Overpriced knives in terms of materials, quality & service

Its all up to the buyer. Per your list; I can't speak for every brand listed, but I would agree that strider and benchmade are definitely overpriced. I like strider, but you don't seem to get a great value for the price. I also would prefer tool steels (A2, D2, O1, 1095) for some of their larger knives but I believe they only stick with S30v. There are much better custom makers for better prices. When i first got into knives I believed benchmade was a quality brand. Now I would never buy one of those mass produced factory knives. I have since sold almost all of my folding knives, but I kept 2. Chris Reeve large and small sebenza 21. Hard to beat their quality for light to medium cutting, and i am a sucker for that titanium!
 
ALLHSS said:
I think Northwoods are overpriced. In my experience, and from what ove seen, less or equal quality to GEC with a massive price increase against comparable models. Maybe the exclusive handle materials and smaller runs (?) justifies it, but not for me.
Click to expand...

Not back in the Dave Shirley days...before the Northwoods name was sold off...those knives were a steal! Great knives at great prices.
 
Zero_Time said:
No knives are overpriced. If you think a knife is overpriced clearly you're a poor loser who is just a hater and you need to go work harder so you can stop being bitter. Every knife is worth whatever it's being sold for, by anyone, even if there are other sellers selling it for substantially less. Any other opinion is just sour grapes.

Zero
Click to expand...

Ha - sarcasm is lost on many :rolleyes:
 
We have been down this road a million times. Bottom line, if it is worth it to you, buy it. If not, don't. See how easy that was.:)
 
The older I get the more over priced knives I Have always used have become. Especially Randall and spyderco.
 
I'm not one to really use terms like "overpriced" often, but I'm not sure what other term might be a better fit when I come across a knife that just doesn't seem worth the asking price. Benchmade's Gold Class knives come to mind. So do some of Spyderco's recent offerings. $240+ is an awful lot to pay for G10 and VG10.

In order to be "worth it" for me, a knife has to be a meeting of design, materials, with a price I feel is commensurate with what I'm getting. I understand that will be different for everyone, that's just my answer.
 
Emerson, late Spyderco, Bark River, Microtech, Cris Reeve (all of them), Fallkniven (leather handle and "pro") are all overpriced. Wouldn't mention any custom maker. Not interested in bashing one-man-shops.

...and yes I can afford to buy any knife I want.
 
Value is what a buyer is willing to pay and a seller is willing to sell for. It is not determined by individuals who have an axe to grind. If one person believes that one brand of knife is overpriced, but the maker of these knives keeps selling them, then it is obvious that it is not overpriced for the marketplace. A buyer is only right in his own mind. A seller evaluates how strong the market is for his product and will raise prices, lower prices make better products or womething that will cause buyers to buy his products. The free marketplace determines whether a product is overpriced or is not overpriced.
 
I buy what appeals to me at whatever price. But sometimes a high price makes a knife unappealing.

Some models of Spyderco and some models of Benchmade are too expensive to be appealing to me. In regard to ZT, most models seem too expensive and unappealing to me compared to design and features. Except for those three brands, I seldom buy a knife that's considered expensive. I own one Sebenza. Had to have it. Got it. It's a study in perfection. But it doesn't work for me. Don't use it. It wasn't overpriced at the time I bought it but I now consider it to be very overpriced.
 
I think as seems common "overpriced" is all relative to individual consumer opinion. For example, I think Spyderco is overpriced, I've never held one I like the feel of, and definitely not the look of, therefore I think it's overpriced. Yet thousands of people will tell me I'm wrong and give their reasons. But in the end their reason is they like it and will spend whatever for it. That's just part of it. It is what makes us individual.
 
Any response of what is overpriced or not is strictly a person's opinion of what the item's value would be to them.

If you are talking about relative value then it is hard to argue against the low priced models such as Spyderco Tenacious and Ontario Rat. You can find fault with them but you can't find a 50% better knife without spending a lot more than 50%. So we can't go very far playing that game. But if a person wants to buy a knife that is better than one of these and is willing to pay more for it, then it may not be overpriced either.

We could however say that people will pay too much based on a knife's perceived value and/or status. There are lots of expensive brands that could apply here but I read from plenty of owners that they think the knives are well worth what they cost.

The surest way to define overpriced is to pick something that you buy and then can't sell for anywhere near what you paid for it.

As for me I have my own price range where I am comfortable, typically between $100 and $150, where I can find plenty of knives with good reputations and might be able to resell them without losing much money. I feel like what I am buying is not overpriced. I did buy a couple of cheaper brand knives once for a lot less than $100 and probably couldn't sell them for anywhere close to what I paid so in that regards those were probably overpriced.
 
RamZar said:
Mostly looking at production and mid tech knives.

Of course, these are somewhat subjective opinions. No malice intended.

For me Brous Blades, Medford, Rockstead, Strider, Emerson, Defiant7, MicroTech, Benchmade Gold Class, Pohl Force, Extrema Ratio, etc. It doesn't mean all their models are overpriced but mostly yes.

Some others possibly heading to the overpriced realm or already there: Andre de Villiers, Ferrum Forge, Olamic, Reate, etc.

I thought Shirogorov were overpriced until prices on them tumbled this year to something more realistic.

I don't think Chris Reeve and Hinderer are overpriced.
Click to expand...

I'd like to hear your overpriced explanation of their knives. Both owners are one man shops with their own company, outside of the Defiant Co, to run. I will also add that their independent companies are very successful and exceptionally busy making knives/designs for other companies. Nichols Damascus making blanks for knife makers and Les making knives for Wilson Combat and the like.
 
This may have already been stated but;

Value - A subjective term that will have a different meaning to each person. While one may value g10 and m390 another may hold no value in that. This can be said for all aspects to knives from the service, the pr skills of the dealer, etc.

Quality - Again subjective that will depend on needs, wants, education, experience, and opinion, imo.

A Value to Quality Ratio - Even more subjective depending on experience, needs, education, wants...

While the conversation is worth discussing for edcuational and opinon venting purposes I do not think a one or even a two dimensional conversation too the masses will produce an effective consensus on the topic.

Just my 2 cents though.
 
Most knives costing over $60 are not objectively worth the price. Cutting performance per dollar drops off the cliff around this price point. Since cutting stuff is the primary purpose of knives, this should be our first measure of value.
 
Diamonds are worth more than tap water for a reason that has nothing to do with practicality or intrinsic value.

Comparing a Rockstead to a Boker or to a glass of lemonade will follow the same logic.
 
I love me some knives for sure, but 350.00 for me is pretty much the limit ,when I Compare a nice glock vs a 500.00 knife ,the pistol wins every time. ....just me though
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top