You Get What You Pay For? (the journey)

[jideta]

Just to add to the ongoing discussions on prices and quality.

For the most part, even cheap knives are good.
Compared to cheap knives say, 20 years ago, cheap knives are light years ahead of that game.
I recently bought a couple of 10 dolla knives for a project and they had very good fit and finish, came razor sharp, and had nice sheaths. Mystery steel for sure, but for ten bucks who cares? I tossed them in my car.

Under the hunski range, I was surprised by the quality I saw. Again, fit and finish was great, excellent even, and if I didn't already have so much steel I would have kept it.
Endura is a fave.
Nothing to lose or want here. User central.

In that sweet spot?: $100-$300
Here it becomes hit or miss, mostly depending on your expectations.
More on this later.
From what I remember I had no problems here. At the time it was a big jump for me, going from Kershaws to Benchmades et al. and I wasn't disappointed.
Well, maybe I was a bit as I don't remember being like, well, stoked.
I mean the product here was excellent and all, but for some reason it was just a nice knife.
Although you are entering the top 10% of knifedom, you begin to realize you are at the bottom of that top 10%.

$300+
I think here is the potential for the most disappointment or frustration.
There is a certain expectation for quality and let's face it, satisfaction, that if it's not met is a large let down.
Mid tech land here, so you're in the twilight zone of manufacture.
IMO, you're basically paying for a name; just like how designers/makers are collaborating with manufacturers to produce 'signature' knives.
I ventured here briefly and now am careful how I spend.

$500+
You are now entering Dreamland.
Sort of.
I mean it feels like Dreamland, but only because your wallet is so light it's floating in air now.
I think this is the real sweet spot.
Not because I'm a knife snob, but because I think here is where you really get what you want.
Handmade (for the most part), custom maybe, exclusivity, individual attention.
You are also in the high end of Mid tech so beware, but the custom deals are there.
The quality is well, just quality.
You don't really have to think about it; it's just there. The knife makers who live here don't make a living making shitty stuff.
I say sort of Dreamland because...

$1000+
What can I say?
Well, I can say this: once you get here all of the above becomes sort of insignificant.
Toys.
Those of you here, you know what I mean.
All the inexpensive stuff: break it, lose it, who cares? I got the goods.
Living here is hard though. You just can't go and stare in the glass counter and pick one. To enter Dreamland you gotta find the 'right' one.
I mean you're dropping a lot of scratch so you ain't going to just plunge on the first polished tanto mokuti bolsters and carbon scales that comes along.
You are going to spend weeks, months, maybe years searching.
You wait to find the right one to enter Dreamland.
Then...

$2000+
For some this isn't even the next level it's part of the last level, just up one flight.
For me though, this is Crazyland.
Anyone here is SERIOUS.
Serious about everything: design, quality, scarcity of materials, etc.
It better be damn near perfect! No, not perfect like $500 perfect, perfect like $2000 PERFECT!
If you know what I mean.
Here, you are buying because you really really really want it.
Or you just got a ton of cash laying around.
Are knives here any better? No.
Are they better in your delusional mind? Yes.

Is it worth climbing the knife ladder?
I know some of us here are a definite NO.
I know some of us here stand at the base of said ladder and stare upwards.
I know some of us here have already made the climb.

So, do you really get what you pay for? As it has already been pointed out many times, it's all relative. Basically I think so, even in Crazyland (money doesn't really count there).
I think though, that even at entry level, you are still getting a lot.

I was going to add pics, but better you just imagine...

 

[soc_monki]

My most expensive knife is a hinderer xm-24. Do I regret it? Not one bit. Do I think I could have gotten as good a knife cheaper? Maybe. My 0562cf is a great knife, but my xm-18 and Xm-24 feel more solid and better quality, with better flipping action as well.

However, I feel my spydercos and Benchmades are up there as well, and they were all much cheaper. But I understand the Hinderers have much closer tolerances, all hardware made in house, hand assembled and tuned... You pay extra for all that.

Would I ever venture into the 1000+ area? Not on your life. Then again I never thought I'd pay for a hinderer either yet here we are. I think I'm good though.

 

[unwisefool]

I literally just sold my custom AD15 because the $150 cold steel version was so well made. So it really depends. I've got a $300 midtech which blows the fit and finish or many higher end models I've seen out of the water. But it doesn't have crazy fancy materials so that keeps the price more reasonable. The one knife I keep coming back to is my CRK Umnumzaan, I love pretty much everything about it. Also it's beat to heck so I don't feel bad about using it.

 

[evilgreg]

I am 100% sure that I have derived more long term satisfaction from knives <$50 than knives over $500.

I still think the sweet spot, where it averages out to the best likely outcome, is somewhere in the $100 - $200 range.

 

[jokrswylde]

I buy knives that speak to me, regardless of price. A year ago I bout a Combat Troodon, that would fit in your 500+ category. The last knife I bought before that was in 2006...a Strider Gen 2 SMF. that would be in your 350 range. Both of them I use just as hard as the Griptilian I paid 99 buck for way back when.

I was gifted a Damascus Bladed William Henry with all the fanciness. It would easily fit in the 1000 category. Ugly as sin to me. F&F was impeccable. Used it for a week around the house and tossed it in the drawer. It has been there for about 8 years.

I would never buy a knife that was going to sit in a safe and just be fondled occasionally. That is when I would feel I hadn't gotten my money's worth. I just wasn't blessed with the collectors mentality. Heck, even knives that I didn't really like all that much, I regretted selling eventually. I don't sell 'em anymore. Just keep them put away until the "speak" to me again.

