I don't mean to be preachy, but those of us who have been here awhile know that sometimes newbies don't always receive much in the way of patience and understanding. Sometimes it's easy to jump on those who are new to knives, know less than we do, or simply have different tastes in knives. Sometimes criticism comes a little too easy on internet forums.
Remember that we were all new to knives once, we didn't know anything. And if we were lucky someone with a generous amount of patience and understanding was willing to take the time to teach us, even if it meant pushing their patience and understanding to the limit.
How many of us can say that every knife purchase we made was a smart one. How many of us at some point have bought a knife simply because we thought it was "cool", or "tactical", etc. How many of us have bought knives from questionable companies with silly marketing. I doubt that any here are perfect.
In my humble opinion, this forum should be about more than personal entertainment, it should also be a place to provide guidance to those who are new to this "hobby", even if that means exerting a bit more patience and understanding. After all, how would we want to be treated if we were new here? In the end, we can teach newbies a lot more with patience and understanding than with insults and criticism.
Of course, if you've been here a while then you better have thick skin, because you're fair game
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Just my thoughts.
UPDATE: It's been over 8 years since I started this thread, and I thought it was time for an update.
When I started this thread back in 2012, new members were sometimes treated a bit rough. But things have changed since then. These days most active members are eager to help new members. So I don't want you to get the impression that you're entering a lions den where the members are just waiting to bite your head off. I think you'll find the vast majority of members to be friendly and helpful. So welcome, and enjoy
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