Knife Collecting for Dummies

J

Jason Fry

Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Jun 5, 2008
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If I wanted to get into knife collecting, what resources would I start with? Any articles, books, classic works on the subject, etc?

Alternatively, are there any good BF posts that talk about collecting strategy, etc?

Or, if you're talking to a new collector, what would you want them to know?
- traps/pitfalls
- ways to be successful
- ways to shape your collection
- sources for buying and selling
 
My advice when talking to new collectors is to try and attend as many shows as you can, speak to as many makers and collectors as you can. Listen, learn and ask pertinent questions.

If possible try and find a few serious collectors near you and visit with them, see their knives, ask advice and learn from them. The quicker you learn to differentiate between the quality stuff and the huge amount of mediocre, the quicker you will go forward and build a quality collection.

I tell new collectors buy less knives for more money, than more knives for less money.
Some listen, most don't.

With the exception of a handful of guys most dealers are only interested in selling you something. Getting collecting advice from them usually revolves around getting the money out of your pocket into theirs.

When buying in the aftermarket know what you are looking for and what it should be selling for. Getting a price from the last Instagram auction is never a good way to value anything. Be prepared to walk away. There is very little, apart from hugely iconic pieces, that you won't see again and probably better.
 
Read up on Steels

Knifesteelnerds.com is a great place to start with quantifiable tests, etc.

Try to go to shows and handle custom makers knives. This is a huge part of understanding what you like and don't. What fits your hand and what does not.


Looking at custom makers in a vacume is not as helpful.

Be willing to ask for feedback on designs.

If you like a makers work, and want to commission a piece, have the good sense to also listen to his feedback.

Don't go to a custom maker and ask them to make something they don't want to make, style, materials, size, etc, etc.

Some makers are so proficient they can make anything you want, to your specs, our if the materials of your choice. Often, they will refuse, because they don't like your design choices, sizes, stock material, etc, etc...

Try to buy, with a thought that you may want to later sell the piece, and go a different direction in your collection. This helps you in the long run. I can't tell you how many times I have seen people trying to move customs...Made to their specs.....andbe unable to move the piece...even at a huge loss.

I own a few customs. Often, I change direction, or want another piece from a different maker.

So far, I have not really lost money invested.




Less knives for more money was suggested above....I tend to think this way, some what....but have a bit of advice for buying from "budget makers"

I have a list of makers, who's fit and finish/ materials, skill, etc is greatly under priced!!

Don't discount a maker because his knives are priced lower than similar styles from other makers.


There are makers who will have super hot sales. Higher prices...and sell instantly.

There are makers with better finishing skills, higher degree of fit and finish, better grind lines, sheaths....etc, etc, who sell real bargains!!

That is something that is hard to relay, until you have held knives from both makers...and scratch your head.

Also, new/ up and coming makers can represent super values.


Carefully consider whether to sell a knife from a very hot maker, as replacement only gets more expensive if you can even get the maker to make you another!!
 
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Steven65 said:
My advice when talking to new collectors is to try and attend as many shows as you can, speak to as many makers and collectors as you can. Listen, learn and ask pertinent questions.

If possible try and find a few serious collectors near you and visit with them, see their knives, ask advice and learn from them. The quicker you learn to differentiate between the quality stuff and the huge amount of mediocre, the quicker you will go forward and build a quality collection.

I tell new collectors buy less knives for more money, than more knives for less money.
Some listen, most don't.

With the exception of a handful of guys most dealers are only interested in selling you something. Getting collecting advice from them usually revolves around getting the money out of your pocket into theirs.

When buying in the aftermarket know what you are looking for and what it should be selling for. Getting a price from the last Instagram auction is never a good way to value anything. Be prepared to walk away. There is very little, apart from hugely iconic pieces, that you won't see again and probably better.
Click to expand...

This seems to me to be closest to what I would offer for advice, but with even greater caution when in contact with a custom knife dealer. There are only a couple I really trust (one in the Boston area, the other in Idaho). And there is one in particular who, rather than taking into consideration what the knife is worth, seems like instead it's a matter of hike the price up as high as it can go, and then start decreasing it until it sells. So be very careful when buying without help, at the outset.
 
Steven65 said:
My advice when talking to new collectors is to try and attend as many shows as you can, speak to as many makers and collectors as you can. Listen, learn and ask pertinent questions.

If possible try and find a few serious collectors near you and visit with them, see their knives, ask advice and learn from them. The quicker you learn to differentiate between the quality stuff and the huge amount of mediocre, the quicker you will go forward and build a quality collection.

I tell new collectors buy less knives for more money, than more knives for less money.
Some listen, most don't.

With the exception of a handful of guys most dealers are only interested in selling you something. Getting collecting advice from them usually revolves around getting the money out of your pocket into theirs.

When buying in the aftermarket know what you are looking for and what it should be selling for. Getting a price from the last Instagram auction is never a good way to value anything. Be prepared to walk away. There is very little, apart from hugely iconic pieces, that you won't see again and probably better.
Click to expand...


This is all solid. I would point to my above comment on "high value" custom makers, above, for a caveat!

There are custom deals to be had,from makers that can blow you away with a cost to value comparison to higher priced makers.

