Some Thoughts on Youtuber Nick Shabazz

@Slayer2003: FrogLube should be buffed off after application with heat. It is best used as a treatment or dry lubricant. Leave a light sheen only when a product is being placed in storage. Avoid concomitant use with petroleum based wet lubricants.

OK, I'll be the bad guy here. I'm a fan of the reviewer (seems like a genuinely good guy), but not a fan of the reviews themselves. Admittedly, I have only watched a handful. The PM2 disassembly video stands out: Not first taping the blade for safety. Removing screws with the knife in hand instead of securing it on a table or within a padded vice. Excessive wet application of FrogLube to the liners where the product will eventually gunk. Prying off a liner/scale from the lanyard tube with a metal instrument instead of a wood dowel, a nylon spudger, a Delrin takedown tool, or another guaranteed non-marking tool. Not fully removing the liner from the scale in a disassembly video. Over oiling with Nano-Oil when only a light sheen across parts is desired. NickShabazz NickShabazz : A safer, more deliberate and complete process would have been preferred. This is particularly true for users new to knives where your influence can set the bar for how they treat their knives in the future.
I don't think Nick knew his influence in the knife world. I agree with your ideas, and I'm sure Nick will too, as he always says... he's no expert and he grows with the more he learns just like the rest of us.
 
He's not a certified master blade repairer.
I appreciate every take down vid isn't perfect. I've done some of the same things, screw ups, as I was learning also.
Joe
 
I don't think Nick knew his influence in the knife world. I agree with your ideas, and I'm sure Nick will too, as he always says... he's no expert and he grows with the more he learns just like the rest of us.

Absolutely. It still blows me away what this channel has become. I didn't anticipate having 17 subscribers, let alone 17,000. So, I'm doing my best to up my game and precision, even though I'm still regularly not a brilliant man. I try to stick to techniques which I can do well enough to set a good example (which is why you don't see videos on things like sharpening or lockbar retensioning or action tuning), and there are some knives which I advocate people don't attempt to disassemble at all, if I don't think there's an easy way for somebody new to the game to get into it. But I'm absolutely still growing and learning and trying to keep up with expectations. It's very odd and a bit scary to be treated like an expert when you're just a random jackass doing his best to know what he's on about.

OK, I'll be the bad guy here. I'm a fan of the reviewer (seems like a genuinely good guy), but not a fan of the reviews themselves. Admittedly, I have only watched a handful. The PM2 disassembly video stands out: Not first taping the blade for safety. Removing screws with the knife in hand instead of securing it on a table or within a padded vice. Excessive wet application of FrogLube to the liners where the product will eventually gunk. Prying off a liner/scale from the lanyard tube with a metal instrument instead of a wood dowel, a nylon spudger, a Delrin takedown tool, or another guaranteed non-marking tool. Not fully removing the liner from the scale in a disassembly video. Over oiling with Nano-Oil when only a light sheen across parts is desired. NickShabazz NickShabazz : A safer, more deliberate and complete process would have been preferred. This is particularly true for users new to knives where your influence can set the bar for how they treat their knives in the future.

You're not being a bad guy, just trying to educate, which I appreciate. I've tried to improve some of those issues in the year or so since that particular video was filmed, but the fact that I don't take all of those particular measures is partly because they're exceedingly cautious, beyond the level I care to work at, and partly because my viewers won't reliably have a non-marking Delrin disassembly tool and padded vices at the kitchen table. I want people to understand that maintaining your tools is for everybody, not just knifemakers, and that the process isn't so complicated and scary.

There's always room for me to improve, sure, and there are always nits to pick, but the videos show my honest process, and hopefully people learn from my errors as they do their own disassemblies. I figure it's better to have an (imperfect) example that people can follow from somebody who does a pretty reasonable job of it, rather than to have no video at all, with people at home just shooting from the hip next time their knife gets gunked up.

