All About Pocket Knives

I wanted to ask where you all get new knives from? I've seen a good bunch of you get used knives from various places, but when you buy brand new, do you order online? Is there a favorite like SMKW? Go to a store like Bass Pro or a knife dealer?

I do all of mine online.

Thanks, folks!

For me it's mostly eBay with online sellers like Smokey Mountain Knife Works ( https://www.smkw.com/ ) and Shepard Hills ( https://www.casexx.com/ ). And don't forget the AAPK stores. There are a ton of other online sellers. We lost our only knife shop (exclusively) that went out of business. The owner was an old Marine and had physical problems. I seldom see anything worth considering at the big box stores or even at local hardware stores. Just my experiences.

I usually check DLT Trading first. $5.99 shipping and free shipping on orders over $99. They ship fast and they also have a points system which has allowed me to save $20 on my purchases several times. Competitive prices too.

GP Knives
Shepard Hill
Redhill Cutlery
Knife Center
Knives Ship Free

If buying brand-new, I have a few favorite sources: Knife Center, SMKW, DLT, Shepherd Hills, Case Knife Outlet, Swiss Knife Shop, and direct from Victorinox.

I have ordered from Knives Plus in Amarillo, TX with good results.

AAPK
Shepherd Hills
Case Knife Outlet
DLT Trading
KSF
SMKW
Buck
eBay
Sooner State Knives
AG Russell
Cutting Edge
__________
Mike

Shepherd Hills
SMKW

Used - AAPK

I rarely buy a new knife on-line, but I do occasionally "window shop". I prefer to handle and examine a knife before I buy, especially a since many if not most new knives are of inconsistent quality. I'm especially a stickler for walk and talk, and I like to see the colors and texture of handle covers - not some stock photo that may not be representative of the knife they will ship to me. Besides, I just enjoy fondling them!

The nearest hardware store is 10 miles from me. They have only a small display of about a dozen different, more popular Case patterns, and some Chinese junk. I'm about that far from the grocery store too. It's 45 miles to the nearest Case master dealer or Cabela's, Scheel's or other retailer having a larger section of patterns and brands.

So I typically make my trips count, stopping by those places when in the area for other reasons. I'll trust an AAPK store owner to sell me the knife in their pictures, and if they say it has good walk and talk. My experiences with other on-line sources isn't as good. I won't accept a poor quality new knife, and don't want the aggravation of wasting my time (and gas!) returning it.

Ken

I love it not a one from AAPK

kennedy knives wrote: ↑Sun Jun 05, 2022 11:15 pm I love it not a one from AAPK

Read the last paragraph in my post.

Ken

kennedy knives wrote: ↑Sun Jun 05, 2022 11:15 pm I love it not a one from AAPK

Read the last paragraph in my post.

I'll trust an AAPK store owner to sell me the knife in their pictures, and if they say it has good walk and talk. My experiences with other on-line sources isn't as good.

Ken

Mumbleypeg wrote: ↑Sun Jun 05, 2022 11:28 pm

kennedy knives wrote: ↑Sun Jun 05, 2022 11:15 pm I love it not a one from AAPK

Read the last paragraph in my post.

I'll trust an AAPK store owner to sell me the knife in their pictures, and if they say it has good walk and talk. My experiences with other on-line sources isn't as good.

Ken

I was slow getting it on there and didn't see the other comments Thanks for your support of the dealers on AAPK and I'm sure we appreciate it . I know I do Thanks

XX Case XX wrote: ↑Sun Jun 05, 2022 6:27 pm AAPK
Shepherd Hills
Case Knife Outlet
DLT Trading
KSF
SMKW
Buck
eBay
Sooner State Knives
AG Russell
Cutting Edge
__________
Mike

Thanks, Mike, for putting AAPK First

I may not have purchased many new knives from AAPK dealers, but I have purchased over 300 knives from AAPK since 2014.
I think that qualifies as supporting the site. It seems to me that most of the AAPK dealers have second hand knives anyway.

I’ve ordered from almost all of the online dealers mentioned above at one time or another and haven’t had a bad experience yet. A couple of local hardware stores carry some Case knives, but, let’s face it, they can’t offer the variety that you can find online. I agree, Ken, it’s best to be able to handle the knife first. Whenever I buy one in person, I always insist that I handle the knife I’m buying. Sometimes you’re handed the display knife, and then they pull out one of the boxes for you. But, as for online buying, I’ve had pretty good luck. I certainly wouldn’t have some of the really unique knives I have if it weren’t for online store. There’s only one seller on Ebay (not counting dealers like SMKW that sell there) that I trust. Buying even a new knife from an individual on Ebay is risky - at least that’s been my experience. As for the dealers mentioned above, let’s face it, if you don’t mind a bit of hassle getting a knife packaged up and mailing, they’ll all gladly take returns. I’ve only had to do that a couple of times. As for prices, most (not all) are about the same. I gravitate toward online dealers where I can get free shipping - that’ll at least save you $5 or $6 on a knife. And yes, I do trust AAPK sellers - and a pretty darned good selection here, too.

kennedy knives wrote: ↑Sun Jun 05, 2022 11:15 pm I love it not a one from AAPK

I figured the original post was referring specifically to larger retailers. However, I have purchased new knives from AAPK sellers. Every such experience has been a good one. Thanks for jogging my memory.

Railsplitter wrote: ↑Sun Jun 05, 2022 4:03 pm I usually check DLT Trading first. $5.99 shipping and free shipping on orders over $99. They ship fast and they also have a points system which has allowed me to save $20 on my purchases several times. Competitive prices too.

In the past I had really good luck with DLT Trading, I bought a lot of
Bark River knives from them over the years also Knives Ship Free (about 10-12 years ago).

There are very few new knives that excite me, but if I’m gift shopping I like to support A-1, a local farm supply and hardware store. They have an excellent Case selection. I also order the occasional new 301 or 110 directly from Buck.

Thanks for all of these responses, folks! I truly appreciate it. I am going to check out a lot of those places and companies I haven't heard of before.
Should be quite the adventure!

Anyone dealt with detroitengraving.com?

I use most listed here. I have found with eBay, you have to watch out as prices may be higher on the dealer’s eBay store than their website as eBay gets their cut $.

Brand new knives are mostly Amazon, I'm sorry to say... or at least, third party retailers there, as the direct retailers tend to be really overpriced.
It's part of living in the UK, where even Victorinox will charge a hundred quid for something that costs 50-60 in all their other shops.

Occasionally you'll find an independent retailer that has a deal on. Heinnie Haynes used to be good for that, but even they are losing ground in the price war.

tvic wrote: ↑Tue Mar 28, 2023 3:14 pm Anyone dealt with detroitengraving.com?

I asked this because they have some unique Case knives. The site says they are a Case Master Dealer, but I can’t find them in Case’s Master Dealer list.

Blade Ops.com