james terrio
Sharpest Knife in the Light Socket
- Joined
- Apr 15, 2010
- Messages
- 22,618
Tweeners in CPM-154 or S35VN would be awesome.... but they would certainly cost more. Bigger knives in 3V or Elmax or maybe M390 would also be awesome, but I suspect the costs would be prohibitive... to manufacture a run of 9's in those steels would require a rather large investment by Ka-Bar and I'm pretty sure it would put the retail price firmly into custom territory.
That "fickleness" is probably the main problem. As I alluded above, once you get above the $200 mark a whole lot of "knife people" are simply going to buy custom/handmade knives from small shops like mine or Todd's, and have even more options available to them.
It's also important to remember that most people (even hunters and ranchers and prepper/survivalists an other outdoorsy types) really aren't "knife people" that obsess over materials and swap out handles and customize their own sheaths and whatnot like we all do... most of them simply want a sturdy, affordable knife that just plain works and they can leave in a drawer most of the time between camping/hunting trips, and not have to worry about it. Beckers, just as they are now, work extremely well for those people's needs. :thumbup:
Ethan once told me that he decided on 1095CV for the Becker line for several reasons - including not only the fact that it's tough and takes a good edge, but also that it's cost-effective to manufacture and sell at an affordable retail price. That's just good business sense, and coated 1095CV really is just about perfect for that... and the finished products do work pretty dang well, coated or stripped :thumbup:
Another thing to remember about coated/parkerized/black oxide etc blades, regardless of the steel underneath, is that coating a relatively-rough-ground blade is quicker and less expensive than finishing it to a higher degree. That's essentially why such treatments were invented in the first place, not because they're "tacticool"
It's just another factor that helps larger producers work efficiently. Again... all these things allow the manu to provide very serviceable, reliable knives at a lower cost.
turns out that most of the Beckers in non 1095 materials haven't always been the best sellers
plus they've been expensive compared to 1095 models...
though inexpensive compared to many other brands
people are weirdly fickle
That "fickleness" is probably the main problem. As I alluded above, once you get above the $200 mark a whole lot of "knife people" are simply going to buy custom/handmade knives from small shops like mine or Todd's, and have even more options available to them.
It's also important to remember that most people (even hunters and ranchers and prepper/survivalists an other outdoorsy types) really aren't "knife people" that obsess over materials and swap out handles and customize their own sheaths and whatnot like we all do... most of them simply want a sturdy, affordable knife that just plain works and they can leave in a drawer most of the time between camping/hunting trips, and not have to worry about it. Beckers, just as they are now, work extremely well for those people's needs. :thumbup:
Ethan once told me that he decided on 1095CV for the Becker line for several reasons - including not only the fact that it's tough and takes a good edge, but also that it's cost-effective to manufacture and sell at an affordable retail price. That's just good business sense, and coated 1095CV really is just about perfect for that... and the finished products do work pretty dang well, coated or stripped :thumbup:
Another thing to remember about coated/parkerized/black oxide etc blades, regardless of the steel underneath, is that coating a relatively-rough-ground blade is quicker and less expensive than finishing it to a higher degree. That's essentially why such treatments were invented in the first place, not because they're "tacticool"
It's just another factor that helps larger producers work efficiently. Again... all these things allow the manu to provide very serviceable, reliable knives at a lower cost.
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