I also encourage you to leave a (constructive) comment next time you see me do something truly boneheaded in a disassembly. This way, somebody who finds the video and sees the comments will see a teachable moment, and ideally, do it better than I did. People who disagree (without being hateful) are always welcome in the comments, and in many cases, I've stickied "Here's a better approach" comments at the top, or in rare cases, re-filmed videos to reflect new information. I'll never learn to do it better next time if nobody mentions these issues!

Thanks for taking the time to give the feedback, though.
 
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...I'm doing my best to up my game and precision...absolutely still growing and learning and trying to keep up with expectations. It's very odd and a bit scary to be treated like an expert...I also encourage you to leave a (constructive) comment...
Open, charming and gracious commentary. It proves to me that you are indeed someone worth listening to now and in the future :thumbsup: .
 
baa72d9ac3ac5e8916ca12ceb0f7d53b.jpg

CAN'T... LOOK!
TOO... BUGGY!!!
 
I appreciate the reviews and the take down videos. Not always perfect but who is? Good length of video normally interesting.

The safety patrols on YouTubers need to lay off.. "he didn't clear the gun 17 times at the start and finish of the video makes his point invalid.. " or "should have taped the blade for safety".. please. Tape it to not mark up the blade fine... safety? No.

I wish Nick had a little better grasp on tool knowledge. That is my only beef.
 
Hey Nick, your the bomb keep up the hard work. You keep on keeping on and make my hobby more enjoyable. You sir are a gem to have in the knife game. But I disagree with you on one important issue, you should reconsider having a kid. You seem like you would be a good Dad. Lol for real tho thanks for being you.
 
He is more annoying than Nuttinfancy.

He likes to hear his own voice ramble along.

Hah. Well, I'm sorry to hear you're rather sharply not a fan (as I can tell from another thread too!). Out of curiosity, who do you prefer listening to? Anything specific they're doing differently that I should look into? Always good to learn from your critics!

Hey Nick, your the bomb keep up the hard work. You keep on keeping on and make my hobby more enjoyable. You sir are a gem to have in the knife game. But I disagree with you on one important issue, you should reconsider having a kid. You seem like you would be a good Dad. Lol for real tho thanks for being you.

Thanks so much for the kind words. But alas, our mind is made up, and the relevant tubes are snipped. So, I'll just have to stick to dad-jokes. :)
 
Disclaimer: I have only watched a handful of Nicks reviews!

Nick has infuriated a couple of times. I have never commented or said a word on one of his videos until recently and I give him credit for quickly responding. I am an advocate of shorter videos (under 10 minutes) but I think he is thorough and honest about the knife that he has in hand and that takes time to put those thoughts in a video.

My gripe with any reviewer doing a bad or damaging reviews on any product, is that if there are problems they don't contact the manufacturer or seller before doing the review. Duds happen with every company. I think as a reviewer you have a responsibility to give a maker/manufacturer/dealer the chance to make it right before you trash a product.

Since we are talking about Nick, we will use him as an example. Nick has 17,000 plus subscribers. Lets say he does a harsh review on a a knife that sells for $300. That review gets 6000 views, and out of those 6000, 3000 were people who were very seriously considering buying that knife. Thanks to that one negative review Nick just took $900,000 in potential sales away from that Company. He did all of that with out ever giving that company a chance to respond to his complaints or fix the problem.

I am picking on Nick but he is just one of a bunch that do the same thing. I would love to see Nick change and lead the way on this. Contact a companies customer service, or the dealer and give feedback as to the initial problem and how or if it were fixed. I am sure Nick or anyone else will have some reviews that are still bad, or go from bad to worse. They will now complain about the bad knife and the bad customer service, but at least then it will be a fair and full review of the product and maker, in my opinion!

Regardless Nick puts himself in front of the camera out there for ridicule and that is tough to do. He is definitely thorough with the details of the knife. For these things I definitely respect him.
 
Disclaimer: I have only watched a handful of Nicks reviews!

