SOG 2015 releases - wtf happened to this company?

Why has SOG abandoned the forums? Does Chris still check in here? It is disheartening when a company get "big" and forgets the user base that got them there. One thing I really appreciate about Spyderco is that they are still as active as ever on their forum.
 
If I was Chris, I wouldn't come around here much either. There are a bunch of uneducated haters who use every opportunity when SOG is mentioned to bash them. But frankly, this new for 2015 doesn't help SOG avoid such targeting. The new line-up is not geared towards knife enthusiasts. No need to come here and take the abuse.

I will say that every time I have emailed Chris here with a question he has responded quickly.
 
craytab said:
If I was Chris, I wouldn't come around here much either. There are a bunch of uneducated haters who use every opportunity when SOG is mentioned to bash them. But frankly, this new for 2015 doesn't help SOG avoid such targeting. The new line-up is not geared towards knife enthusiasts. No need to come here and take the abuse.

I will say that every time I have emailed Chris here with a question he has responded quickly.
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I understand the sentiment but IMHO they brought this upon themselves.

What SOG seems to be unable to understand is that when you make a gimmicky, low-end product you attract an uneducated, low-end consumer with little loyalty to the company or the product line...

SOG and Spyderco is a great compare and contrast scenario. A few years ago they were in very similar positions. Spyderco had a solid product with a loyal following and charged a premium because their loyal users were willing to pay for performance. Spyderco embraced that market position and their audience by offering higher end folders and fixed blades at an increased cost. They were very upfront about the price and were able to justify it by offering a diverse array of high end steels and designs. They kept costs down by producing overseas but only at foreign manufacturers that were able to maintain quality. As a result, their loyal base has gotten larger, their offerings are praised, and they remained active in the "community".

SOG, on the other hand, went down market. They made cheaper offerings, didn't upgrade their steel choices, abandoned the "community" and put skull logos on everything ;) As a result, their loyal base ran, their offerings are mocked, and their new "consumer" is the kid in the mall with $20 in their pocket.
 
retzius said:
I understand the sentiment but IMHO they brought this upon themselves.

What SOG seems to be unable to understand is that when you make a gimmicky, low-end product you attract an uneducated, low-end consumer with little loyalty to the company or the product line...

SOG and Spyderco is a great compare and contrast scenario. A few years ago they were in very similar positions. Spyderco had a solid product with a loyal following and charged a premium because their loyal users were willing to pay for performance. Spyderco embraced that market position and their audience by offering higher end folders and fixed blades at an increased cost. They were very upfront about the price and were able to justify it by offering a diverse array of high end steels and designs. They kept costs down by producing overseas but only at foreign manufacturers that were able to maintain quality. As a result, their loyal base has gotten larger, their offerings are praised, and they remained active in the "community".

SOG, on the other hand, went down market. They made cheaper offerings, didn't upgrade their steel choices, abandoned the "community" and put skull logos on everything ;) As a result, their loyal base ran, their offerings are mocked, and their new "consumer" is the kid in the mall with $20 in their pocket.
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I agree to a certain degree though I think the time line of comparing Spyderco and SOG is a little off. I think SOG took the lower end plunge before Spyderco diversified so much (IE manufacturing in China, Japan, Taiwan, and the US all at once). Only time will tell if this mall ninja stuff will continue to work for SOG. They clearly think it will continue to be profitable given the 2015 line up. As for me, I will continue to use their more classic current offerings and watch for good deals on their Seki stuff.
 
retzius said:
Why has SOG abandoned the forums? Does Chris still check in here? It is disheartening when a company get "big" and forgets the user base that got them there. One thing I really appreciate about Spyderco is that they are still as active as ever on their forum.
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Figure "the corporation's" platform of choice for dissemination of information would be on social media
https://www.facebook.com/SOGKnivesAndTools
Makes sense for a proper controlled environment for the projection of corporate stance.
 
I love the SOG look!!! They don't look childish, they look aggressive to me! There founder has history working with the stealth bomber and he likes the futuristic look (he's on the design team now) the blades really don't look hoaky to me, the function is there. The Snarl was a huge frack up though. Those multicolor lanyards with beads so many people tie to there knives look childish to me, everyone's different I guess. I've bought multiple $200 plus knives I'm very edge-ucated when it comes to knives and SOG is my favorite! I'm a end user who actually uses my blades daily not as pry bars but I've done pretty much everything with my flash 1 that everyone says is delicate, it has gained more blade play but it always functions flawless. Rip I just had to replace it with a new FLash because it got lost at a friends apartment.

fgWmhDX.jpg
 
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Forrest G said:
I love the SOG look!!! They don't look childish, they look aggressive to me! There founder has history working with the stealth bomber and he likes the futuristic look (he's on the design team now) the blades really don't look hoaky to me, the function is there.
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Well, I guess the new line up at least has one fan on this forum. Also, please edit out you bad language. This portion of BFC is family friendly.
 
craytab said:
please edit out you bad language
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I replaced The F word with frack, I hope this has saved at least one young persons eyes. Meanwhile the same 12 year olds are watching hardcore well you know... wouldn't want to say that word! Maybe someone should edit the "f" in the title! ...wouldn't want anyone getting any ideas. SOG 2015 releases - wtf happened to this company?
 
