Whats with Spyderco QC all over the place?
Hi Purelite,
If you must have a resppnse from Spyderco, then I guess I'm your huckleberry.
I'm having difficulty determining from where you are coming. you only buy American, but Carraca's are failing? :confused:
First of all, I don't agree that our US factory is all over the board. We make thousands of knives each month and we receive very few complaints. When we do, we take care of them.
All of the knives are QC'd here in Golden, regardless of where they are made. We feel that we owe that to you, our customer. I do believe that our quality is in the upper percentile. If you feel it isn't, I would be interested to hear what other knife companies with which we are being compared?
I will also state that our US production is improving all of the time. There are few lock-backs to compare with our new Native5.
If you could be more specific as to your disappointment, I might be able to give a more direct answer?
Daniel,
I'm sorry for your disappointment as well. I didn't see the knife (was traveling). Things like stripped screws and rubbing blades are not a common problem, unless the knife was disassembled and re-assembled. If you feel that your knife needs to be looked at again, you're welcome to send it to me. It's certainly not worth getting angry over. Anger will ruin your day. ("mad is bad")
I would also like to add that our niche is safe, reliable, high performance. We put all that hifalutin steel and hi-tech materials in our knives to perform better for you. We do break tests on locks so we can offer you the safest possible products. We try to make them as attractive as we can, but art is not our forte. We appreciate that some like to collect our products, it is a humbling honor. Perfection is not possible. It only depends on what you expect and how close you will look.
I know all of our makers personally. I can tell you that we all do the best we can all of the time.
sal
If you must have a resppnse from Spyderco, then I guess I'm your huckleberry.
I'm having difficulty determining from where you are coming. you only buy American, but Carraca's are failing? :confused:
First of all, I don't agree that our US factory is all over the board. We make thousands of knives each month and we receive very few complaints. When we do, we take care of them.
All of the knives are QC'd here in Golden, regardless of where they are made. We feel that we owe that to you, our customer. I do believe that our quality is in the upper percentile. If you feel it isn't, I would be interested to hear what other knife companies with which we are being compared?
I will also state that our US production is improving all of the time. There are few lock-backs to compare with our new Native5.
If you could be more specific as to your disappointment, I might be able to give a more direct answer?
Daniel,
I'm sorry for your disappointment as well. I didn't see the knife (was traveling). Things like stripped screws and rubbing blades are not a common problem, unless the knife was disassembled and re-assembled. If you feel that your knife needs to be looked at again, you're welcome to send it to me. It's certainly not worth getting angry over. Anger will ruin your day. ("mad is bad")
I would also like to add that our niche is safe, reliable, high performance. We put all that hifalutin steel and hi-tech materials in our knives to perform better for you. We do break tests on locks so we can offer you the safest possible products. We try to make them as attractive as we can, but art is not our forte. We appreciate that some like to collect our products, it is a humbling honor. Perfection is not possible. It only depends on what you expect and how close you will look.
I know all of our makers personally. I can tell you that we all do the best we can all of the time.
sal
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ValueKnifeLover
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If I needed another reason to love this company... I can add the Doc Holiday reference from Sal to the list :Dsal wrote:
If you must have a resppnse from Spyderco, then I guess I'm your huckleberry.
"Laws that forbid the carrying of arms..disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes. Such laws make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assailants; they serve rather to encourage than prevent homicides, for an unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed one." - Thomas Jefferson quoting Cesare Beccaria
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Fred Sanford
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- Location: Ohio, USA
sal wrote:We try to make them as attractive as we can, but art is not our forte. We appreciate that some like to collect our products, it is a humbling honor.
THIS!
It is an interesting to see a company that is focused on making high value functional tools get criticized for not making art/perfection.
Thanks,
Ken (my real name)
...learning something new all the time.
Ken (my real name)
...learning something new all the time.
I learned early on in my knife buying "career" for lack of a better term, to buy my knives in person whenever possible. Regardless of the manufacturer, QC issues DO happen. Sure, you can and usually do save $$ by buying online, but do you really save money if there's a QC issue from a knife you bought online...then you have to deal with mailing it back and such? Probably not. I prefer to handle a knife, and look it over before buying it.