Nick has infuriated a couple of times. I have never commented or said a word on one of his videos until recently and I give him credit for quickly responding. I am an advocate of shorter videos (under 10 minutes) but I think he is thorough and honest about the knife that he has in hand and that takes time to put those thoughts in a video.

My gripe with any reviewer doing a bad or damaging reviews on any product, is that if there are problems they don't contact the manufacturer or seller before doing the review. Duds happen with every company. I think as a reviewer you have a responsibility to give a maker/manufacturer/dealer the chance to make it right before you trash a product.

Since we are talking about Nick, we will use him as an example. Nick has 17,000 plus subscribers. Lets say he does a harsh review on a a knife that sells for $300. That review gets 6000 views, and out of those 6000, 3000 were people who were very seriously considering buying that knife. Thanks to that one negative review Nick just took $900,000 in potential sales away from that Company. He did all of that with out ever giving that company a chance to respond to his complaints or fix the problem.

I am picking on Nick but he is just one of a bunch that do the same thing. I would love to see Nick change and lead the way on this. Contact a companies customer service, or the dealer and give feedback as to the initial problem and how or if it were fixed. I am sure Nick or anyone else will have some reviews that are still bad, or go from bad to worse. They will now complain about the bad knife and the bad customer service, but at least then it will be a fair and full review of the product and maker, in my opinion!

Regardless Nick puts himself in front of the camera out there for ridicule and that is tough to do. He is definitely thorough with the details of the knife. For these things I definitely respect him.

While I don't disagree with your general point I don't think Nick has the kind of gravitas to dissuade people from making a purchase.
 
Disclaimer: I have only watched a handful of Nicks reviews!

Nick has infuriated a couple of times. I have never commented or said a word on one of his videos until recently and I give him credit for quickly responding. I am an advocate of shorter videos (under 10 minutes) but I think he is thorough and honest about the knife that he has in hand and that takes time to put those thoughts in a video.

My gripe with any reviewer doing a bad or damaging reviews on any product, is that if there are problems they don't contact the manufacturer or seller before doing the review. Duds happen with every company. I think as a reviewer you have a responsibility to give a maker/manufacturer/dealer the chance to make it right before you trash a product.

Since we are talking about Nick, we will use him as an example. Nick has 17,000 plus subscribers. Lets say he does a harsh review on a a knife that sells for $300. That review gets 6000 views, and out of those 6000, 3000 were people who were very seriously considering buying that knife. Thanks to that one negative review Nick just took $900,000 in potential sales away from that Company. He did all of that with out ever giving that company a chance to respond to his complaints or fix the problem.

Thanks for the feedback, and sorry about both the length and the infuriation!

I can absolutely understand what you're saying, and many people don't appreciate the possibility of a less-than-enthusiastic review. And I absolutely get your perspective as a distributor and salesman, and I definitely found myself nodding along in a lot of what you're saying. But I've got a few points to make that might help you see my perspective more clearly here.

1) Can you imagine how much time and money it would take to go through the customer service process on every knife that's on my table, whether bought, donated, or loaned, if I smelled even a hint of poor tolerances, out-of-spec parts, etc? Even with the best CS in the business, adding 3-4 weeks and a shipping bill to a review process is rough. And with loaned knives, it's often impossible. So, your idea of "give every company a chance to fix/tune every knife", would basically make "review" channels untenable as anything other than a full-time job and a business. Remember, this is not my actual job, this is a labor of love. But even still...

2) I do what you're talking about all the time. I've got a [redacted knife] with an insta-chip edge right now on the way back to [Redacted]. I'm one of few with this problem, so I didn't make a big deal, and just sent it in. Similarly, I recently had to send a brand new [redacted] in for replacement. I sent my Kody Eutsler knife back to Kody three different times to try and get things working before I gave an (ultimately negative) review on the strength of these issues. And a number of knives have been returned to the retailer un-reviewed because they were major QC fails. And with loaners, if I can tell it's clearly damaged, defective, or injured, I'll decline the loan, or if it's already there, I'll send back without a review, or stick to a quick review where the issue is mentioned as unusual or "damage". I do *not* want to review a non-representative knife. Which is why...

