Massdrop - Laconico Keen Spear-Point Folding Knife - Anyone seen this?

PirateSeulb said:
It looks like all the MD knives not from a major manufacturer are contracted with WE Knives the Terzuola, the FF, and this Laconico.
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No, Millit (from Idaho USA) is making the Perpetua for Massdrop and the Prism is coming from Reate.

For some reason Massdrop attracts a disproportionate degree of vitriol from blade enthusiasts. Whether the detractors focus on Point of Origin (a stupid POV in this time), or they pour out hatred over clip position or shipping costs, the muted rage seems less than rational.

The simple fact of the matter is Massdrop has introduced more varied, compelling and cost effective designs than any other manufacturer over the last 12+ months. That serves notice to the "knife establishment" that there's a new way to do business. The knife market is changing rapidly.

Massdrop is a little sideways with Blade Forums over their status in the knife world. The leadership here has rightly ruled that their primary role is as a dealer and they need the appropriate level of membership. I've hoped for some time that Massdrop would join as a vendor so we could freely discuss their knives. That doesn't appear to be happening. As a result, almost any discussion of Massdrop knives can lead to deal spotting for a non-supporting vendor. Deal spotting is a violation of the rules. A sticky situation ensues.

The sad outcome is that we can't freely discuss some of the legitimately best knives of the year; designs that are changing the way knives are conceived, manufactured and brought to market. The largest exchange of knife info in the world is essentially missing out on coverage of the latest wave in knife production.

I hope we can get this resolved soon because ultimately the losers are Blade Forums in particular and knife enthusiasts in general. Massdrop keeps rolling out hit after hit and they go mostly undiscussed here. We're facing the reality that a potential Blade 2018 Knife of the Year winner can't be discussed here due to the administrative status of the maker/designer/seller.

That really kinda sucks.
 
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Isn’t the reality that the deal spotting only applies to links not discussion of Massdrop knives? Maybe I’m misunderstanding the rules. I see plenty of open discussion on this here and other than removal of some links, no editing or moderation.
 
MSchott said:
Isn’t the reality that the deal spotting only applies to links not discussion of Massdrop knives? Maybe I’m misunderstanding the rules. I see plenty of open discussion on this here and other than removal of some links, no editing or moderation.
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I used to think that was the case but the stance in this thread, coming all the way from Spark himself, seems very clear.
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/massdrop.1495562/
 
Hackenslash said:
I used to think that was the case but the stance in this thread, coming all the way from Spark himself, seems very clear.
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/massdrop.1495562/
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Maybe I’m confused. Discussion of Massdrop knives isn’t being discouraged but linking to sales sites rightly are. I don’t see this as limiting the discussion. That said, MD has commented here and has the opportunity to become a paid supporter. I’m not sure why they haven’t done so.
 
As far as I understand deal spotting it is linking to a sale or product page from a dealer that is not affiliated with bladeforums.

Or it could just be saying “hey you can get knife X from site Y for $300 right now!”
 
Hackenslash Hackenslash I would love to see MD as a vendor on here as I do have interest in some of the knives I was pointing out that I was seeing everything coming from WE Knives and people can take that as they like.
 
I'm still kicking myself for waiting too long on the Kizer Gemini Lefty. So I was pretty psyched to see that another Laconico production model is available as a lefty, and was about to pull the trigger on this. Then I noticed that they just tapped holes on the show side to move the clip.
Sorry, that is not a lefty knife. It's a right handed framelock with a left side carry option. I realize it's semantics, but considering how very few lefty production framelocks are produced I hope you can understand my frustration.
A left handed knife is one that has the lockbar on the proper side for left handed use. I have used righty framelocks and despise them. (IMO) they look stupid and are very clunky to operate with the left hand.

Too bad, because I really like the design of this one.
 
NorthernSouthpaw said:
I'm still kicking myself for waiting too long on the Kizer Gemini Lefty. So I was pretty psyched to see that another Laconico production model is available as a lefty, and was about to pull the trigger on this. Then I noticed that they just tapped holes on the show side to move the clip.
Sorry, that is not a lefty knife. It's a right handed framelock with a left side carry option. I realize it's semantics, but considering how very few lefty production framelocks are produced I hope you can understand my frustration.
A left handed knife is one that has the lockbar on the proper side for left handed use. I have used righty framelocks and despise them. (IMO) they look stupid and are very clunky to operate with the left hand.

Too bad, because I really like the design of this one.
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Honestly I find a righty framelock 99% as easy to use with my left hand as a true lefty framelock.