Like I try to tell my wife who likes to "save money" by buying at discount stores. You may buy a broom for $4 at the one store vs $8 at another, but when the $4 broom breaks a week after you buy it, you're back at another $4 for another broom
Like I try to tell my wife who likes to "save money" by buying at discount stores. You may buy a broom for $4 at the one store vs $8 at another, but when the $4 broom breaks a week after you buy it, you're back at another $4 for another broom
Hopefully I'm not feeding a troll :o
Out of the over 40 I've purchased new only one came in with a bad edge, I used that oportunity to teach myself (with help) how to handle the material and increase my understanding and knowledge. When the Mules have come in with edges not to my preference I change them to suit my preference. Useability of any of the many knives I've purchased have always been fantastic for a production knife.
It's all what you make and how you handle it.. Like Sal said, "Mad is bad"
Out of the over 40 I've purchased new only one came in with a bad edge, I used that oportunity to teach myself (with help) how to handle the material and increase my understanding and knowledge. When the Mules have come in with edges not to my preference I change them to suit my preference. Useability of any of the many knives I've purchased have always been fantastic for a production knife.
It's all what you make and how you handle it.. Like Sal said, "Mad is bad"
Charlie
" Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not one bit simpler."
[CENTER]"Integrity is being good even if no one is watching"[/CENTER]
" Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not one bit simpler."
[CENTER]"Integrity is being good even if no one is watching"[/CENTER]
Um... folks, the OP hasn't so much as signed on since the 10 minute spree of posts he made starting all of this yesterday. Me, if I was as deeply concerned as he seemed to intimate, I'd have checked the status of my highly... lets call it confrontational... inquiry by now. I (hopefully) am keeping my tone here moderate and friendly, but I believe there is ample evidence to suggest that Purelite intended to stir up argument rather than have his question answered. I took a quick glance through his posting history and found that 29 of his 32 posts are in some way critical of Spyderco's products or business practices. One is a glowing compliment towards Spyderco customer service, one a compliment about somebody's picture, and one is about a different companies locking folders. He has started a total of 6 threads here, one of which consists of his customer service compliment, 3 of which are what I would call fair and friendly inquiries into minor problems with his knives (or lost screws)... and the two most recent ones which I would call outright trolling.
I read and understood Kristi's thoughts about keeping this forum a friendly place... but can we call a spade a spade here? As it is, this thread has managed to pull a member (Daniel) who likely has REAL concerns about his purchases and cast him in the same light as the OP, and gotten the CEO of the company that sponsors these forums to try and address the "concerns" of the OP. Honestly, it is starting to seem like a pattern to me amongst new posters on these forums... some of you seem to think that this is an appropriate avenue of communication directly to Sal Glesser. I have never known a corporation to be as communicative as Spyderco before... particularly through a venue like this forum... but the man has better things to do. I for one would rather he spend time with his family or his business than dedicate himself to resolving the concerns of an anonymous internet personality (like myself :p ). Instead of starting a thread on the Spyderco forums... send him an email. Better yet, send the company an email instead of the president. I've done it, I got an answer back within a reasonable amount of time (maybe a week).
On the highly unlikely off chance that the OP is both unlucky with his knives and lacks a few social graces (I won't throw any stones at that glass house... no one has ever called me overly endowed in that area :p ). I will say that I haven't a clue what to say to you. In the past decade and change... I would estimate that I have owned a hundred or so Spyderco products. I've never had one, regardless of origin, that I felt was lacking in any way. They have all performed to the highest standard and come to me looking as advertised and fantastic. I have never asked a distributor to check one out for me prior to mailing. To be fair, I also have a pretty simple standard for a "bad knife". That is to say, if it doesn't work, it is a bad knife. If the lock fails, or there is a large amount of blade play, or parts are missing, or the blade won't keep an edge... it is a bad knife. Never once has any of these things happened to me with a Spyderco product. Guess I must just be lucky :D . Some of them might have had a bit of irregular grinding or minor scratches here and there... but I didn't check, and a little bit of sharpening and pocket carry later they ALL have some irregular grinding and minor scratching, so no biggie :p . So, Purelite, I'm sorry your experience has been so bad of late. As an avowed and admitted spyderco fanboy... I never enjoy hearing negative stories about these pocket knives or this company. I have not had the same experience as you with regards to inconsistent QC, but I understand your frustration at some level. I hope all the issues you have are resolved and you can go back to appreciating Spyderco products like you have since... well prior to 11/2010 when you had a bad spring on a Manix, the off center blade on (presumably) the same Manix, the unsightly tool marks on the liners of that Manix, and that whole problem you had with sprint runs 2 months ago.
