why does everyone hate gerber.

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bryant R

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May 29, 2011
Messages
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why does everyone hate gerber so much i dont get it i have had nothing but good experiences with them. at their price point they probably arent the best but as long as you mantain them and dont expect too much of them . at there price point they arent going to have super steel they arent going to be as good as say a spyderco or a benchmade but they will work.
 
What are you referring to?
There are many fans of Gerber. they make all sorts of knives, mostly lower, but many great high end ones too.

Many people like them?
 
bryant R said:
why does everyone hate gerber so much i dont get it i have had nothing but good experiences with them. at their price point they probably arent the best but as long as you mantain them and dont expect too much of them . at there price point they arent going to have super steel they arent going to be as good as say a spyderco or a benchmade but they will work.
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You have to realize this is a forum for people who have an obsession with knives and cutting tools. The mediocre isn't going to be overly popular in such a setting. Aficionados pretty much by definition want more than what is necessary.

Plus they have their own history working against them. Before they were bought out, they were higher quality, and it's hard not to compare what they are to what they were.
 
I think most people who dislike Gerber are those who remember when they used to produce some of the finest production knives in the world. The stuff they make now is an absolute disgrace compared to what they made back in the day.
 
Sure, most Gerber products are functional, but at least on these forums, that's not the only reason we own knives.

Reasons I dislike Gerber:
-They don't readily disclose what grades of steel they use in their blades ("high carbon stainless steel" is meaningless)
-The Gerber knives I've encountered had QC issues (vertical and lateral blade play, sharp handle edges)
-None that I've encountered came acceptably sharp out-of-box
-Their designs seem uninspired to me, as if they are "pitching to the middle" of the market (to non-afis)

From what I've read in various threads, Gerber's products were a lot better twenty years ago, but since they moved most of their production to China, their QC slipped considerably. Additionally, they don't seem to keep up with the industry in terms of innovation and bringing out exciting designs (Spyderco with their ongoing introduction of new blade steels and continual evolution/improvements to their more popular models comes to mind). In my mind, Gerber knives are certainly a step above $5 flea market knock-offs, but not by a lot.
 
Personally, I like solid food.
(pause for crickets)


In truth, it's simply a case of a brand that, at one time, made an effort to put out a reasonable and decent quality tool. A long time ago, however, it seems they stopped making an effort.
 
I think i agree with the above people. gerber has gone downhill from when they were on of the premier brands for the one hand opening knives. they took almost all of their manufacturing to china and seemed to have just ridden on the laurels of their brand instead of innovating hard. while the knives are decent, companies like kershaw have gotten good steel in good designs with good engineering and downright amazing customer service. all this for about the same price as gerber. for me, there is no competition. for others, there may be, but there are fewer and fewer reasons to go with gerber these days.
 
t1mpani said:
Personally, I like solid food.
(pause for crickets)


In truth, it's simply a case of a brand that, at one time, made an effort to put out a reasonable and decent quality tool. A long time ago, however, it seems they stopped making an effort.
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Now THAT is funny! BTW, Gerber knives are a quite bit better that 1 step up from the $5 mini market bucket o' knives. For their price, you get a quality knive. I would say they are on par with anything in their price range, which is aimed at the low to moderate priced knife. They also have their shinng stars like the Gator folders, LMFII, and even the low end fpriced STL (LOVE THAT LITTLE BUGGER).

There are plenty of fans of Gerber around here. They just don't feel like having to explain themselves to the knife snobs every time they comment on them.
 
Well everybody certainly does not hate Gerber. In fact lots of folks really like Gerber.

The problem you've got here is the fact that a) Gerber used to make some very good, innovative, and rather unconventional products back in the 70's out of over the top good steel (if perhaps overly hard). Since being absorbed in corporate acquisition they have shifted to a clamshell packaging, big box store marketer of un-named and, from model to model, downright questionable steel.

