Chinese "food chain"

Tom Michan said:
To be fair to the Chinese knife makers, they dont just make rubbish, althought its at a lower price the quality is still there. Those guys at Real steel even have a USA website- http://www.realsteelknivesusa.com/ WTF; that is cool!
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Senmenru makes real Steel knives. They are known for taking other knives design language for there own sales. The real Steel devision iirc has original designs. But some are just modified from Senmenru to look original
 
bobobama said:
Not here to bash Chinese knives, but just wondering at what point and with which brands do the Chinese companies start to match the other major brands in quality and value for the dollar? I hear the names like Steadmon and Reate, but do they really offer anything you can't get with the other name brands made elsewhere?
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Personally, I have been very surprised that it has taken this long for foreign manufacturer to "tool up". I have had such bad luck with all-American brands made in America that it is no longer a selling point for me. Being a distinctly blue collar guy that is a hard pill to swallow.

The most incredibly well made, well engineered well finished knife I own is my Spyderco Valloton. It was a gift from a client that "heard Spyderco was a good brand" and gave it to me at the end of a job. It has drawn a lot of admiration from my most picky knife friends.

In my pocket, I have a medium single blade A.G. Russel wharncliff folder that I have had for about 6-7 years. 12c27 steel, stop pin for the blade, snaps like a mousetrap and the fit is so tight that the back (all stainless liners and backspring) it still looks like one piece, not five if you count the bolsters.

Certainly all knives and knife makers regardless of location of manufacture are not the same, and all makers have good and bad products regardless of the country of origin or how it is badged for sale. But again, if specifically considering the Chinese, it seems that they are delivering something the knife people want or they wouldn't be flourishing the way they are. I can go to some of the dealer sites sanctioned by BF and have never heard of some of the knife brands there are so many new Chinese offerings! But they get good to great reviews, and charge a pretty good lick for them, so I have to think they are filling some need in the market that is currently unoccupied.

Robert
 
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Mo2 said:
Senmenru makes real Steel knives. They are known for taking other knives design language for there own sales. The real Steel devision iirc has original designs. But some are just modified from Senmenru to look original
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I think this knife is very individualistic, dont see any other knife makers doing Puukkos as cool as this.
 
TO be hoenst with you guys, I never liked those Chinese guys before, I hate Weknives. Why buy CN when you can buy U! S! A! Cold steel and Buck are my all time favorites! But the realsteel knives are actualy really good quality for money, you can get your sanremu low quality or your Weknives overpriced junk. BUT realsteel make it the best. A humble ex-ranger's opinion :)
 
None for me, thanks! I say “support your local knifemaker.” Spyderco’s Golden facility is just over 2 hours away from me and I branch out from there... usually to Idaho or Ohio.
 
archieblue said:
None for me, thanks! I say “support your local knifemaker.” Spyderco’s Golden facility is just over 2 hours away from me and I branch out from there... usually to Idaho or Ohio.
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Funny, I've been hearing workers of every industry say "Buy American" since the '70s. Look in their homes & garages and what do they have? Or rather what did they have when at least some of everything was made in America?
Autoworkers had clothes made in Guatamala, Ecuador, & Phillipines. Home electronics from Japan & now China. Same with people in other industries. We all buy Mexican & South American fresh produce in the winter.
Turns out what they really meant was "pay extra to support me, but you're on your own". I'm supposed to pay a premium on everything to buy American, but everybody else gets to save their wallet. To bad my job disappeared, just a sign of the times - what can you do, you know?
Loyalty is a two way street, thank you very much.

Capitalism - and we are capitalists when we excuse the rich for not pivoting the workforce or not reinvesting in America - says companies need to have products I want at prices I accept before I spend. That isn't always a US company for many buyers.
The Spyderco designs I like, ones I have bought and desire, turn out to mostly be made in Japan. This isn't on purpose, but how it ended up. That is a choice other Americans made, they made the knives wherever and I bought what I liked.
 
Exactly, to be hoesnt I have nothing against big companies like Spyderco etc, but lets be honest with ourselves, the majority of workmanship is done in China!!! The only company I know that actually is made in USA is benchmade in Oregon.
 
you know what's weird - I have a great fixed blade - a 'spartan blades' in 9cr18mov. I got it from china a few years back. According to their website however, they say they make stuff in the USA

https://spartanbladesusa.com/about/

so what's the deal? I'm guessing it's the usual thing where they make some stuff in the USA, but all their volume work is china? Or is this a complete knock off? The quality is really top notch, I got lucky with a $40 gamble.
 
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Everything with Chinese knives seems so uncertain. I can never find good reviews on knife sites, and the prices are going up. Except for the major American knife makers, and Boker, I don't look at, or purchase Chinese knives. I have so many value knives. Maybe it's just another rabbit hole I don't want to fall into.
 
Tom Michan said:
TO be hoenst with you guys, I never liked those Chinese guys before, I hate Weknives. Why buy CN when you can buy U! S! A! Cold steel and Buck are my all time favorites! But the realsteel knives are actualy really good quality for money, you can get your sanremu low quality or your Weknives overpriced junk. BUT realsteel make it the best. A humble ex-ranger's opinion :)
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I question whether you have actually handled a WE
 
Actually, Larry Thomas and Tom Michan...you guys should hook up!!! You both have Thomas in your name, you both joined on Wendesday, and you both want the same knife!!

Tom Michan said:
Has to be:

1. Realsteel G5 Metamorph
2. Realsteel BlackCat
3. Buck 110 auto

What can I say Realsteel are killing it at the moment!
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Larry Thomas said:
I like the realsteel G5 MEtamorph, that blue though.....
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And you both spell "though" wrong...which is a crazy coincidence!!!

Larry Thomas said:
I know what you mean, I have seen a lot of Chinese knife makers using D2 in their knives, esepcially Realsteel. I like the D2 over other steels for its edge retention thought.
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Tom Michan said:
To be fair to the Chinese knife makers, they dont just make rubbish, althought its at a lower price the quality is still there.
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I will say for my experience Kizer has been the best consistently in hand experience of the Chinese brands outside of Reate and have only handled Liong Mah knives which are made by Reate for my Reate experience. I don't particularly dislike Chinese knives on any principle but on experience. I have had too many have issues when in hand such as weak detents along with some brands just being generally unappealing visually.
 
Tom Michan said:
TO be hoenst with you guys, I never liked those Chinese guys before, I hate Weknives. Why buy CN when you can buy U! S! A! Cold steel and Buck are my all time favorites! But the realsteel knives are actualy really good quality for money, you can get your sanremu low quality or your Weknives overpriced junk. BUT realsteel make it the best. A humble ex-ranger's opinion :)
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Which WE knives have you handled to formulate your opinion? You find Realsteel to be higher quality than WE?

Are you aware that Realsteel is a subsidiary of SanRenMu?

**snip - snarky comment removed**
 
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