Questions about Dulo Knives

[Holzhead]

Hey everyone,
this is my first post as I'm generally not really a forum guy, if you know what I mean.

Anyway, I want to buy me a Dulo knife and I'm very curious about a couple of things. I hope some of you have already bought a Dulo knife before and so you might be able to give me a very crude idea about some of these things.
1. I want to get a K390 bushcrafting style knife, such as a Puukko, as my new workhorse. What kind of pricing can I expect? I want no luxury on it, just a plain knife with the simplest handle and sheath available.
2. How long can I expect the process to take from payment to shipment?
3. Will Dulo himself be able to counsel me about my choice of knife or is he too busy for that sort of stuff?
(4.) If the answer to question 3. is yes, then obviously I will ask Dulo personally about this. Which material should the handle be made of? I don't know about the range of materials that Dulo uses for his knives and I generally have no idea which materials would be well suited for a long life of heavy use, before they need to be replaced.

Thank you guys very much for reading and answering my stupid questions. Much love for all of you.

 

[vanadium]

These sound like perfect questions for Dulo. Asking them directly will also be a perfect first test of what you can expect in your future interactions with the company, after you've made your purchase, which is a really useful thing to find out. Any reason you haven't asked them?

 

[unwisefool]

I'm thinking the best place to get an answer for numbers 2 & 3 are from this Dulo chap directly

 

[Holzhead]

These sound like perfect questions for Dulo. Asking them directly will also be a perfect first test of what you can expect in your future interactions with the company, after you've made your purchase, which is a really useful thing to find out. Any reason you haven't asked them?

I think you're right. The reason why I haven't asked directly yet is because I don't have any experience of interacting with such a custom craftsman yet and his website is not informative at all. I had hoped someone with some experience with him would be on here to help me with it, but I'm probably best off talking to him directly anyway

 

[vanadium]

I don't have any experience of interacting with such a custom craftsman yet

There's some good advice here: http://knifeologycustomknives.com/buyingsellingcus.html

Basically, ask questions in advance, get very clear on the maker/seller's policies, know exactly what you're buying, communicate problems in a timely manner, and keep your own word.

And the biggest one for me: Trust your gut. If you feel like you're talking to someone who isn't hearing your questions, isn't answering you, doesn't understand you, isn't being clear and consistent, etc., don't brush it off. There are a lot of great knife makers. Never any reason to work with one who doesn't suit you.

 

[tim37a]

Who the hell is Dulo?

 

[Holzhead]

There's some good advice here: http://knifeologycustomknives.com/buyingsellingcus.html

Thanks a lot actually, very helpful information! I will keep you posted about my progress as soon as I make any. Probably won't spend any money this month but next month I will contact the seller and work out some terms.

Who the hell is Dulo?

A custom knife smith from Bulgaria, known for using professional methods like cryo-heat treatment and exotic high quality steels such as K390, M390, CPM M4 etc. I will review him once I buy one of his knives, if you're interested.

 

[SIG96]

Who the hell is Dulo?

He is a Bulgarian custom knife maker I believe. From my experience, he specializes in supersteels as well as being very talented at handling K390 which has divine edge retention, literally. Also, there are more respectful ways of asking that question, mate

 

[hugofeynman]

Svetlozar, the guy (or one of the guys) that runs Dulo Knives, is one of the nicest and humble guys you’ll ever met. He speaks English very well. I have 6 knives made by him, although I didn’t have tested them properly yet. Having said that, communication is not hes strong, he delivers, but don’t expect super long conversations.

 

[Holzhead]

Svetlozar, the guy (or one of the guys) that runs Dulo Knives, is one of the nicest and humble guys you’ll ever met. He speaks English very well. I have 6 knives made by him, although I didn’t have tested them properly yet. Having said that, communication is not hes strong, he delivers, but don’t expect super long conversations.

That's absolutely amazing to hear. Can you give me a broad idea of what kind of pricing I can expect from him? I don't want to waste his time if it's way too expensive for me anyway.

 

[hugofeynman]

That's absolutely amazing to hear. Can you give me a broad idea of what kind of pricing I can expect from him? I don't want to waste his time if it's way too expensive for me anyway.

