Local Cutlery Store..Good and Bad

[BostonTom]

I'm making up for two years of lurking. I've noticed most of you buy online. I posted about buying Sage 1 and 3 recently. I have a cutlery shop 40 minutes south of Boston (online prices). Incredible amount of Spydercos. Also, many other brands. A second store is 15 minutes north of Boston. Not as good of a selection and overpriced. Sometimes decent prices if a knife has sat a while and gets marked down. I got the Sage 3 for Amazon price but overpaid $18 or so on Sage 1. I'm going to force myself to buy online from now on. These two places are too dangerous for my wallet. There are obvious benefits to buying in person. Holding the knife in hand to check comfort, F and F, grind etc. However, the downside is, I'll find a knife at store, love it and make a spontaneous purchase. Hence my Sage 3. I am really impressed with the Sage 3. Very smooth and obvious Taiwan quality. The Sage 1 was on my radar for a long time. I was cringing sliding my credit card thru machine buying both. I've heard the good and bad about Amazon. A big plus is their return policy. Do any of you have a good, local knife/cutlery store nearby ?

[SpyderNut]

Our closest Spyderco dealer is about an hour and twenty minutes away from where we live. Their prices are exceptionally high and their selection is very limited. Because of this, I buy all of my Spydercos online. Makes life a whole lot easier, IMHO.

[MichaelScott]

I occasionally get to the Spyderco Factory Outlet in Golden, living about 3 hours away. It is great to talk with the knowledgeable folks there, and to hold and inspect any knife they make. (Also, I always ask to have whichever Spyderco(s) I'm carrying at the time sharpened, which they do graciously and effectively.) That said, sometimes they have specials on knives which makes them a good value, especially since you know you are getting a real Spyderco from the mother ship. I don't know of any stores nearby - actually, there are none nearby, living in southern Colorado in a town of 800 year round residents and a little over half an hour from New Mexico.

Other than SFO, I buy all of my Spyderco, and other, knives on line. I use either Amazon or eBay. I've hand no bad experiences with the dealers I buy from on eBay. In fact, bladeswelove in Wyoming is an exceptional eBay dealer who is also a teacher and sells because he's a knife nut.

If there was a brick-and-mortar dealer reasonably close, with reasonable prices, I'd definitely support that store. But, thats the exception these days.

[BostonTom]

Thanks. Good to know about that eBay dealer. Not many B and M stores left. I have a feeling the one 40 minutes from me is closing. No new stock on last 3 visits over about 4-5 months. I commented about lack of stock. They told me that they were waiting on shipments. Hougues all gone. Most other brands were at half stock. Makes no sense. Must be closing. Not sure why they would BS me. It will be a big change using Amazon and EBay. I'm still stuck in the 80s. Need to open EBay account and unload about 10 knives for starters. Thankfully, Golden, Co is far far away. Although, it's high on my list to visit. I've heard the whole state is beautiful.

[Sharp Guy]

Do any of you have a good, local knife/cutlery store nearby ?

We have a really nice shop about 40 min away. Unfortunately, their prices are close to retail and I simply can't afford to buy there. I typically like supporting the local shops but sometimes I just can't justify it.

living in southern Colorado in a town of 800 year round residents and a little over half an hour from New Mexico.

I assume you're not far from Trinidad?

[abbazaba]

No such thing as local shops with :spyder: where I am Driving over an hour will get me to a shop with 5 or so.

+1 for for ebay's Bladeswelove. He shipped me a Caly3 earlier this month quicker than I could have imagined, for a price I thought was no longer possible.

[bearfacedkiller]

I live right by Spyderco so I do go in there and have purchased quite a few knives there. Their prices are a little more than MAP so I also shop online quite a bit. If I had a good local store I would support it. I do not buy knives from ebay or amazon but I do not demonize them either. I am just a conscientious shopper. I try to spend my money at the dealers who support the industry. I also like to support individual businesses. With MAP pricing it seems like supporting the quality dealers makes even more sense which I guess is kind of the point.

