stigma on knives made in taiwan and china

[duff72]

I have a tenacious and a sage and can find nothing wrong with either one (love the sage,like the tenacious) but for some reason I have something in my head that tells me they are inferior. Like I said nothing wrong with these knives ( I think they are a very very good value) just probably the cheap chinese stuff that has been on the market for so long has tainted me---any one else

[Sherpa]

It's hard for me to believe that "Made in China" and "Made in Taiwan" are not necessarily low quality anymore.

I have personally owned a G 10 crossbill. Made in China.
I've had a Sage that was made in Taiwan.

Both were outstanding values in my opinion.

[WhiteWillie]

I have two knives made in Taiwan and they are both excellent. I'll avoid products I know are made in China, pending their political conversion. It may be a long wait.

[The Deacon]

Probably easier for me because I'm older and can recall when Jap = crap (anyone here remember the very first Subarus? :eek: ).

If the Sage is not enough to convince someone that Taiwan can produces some pretty **** good knives, nothing ever will. I'd rate it as good or better than 99% of the stuff coming out of Seki and definitely better than anything coming out of Seki at its price point.

China, in my opinion, is not quite there yet, or at least nobody including Sal is willing to take the risk of trying to market a knife with a $100 street price that has "Made in China" on it. The Tenacious is a decent knife, but nowhere near the same level of workmanship as the Sage.

[FMAKNut]

I think I would take to the Tenacious if it had some top and bottom jimping like the Sage and Caly3. Other than that, I would buy and try.

[Lord vader]

[Lord vader]

Hi Deacon, Do you mean this subaru

[roguesoul]

China is like two different countries. Almost like saying North America and thinking USA, totally forgetting about Canada and Mexico. I just read some of the Wiki on Taiwan. There is Peoples Repuplic of China, PRC(commies) and Republic of China ROC (democratic Taiwan).

Three great knives from Taiwan would be the S, Sage and titanium Salsa.

[5.56]

Edit: staying out of this one

one thing though......... remember you have a choice when selecting which models you support and represent.

[J Smith]

I have to buy too much stuff made in China.
I will not do it if I have a choice.

[roguesoul]

Edit: staying out of this one

one thing......... you do have a choice when choosing which models you support.

How does that saying go: "Cutting off the nose to spite the face".

We are supporting Sal and Spyderco, not specific models or countries. I for one am very impressed by Spyderco's altruism not to mention how they listen to, and put up with, us. A fantastic company deserving our respect and support.

[alexcue]

I know this is preaching to the choir, but the Sage, once again is a GREAT knife on it's own, for it's price point its a bargain. It's put together really, really well. It represents Taiwan very well.

The Tenacious is another story IMO. Personally i think it is worth, what it is worth. Maybe I'm a snob, but to me it's a beater type knife and if i lent it to someone and didn't see it again, so be it.

[Sword of Morning]

The Tenacious is another story IMO. Personally i think it is worth, what it is worth. Maybe I'm a snob, but to me it's a beater type knife and if i lent it to someone and didn't see it again, so be it.

That is exactly what the Tenacious is good for. It will very happily take a beating. It performs its function well and isn't out there to win beauty contests or sit in a safe. If you do manage to lose it or somehow destroy it, you can easily afford to buy another.

[MCM]

With so many great blades to choose from, I avoid both.

[MileHiKnifeGuy]

I think some of you have missed the point. Any good knife company will look to meet their customers needs from different price points. It's part of gaining market share. Spyderco needed a model or two to meet the lower price point knife market yet still meet customer expectations for a Spyderco knife. I think they did a great job in giving us the Sage and the Tenacious. If for some reason they don't meet your needs don't buy them. As for me, I will buy three or four so I will always have one available and be grateful for a company that is giving me a great knife at a great price. :)

[STR]

Used to be in the early days that Japan had the magnified stigma placed on it which China seems to have inherited today. Taiwan had it for a time also right beside Japan and both Japan and Taiwan still do carry a bit of that old stigma today but both Japan and Taiwan seem to fair better than China IMO. Regardless of where something is made, whether its Hong Kong, China, Japan, Taiwan, Italy or where ever people state side seem to want to blame the foreign countries for taking away our jobs by doing these things when in fact they would not have the jobs if we (read US business Corp.) didn't gladly contract the jobs away to save a buck so who is really at fault?? If not doing so causes the company to suffer, or maybe even go belly up which is the lesser of the two evils? I think most can figure that out. It is highly debatable and often times a hot topic so at the risk of once again opening my mouth on a subject I'd probably have been far better of on just staying quiet about I'll say this much more.

We all know some very fine knives are made in Japan, in fact some of the finest cutlery in the world. The Japanese on whole seem quite honorable to me and in my own dealings with them in the dental business they were nothing less than this way every time. Italy seems quite good as does Taiwan and speaking of Taiwan two of my all time favorite knives were made in Taiwan, the Spyderco S and the CRKT S2 both of which I would put against any knife I've paid twice or three times the price for and still find little to argue with for what I have in either of these knives.

China does scare me for business relations. Not the quality factor so much anymore since that seems to have greatly improved and I won't get into all the reasons they scare me but frankly I have trouble trusting them fully personally. Of course I can say very much the same for some American businesses I dealt with and felt betrayed and back stabbed by a time or three also. You build relationships and hope that they don't turn on you but unfortunately it is not always the case. Even in the knife industry a time or two some relationships have gone sour and once some trust is lost its hard to ever get that back. Sometimes its a hard lesson to learn and usually too late when you do. Lets hope that is not the case with the USA and China regarding business.

STR

[bohica1998]

I honestly didn't know the Tenacious was made in China. When I got mine, my first thought was that I had gotten a cheap copy or something (Got it off Ebay, it DOES happen, lol!). But after lurking about for a while here, I realized it really WAS a Spyderco.

Personally, I don't care where they have them made as long as the quality I've come to expect from this company's product is there.

I will bide my time and see how they fare. I have a Native from Golden, a Tenacious from China, and a knife from one of Spyderco's suppliers in Seki, Japan. (A Moki MK920 SE)

We'll see how they do as time goes by, hehe.

[Knifewing]

I recently broke down and bought Byrd Robin G-10 to use as a travel knife--something not too expensive that I wouldn't be heartbroken to lose or have taken from my luggage. My collection is almost exclusively Spydercos and I never really paid any attention to the Bryd line. When I got the Robin I was impressed with the features and quality of the package for the money (key phrase)--pretty much what Sal and others on the Forum had said about the Byrd line. (I liken it to finding a pretty darn good $4.99-5.99 wine that's fine for everyday drinking.) But I seriously doubt I would ever buy a Chinese made knife from any maker other than Spyderco. That said, I sure wish Spyderco would bring out a Robin package in the Spyderco line with full Spyderco F&F, materials (G-10, VG-10, back lock), and quality. Maybe the new G-10 Dragonfly will fill that niche...

[Mako109]

I keep it simple in this regard. I buy "QUALITY" and move on with my life. There are much more important decisions to make, like what's for lunch? :D

[Jay_Ev]

How does that saying go: "Cutting off the nose to spite the face".

We are supporting Sal and Spyderco, not specific models or countries. I for one am very impressed by Spyderco's altruism not to mention how they listen to, and put up with, us. A fantastic company deserving our respect and support.

+1. When one buys a Tenacious or Byrd, ultimately the dollars go to Spyderco which in turn helps them to develop and build all of the other knives in the lineup. The gang at Spyderco bends over backwards trying to appease and accommodate our wants, needs and desires. If I can show gratitude and appreciation by purchasing a Tenacious then I am happy to do so.