3) Very often, when I get a "dud", I'll look around on the forums for reports of similar issues. Chances are, if I'm the only person with [issue], it's a rare QC fail, and I treat it accordingly, or if it's my knife, I'll send it along for repair. But if many people are reporting the same issues, this is likely beyond a QC problem, and it's a design issue, or just low standards. I think I know the knife you're referring to here from your comments on my channel, and in that case, not only are those sorts of QC issues often reported from that company/model, but I had *two separate knives* with the same problems. So, although I'm sympathetic to the maker, that model's construction was way behind their competition, and they deserved the (lukewarm) review they got. Similar issue with another recent knife: I had lots of ugly chips on the CF. So did a sizable proportion of the people who bought them. So, it's not a "Nick's knife" issue, it's a "the knife" issue. As a result, though, a company which seems to only rarely have QC issues might get a closer look at the problem, and a company known for shipping junk probably won't, because...

4) A good warranty and repair process is not a substitute for good QC. A company which regularly ships bad knives, but is really excellent at fixing them when they do, is a company that regularly ships bad knives. Even if I could send each QC fail on my table back to the maker for a spa treatment, reviewing the result without mention would feel really dishonest, and it'd be an experience completely unlike what anybody else would get. If I only talk about knives after the maker has had a chance to "make it perfect for the reviewer", I'm not giving a real perspective on the brand or company. This is part of the reason I prefer not to order direct from makers, and to review loaned gear: I want the same knife any other person would get, with the same probability of issues. This way, if a company wants to reduce the probability of a bad knife getting to a reviewer and costing them money in lost sales, they need to do their best to ensure that bad knives aren't leaving their factory. But even if one does, and I do review it giving the honest look on all sides...

5) Makers are *absolutely* welcome to leave comments. I won't name names as a courtesy, but I've had a few different makers jump into the comments section. Comments ranging from "Oh wow, that is a bad detent. Please let your viewer know to reach out to me to get that fixed", or just "I'm really sad to see this review, as that knife never should have left the factory, I'll talk to our QC team", or even just a simple "Thanks for looking at our work, and we appreciate the praise and criticism, we'll take both to heart". When makers do this right, it's a great opportunity for them to leave a great impression, both for me and for my audience. We all get that QC slips are a thing, and I do my best to prevent comment pile-ons. And sometimes, the important thing is for a maker to stand up and say "That's not right, that shouldn't have happened, and if it happens to you, we'll make it right". Especially with more subtle quality issues, where it could just look like poor tolerances or low standards. And I want them to look good, because...

6) I take zero pleasure in the "bad" and "ugly" (well, zombie knives aside), and I hate the thought of my reviews hurting a business. It's to the extent that there have been reviews that I have filmed of products that were deeply flawed, and, rather than post it to the public, I just sent it to the maker, as constructive criticism, instead. This is also part of why I'm out of the custom game (because I would hate to torpedo emerging or learning artists), and why I'm making a point to take on fewer knives where I can see the glaring design or F&F flaws from a mile out. I also offer "stealth reviews" to smaller (or larger) makers, where I'll look at a prototype (or new model) and give them an off-the-record good-great-bad-and-ugly, so they can address any criticisms they feel merit addressing outside of the public sphere. Again, I really want small makers to succeed, and there's nothing I love more than giving honest, earned praise to somebody who's just starting out. But I also feel like I want to be honest to my viewers, because...

7) I feel like just sugarcoating it, pulling all the punches, or doing showcase-style reviews where the negative is left unmentioned, isn't fair to the people who might actually consider reviews when buying. I've had a lot of people comment along the lines of "Ugh, yeah, I bought that knife and hated it for just those reasons, I wish I'd seen this first". A reviewer who just talks about the good is an advertiser, and what's the point of that? But at the end of the day...