Plus here you got your basic knife nuts (like me) who don't see the brand as offering anything particularly interesting or high quality. I think the gator series are good solid knives made of steel that they won't name.

So, to sum up, the way Gerber does business turns off the knife afficianados. I think it is that simple really.
 
Got a Gerber Multi-Plier from a girlfriend one Christmas. I still have it (for sentimental reasons) but the blades didn’t cut well, the pliers didn’t grip properly and their customer service people were singularly unhelpful. Never been tempted to buy one of their products since.
 
Boozoo Chavis said:
I think most people who dislike Gerber are those who remember when they used to produce some of the finest production knives in the world. The stuff they make now is an absolute disgrace compared to what they made back in the day.
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That says it for me. I am old enough to remember when Gerber used to be top of the line stuff. Very innovative with top materials. Now they make mostly crap and, IMO, the good models that they make are overpriced for what you get. Fiskars took the company from the high road to the low road. Very disappointing.
 
Essentially, for me at least, Kershaw is now very much what Gerber once was. I very much hope they stay on their current road.
 
Gerber, "back in the day", was a great knife company. American made, quality, affordable products. They pioneered a lot of innovations and technologies. The cutlery industry wouldn't be where it is today without Gerber. In 1987 they were purchased by Fiskars, best known, in the US at least, for their scissors. That, as they say, was when everything started going downhill. Production started going overseas, materials were of lower quality, and their main focus went to mass producing cheap stuff, largely and increasingly neglecting the higher end of the spectrum.

Gerber still makes some quality knives in the USA, but these are limited and for the price, generally inferior to brands like Spyderco or Benchmade.
 
Planterz said:
Gerber, "back in the day", was a great knife company. American made, quality, affordable products. They pioneered a lot of innovations and technologies. The cutlery industry wouldn't be where it is today without Gerber. In 1987 they were purchased by Fiskars, best known, in the US at least, for their scissors. That, as they say, was when everything started going downhill. Production started going overseas, materials were of lower quality, and their main focus went to mass producing cheap stuff, largely and increasingly neglecting the higher end of the spectrum.

Gerber still makes some quality knives in the USA, but these are limited and for the price, generally inferior to brands like Spyderco or Benchmade.
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I remember when they made great knives, but now they have gone big box so I stay away.
 
kreole said:
You have to realize this is a forum for people who have an obsession with knives and cutting tools. The mediocre isn't going to be overly popular in such a setting. Aficionados pretty much by definition want more than what is necessary.

Plus they have their own history working against them. Before they were bought out, they were higher quality, and it's hard not to compare what they are to what they were.
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Very well said. In a knife enthusiast collective such as Bladeforums the lower end of moderate isn't going to spark too much enthusiasm. It's like rolling out a Ford Fiesta at the Indy 500. Had they been able to maintain more items like the Gerber Freeman, things would have worked out better for them.
 
I refer to them now as "Fiskars". I own several pieces of older Gerbers and kept one on my web gear in the late 70's. I'll tell you one thing, don't ever go out of your way to visit their office/plant in Portland, Or. What a complete waste of time.
 
i am just as much of a knife nut as anyone else believe me i would love to get higher end knives but they are not in my price point right now and as a budget option you get a darn good knife. but i hear gerber catch so much heat on this forum and i just dont understand it
 
HoosierQ said:
I think the gator series are good solid knives made of steel that they won't name.
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The Gator series is one of the few exceptions to Gerber's propensity for unnamed steel. According to their website, it's made from 420HC. Certainly not the best, but it takes an edge and works just fine as a beater. I keep a Gator II in my toolkit as my heavy work knife, when I don't want to use one of my Spydercos, Kershaws, or Benchmade on a particular job.

http://gerbergear.com/index.php/product/id/68
 
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There was a time When Fiskars was THE top quality brand of scissors. I had a few pairs back when they were still made in Finland. Nice stuff.
Then when they bought Gerber, poof! Off to China they went and now their scissors and Gerber knives are very low quality.
 
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