I read and understood Kristi's thoughts about keeping this forum a friendly place... but can we call a spade a spade here? As it is, this thread has managed to pull a member (Daniel) who likely has REAL concerns about his purchases and cast him in the same light as the OP, and gotten the CEO of the company that sponsors these forums to try and address the "concerns" of the OP. Honestly, it is starting to seem like a pattern to me amongst new posters on these forums... some of you seem to think that this is an appropriate avenue of communication directly to Sal Glesser. I have never known a corporation to be as communicative as Spyderco before... particularly through a venue like this forum... but the man has better things to do. I for one would rather he spend time with his family or his business than dedicate himself to resolving the concerns of an anonymous internet personality (like myself :p ). Instead of starting a thread on the Spyderco forums... send him an email. Better yet, send the company an email instead of the president. I've done it, I got an answer back within a reasonable amount of time (maybe a week).
On the highly unlikely off chance that the OP is both unlucky with his knives and lacks a few social graces (I won't throw any stones at that glass house... no one has ever called me overly endowed in that area :p ). I will say that I haven't a clue what to say to you. In the past decade and change... I would estimate that I have owned a hundred or so Spyderco products. I've never had one, regardless of origin, that I felt was lacking in any way. They have all performed to the highest standard and come to me looking as advertised and fantastic. I have never asked a distributor to check one out for me prior to mailing. To be fair, I also have a pretty simple standard for a "bad knife". That is to say, if it doesn't work, it is a bad knife. If the lock fails, or there is a large amount of blade play, or parts are missing, or the blade won't keep an edge... it is a bad knife. Never once has any of these things happened to me with a Spyderco product. Guess I must just be lucky :D . Some of them might have had a bit of irregular grinding or minor scratches here and there... but I didn't check, and a little bit of sharpening and pocket carry later they ALL have some irregular grinding and minor scratching, so no biggie :p . So, Purelite, I'm sorry your experience has been so bad of late. As an avowed and admitted spyderco fanboy... I never enjoy hearing negative stories about these pocket knives or this company. I have not had the same experience as you with regards to inconsistent QC, but I understand your frustration at some level. I hope all the issues you have are resolved and you can go back to appreciating Spyderco products like you have since... well prior to 11/2010 when you had a bad spring on a Manix, the off center blade on (presumably) the same Manix, the unsightly tool marks on the liners of that Manix, and that whole problem you had with sprint runs 2 months ago.
Don't hit at all if it is honorably possible to avoid hitting; but never hit soft.
- Theodore Roosevelt
"I twisted the knife until I heard his heart-strings sing."
- Jim Bowie concerning Maj. Norris Wright
- Theodore Roosevelt
"I twisted the knife until I heard his heart-strings sing."
- Jim Bowie concerning Maj. Norris Wright
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ValueKnifeLover
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+1 for Jordan... something else I noticed a bit of and was going to look into later tonight. Definitely read through his Sprint Run Rant. :P
"Laws that forbid the carrying of arms..disarm only those who are neither inclined nor determined to commit crimes. Such laws make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assailants; they serve rather to encourage than prevent homicides, for an unarmed man may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed one." - Thomas Jefferson quoting Cesare Beccaria
Everyone is allowed an opinion. Every point is open to a counter-point.
I would like to think the OP has a valid concern based on the perception that QC as a whole was compromised. After multiple other viewpoints the OP (and others) can decide to change their opinion or hold true regardless of testimonials and logic. The goal should be to discuss rather to belittle or expel a threat.
If the intent was merely malicious it is sad for all involved. People clearly have more time than they know what to do with.
Facts, stats, and happy customers speak for a product line. You don't have to yell when you have evidence and a history of results.
One person, "My knife is messed up! What's wrong with QC?"
Another person, "None of mine look bad. What's the problem?"
Who wins? :confused:
Aesthetic perfection isn't the goal but rather safety and performance.
I can't afford perfection. Frankly I can't even afford semi-custom on any repeatable basis.
Give me a manufactured knife with flaws under magnification. Let me blow the grit out and touch the secondary bevel up on a stone...don't charge me for that stuff! Bonus points for giving us rugged innovative locks and exotic blade steels...it's harder to find at K-Mart. :D
I would like to think the OP has a valid concern based on the perception that QC as a whole was compromised. After multiple other viewpoints the OP (and others) can decide to change their opinion or hold true regardless of testimonials and logic. The goal should be to discuss rather to belittle or expel a threat.
If the intent was merely malicious it is sad for all involved. People clearly have more time than they know what to do with.
Facts, stats, and happy customers speak for a product line. You don't have to yell when you have evidence and a history of results.
