Review Before you order @ Blade HQ

[mwramos76]

LOVE BHQ!!

 

[KELAMA]

The sample here is definitely biased - most customers for retail stores make their purchase and never look back to leave any kind of feedback at all. People who are unhappy with BladeHQ are much more likely to seek out a way to express their disdain than satisfied customers are.

^ Excellently stated, LL!

Thank you BladeHQ . It’s refreshing that a company realizes the problems within itself and chooses to correct the issues rather than the usual name calling and finger pointing.

^ +1

This thread has been very enlightening and I appreciate all of the feedback that has been provided.

This community is the most important thing to us and I want to tell you what our plans are to make significant changes that will allow us to serve you better. The chaos of the issues I've mentioned have brought some fundamental issues in our systems and processes to the surface; so we're going to fix them.

Customer Service deals with almost all instances of customers reaching out to us and to an extent, this includes Blade Forums. This would include keeping updated on the Forums and notifying management of posts of interest.


If anyone has any questions about what kind of action we are taking to ensure that we meet our customers expectations feel free to message us directly.

Seth L.
Customer Service Manager
Blade HQ

^ I have no doubt that you guys are going to be just fine & get BladeHQ back on the right track, Seth.

FWIW (& I know I don't need to tell you something that you already know Seth): There will always be negative people whom are impossible to please; the I want it now or I'm going to throw a tantrum mentality type, the one's who thrive on creating drama & always having to be in the center of controversy with their keyboards...

And then you have the majority of the member's here (the optimists- normal people who look at their glass as being half full), who have the ability to be patient, rational & realize that in the big scope of life, this knife hobby (and these so called "mole hill" issues), don't even make a blip, on their radar screen.

BladeHQ is an icon in the knife World- I wish you the best of luck moving forward!

 

[kreole]

It's definitely good BHQ acknowledges the problems and intends to fix them....and I guess all the talk of this being blown out of proportion and not a representative sample was wrong, given the acknowledgements of "fundamental issues" by the company.

What is left is actually fixing them. Given how long this has gone on, I personally won't buy from the company until the bad reviews stop. If they do, I'd happily start again because BHQ was a good company in the past and does contribute to the community with videos.

 

[Quiet]

FWIW (& I know I don't need to tell you something that you already know Seth): There will always be negative people whom are impossible to please; the I want it now or I'm going to throw a tantrum mentality type, the one's who thrive on creating drama & always having to be in the center of controversy with their keyboards...

The level of irony here is matched only by the lack of self-awareness on display. Wow.

 

[Lance Leon]

It's definitely good BHQ acknowledges the problems and intends to fix them....and I guess all the talk of this being blown out of proportion and not a representative sample was wrong, given the acknowledgements of "fundamental issues" by the company.

What is left is actually fixing them. Given how long this has gone on, I personally won't buy from the company until the bad reviews stop. If they do, I'd happily start again because BHQ was a good company in the past and does contribute to the community with videos.

My statement was more about the extent to which BladeHQ has a problem, not that they didn't have one. I highly doubt 16 out of every 100 orders weren't fulfilled correctly. More a minor comment on statistics and how people exaggerate things than defending BHQ.

Simply put, I don't think they're that far gone. That doesn't excuse their failings discussed by others in this thread. They should make up for the mistakes and amend their policies, as they've since said they will.

 

[brett1081]

My experience with BladeHQ. I am a new poster that has lurked on these forums but I have made three purchases through their site. No CS issues and no billing problems. I ordered a ESEE Junglas w/sheath and 2 CIVIVI Elementums. One D2 with G-10 Black scales and the second a pricier exclusive with CPM-S35VN blade and stonewash scales, which looked super neat(And cuts great btw).