 

[OrangeBlueOrangeBlue]

Once you cross the $1000 threshold, knives seem to largely shift from useful items to artistic trinkets. Not a high percentage of $1000+ knives actually being used, most are display pieces or safe queens.
Yes, you're generally getting a higher level of fit and finish (and sometimes materials), but mostly it's the artistry you pay for when you get into the more expensive knives.
As long as you're cool with paying $2000 for a knife that's more of an art piece than a tool, you're getting what you paid for.

 

[jideta]

Once you cross the $1000 threshold, knives seem to largely shift from useful items to artistic trinkets. Not a high percentage of $1000+ knives actually being used, most are display pieces or safe queens.
Yes, you're generally getting a higher level of fit and finish (and sometimes materials), but mostly it's the artistry you pay for when you get into the more expensive knives.
As long as you're cool with paying $2000 for a knife that's more of an art piece than a tool, you're getting what you paid for.

I was going to add something like that after hearing it a couple of times.
Then I thought about the Snap On comparison; just because a ratchet costs over a $100 doesn't mean I'm not going to use it.
I think that's the theory.
I carry my GTC same as my Endura.
Okay, I'm just a little more careful!
I left the art thing out so as not to proliferate the shelf queen thing.

 

[evltcat]

I'm going to preface this by saying, we ARE on a Knife Knut/Enthusiast/Collectors forum!

I buy knives that speak to me within what I consider to be a reasonable price for what I'm buying. Personally I'd rather have a small number of expensive knives than a ton of cheap knives that dull, chip, or otherwise fail all the time. I learned that lesson as a kid with not much money.

Case in point, I have a Custom Kwaiken from BRT Blade works that's made of 3V with Ben Tendick's signature HT. It has satin finish blade, real ray skin, a zirconium menuki, hand cord-wrapped handle, and it's EXACTLY what I wanted. It cost me less than $600. This one is a combination of high end materials, Ben's skills at knife making, HT, and extra labor for the wrapping/resin coating of the handle. I consider it a reasonable purchase, but a WHOLE lot of folks here will think I be nutz spending that on a 5" fixed blade.

It really is a matter of what YOU as the knife purchaser, owner, and maybe user (because not all blades are users), deem to be a reasonable value for your hard earned money.

If you're happy with a $55 Kershaw Teran, an $85 Delica or a $5.5k set of Tashi Bharucha Wolverine claws, then you're doing it right!!!

 

[Alsharif]

Over my time in this hobby, which is just a few short years, I’m forming a very particular taste. Not every new knife, even from great makers, make me want to acquire them and use them.

During this period I’ve poured a good chunk of change into knives. I’m not willing to think about the overall money spent at this point, but I’m willing to bet that I can have at least two or three $1000 grail knives for the money I’ve spent and that’s what I’d rather have right now. A few perfect (or near perfect) knives rather than a number of plainly good ones.

As long as you enjoy your knives, keep at it. If what you have doesn’t elicit satisfaction and excitement, then move those pieces along and get a knife that truly blows you away. The money you can get back from selling a good number of $100-400 knives can add up quick. That money can be turns around and be used to purchase something you now desire.

I don’t think people in this hobby should spend $1000, or even $300, off the bat. You don’t know what you’re getting if you start there and won’t realize how they compare to everything else. It’s not just about ownership, it requires time and use of the knives. I’m glad that I started off with an Ontario folder, moved to Spydercos, was heavily into Reate, and have most recently become acquainted with CRK. Each progression has enabled me look at the previous knives and deconstruct their merits and flaws. So far, nothing has been perfect and maybe no knife will ever be perfect; it’s about what satisfies you at this point in time given how your taste and preferences have evolved.

My recent fascination? Shirogorov. A brand I never thought I’d be interested in given the price point but here I am. Different people have different levels of standards and measures that they come to appreciate and expect. This grows and changes over time. You may reach a point where you truly feel no need to reach for a higher tier of perfection, and it could also come to be that it is a never ending pursuit and thrill.

 

[afishhunter]

I'll stick with the sub $30 to $50 range and in the "sub" department, the sub $20 range as much as possible.
Number one, my Rough Ryder, Marbles, BTI Schrade/Old Timer, and Mora do everything I need.
Number two, Anything over $20-$25 I have to save up for. (unless a economic stimulus hit the debit card,)
Honestly though, I think my days of buying a dozen (or more) knives a year are done.
I have enough serviceable knives to last me the rest of my days ... unless I turn out to be even stranger/weirder than I suspect, and "live" to be 500 or something.

Right now, there are other things I "need" more than another knife. Archery, Muzzleloaders/cap n' ball revolvers, and maybe a new laptop or tablet, and a "smart" phone, for example. Oh, and a couple good ballpoint and fountain pens.

Heck, I might even get the tools to do leatherwork. This Covid lockdown is beyond "boring". IMHO, there taint nuthing worth turning the TV on for, and I don't wanna be a "rocker potato", anyway. (No couch in my room, but there is an glider rocker, if/when I wanna use it.)
Who knows? It might be "fun" to make a possibles bag for when shooting the muzzleloaders, quiver, holster for any cap n' ball revolver I get, (and a gun belt) rifle scabbard or gun case for my Hawken, a sling to carry my compound bow, a sash type sheath to carry 4 knives, and a shopping/tote bag for my Euro Style rollator.
I'm pretty sure making them myself will be at least a little less expensive than buying from a craftsman.

I'll probably get some wood and whittle a caged ball and chain, too. I'll get a broom and no bend over dust pan, to clean up the wood shavings, too ... Way much too cold to go out on a porch, or in the yard and whittle. Ain't been above freezing for weeks now. I'm somewhat allergic to freezing ...