prove that someone bought a knife specifically to flip for a profit.

Which I don't think is really within the spirit of our hobby, but people flip houses for a living and no one really disrespects that, so I don't know.

I've only ever made a profit on a couple of knives that I've sold, and after accounting for Paypal fees and shipping, I made maybe 10% over the original price.
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I don't care if anyone makes a profit, that was not what I was getting at. I have always lost money on anything I have sold. I just mean if 1 year ago I get on a maker's list to get a knife that costs $1300 to make a couple hundred (or whatever) that seems like a bad gig.

And I do understand being underwhelmed or knowing something is not for you.
 
jceckrosh said:
I don't care if anyone makes a profit, that was not what I was getting at. I have always lost money on anything I have sold. I just mean if 1 year ago I get on a maker's list to get a knife that costs $1300 to make a couple hundred (or whatever) that seems like a bad gig.

And I do understand being underwhelmed or knowing something is not for you.
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Yeah, I'd agree. Plus it's hard to predict what will actually be worth flipping later, although the safe guess is usually "anything I passed on."

Let me tell you about the time I came up on Peter Carey's build list for a custom Nitro at $495! Had to pass because I didn't have the funds when my name came up... a few years later and the going price for his work is basically tripled.
 
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