Pros: Price- they are pretty much going to sell knives for the going rate of other online stores, and will have enough sales that you can get good deals. The Junglas was a sale item.
Specialized Exclusives- The S35VN blade on the Elementum is an exclusive. Its neat to have that option and a more aesthetic scale to separate your knife from everyone else's.
Cons: Shipping- As has been said they are slow. My orders were placed anywhere from Monday to Wednesday in a calendar week. Every single knife shipped the Friday after the order. Paying for higher tier shipping did not seem to do much for me. And the weekend seemed to be free extra days added to shipping estimate. Both my 3-5 day shipping estimates took 7 days and arrived the next Friday. My 2-4 day priority shipment took 6 days and arrived on a Thursday.

Have no comments about their CS. Based on what I've read this seems to be their shipping MO, so plan orders accordingly, especially since we are close to the holidays.

 

[elde66]

My experience with BladeHQ. I am a new poster that has lurked on these forums but I have made three purchases through their site. No CS issues and no billing problems. I ordered a ESEE Junglas w/sheath and 2 CIVIVI Elementums. One D2 with G-10 Black scales and the second a pricier exclusive with CPM-S35VN blade and stonewash scales, which looked super neat(And cuts great btw).

Pros: Price- they are pretty much going to sell knives for the going rate of other online stores, and will have enough sales that you can get good deals. The Junglas was a sale item.
Specialized Exclusives- The S35VN blade on the Elementum is an exclusive. Its neat to have that option and a more aesthetic scale to separate your knife from everyone else's.
Cons: Shipping- As has been said they are slow. My orders were placed anywhere from Monday to Wednesday in a calendar week. Every single knife shipped the Friday after the order. Paying for higher tier shipping did not seem to do much for me. And the weekend seemed to be free extra days added to shipping estimate. Both my 3-5 day shipping estimates took 7 days and arrived the next Friday. My 2-4 day priority shipment took 6 days and arrived on a Thursday.

Have no comments about their CS. Based on what I've read this seems to be their shipping MO, so plan orders accordingly, especially since we are close to the holidays.

Yep.

I get that this is the Holiday Season but the order I placed with BHQ last Saturday (12-5) shipped on Wednesday (12-9) from VA. and is scheduled to show up on Monday (12-14). Meanwhile, the DLT order I placed on the same day is scheduled to be delivered today....Thursday. Unfortunately DLT didn’t have both of the items in stock. (Blade HQ shipping department is not open on Saturdays.)

 

[BladeHQ]

We appreciate those who share feedback with the rest of the community as it ultimately works to improve the industry as a whole. With the Black Friday shopping holiday and the following season we're all in we have experienced delays when it comes to fulfilling our customer's orders. I am sorry to hear several of you have experienced the bad end of these delays and I hope the inconveniences caused weren't too great. For those of you who had shared these kinds of experiences and those who may be observing these posts with a similar issue, I would highly recommend contacting our Customer Service team at 888-252-3347 Monday - Friday 7:00 AM - 5:00 PM or shooting them an email at questions@bladehq.com. While they may not be able to fix the shipping issue directly they are resourceful and will do what they can to make it up to you.

- BHQ

 

[killgar]

I placed 2 orders with BladeHQ in the past 2 months, and both orders went perfectly. I even received the orders earlier than predicted.

I've placed several orders with BladeHQ over the years and have always been happy with their service.

 

[Ruger 44 Redhawk]

I love to share happy fun stories. Stories of great service, surprised and delighted experiences, etc.

This is not one of those stories.

I have gotten all of my knives from my local knife shop. I heard from all of you knife junkies that Blade HQ was worth a look. So I ordered.

Got the knife quickly. Excited for my Micarta scale, chisel ground folder that was on sale! Took it out to try it on a cardboard box and it closed on me. Realized quickly that the knife was defective. Wouldn’t properly lockup. Slips closed with very little pressure. Scary. Dangerous.

I reach out to BHQ, fighting their broken web form, to send a message, no response. Days go by. Nothing. I found an info email so I sent an email that way. Days go by. No response.

At this point I reach out directly to CRKT. They were horrified at my experience and were helpful. They asked that I send the knife back to them directly as it was a safety concern. They implied that this knife should not have been sold but there is nothing they can do to stop dealers selling them if they still have them.