I grew up on the north shore. I still have a ton of family out you way. :)

[Evil D]

I have a local knife shop. He doens't carry a huge selection of Spydercos but he has a couple dozen or so usually, but they're typical models like Delicas and "safe" designs. He can usually order anything I wanna check out though. I like to buy from him even if it's a bit more than online because I like having the convenience of handling a knife in person, and supporting his business allows me to continue doing that. I buy a lot of stuff off Amazon, but knives aren't something I'll risk...just way too many fakes on there. Yeah, maybe I can return it if I find it's fake, but I'd rather pay a bit more and know I don't have to deal with that hassle.

[palonej]

Another fantastic eBay seller is Justin at Whitemountanknives. One man shop that gives incredible service and shipping is always free!!
2 day shipping.......not the free shipping that takes 2 weeks!
Joe

[Knivesinedc]

I have a cutlery store in my local mall. Merlos cutlery. Terribly overpriced and an appallingly small selection of Spydies. The only good thing is, a lot of these Spydies are BNIB discontinued models. Saw a Vesuvius, vagabond and even a dodo there before. I handled them, just to see if they were real. But I basically only buy online. It's safer and cheaper generally. And a much better selection.

[Corvid1]

I don't have a B & M knife/cutlery shop in my area. It's been at least 20 years since we've had a knife shop in this town. There are two national hunting/fishing chain stores where the vast majority of knives sold are POSs incased in blister packaging. I can't remember the last time one of these retailers had a Spydie in house, although both list various Spidies online.

I buy all of my knives online from the likes of New Graham, Blade HQ, Knife Center and National Knives. I haven't had problems with any of these online shops. I've read about too many hassles others have had buying knives from Amazon or eBay to ever buy a knife from either. The possibility of getting a fake (even a remote possibility) isn't a chance I'm willing to take.

I'm very thankful that Spyderco has designed catalogs in 2015 and 2016 with life size pictures of current knives. At least I get an accurate idea of what I'm in for (size wise) even if I can't check them out in person.

If for no other reason than checking various knives out, a B & M knife shop would be nice to have in the area. It's an option I wish I had.

tim

[El Gato]

I consider myself very fortunate in having the best little knife shop in the Southwest just 10 minutes away. Tremendous selection of many brands, including Spyderco, and a great friend who owns the business. He is always interested in a trade and glad to show you the latest knives in stock or what he has recently traded for. There is a table and chairs at the front of the shop where we congregate anytime he is open to talk knives, guns, or show and tell. It is a great place to hang out and spend time. His marked prices are always negotiable and he will meet and beat most any of the internet pricing. It is a happy place with good friends, good knives and good deals. You are always welcome there.

[twinboysdad]

I have arguably the best B&M in the country within 2 miles of my home. Yes it costs a bit more, but there have been countless knives I have bought and turned down from being able to handle them in person. There is no bad in my opinion. This place gets at least 2 of every knife Spyderco makes including sprints and often more of the hot sellers. I owe them the commerce for letting me handle the wares

[Evil D]

I have bought and turned down from being able to handle them in person.

I have had this happen more times than I can remember. It's a shame really because every one of them I really wanted to like but once I got them in hand they just weren't for me. If it wasn't for having a local shop, I would have had to deal with returns or exchanges, trips to the post office and all that crap. I'll pay a little more to avoid all that.

[dplafoll]

