How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

Discuss Spyderco's products and history.

How much are you willing to spend on a knife produced in China?

I'm not willing to buy a Chinese made knife
33
22%
I'll spend up to $25
6
4%
I'll spend up to $50
13
9%
I'll spend up to $75
7
5%
I'll spend up to $100
8
5%
I'll spend up to $150
3
2%
I'll spend up to $200
2
1%
I have no hard limit for how much I'll spend on a knife made in China - my purchase is based on other factors like materials and design
77
52%
 
Total votes: 149

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knivesandbooks
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#21

Post by knivesandbooks »

I voted the last option. I don't care where it is made, I just care who is making it. I'm not a nationalist. I respect craftsmanship. Currently I have 3 chinese knives: the Polestar, Civivi Backlash, and Boker Slack. All are extremely well made.
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#22

Post by ferider »

What do you mean by produced in China ?

I have two knives where steel is made in Europe (M390), blades and knife components are made in China, and assembly is done in Moscow. I adore those two knives and they were not cheap (> 200 US).
knivesandbooks wrote:
Wed Nov 28, 2018 8:19 pm
...I don't care where it is made, I just care who is making it. ... I respect craftsmanship.
^^^This.

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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#23

Post by Dornbox »

As tps3443 said, if it wasn’t for the Chinese Spyders I purchased first I probably wouldn’t have spent hundreds on the USA made spyders that I have. The prominent China on the blades kills me but the quality of my Tenatious, Persistence, and Ambitious is impressive.

Before my Value folders the most I knowingly spent on a Chinese knife was 35$. Unknowingly I’ve spent over a 100$ on a SOG fixed blade that I use for hunting, love that knife. I said 50$ above with my Spydercos in mind. Of course this only applies to mass produced items. A craftsman is a craftsman regardless of where he lives.
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#24

Post by xchef »

Just to clarify a bit Taichung is not in China it is in Taiwan .Strictly a Spyderco made in Taichung has not been made in China . Taiwan sees itself as separate from China and they have a long history of producing high quality steel manufactured goods. Some respected knife reviewers have commented that the fit and finish from Spyderco's Taichung factory surpasses that of the US factory Nick Shabazz comes to mind . China is a different matter . Whenever I find a tool or knife is made in China I want to know who is doing the QC . If it is a company that has a reputation to lose then most products from that company made in China should be OK . How much would I pay ? Depends on the quality, if the quality is proven and random samples of the knife have been tested by respected reviewers then $200.00 would be fine but this would depend on the after-market support . One of Spiderco's great features is their aftermarket support, problem with the knife, no problem, they'll fix and replace as necessary and that really counts, quality and support that's what's worth paying for.
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#25

Post by zhyla »

While Spyderco relegates its Chinese production to the lowest end models, many companies produce very high end knives in China. Much like Spyderco does with Taiwan.

Personally, I’d like to see more interesting knives from their China line rather than just entry level users.
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#26

Post by tvenuto »

I voted for the last option, but I've never really felt the need to buy chinese when golden and taichung are putting out super high value knives (if more expensive in an absolute sense).
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#27

Post by Pelagic »

27% won't buy Chinese? Sounds like they've never owned a Kizer.
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knivesandbooks
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#28

Post by knivesandbooks »

Pelagic wrote:
Wed Nov 28, 2018 10:26 pm
27% won't buy Chinese? Sounds like they've never owned a Kizer.
Or a Reate, We, Civivi, Tenacious, Polestar.
Of course, all of these companies make some not-so-great models. And there are the purple anondized titanium framelock flippers running on double row ceramic bearings with blades that have two different grinds that are recurve tantos ground from 4mm blade stocks. But there are some great ones.

What I'm really interested is that fact that some Chinese designers are starting to make a name for themselves.
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#29

Post by awa54 »

My vote was for the "it depends" option, since there *are* Chinese made knives these days that possess excellence in all aspects... however many are styling mis-queues IMO and most have an issue with one or more attribute being poorly designed or executed. Also, despite the *huge* number of Chinese knife companies cropping up lately and the massive number of models, there's a certain "sameness" and lack of originality to many of them, this might be because they're almost all copies of some big name maker's designs, or that half of them are made by SanRenmu, probably both ;)

On average though I take a pass on Chinese knives, my only purchases in the past two years have been a basic D2/G10 WE for myself and a similar Bestech that was gifted to a friend (he has a played out Sig tanto folder and the Bestech Kendo was as close to an affordable replacement as I could find).

(oops, make that three, I got a Polestar as well, though it was used, so doesn't count right?)
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Mattysc42
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#30

Post by Mattysc42 »

I love my kizer Gemini. I voted $200. That’s as much as I’m willing to spend on a knife, regardless of country of origin or materials.
BRING ON THE MANIX XL SPRINTS AND EXCLUSIVES! And 10v or K390ify the Golden lineup, please.