Turns out this knife was discontinued, never worked right and all over the internet this locking issue has been well documented for over SEVEN years. Now I’m upset.

I finally get a response from BHQ. All it says, “send the knife back, we’ll refund you.” No mention of my concern. Nothing about my potentially catastrophic failure. I reply back explaining that CRKT wanted the knife back and that I’m not concerned about a refund, I’m upset that my concern has been ignored and that I’d be happier with a replacement knife (I even offered to take a knife of lower MSRP!). Again I wait days for a response back.

They respond again. This time offering a refund “we normally require you send the knife back, but we’ll make an exception this time, don’t stress it.” Don’t stress it??? Now they’re just being rude. And still zero acknowledgement of my MAIN concern. The safety issue that They’ve known about since 2012 that would have been easily avoided had someone at BHQ simply opened the knife to make sure it locked up. At this point I’m disgusted. I gave them every chance to make it right. They are actively avoided taking responsibility for their error so now I’m sharing my story. This wasn’t just a shipping error. What if my 10 year old (fledgling knife collector) had been the one using it? All the knife safety teaching in the world wouldn’t have prevented him from potentially cutting his fingers off due to the out right neglect and lack of care that Blade HQ has shown they have for their customers.

I am still waiting To hear back.

End, rant.

Had a similar problem with Blade HQ last year and this year. Last year I ordered a Ontario Strike Fighter auto and put in the comments to please check blade for centering and to see if push button was working. So what did they do, they sent me a horribly off centered Strike Fighter that was actually touching the inside of the handle when closed and the push button was so gritty. So I sent it back and asked them to please check these criteria before sending out. So they sent me another horribly off centered blade. So again I had to send it back for them to replace. Finally the third one they sent was somewhat centered and push button was fine. So I said screw it, I'll keep it. Fast forward to this year where I ordered an Ontario RD6 fixed blade and I again asked that they check the blade to make sure it is completely straight and looks good. I kid you not, they sent me a blade that was so horribly ground that it appeared to be bent to the left. So again, I sent it back and asked them to please check for the blade to be straight. So this time they asked if I wanted a full refund or a gift card. So I said I just want it replaced with a straight RD6 blade. So they gave me the gift card to use to get a replacement which I used. I shit you not, they sent me a horribly ground blade that appeared to be bent to the left again! Arrrggghhh! So I contacted them and said I'm done, I just want a refund and I'm done using them. They then told me that I couldn't get a refund because I used a gift card! So I started to lose my cool at this point and said look, it was your idea to use a gift card to replace the blade. I had to get on the phone with a supervisor and they finally refunded me. I now go to Knife Center for knives and I described this whole ordeal to them stating you all will have a loyal customer if your communication is better then Blade HQ. Knife Center responded immediately and when I recently got an Ontario RD9 DG, they pulled it from the warehouse, notified me that it had been inspected and even called me to tell me this. Just my experience. I am in sales and my first priority is to take care of my customers and make it happen whatever it is they are wanting.

 

[Thomas Linton]

Ugggg!

 

[mwhich50]

I have had good luck with Blade HQ over 7 years or so.
I always try to watch a 3-4 Youtube reviews (trusted reviewers) to see what the general consensus is on a particular knife.
I would call if I didn't get satisfaction in a week.
It sounds like they did what they should have, besides the slow communication.

 

[PirateSeulb]