You can all rejoice that for B&M stores, they'll either match the online prices or you shouldn't buy from them, now that Spyderco has gone to MAP.
As for me, I work 5 minutes from the best knife shop in the state of Alabama. If you're in the Birmingham area, check out Mark's Outdoors in Vestavia Hills. It's a locally-owned outdoors store with just about anything you could want, and the knife counter is MASSIVE. I mean, hundreds of knives, including(in the order I remember them): Spyderco, BM, Kershaw/ZT, Leatherman, Buck, Gerber, Microtech, Protech, Cold Steel, SOG, Chris Reeve, Medford, Spartan, Helle, William Henry, Marfione, ARS, ESEE, Victorinox, Emerson. They also carry some local makers, and I've seen them carry other high-end stuff that people sell them as well, such as Hinderer and the TAD Dauntless. It's incredible. They won an award from BM as a dealer, and they have a deal with Spyderco that they get 2 of EVERY model, automatically. I handled a Tighe Stick, a Myrtle, and the HAP-40 Stretch the last time I was in there. I knew I'd found heaven when I walked in the first time and saw not only the Spyderco rack(where I spend most of my time there) but also the CRKs. I couldn't imagine being able to see a Sebenza in a retail store, much less get to handle it, and they let you handle anything they have.
They also carry a good selection of flashlights from Olight, Fenix, Surefire, Streamlight, and others.

TLDR: If you're in Alabama, go see Randy at the knife counter at Mark's Outdoors. If he's not there, ask for Mark Jr.; his dad started the place and passed away a few years ago, and Mark Jr. is a knife knut now too.

[SpyderNut]

I consider myself very fortunate in having the best little knife shop in the Southwest just 10 minutes away. Tremendous selection of many brands, including Spyderco, and a great friend who owns the business. He is always interested in a trade and glad to show you the latest knives in stock or what he has recently traded for. There is a table and chairs at the front of the shop where we congregate anytime he is open to talk knives, guns, or show and tell. It is a great place to hang out and spend time. His marked prices are always negotiable and he will meet and beat most any of the internet pricing. It is a happy place with good friends, good knives and good deals. You are always welcome there.

That does sound awesome. Does this gentleman have a website by chance?

[SpyderNut]

Here are a few of my favorite E-bay Spyderco sellers:
1. Unitedoutdoors
2. Supremesolution
3. Outfittercountry
I've used these three for many years and have never had one issue or problem. Prompt and swift service too.

[BostonTom]

Lot of interesting and informative posts. I would never consider buying a Military or PM2 thru Amazon/EBay. Others knives, I'll roll the dice on. I'm going to check out White Mountain Knives. Hope (assume) they are in NH. And even better if they have a store. If Alabama wasn't so far, I'd be there tomorrow. I guess it is important to try and support the B and M stores.
I've read 100s of posts and reviews about how great the Endura is for large/Xlarge hands. Not for my Xlarge hands. I believe David (Evil D) has the same problem. The handle is too narrow. Choking up, I get my index finger wrapped before the ridge on handle. My middle finger, mainly rests on that ridge.Not comfortable. If I hold the knife further back, I can put index finger before ridge and other fingers after. It's fairly comfortable. However, my hand is set way to far back and the knife feels unwieldy. I have the same problem with the Delica and that handle ridge Hope that makes sense. Somehow, I own both. Purchased early on. It took me a while to figure out I just can't get a comfortable grip. I can use them for short periods of time. It does pay to patronize a local B and M store and take time holding and inspecting knives. Those impulse (word I was looking for) purchases are brutal though.

[El Gato]

That does sound awesome. Does this gentleman have a website by chance?

Unfortunately, Trapper Jon's Knives does not have a website. Jon started the business years ago and runs a one man shop which does not leave him time for the internet. He has thousands of knives of all kinds from antique pocketknives to autos and tacticals, and of course lots of Spydercos. In fact Jon's own edc is a Spydie.

It's a fun place to sit around the table when someone will bring up a certain knife, possibly from the past, and Jon will say, "I have one of those" and sure enough he will bring it out for us all to enjoy. Although he has no website, if you ever find yourself in Southeast Arizona come on over and spend some time with us at Trapper Jon's Knives in Sierra Vista. Good time guaranteed.

Dave

[i am travvy]

I just recently found out about a local knife store but havnt ventured inside yet. I'll stop by it one of these days. Other than that there is a little outdoor shop that had a delica and endura that was wayyyyyyyyyyy over priced and an army navy store that had an Atlantic salt. Other than that I usually just buy my spydies online from National knives.