Top 5 folders I’ve owned: Serrated Caribbean Leaf, Shaman, Manix XL, ZDP-189/CF Caly 3.5, Native LW.
Top 5 steels I’ve owned: LC200N, K390, CPM S90V, M390, CPM REX45.
Top 3 steels I want more of: M390 class, A11 class (including K390), CPM REX45.
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#31

Post by samdasnake »

Evil D wrote:
Wed Nov 28, 2018 4:28 pm
It all depends on the ending quality. If you had asked me 20 years ago if I'd buy a knife made in Taiwan I'd have laughed at you. Things change.
That's a really good point. There are some amazing quality knives coming out of China now. I mean think of the crap that used to be produced in Japan in the 60s & 70s and the crap that came out of Taiwan in the 80s and 90s. Taiwan has become almost a mark of quality. I feel a lot of Chinese manufacturers are heading the same way. We live in a global economy, and to be honest manufacturing in China supports jobs at many US companies, Spyderco included.
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#32

Post by Tucson Tom »

Evil D wrote:
Wed Nov 28, 2018 6:56 pm
tps3443 wrote:
Wed Nov 28, 2018 6:14 pm
Is the Japan made seki city Spyderco’s best quality knives? Like the Police 4?

I'm fond of the Golden stuff but I would rank Taichung above Japan and the others (as far as Spyderco are concerned). The Taichung factory have made some knives that rival customs in fit and finish.
I have to agree. I have several Taichung knives that absolutely blow me away. Such as the GB1. I never hesitate over a Taichung knife. In fact I generally have good feelings about many products from Taiwan. I just got a pack of 1.2mm phillips screwdriver inserts and was delighted to see they were made in Taiwan.

The Police 4 is an exceptional knife from Seki City. I think it stands out markedly from other Japanese Spydercos.
Last edited by Tucson Tom on Wed Nov 28, 2018 11:50 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#33

Post by Tucson Tom »

I checked the last box. I actually have warm feelings for hard working people in mainland China, and when they turn out a superb product, I am happy to pay for it. It is worth keeping in mind that "China" is not a homogeneous entity. There are thieves and counterfeiters, shoddy corner cutters, and superb craftsmen. A product from China would have to prove itself. In the case of say a Spyderco Tenacious, I would say the product has proven itself. The craftsmanship is solid, but the steel is the weak point. If they start working with better blade steel, anything is possible.
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#34

Post by spyderwolf »

No hard limit here.I love Spyderco,i dont care where the knife is made.
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#35

Post by spyderwolf »

My latest purchase was the Polestar,and i would have bought it even for 150$ because i love the design.On the other hand,i wouldnt buy the Rubicon for 50$.
Whenever there is any doubt, there is no doubt.
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#36

Post by ugaarguy »

RobDigi wrote:
Wed Nov 28, 2018 7:18 pm
The USA made CRK Mnandi is 1.5oz of titanium wood and steel...1.5oz.
$400-$650 price range
No hard limit lol
materials and design lol
Whoever voted on that you must be crazy!!
or sharp as a spoon.
I'd never really paid attention to the weight of the Mnandi before. The Spyderco Dragonfly 2 is a liner less, plastic handled, back lock with a wire clip. The DF2 has a 2.25" blade and weighs 1.2 oz. The Mnandi has a half inch longer blade sitting between a pair of Ti handle scales, each with a wood inlay, plus a pocket clip machined from another solid piece of Ti, and it weighs less than half an ounce more than the DF2? That's darn impressive, and quite a design feat. For many people, minimizing weight is a priority.
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#37

Post by The Deacon »

Definitely would depend on the design, the execution of that design (build quality), and the materials used. None of Spyderco's current Chinese offerings appeal to me, so they're worth exactly zero to me. However, if there was a maker in China capable of turning out things like the C27 Jess Horn, original C75 Kiwi, original C83 Schempp Persian, and C92 Kopa with material and build quality levels as good or better than the Moki originals, I'd willingly pay as much for them as I would for Moki's work.
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#38

Post by ABX2011 »

WE Knives has stormed into the flipper market over the past couple years. They are making knives under their own brand as well as other brands and makers like Laconico, Boos, etc.
Their knives are made in China and are of extremely high quality.
Reate is the same but smaller production and even higher-end.
It's well established that these companies are making some of the highest quality production knives anywhere.
So these days, if someone is biased against a knife made in China it's likely for political reasons.
I chose the last option.
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#39

Post by Calicoast »

ABX2011 wrote:
Thu Nov 29, 2018 7:50 am

It's well established that these companies are making some of the highest quality production knives anywhere.
So these days, if someone is biased against a knife made in China it's likely for political reasons.
I chose the last option.
$0.00
Politics aside, it's well established what China has done, and continues to do across the globe, and in particular here in the United States. All due respect, but there are levels to things. Maybe its me: but I don't put knives above my country.
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Re: How much are you willing to spend on a Chinese made knife?

#40

Post by wrdwrght »

My China knife-buying began and ended with the door-opening Tenacious. Gave it away once I discovered Spydies with more compelling components.
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