One person, "My knife is messed up! What's wrong with QC?"
Another person, "None of mine look bad. What's the problem?"
Who wins? :confused:
Aesthetic perfection isn't the goal but rather safety and performance.
I can't afford perfection. Frankly I can't even afford semi-custom on any repeatable basis.
Give me a manufactured knife with flaws under magnification. Let me blow the grit out and touch the secondary bevel up on a stone...don't charge me for that stuff! Bonus points for giving us rugged innovative locks and exotic blade steels...it's harder to find at K-Mart. :D
100% with Blerv. I'm thankful for the opportunity to experience so much high quality stuf with terrific materials for the very reasonable price they are sold for. Great materials, thought, and design for the price.
Charlie
" Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not one bit simpler."
[CENTER]"Integrity is being good even if no one is watching"[/CENTER]
" Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not one bit simpler."
[CENTER]"Integrity is being good even if no one is watching"[/CENTER]
+1. One can call me a 'fanboy' if the name so fits, but I see the symbiosis of utility and function as perhaps the highest form of art. Combine that with the openness and candor of the company's owner, and you can see two of the several reasons that I hold Spyderco in such high regard. Are they perfect? No. But the totality of the circumstances is enough to warrant my loyalty. And, , ,at the risk of sounding melodramatic: Every day that I go to work I carry a knife, and every day I know that my life (or the life of someone else) may depend on that knife. And for this reason, that knife is ALWAYS a Spyderco.unit wrote:THIS!
It is an interesting to see a company that is focused on making high value functional tools get criticized for not making art/perfection.
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salimoneus
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- Location: Colorado
These are production knives, not custom knives. If you want absolute perfection in every way every time you probably aren't going to find it with any production knife company. Just ain't gonna happen.
My advice: find a reputable dealer that will QC the knife for you and cherry pick one to your liking. I personally have used and can highly recommend Jeff at http://www.cutleryshoppe.com/. The nicest and most "above any beyond" guy I've ever dealt with for any product. I am in no way affiliated with them but they are one of the few that will QC on request and take returns on items most others will not.
My advice: find a reputable dealer that will QC the knife for you and cherry pick one to your liking. I personally have used and can highly recommend Jeff at http://www.cutleryshoppe.com/. The nicest and most "above any beyond" guy I've ever dealt with for any product. I am in no way affiliated with them but they are one of the few that will QC on request and take returns on items most others will not.
Just a little word of advice to the OP. Acting in a civilized manner while conducting business will normally get you farther than acting a fool. I have been in the customer service field (in various capacities) for several years. Speaking for myself ....ask for help I will help, cuss me, act in a uncivilized manner and you will not get anywhere.
V8R
Opinions are like belly buttons most people have one:p
Opinions are like belly buttons most people have one:p
Calling the OP names, putting him down, insulting him, etc. is equally inappropriate.
Just sayin'.
Just sayin'.
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC] <--- My Spydies <click the dancing banana!>
Oh yeah, exactly.v8r wrote:Just a little word of advice to the OP. Acting in a civilized manner while conducting business will normally get you farther than acting a fool. I have been in the customer service field (in various capacities) for several years. Speaking for myself ....ask for help I will help, cuss me, act in a uncivilized manner and you will not get anywhere.
Act like a moron or treat me like crap they get zero from me 100% of the time....
When they say a call could be recorded or monitored believe it because they are..
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Drkknight614
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Minibear453
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If OP is still reading, which I hope he is, I highly suggest that he send in the knife for Warranty. Spyderco will do something about this situation, one way or the other, I'm sure. After sending it in, then I think OP will have a better perspective on this situation. It's impossible to produce knives perfectly 100% of the time, and one thing that makes Spyderco stand out is their customer service. It's different if the knife is flawed and the manufacturer won't replace it, however, in this case, Spyderco will replace a flawed knife, and that's why their quality control is not high on my list of priorities.
And yes, I am a fanboy. Spyderco makes amazing, high quality, usable knives for an amazing price. Also, their knives are very unusual, which is a plus for me. Knives are a dime a dozen, yet Spyderco manages to make their knives instantly recognizable with their own "use before looks" style, along with the spydie hole.
And yes, I am a fanboy. Spyderco makes amazing, high quality, usable knives for an amazing price. Also, their knives are very unusual, which is a plus for me. Knives are a dime a dozen, yet Spyderco manages to make their knives instantly recognizable with their own "use before looks" style, along with the spydie hole.
Carry a sharp knife, and life will never be dull