Had a similar problem with Blade HQ last year and this year. Last year I ordered a Ontario Strike Fighter auto and put in the comments to please check blade for centering and to see if push button was working. So what did they do, they sent me a horribly off centered Strike Fighter that was actually touching the inside of the handle when closed and the push button was so gritty. So I sent it back and asked them to please check these criteria before sending out. So they sent me another horribly off centered blade. So again I had to send it back for them to replace. Finally the third one they sent was somewhat centered and push button was fine. So I said screw it, I'll keep it. Fast forward to this year where I ordered an Ontario RD6 fixed blade and I again asked that they check the blade to make sure it is completely straight and looks good. I kid you not, they sent me a blade that was so horribly ground that it appeared to be bent to the left. So again, I sent it back and asked them to please check for the blade to be straight. So this time they asked if I wanted a full refund or a gift card. So I said I just want it replaced with a straight RD6 blade. So they gave me the gift card to use to get a replacement which I used. I shit you not, they sent me a horribly ground blade that appeared to be bent to the left again! Arrrggghhh! So I contacted them and said I'm done, I just want a refund and I'm done using them. They then told me that I couldn't get a refund because I used a gift card! So I started to lose my cool at this point and said look, it was your idea to use a gift card to replace the blade. I had to get on the phone with a supervisor and they finally refunded me. I now go to Knife Center for knives and I described this whole ordeal to them stating you all will have a loyal customer if your communication is better then Blade HQ. Knife Center responded immediately and when I recently got an Ontario RD9 DG, they pulled it from the warehouse, notified me that it had been inspected and even called me to tell me this. Just my experience. I am in sales and my first priority is to take care of my customers and make it happen whatever it is they are wanting.

May not be the take away you intended or I should get but to me if I need to specifically say I want product X by maker B but make sure it isn't a lemon then I think I need to not buy either product X or products from maker B. I personally find these requests on warehouses ridiculous.

 

[Danke42]

That guy deserves a perfect $70 switchblade.

So seriously stop what you're doing. Stop helping other customers, packing orders, stop what you're doing. Go into the warehouse and open all the boxes. Handle all the knives and test them till you find the best one. Make sure you buff and polish all your greasy fingerprints off the knife. Send it to him first ahead of the of the other work or putting away all the stuff you took out to find the best one.

Do that now or you get a bad YELP! review.

Oh yeah; I almost forgot. He has a couple expired coupons he needs to combine on this one.

 

[Lance Leon]

I think they've talked about this before; if it's an expensive purchase (what exactly that means is up for debate), then sure, they ought to check it over thoroughly if you request it. But if it's a Kershaw or something, what can you really expect?

 

[PirateSeulb]

I think they've talked about this before; if it's an expensive purchase (what exactly that means is up for debate), then sure, they ought to check it over thoroughly if you request it. But if it's a Kershaw or something, what can you really expect?

I understand to a point that yes you spend big money you want it to be worth the money but I have that nagging notion in the back of my mind saying if I have to ask then there is another problem that just simply shouldn't exist.

 

[Danke42]

I understand to a point that yes you spend big money you want it to be worth the money but I have that nagging notion in the back of my mind saying if I have to ask then there is another problem that just simply shouldn't exist.

Quality control is a job for the maker not the retailer.

If you were some kind of high roller dropping bank at Arizona Custom Knives every week you could probably ask for the concierge to inspect your planned purchases.

Otherwise if you're just that guy and ask for this here's what I suspect would happen.

Someone at the order desk or shipping would go in the warehouse, open the box and see that there's a knife there and that it opens and closes and that's it, that one gets shipped. They won't put on a loupe and search for minute flaws in the scales of a $70 switchblade, or get out a micrometer to check centering, or bring out the binoculars
to see if anything looks bad at a distance.

And for anyone with voices in their head saying "don't buy this knife you might get a bad one" listen to the voices and don't buy it. Buy something else.

 

[Aendil]

Just one small point. - Blade HQ offers several shipping options, the "free" of which is Fedex smartpost, which on the BHQ site says 5-7 business days. Per fedex it can take up to 14 business days and they will move your order coast to coast before you get it.

 

[Grasshopperglock]

A video popped in my feed dealing with a gentleman having problems with a pre-order. It seems his pre-order knife was released as regular orders. Before he received his.


That was video #2 about HQ problems I've ran across. The first dealt with shipping time


I don't order from them, so I have no dog in the fight. But still.

 

[GPyro]

I gotta start looking at the dates of the OP.

To read pages of a 4 year old post makes me as dumb as the added responses.