Forrest G said:
I replaced The F word with frack, I hope this has saved at least one young persons eyes. Meanwhile the same 12 year olds are watching hardcore well you know... wouldn't want to say that word! Maybe someone should edit the "f" in the title! ...wouldn't want anyone getting any ideas. SOG 2015 releases - wtf happened to this company?
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Thank you for abiding by the rules you agreed to when you signed up here on BFC.

And the old "well, worse is happening elsewhere" argument doesn't mean we should lower our standards. There are parts of this forum where you can use that type of language but most of this website is family friendly.
 
retzius said:
If you go by their Facebook page and Twitter account, all they seem to be interested in is videos of 15 year old boys throwing tomahawks at trees...
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Well there you go!
Catch em whilst they are young.
There is something comforting
About growing up with a childhood
Brand which one is familiar with.
Nevermind that some are not
Entirely with it.
In keeping up with the times.
So now we know the power of you tube
And youthful fascination for things which
Go flying from the hands.
http://www.coroflot.com/drewfletcher/profile


http://sogpr.blogspot.my/2012/10/since-1986-sog-knives-has-manufactured.html
 
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Forrest G said:
I replaced The F word with frack, I hope this has saved at least one young persons eyes. Meanwhile the same 12 year olds are watching hardcore well you know... wouldn't want to say that word! Maybe someone should edit the "f" in the title! ...wouldn't want anyone getting any ideas. SOG 2015 releases - wtf happened to this company?
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I think the marketers are running the company, and their primary goal now is to make tacticool, not functional designs. Doesn't matter how well it works if looks cool--it's a SOG! They are trading on their brand name.
 
Until I came across this thread, I honestly had just about forgotten about SOG. I have 3 or 4 of their products from a few years back, but they haven't offered anything that interested me for quite some time. I checked out their product lineup for 2015, and I would have to agree it is pretty lame. Too bad...they made some great knives in the past. In my mind, I kind of put CRKT in the same boat. I think CRKT has very little to appeal to the knife enthusiast, unless you like collecting gimmicky safety mechanisms. Side rant: Is it just me, or do they seem to come out with a new one every few weeks? Does anyone even care?
 
Have you been looking BladeHQ's website these knifes have been selling fast! I promise you these knives appeal to a lot of us not just young kids, maybe just a few forum goers though. Also SOG CS is top notch!
 
Agree with those who said to knock off the huge ugly sog logos galore....also i see nothing i like in that new section. Sure love my seal pup and even my trident plain edge. Newer 2015 stuff... sog has taken the too busy to be practical to the next level imo.. I see hot spots galore and sharp edges etc. So be it.
 
Forrest G said:
Have you been looking BladeHQ's website these knifes have been selling fast! I promise you these knives appeal to a lot of us not just young kids, maybe just a few forum goers though. Also SOG CS is top notch!
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Just because stuff is showing up out of stock at BladeHQ doesn't mean they are selling fast. You don't have perfect information here. You are assuming they got a lot of the out of stock item. What if they only bout a dozen to test the waters?

What is clear is that with this new 2015 line-up SOG is moving away from THIS market place. I hope it works for them and allows them to keep producing the classic stuff which is way more functional. Heck, if they make enough mall ninja money we could at least hope for upgraded materials on the classics!
 
I dont have a lot to contribute other than what's already been said.

SOG appears to be focusing on a market akin to M-tech and United.

I'll just leave this here for everyone to rememorate great times.

s1%20horizontal.jpg


From badass , stylish knives that I admired as I admire Randalls, to mall ninja cheap abominations.
 
DPC said:
I dont have a lot to contribute other than what's already been said.

SOG appears to be focusing on a market akin to M-tech and United.

I'll just leave this here for everyone to rememorate great times.

s1%20horizontal.jpg


From badass , stylish knives that I admired as I admire Randalls, to mall ninja cheap abominations.
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Beautiful knife and nice design. And one thing I particularly like is the handle grip indentations vs. the newer designs. Many of the newer bowies, the first finger grip indentation is back aways from the guard. I guess it looks cooler in pictures :confused:
 
DPC said:
I dont have a lot to contribute other than what's already been said.

SOG appears to be focusing on a market akin to M-tech and United.

I'll just leave this here for everyone to rememorate great times.

s1%20horizontal.jpg


From badass , stylish knives that I admired as I admire Randalls, to mall ninja cheap abominations.
Click to expand...
That's gorgeous. I've always loved SOG knives. My first was a Tomcat folder. It was beefy but still had style.
I can't stand the new stuff I've seen from SOG. It pales in comparison to their older designs.
 
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