Are Bark River and Tops going to crush everyone?

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droddy386

Joined
Nov 18, 2021
Messages
126
My recent experience with both has been exemplary.

Tops produces quality knives in 1095 that are just absolute workhorses.

Bark River does a semi-custom business, with great knives in 3V and can do custom rework and warranty repairs in weeks.

Stick with one steel, do it well, do volume and semi-custom work. Take advantage of this now.

I am also big on Murray Carter’s high end stuff for kitchen knives and others like the FS1, but the price point is much higher. (You are paying for the hands of a master.)

Thoughts?
 
I did not see this coming.

(Though I agree about the Murray Carter kitchen knives which I've owned for more than 20 years.)

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Thoughts:

Bark River? Eh, not for me.

TOPS? I've heard some good things.

Murray Carter...all of mine are years twenty old or more from when he was in Japan...but I'm guessing he still knows how to turn out a quality product.
 
Not by a longshot ; Tops makes good knives but have so many outlandish designs. Bark Rivers are nice too but i dont see people breaking the doors down for them either. If anyone seems to be killing it right now its Carothers: on the exchange they sell in minutes.The latest orders for them are all sold and spoken for. They resell for more than the original cost ; Bark River and Tops are none of the above…
 
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Yeah. I have had all kinds of brands, mass produced and custom, but in the past several years Tops and Bark River have really stepped it up. With the pocket folders though - Shirogurov is my new preference.
 
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Never tried Tops, but Bark River is my favorite when it comes to fixed knives, mostly because I love convexed blades more than the rest, I like their coke bottle handle ergonomics and the wide choice of handle materials. And the leather sheaths.. I also like that they are a family business, not a international corp.

I don't think they will crush everyone (or anyone) though. I doubt they can, and I don't think they even want to. They employ maybe around 50-ish people? There are much larger companies.
 
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Quiet said:
Politely, no.

Accurately. LMAOOOOOO not a chance. And I say this when I actually like TOPS Knives.
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I thought the same, but recently I’ve been using theirs and - they work well, hold up, and for the price really can’t be beat. There are great customs out there, but they can’t do volume, so you end up in the collectors market.
 
droddy386 said:
I thought the same, but recently I’ve been using theirs and - they work well, hold up, and for the price really can’t be beat. There are great customs out there, but they can’t do volume, so you end up in the collectors market.
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Hey, if they work for you, entirely fine. But they aren't crushing anyone. There are more companies selling fixed blades now than at any time in the past. Hell, there's another small bespoke fixed blade company popping up every other day it seems these days. TOPS makes good knives, I've had several, but there are other companies whose knives are just objectively better. Also, these days, I (as politely as I can say this without it sounding arrogant) am fortunate to be at the point in my life where I don't have to buy on value, or "for the price". Carothers knives for example, cost a good deal more than TOPS knives, but Delta 3V is definitely what I'd want on my side over 1095. Is what it is. THAT'S value for my money.

Going back to price, if you were actually buying at a price that couldn't be beaten, you'd take that money you spent on a single TOPS knife or a Bark River, and buy several Moras instead. They cut amazingly well. It's all relative. 🤷
 
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