8) As GermanyChris GermanyChris said, I hope nobody is basing their purchasing decisions solely on the opinions of some jackass who signs Z-Hunters. If I'm the only reviewer with anything negative to say about the new ZT-made 867-5309, then guess what? I'm probably the crazy one! I should make a video about that.

Anyways, thanks for your feedback. I think you've made great points, I'll take it to heart, and I hope you hear me too. I applaud your loyalty to your brands, and here's hoping they earn positive reviews in the future :)

(Actually, looking at your site, I just called a knife for sale there a gem this afternoon :))
 
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Buyers are better to read/watch more than a few reviews if they are going to buy a $300+ knife. I doubt Nick (or any reviewer) alone can change a person's mindset from buying to not buying.

Nick - once again, I like watching your reviews (not necessarily agree with everything you said) as well as reading your above long post. As long as you do not exaggerate or extroplate things (which you really don't), I see no problem to review a knife as it is rather than a manufacturer corrected one. AFAIK, you are not marketing or promoting for any particular manufacturer (an important reason that I like your reviews).
 
AFAIK, you are not marketing or promoting for any particular manufacturer (an important reason that I like your reviews).

Just for the record, aside from my unfortunate-but-entirely-voluntary-and-uncompensated thing for gas station specials, my "Knife Gripes" series with KnifeNews (where I still have complete editorial control, and am just paid for content), and some occasional personal conversations with some makers, I've no paid deals or behind-the-scenes conflicts of interest. I pay retail prices when buying, and any time freebies are given, I mention it clearly at the start of the full review.

Although at this point, Z-Hunter should probably have gifted me a Zombie-green Rolls Royce or something...
 
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Thanks for the feedback, and sorry about both the length and the infuriation!

I can absolutely understand what you're saying, and many people don't appreciate the possibility of a less-than-enthusiastic review. And I absolutely get your perspective as a distributor and salesman, and I definitely found myself nodding along in a lot of what you're saying. But I've got a few points to make that might help you see my perspective more clearly here.

1) Can you imagine how much time and money it would take to go through the customer service process on every knife that's on my table, whether bought, donated, or loaned, if I smelled even a hint of poor tolerances, out-of-spec parts, etc? Even with the best CS in the business, adding 3-4 weeks and a shipping bill to a review process is rough. And with loaned knives, it's often impossible. So, your idea of "give every company a chance to fix/tune every knife", would basically make "review" channels untenable as anything other than a full-time job and a business. Remember, this is not my actual job, this is a labor of love. But even still...

2) I do what you're talking about all the time. I've got a [redacted knife] with an insta-chip edge right now on the way back to [Redacted]. I'm one of few with this problem, so I didn't make a big deal, and just sent it in. Similarly, I recently had to send a brand new [redacted] in for replacement. I sent my Kody Eutsler knife back to Kody three different times to try and get things working before I gave an (ultimately negative) review on the strength of these issues. And a number of knives have been returned to the retailer un-reviewed because they were major QC fails. And with loaners, if I can tell it's clearly damaged, defective, or injured, I'll decline the loan, or if it's already there, I'll send back without a review, or stick to a quick review where the issue is mentioned as unusual or "damage". I do *not* want to review a non-representative knife. Which is why...

3) Very often, when I get a "dud", I'll look around on the forums for reports of similar issues. Chances are, if I'm the only person with [issue], it's a rare QC fail, and I treat it accordingly, or if it's my knife, I'll send it along for repair. But if many people are reporting the same issues, this is likely beyond a QC problem, and it's a design issue, or just low standards. I think I know the knife you're referring to here from your comments on my channel, and in that case, not only are those sorts of QC issues often reported from that company/model, but I had *two separate knives* with the same problems. So, although I'm sympathetic to the maker, that model's construction was way behind their competition, and they deserved the (lukewarm) review they got. Similar issue with another recent knife: I had lots of ugly chips on the CF. So did a sizable proportion of the people who bought them. So, it's not a "Nick's knife" issue, it's a "the knife" issue. As a result, though, a company which seems to only rarely have QC issues might get a closer look at the problem, and a company known for shipping junk probably won't, because...

