EDC4 was back in 2012, right?
I missed out on that model but pics of it were what brought me to S!K and I got in on the GSO-10 run at the end of that year.
Guy saw his business' popularity flourish, he increased production and put out a BUNCH of models - GSO-10, 4.1, 5.1, 5, 6, 7/7, 3.5, SK-4, Necker, Necker II - and revised some of the designs while also packing up and moving (with his few employees/family) from PA to ID. They had been hitting production delays and had intended to stop taking pre-orders, but demand kept up and they initiated a "Starter Campaign" (like Kick-starter but on their own) as well as pre-oreders, pre-sales, etc. (it gets pretty confusing there) and began production of re-designed versions of some models and a few new ones as well...
Well, S!K has some pretty high standards for what qualifies as a "factory first", and some of the blades, scales, etching, etc. weren't meeting those standards, so they began setting those parts aside and offering the blades as "seconds" (and marking them as such, first with a tang-divot and later with laser-etch). The thing is, "seconds" can be pulled from the line at various stages of production and it may be a while before they are finished up. Further, even a "second" is customizable with regard to scales and sheath. S!K had been in the practice of listing seconds as soon as the blade was known about and then just building the order in line with other orders. But they kept getting further and further back-logged and have now stopped taking orders altogether. They are still working hard and finishing and shipping out knives while also continuing production on pre-ordered models (some are at water-jet, other have been getting surface-ground, handle-scales and sheaths are being produced and brought in, others are in house). But S!K is still
really small in itself and it is taking them a LONG time to get through the orders they have. So for those waiting, their knives will come eventually, but even purchased "seconds" have been taking a long time to ship. For example, I ordered a Factory Second 4.1 in late February '17 and received it in late December, some 10 months later. That kind of delay is not acceptable to a lot of people, especially when initial stated delivery estimates were MUCH shorter (weeks, eventually 90 days, then dropped). However, S!K is still shipping out knives. Indeed, I am confident that those who don't tap out will receive each and every knife ordered... but it is taking a lot of patience for those waiting
Anyway, I hope that answers your questions. S!K
was a very exciting company with great potential, it is
now a company struggling to catch up (and sworn-off by some on BF), but it remains a company with great potential to be just as exciting again
I look forward to that future while continuing to enjoy the S!K models I currently have.
As to why the long wait, you can read up on some threads here as well as in their posts on instagram.
