I have always wondered about the same thing. Also who buys the eatingtool stuff…I’m very happy for knife makers making $$. I think they should charge whatever they want. One thing has been interesting for me though are Ben Kamons blades, mainly through Modern Cooking.
I understand theres a ton of variety with this niche hobby. I’m curious who the target audience is and who is actually buying these knives. It seems like MC has good reach to customers on their side of the pond. Obviously prices on his work are higher but we are past the $2k mark easily for new work.
I don’t have a problem with the price but these sell out instantly. I know some people who snagged most of the Myoda sale for that week. Anyone here been buying Bens knives at that price point here? Obviously we are more in the collector mindset but I feel like it’s in the bot realm. Like they buy it regardless of price or desires. This may help to get some European opinions on this.
For example theres another knifemaker that buys Ben’s work pretty regularly. He has a cool IG, I think its like Anchorage for or something. To me, his perspective of it is Ben is a legendary knifemaker and it’s an honor to own these pieces (I think both were over $4000 each) and it’s more incorporated into his business.
Any collectors here just buy that $2500 barely used Kamon from MC today?
Maybe I’m just sad that these things get bought and we never get to see pictures of them again
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I feel like it wasnt too far off considering large size and upgrade to apex ultra.
So I’m just learning about this stuff. Basically anything I see available on websites like Eating Tools, etc. is something that isn't highly regarded quality wise, or it’s way overpriced value wise. And any of the really great quality knives and fair prices ar going to be sold out almost immediately to people who are constantly on the lookout and/or are in the know
Which that leaves me buying here I guess
I disagree, Crocker Cutlery has sold similar Apex Ultra blades for under 2k. He just doesn't leave them posted to the site.
I don’t think the point is whether it is a fair market value price. It is more about my curiosity over who’s buying these knives at these prices so fast like they were free.
WHENNNNNNNNN
I would venture to guess buyer reacted before he saw price considering speed.
Yeah, it's crazy to me. I'll be working and see an IG notification from a Modern Cooking post. I'll look whenever I can and its already sold out obviously. But it may be knife anywhere from $2k-$5k and its just gone. Like poof, never to be see again.
I always assume it was @nhb22 or you
Clarifying a few points you made
1. The knives sold on these websites are usually (98% of the time) very very high quality. Ben Kamon of Kamon knives makes what many consider the highest quality kitchen knives.
2. Based on a number of factors, kitchen knives are much more expensive than they were 2-3 years ago (but what isn’t?). Depending on your viewpoint, these websites may be overpriced. A fair argument has been made on either side by members here
3. Your last point is pretty spot on. There are a lot of people that have setup whole automatic purchasing systems for these knives. If you’re new to knives, don’t worry about $1k knives for a long long time. Ask questions here, put a “WTB / Want to buy” thread out on some knives that interest you and see what pops up.
My general recommendation is to start at the bottom and work your way up. Meet some people, ask lots of questions and take notes about what you like vs. don’t like
Luckily, I've never hit $2k on a single knife purchase. But man have I bought some bundles lol
Yeah, what he said!
Wish I could say the same…
Too true. I've done it a fair number of times
I haven't kept track but if I had to guess, I'd say the mean price of my knives probably falls somewhere around $175USD, $200 tops. Among the dozens of knives I've bought I can think of two, maybe three that were duds and those were grind or profile specific. Sure, fit and finish is lacking and sure there is some wabi sabi, but performance wise, be that steel properties or cutting prowess, nearly all the knives I've purchased have been acceptable at the least and many have been stellar.
I have a $45 mystery santoku that makes transparent slices of whatever I want it to, holds up well, and sharpens like a dream. I have Sanjo and Tosa workhorse-esque knives to all rounders to lasers. And just like more expensive knives, they all have their own characteristics but none of them are bad knives in any way.
I've had more expensive knives and have my customs but from a pure performance point of reference, my "cheap" knives are excellent. I can round a spine and choil and while they aren't sexy, and people gnash their teeth at the assertion, ho wood handles are the best handles for wa knives.
It's been said time and time again but let's go ahead and say it again as it will no doubt be repeated many more times in the future, the price to value ratio in this hobby is very subjective. My experience is that up to about $200, you should expect rustic F&F, but good performance. $200-400 gets you a step up in F&F and more confidence in consistent grinds. Beyond that, you're largely paying for other factors. Those can be fancy steels/construction, high level finishes, prestige, etc.
What one person buys for $2k I guarantee will not make me happier than what I buy for $200. Probably the inverse.
In my opinion, if you'll pay $700 dollars for a kitchen knife, there's no reason to be bewildered at any price above that. It's all about personal preferences and desires at that point. I know that wasn't exactly the point of the latest discussion but still, if Ben or the vendor are selling knives at $2k or above, it shouldn't be all that surprising. When I tell non-knife people that I spent $150 on a single knife they look at me like I'm insane.
I have a $45 mystery santoku that makes transparent slices of whatever I want it to, holds up well, and sharpens like a dream. I have Sanjo and Tosa workhorse-esque knives to all rounders to lasers. And just like more expensive knives, they all have their own characteristics but none of them are bad knives in any way.
I've had more expensive knives and have my customs but from a pure performance point of reference, my "cheap" knives are excellent. I can round a spine and choil and while they aren't sexy, and people gnash their teeth at the assertion, ho wood handles are the best handles for wa knives.
It's been said time and time again but let's go ahead and say it again as it will no doubt be repeated many more times in the future, the price to value ratio in this hobby is very subjective. My experience is that up to about $200, you should expect rustic F&F, but good performance. $200-400 gets you a step up in F&F and more confidence in consistent grinds. Beyond that, you're largely paying for other factors. Those can be fancy steels/construction, high level finishes, prestige, etc.
What one person buys for $2k I guarantee will not make me happier than what I buy for $200. Probably the inverse.
In my opinion, if you'll pay $700 dollars for a kitchen knife, there's no reason to be bewildered at any price above that. It's all about personal preferences and desires at that point. I know that wasn't exactly the point of the latest discussion but still, if Ben or the vendor are selling knives at $2k or above, it shouldn't be all that surprising. When I tell non-knife people that I spent $150 on a single knife they look at me like I'm insane.
Yes I’ve made the mistake of telling my wife it was cheap, only $300.
And what is wabi sabi?
In it's purest form, wabi sabi is the Japanese celebration of imperfection. In our hobby it more or less refers to subtle differences in example to example due to being handmade. It can sometimes be used as an excuse to justify shoddy workmanship but that isn't the intent.
SuperLougat
Well-Known Member
Yanick Raffle at carbon with super short notice
ends at 2pm mountain time today
ends at 2pm mountain time today
Cool looking knife, but outside my price range at the moment.
How do you access link
It's in the comments of the post.
I see it just won’t open for me
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I could send ‘em a fax.
Hado B1's with nicer handle @ CKC
It's not an active link - you have to copy and paste it into another browser - or this: https://forms.gle/fobXGhFZMAdNHsys9
aporigine
The slow blade penetrates the winter squash
The 1990s say hello
Speaking of $2-3k knives, Hashimoto Honyaki going up tomorrow
that hamon looks werid and unattended tbh.
Is this another auction type thing