4) A good warranty and repair process is not a substitute for good QC. A company which regularly ships bad knives, but is really excellent at fixing them when they do, is a company that regularly ships bad knives. Even if I could send each QC fail on my table back to the maker for a spa treatment, reviewing the result without mention would feel really dishonest, and it'd be an experience completely unlike what anybody else would get. If I only talk about knives after the maker has had a chance to "make it perfect for the reviewer", I'm not giving a real perspective on the brand or company. This is part of the reason I prefer not to order direct from makers, and to review loaned gear: I want the same knife any other person would get, with the same probability of issues. This way, if a company wants to reduce the probability of a bad knife getting to a reviewer and costing them money in lost sales, they need to do their best to ensure that bad knives aren't leaving their factory. But even if one does, and I do review it giving the honest look on all sides...

5) Makers are *absolutely* welcome to leave comments. I won't name names as a courtesy, but I've had a few different makers jump into the comments section. Comments ranging from "Oh wow, that is a bad detent. Please let your viewer know to reach out to me to get that fixed", or just "I'm really sad to see this review, as that knife never should have left the factory, I'll talk to our QC team", or even just a simple "Thanks for looking at our work, and we appreciate the praise and criticism, we'll take both to heart". When makers do this right, it's a great opportunity for them to leave a great impression, both for me and for my audience. We all get that QC slips are a thing, and I do my best to prevent comment pile-ons. And sometimes, the important thing is for a maker to stand up and say "That's not right, that shouldn't have happened, and if it happens to you, we'll make it right". Especially with more subtle quality issues, where it could just look like poor tolerances or low standards. And I want them to look good, because...

6) I take zero pleasure in the "bad" and "ugly" (well, zombie knives aside), and I hate the thought of my reviews hurting a business. It's to the extent that there have been reviews that I have filmed of products that were deeply flawed, and, rather than post it to the public, I just sent it to the maker, as constructive criticism, instead. This is also part of why I'm out of the custom game (because I would hate to torpedo emerging or learning artists), and why I'm making a point to take on fewer knives where I can see the glaring design or F&F flaws from a mile out. I also offer "stealth reviews" to smaller (or larger) makers, where I'll look at a prototype (or new model) and give them an off-the-record good-great-bad-and-ugly, so they can address any criticisms they feel merit addressing outside of the public sphere. Again, I really want small makers to succeed, and there's nothing I love more than giving honest, earned praise to somebody who's just starting out. But I also feel like I want to be honest to my viewers, because...

7) I feel like just sugarcoating it, pulling all the punches, or doing showcase-style reviews where the negative is left unmentioned, isn't fair to the people who might actually consider reviews when buying. I've had a lot of people comment along the lines of "Ugh, yeah, I bought that knife and hated it for just those reasons, I wish I'd seen this first". A reviewer who just talks about the good is an advertiser, and what's the point of that? But at the end of the day...

8) As GermanyChris GermanyChris said, I hope nobody is basing their purchasing decisions solely on the opinions of some jackass who signs Z-Hunters. If I'm the only reviewer with anything negative to say about the new ZT-made 867-5309, then guess what? I'm probably the crazy one! I should make a video about that.

Anyways, thanks for your feedback. I think you've made great points, I'll take it to heart, and I hope you hear me too. I applaud your loyalty to your brands, and here's hoping they earn positive reviews in the future :)

(Actually, looking at your site, I just called a knife for sale there a gem this afternoon :))


Nick you make very solid points. I will certainly recommend your stealth reviews to a few makers that I think can use an honest and fair assessment before putting a knife to market. Thank you for a very detailed response you are definitely first class!
 
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