Just like this.
Y8CDrA1.jpg
 
unwisefool said:
But they are all different knives. It's not like we don't have people start multiple threads about different (or sometimes the same) models of spyderco, benchmade, ZT/Kershaw etc. So not really seeing what the problem is?
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Because md is not making any of these. All they are getting out of this is free advertising. They had the option of joining as a vendor and have chosen not to as of yet.
 
I guess, but I don't see how it's different from any other company that is outsourcing production. People want to talk about new knives and specific models, not have them bunched up in one thread that would be harder to follow.
 
Yo Mama said:
Because md is not making any of these. All they are getting out of this is free advertising. They had the option of joining as a vendor and have chosen not to as of yet.
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While I’d like to see them become a sponsor, they are a frequent topic because many here including myself voluntarily subscribe to their email blasts and they often are promoting products of interest to us.
 
The unique problem with Massdrop is with their in-house collaborations. If MD offers a deal on a Delica, no big deal. The Delica will be available elsewhere, sometimes for a better price. The MD designed knives are different. There's no other place to get them than from Massdrop.

When we discuss a MD design, even without links to their website, it's almost impossible to not approach the "value" element of these knives. Typically, the value is a significant factor when considering a MD design. Once we contrast the value of a MD design to competitive options, we've portrayed the MD knife as a "deal".

This is the slippery slope. If we can avoid any discussion relative to the value of a MD designed knife, we should be fine to discuss at will. I don't think that's really possible. By calling the MD knife a deal, we've deal spotted for a unique item at a non-supporting vendor. It's not like someone can go buy the MD Gent from BladeHQ, it's exclusive to Massdrop.

This is the interpretation used by the management here in the discussion thread I quoted earlier; Massdrop is a vendor and as a result needs the related level of membership.

Problem is, Massdrop doesn't quite fit the mold as a simple knife vendor. They're involved in more of the design and manufacturing than any vendor I can think of. From all appearances they seem to be enjoying financial and critical success as a hybrid knife designer/manufacturer/vendor. Success will bring other people trying to copy the Massdrop model. Hey, if it works for MD, it'll work for "brandX", right?

The simple solution would be for Massdrop to pony up the relatively minor $ to have a vendor membership. I think that may only be a temporary fix. As the lines get blurred between designer/manufacturer/vendor, the onus may be on Blade Forums to accept a new breed of player in the world of production knives.
 
MSchott said:
While I’d like to see them become a sponsor, they are a frequent topic because many here including myself voluntarily subscribe to their email blasts and they often are promoting products of interest to us.
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I'm on a lot of email lists, I don't make threads on them here.
 
Hackenslash said:
The simple solution would be for Massdrop to pony up the relatively minor $ to have a vendor membership. I think that may only be a temporary fix. As the lines get blurred between designer/manufacturer/vendor, the onus may be on Blade Forums to accept a new breed of player in the world of production knives.
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Exactly, especially with all the business the forums have brought them it would be the best thing to do.
 
I'm a fan of massdrop. I have a Perpetua coming and have bought into the super gold spydercos.
I passed on this one just because the styling didn't quite do it for me (although it kind of looks like a titanium flipper bugout).
Now that people brought up how thin the grind is I might take a closer look.
 
Hackenslash Hackenslash I view MD as a vendor who is also serving as middleman for designers and manufacturers working to get mass produced versions of a designers work done and giving themselves the exclusive rights to this collaboration.
 
MSchott said:
How conscious? Jeans, athletic shoes, t-shirts, appliances, do you shop at Ikea, check the parts list for your vehicle? Echoing what was said in post 28.
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Very.
Levis. NAOT boots. Zero Foxtrot tees.
25 yer old Toyota
Echo...
 
tgtodd said:
Very.
Levis. NAOT boots. Zero Foxtrot tees.
25 yer old Toyota
Echo...
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You better dump those Levis. Only one model is still made in the USA and I kinda doubt you buy the $178 White Oak, NC 501 jeans. You might like some reading while you adjust to the new global marketplace...
https://www.pri.org/stories/2012-09-10/true-cost-made-usa-levi-s-178
Your pants are made in China...probably your T-shirts too. So long as they're printed domestically, they can still claim "Made in USA". I've been all over the Zero Foxtrot site and they're fairly careful to avoid the claim of shirt origin. I wouldn't be surprised if the parts for your 25 year old Toyota came from China too. Fairly certain Aichi is not longer tooled for your automobile.

My point is, you can be a conscientious objector and still not know what you're buying. You can keep whatever attitude that you want, that's your right, but before you claim how you're supporting it, you best make darn sure you know what you're buying.
 
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I was actually absolutely going to buy the Laconico until I just saw that the Crux came back with immediate shipping. I got a bronzed version. Sadly I couldn't get the Crux in purple ano, but the 6 month wait was too much for me.
 
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