So for me the journey to buy a Survive knife has ended.. pretty much forever.
I placed my order on 4/27/15 for a 4.1 knife that I would have never believed would have taken me 3 years to receive. I bought into the Starter program because every time there was a buy going on for the 4.1 knife I could never get it the exact way I wanted it due to the handle material I wanted was not available or the fastener finish I wanted was not available, etc. The Starter Program gave me the chance to get it just the way I wanted it and I figured by the wording of the Starter Program I could get it for Christmas in 2015 or maybe after the first of the year, because come on 7+ months to build a bunch of knives is plenty of time, right? It's not like they are forging the steel, rolling it out, cutting the blanks by hand, grinding them and then assembling them and finishing them out. I know there were no dates mentioned but they did change the wording of the Starter Program after I paid and a bunch of people complained. Had I even considered that it would have taken 3 years they would have never gotten a dime of my money. I know a bunch of people have opted for refunds and do not blame them one bit. I really should have asked for that way early in the process, but my single knife purchase really does not affect them either way at all.
All my communications with Survive over the years have always been polite even though there have been several times that I wanted to fire off a not so nice email but I have always kept it short and polite. The Staff at Survive has always returned my inquires. It may have taken a few days but they have ALWAYS gotten back to me. The timelines have not been close to what they have communicated to me and this is frustrating to say the least. Sent them an email every few months and every few months I get the bounce back email followed but a couple days later with an semi-form email telling me things are in the works and projected timelines.
So onto the knife itself….
I received my knife yesterday and it is, well, nice but not perfect like most would lead you to believe you were getting. Is it a nice knife? Absolutely. Is it Perfect? No Sir. From the tool marks on the spine to the fasteners that are recessed a bit too deep creating sharp edges around the holes, but that is considered nit picking by some.
Now that I have it in hand I should have opted to not get the Bow Drill Divot, but hey how I was to know it would fall right where my finger would when holding the knife? This is no fault of Survive as it is probably perfectly placed for some if not most individuals. Maybe I will chamfer the hole to take the sharp edge off or I will mix up some colored resin and just fill the hole.
The finish is very nice, even though I prefer the Tumbled finish of the previous generation. The Laser etchings are very crisp and the Flag is a nice touch. We will see how it holds up like my 4.1 1st Gen.
The Kydex Sheath is pretty amazing and the attention to detail on it is very professional. I have played with Kydex pressing over the years and I can tell you whoever is making these for Survive is a top notch operation. There is not a singe sharp edge ANYWHERE on this thing. All the Fasteners are pressed correctly and not a scratch on any of them. Kudos to them.
I prefer a leather Sheath and will likely order a Sagewood Gear Sheath like the one for my 1st Gen 4.1.
I know there are people on this forum that are going to call me a troll and look at posts that I have made in the Survive Forum and say that I am disgruntled because I used logic and defended peoples position on how ridiculous it is to take people’s money for 3 years before delivering a product to them. To be honest I could really care less on what those people have to say. They have always, and will continue to defend Survive for this because they get product for testing or whatever the circumstance may be that causes them to throw common sense out the window. I however will not.
I wish Survive good luck in the future but this is the end for me as there are a large number of very talented custom knife makers out there that deliver their knives in way less than 3 years. Survive has lost my business as well as the business of everyone I know. Friends and family have told me over the years to ask for a refund and abandon Survive but I chose to stick it out and get what I was promised all those years ago. It was a matter of principal and I know that Survive really could care less because they got the money they needed and there are folks that would gladly buy the knife I paid for 3 years ago. It is unfortunate that people keep giving them money and keeping them afloat.
Hub
I placed my order on 4/27/15 for a 4.1 knife that I would have never believed would have taken me 3 years to receive. I bought into the Starter program because every time there was a buy going on for the 4.1 knife I could never get it the exact way I wanted it due to the handle material I wanted was not available or the fastener finish I wanted was not available, etc. The Starter Program gave me the chance to get it just the way I wanted it and I figured by the wording of the Starter Program I could get it for Christmas in 2015 or maybe after the first of the year, because come on 7+ months to build a bunch of knives is plenty of time, right? It's not like they are forging the steel, rolling it out, cutting the blanks by hand, grinding them and then assembling them and finishing them out. I know there were no dates mentioned but they did change the wording of the Starter Program after I paid and a bunch of people complained. Had I even considered that it would have taken 3 years they would have never gotten a dime of my money. I know a bunch of people have opted for refunds and do not blame them one bit. I really should have asked for that way early in the process, but my single knife purchase really does not affect them either way at all.
All my communications with Survive over the years have always been polite even though there have been several times that I wanted to fire off a not so nice email but I have always kept it short and polite. The Staff at Survive has always returned my inquires. It may have taken a few days but they have ALWAYS gotten back to me. The timelines have not been close to what they have communicated to me and this is frustrating to say the least. Sent them an email every few months and every few months I get the bounce back email followed but a couple days later with an semi-form email telling me things are in the works and projected timelines.
So onto the knife itself….
I received my knife yesterday and it is, well, nice but not perfect like most would lead you to believe you were getting. Is it a nice knife? Absolutely. Is it Perfect? No Sir. From the tool marks on the spine to the fasteners that are recessed a bit too deep creating sharp edges around the holes, but that is considered nit picking by some.
Now that I have it in hand I should have opted to not get the Bow Drill Divot, but hey how I was to know it would fall right where my finger would when holding the knife? This is no fault of Survive as it is probably perfectly placed for some if not most individuals. Maybe I will chamfer the hole to take the sharp edge off or I will mix up some colored resin and just fill the hole.
The finish is very nice, even though I prefer the Tumbled finish of the previous generation. The Laser etchings are very crisp and the Flag is a nice touch. We will see how it holds up like my 4.1 1st Gen.
The Kydex Sheath is pretty amazing and the attention to detail on it is very professional. I have played with Kydex pressing over the years and I can tell you whoever is making these for Survive is a top notch operation. There is not a singe sharp edge ANYWHERE on this thing. All the Fasteners are pressed correctly and not a scratch on any of them. Kudos to them.
I prefer a leather Sheath and will likely order a Sagewood Gear Sheath like the one for my 1st Gen 4.1.
I know there are people on this forum that are going to call me a troll and look at posts that I have made in the Survive Forum and say that I am disgruntled because I used logic and defended peoples position on how ridiculous it is to take people’s money for 3 years before delivering a product to them. To be honest I could really care less on what those people have to say. They have always, and will continue to defend Survive for this because they get product for testing or whatever the circumstance may be that causes them to throw common sense out the window. I however will not.
I wish Survive good luck in the future but this is the end for me as there are a large number of very talented custom knife makers out there that deliver their knives in way less than 3 years. Survive has lost my business as well as the business of everyone I know. Friends and family have told me over the years to ask for a refund and abandon Survive but I chose to stick it out and get what I was promised all those years ago. It was a matter of principal and I know that Survive really could care less because they got the money they needed and there are folks that would gladly buy the knife I paid for 3 years ago. It is unfortunate that people keep giving them money and keeping them afloat.
Hub