I'd also say to spend some time looking at Scagle, Loveless, and a few of the early pioneers of custom making.

I'm solidly in the "collect to carry and use camp.

I bought my first custom knife at 12 years old... 30+ years ago. I still don't have a lot.

I have shifted my interests from higher end production to customs, and making my own knives.

One thing I forgot to mention, don't spend money on a knife you can't afford to lose.
 
Know your limits and be prepared to pay for an education. If your price point is $300, stay in that range until you are comfortable moving up to a higher number. Gradually you will move up to better knives, but it is better to learn before you leap. The key thing is to always buy what you like.

n2s
 
Not everyone lives where shows are available, esp the past year and a half. In lieu of that it might be helpful for a new collector to go through some of the past knife annuals to get a broad overview and see a number of different makers, styles, materials, etc. No, not a replacement for actual hands on, but a lot of folks live where shows and/or one or two solid shops with a deep stock of customs to see in person just don't exist.

Be ready for your interests to change and go in totally unexpected directions ;-)

You're on your own dealing with your wife... maybe you'll find she likes knives as well, in which case your expenses just tripled.
 
i collected a bunch of knives, and antiques over the years. my 2 cents is to save up to buy a small number very high quality items with more desirability instead of a large number of average knives. i loved playing with all those knives but when i decided to sell them i did not realize how much work it was to take photos, make ebay ads, write the descriptions, get the mailing supplies, pack and drive to the post office to mail 100+ knives o_O
 
Lots of good info here.

Define: 'Collector'. One who accumulates knives as well as uses them, or one who accumulates knives with an eye on value and retention?

I say this because there is a HUGE loss in (resale) value the moment a perfectly usable and willing knife gets used.

New collectors need to know this 40% value drop as soon as there is a scratch on the pocket clip or re-sharpened edge or more. I'm not wrong.

There is NOTHING wrong with collecting and not using. It's prudent and allows you to resell at TOP value, make a new buyer happy, while subsidizing another maker. Win/win/WIN.

There is NOTHING wrong with using a Custom Knife either. Just be aware of the consequences shall you wish to move it.

Good thread!

Jim
 
The answer to not having to sell and ship out 100+ knives is simple... give your collection to the sons-in-law and grandsons... let THEM figure it out. But I know some folks enjoy the process of selling almost as much as the buying, so there's that (I'm not one of them).
 
IDhorace said:
The answer to not having to sell and ship out 100+ knives is simple... give your collection to the sons-in-law and grandsons... let THEM figure it out. But I know some folks enjoy the process of selling almost as much as the buying, so there's that (I'm not one of them).
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Oh, HELL NO!!!! Seriously? They wouldn’t know the difference between a $60 knife and a $6,000 knife….again, HELL NO!!! ;):D
 
Go slow. Your taste or what you like will change. What you love today may not do anything for you a year later. Pictures are great but nothing like seeing and handling the knife so go to shows even if it’s just to look and not buy.
 
In doing research on this question, a collector buddy pointed me to the 1966 Gun Digest that has a nice article by Ken Warner on "The Best Knives Made." It included these quotes that I liked.
There's some epic one-liners in that 1966 article.

"A man that makes good blades as a sideline can usually sell all he makes without worrying about expanding his market."

"Which is best? Don't ask me."

"Big commercial cutlers concentrate on giving good value in a knife, and that is an entirely different goal from the custom smith's idea of building the best knife he can make and then figuring out what to charge."

"Prices seem high, but knifemakers aren't getting rich." (This is my personal favorite.)

"Nobody but a tourist or a greenhorn needs anything over a 4" blade."

"In an emergency a good big knife is nearly an axe, while a good little knife remains a knife."
 
Dawkind said:
Oh, HELL NO!!!! Seriously? They wouldn’t know the difference between a $60 knife and a $6,000 knife….again, HELL NO!!! ;):D
Click to expand...

No, NOT seriously. Totally written in jest... we need an :eyeroll: emoji. It's a threat we use on the kids when they say stuff like "why do you need so many guns (or knives, or cameras, or books). "

"Just think, someday this will ALL BE Yours!" 😂

Actually, the will paperwork includes lists of "the good stuff" as well as trusted dealers and collectors who might be resources if they prefer to sell it off. Learned that one 40 years ago when an old gentleman in the fly fishing club passed away. He had a fantastic collection of old bamboo fly rods, reels, etc... which his kids garaged saled one Saturday, without notifying any of his friends or asking for help from the club. Still makes me sick thinking about it.
 
Some good old threads...

Collectors-What's your story?

Started using and “collecting” knives around the same time, at about 14 years old. Woodcarving, cooking, Scouting/hiking/camping, hunting….and a Summer spent working in a slaughterhouse bleeding calves, all required different knives for use. For woodcarving, it was whatever I...
bladeforums.com bladeforums.com

What was your first true custom?

And what happened to it? Mine was a Tommy Lee bootknife, with a fossil ivory grip. I bought it in the mid- to late eighties at the Paris knife show, the SICAC. Tommy since then has retired, and I see his work pop up every once in a while (in fact, I have seen my knife in 2 separate...
bladeforums.com bladeforums.com
 
Based on some recommendations, I ordered Les Robertson's book and found a copy of Darom's "Great Collections."
 
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