Very reasonable prices. Ask him about a particular model that you liked. It depends on the project and the steel used. In my Ultrafort monster knife (go check his YouTube channel), the steel costed more than the knife (I supplied the steel).
He has access to a very good list of steels. His A8mod is from Bestar, so second to none, he bought an entire sheet.

 

[Holzhead]

Very reasonable prices. Ask him about a particular model that you liked. It depends on the project and the steel used. In my Ultrafort monster knife (go check his YouTube channel), the steel costed more than the knife (I supplied the steel).
He has access to a very good list of steels. His A8mod is from Bestar, so second to none, he bought an entire sheet.

I really like what I'm hearing. I will definitely go and try buying a knife from him. I will report my experiences on this forum!
Thanks for your help everyone

 

[Skidoosh]

I contacted them about a year ago to inquire about a knife, feedback was quick and precise. I didn't purchase but would not have a hesitation doing so.

 

[Lodd]

If you do get in touch with him, can you please ask him to take a look at his own website. I think he got hacked. I get greeted by a full screen phishing attempt upon visiting his website. (apparently I've been selected to win an Iphone X after completing some kind of survey).

That alone is enough for me not to make a transaction with him (not giving my information to a website that might be hacked). Running a website might not be his expertise, so he might not be aware of the issue.

Edit: can't reproduce the issue though. Oh well, better safe than sorry. Knives look nice.

 

[tim37a]

To Sig96 - Sorry, didn't mean to offend you, mate. I'm a knife maker in the US and lots of us use M390, S35VN, Elmax, K390 and M4. We don't consider them exotic. We almost always cryo Stainless Steel as part of the heat treat. Just FYI.

 

[tim37a]

To Holzhead - I would appreciate reading your review. I'm always interested in reading about other knife makers and seeing their knives.

 

[SIG96]

To Sig96 - Sorry, didn't mean to offend you, mate. I'm a knife maker in the US and lots of us use M390, S35VN, Elmax, K390 and M4. We don't consider them exotic. We almost always cryo Stainless Steel as part of the heat treat. Just FYI.

I wasn't offended, I just thought it a bit crude and rather hilarious that you just came out of the woodwork asking who this knifemaker was

 

[Holzhead]

If you do get in touch with him, can you please ask him to take a look at his own website. I think he got hacked. I get greeted by a full screen phishing attempt upon visiting his website. (apparently I've been selected to win an Iphone X after completing some kind of survey).

Will do! It happened to me as well actually. I didn't think about it but now that you say it, I will ask him about it.

To Sig96 - Sorry, didn't mean to offend you, mate. I'm a knife maker in the US and lots of us use M390, S35VN, Elmax, K390 and M4. We don't consider them exotic. We almost always cryo Stainless Steel as part of the heat treat. Just FYI.

I just consider these steels exotic as very few companies use them and when they do, they're really expensive. Seeing as I can buy a let's say 1095 knives in more than decent quality for under 20 Euros and compared to that, I can't find decent Knives from CPM M4 under 300 Euros and I almost can not find any large knife maker who uses K390 on a fixed blade. So yeah, they're exotic steels seeing as they aren't very available and they're very expensive, which in my opinion defines the word exotic.

To Holzhead - I would appreciate reading your review. I'm always interested in reading about other knife makers and seeing their knives.

I'd be more than happy to write one.

 

[jaspat3]

You can get a lot of informations by looking at "Dulo knives" on Youtube: steels, handles...
I got a Vanadis 4e DBK knife from him last June. I had to pay (paypal) after the knife was ready to be sent. I choosed
the steel, the blade length, the handle length and material (stabilized walnut in my case). The knife is fine, very high quality
and sturdy. V4e steel is very tough and not easy, but not extremely difficult to sharpen. Waiting time was about 3 months.
I am now in the process to wait for a puukko in K390 (wood handle). Svetlozar will respond to your questions
within a few days (info@duloknives.com).

 

[Paul L.]

That's absolutely amazing to hear. Can you give me a broad idea of what kind of pricing I can expect from him? I don't want to waste his time if it's way too expensive for me anyway.

Hey bro. You ever figure out how much some of the Dulo knives go for? I know you asked a bunch of times but never got a number, even a ballpark. Not sure why that is . But anyways I want to know what I'm getting into before contacting which I'm sure that's why you asked as well. Also, did you get one??? Tell me about it if.you did. Thanks!