Why are so many Pakistani etc knives so low quality?

[JD Spydo]

No offense Sir, nuclear weapons are a sign for certain technical knowhow and no sign for intelligence ...

But back to topic: This year I bought an original Khukuri made in Kathmandu/Nepal and visitet the "factory" also. If you see the on-site fabrication, the knife is perfectly made under these conditions. Give those workers the material, the tools and the money we use, they will make the same job, maybe even better ... IMHO.

Peter the point that I was trying to make was this: >> if they have the technology and resources to amass nuclear weapons then anyone would just naturally assume that they are a very intelligent and technologically advanced people in the scientific sector if nothing else. To me if they have the wherewithal to accomplish such a feat as that you would just have to reasonablly assume that they would also have access to metallurgical technologies as well. Hey if I'm way out in left field I don't see how. And by making that observation I was paying the Pakistani people a compliment>> Because my nephew has a phd in nuclear physics. Him and his immediate friends are extremely smart people so I would just assume that anyone who has that much knowhow has to be plugged into other high tech knowhow as well. It seems logical to me anyway.

The overall point I was trying to get across was that I truly believe the people of Pakistan should by all means have the ability to make top notch cutlery. The only thing I think that would hold them back would ultimately be funding. But anyway Peter I meant no offense to you or anyone of any country at all. I just find it to be a strange dichotomy if nothing else.

[jzmtl]

Someone told me that the Chinese and Pakistanis and others in theory could make a knife that is equal to the level of quality of a knife made in Japan or Germany or Sweden or the USA, but, the market demands that the stuff made in China and Pakistan is cheap, so they would not do it, unless you wanted to pay the extra money. Is that true or false?

Pretty much. Use something else as example, while you are used to see the $15 Chinese binoculars at walmart, they are pretty crappy because they are made to be crappy. Recently there are demands for high quality Chinese binoculars, and soon there is a $650 binocular that's pretty much on par with $1500 version from the big 3 (Zeiss, Leica, Swarovski).

[Evil D]

Like mentioned, there are pretty much two reasons:

1) Cost. Whether it's set by the companies who hire the manufacturers or the manufacturers themselves, it's all about making the most profit, which goes hand in hand with...

2) Most people do not understand form following function and will buy something because "it looks cool". Take a trip to your local flea market and hit up one of the many knife/sword booths for all the proof you need. Dragons, ninjas, wizards, Lord of The Rings, you name it, all adorning knife after knife made out of crappy silverware steel and sold at an attractive price to the people who don't know or care about such boring things as edge retention. You don't need quality steel for a knife that didn't even leave the factory with a decent edge and won't be used to cut anything anyway.

So you say your boring old flat scaled Para 2 has what kind of steel? Where's the dragon heads and wings and gems and bling at? Where's the awesome rainbow colored anodizing at? Where's the awesome laser etched lightning bolts and skulls at?

Have you guys ever noticed that many of the Spyderco knockoffs have some extra bling added to them? There's always some flashy anodizing and laser etched spider webs and such. That's how you know the awesome knives from the crappy ones right?

[gbelleh]

Dragons and wizards! LOL!

[Blerv]

Haha! I wish Spyderco would make a wizard and dragon knife

[gbelleh]

They did. It was called the Merlin.

[Blerv]

They did. It was called the Merlin.

Win! :D

[SolidState]

They should collaborate with a pakistani maker and produce a dragonwrath bowie with "Stainless Steel."

[Evil D]

They should collaborate with a pakistani maker and produce a dragonwrath bowie with "Stainless Steel."

Yeah and the sprint run could be "surgical stainless" :cool:

[SolidState]

Yeah and the sprint run could be "surgical stainless" :cool:

I hope it's rat-tail construction so that it breaks if you try to baton through a pencil.

[thelastbestplace]

A Few Thoughts (IMO, of course):

1)Producing a high end knife (or any other product) that competes on a global scale may mean having high end materials, proper infrastructure, skilled employees, and high tech equipment, etc. Some countries may lack in one or more of these.

2)Because the population of a developing country is relatively poor compared to the developed nations, there is much less demand for high end products by local consumers. So the internal market is focused on cheaper products. The opposite would be true for wealthy nations. In wealthy nations people buy more luxury products. This would influence what type of products that are produced in each country.

3)In the end, their competitive advantage is making cheap products so that pushes them down that path and conversely our high labor costs push us in the opposite direction.

Hey you all, it's my first post here. :)

[JCP1969]

Welcome to the forum TLBP , good first post .

[thelastbestplace]

Thanks JCP. Glad to be here.

[Slash]

Most are only meant to be decorative. Much like a katana on a stand that's not even heat treated.

Travel to Pakistan and find someone using a knife. Bet it will have an edge and cuts things like a REAL knife is meant to do.

[BAL]

like mentioned, there are pretty much two reasons:

1) cost. Whether it's set by the companies who hire the manufacturers or the manufacturers themselves, it's all about making the most profit, which goes hand in hand with...

2) most people do not understand form following function and will buy something because "it looks cool". Take a trip to your local flea market and hit up one of the many knife/sword booths for all the proof you need. Dragons, ninjas, wizards, lord of the rings, you name it, all adorning knife after knife made out of crappy silverware steel and sold at an attractive price to the people who don't know or care about such boring things as edge retention. You don't need quality steel for a knife that didn't even leave the factory with a decent edge and won't be used to cut anything anyway.

So you say your boring old flat scaled para 2 has what kind of steel? Where's the dragon heads and wings and gems and bling at? Where's the awesome rainbow colored anodizing at? Where's the awesome laser etched lightning bolts and skulls at?

Have you guys ever noticed that many of the spyderco knockoffs have some extra bling added to them? There's always some flashy anodizing and laser etched spider webs and such. That's how you know the awesome knives from the crappy ones right?

Bingo.

[tr4022]

My tired, old eyes kind of like the big font.

Tod

[PatCatMan]

"Where there is a will, there is a way" - somebody said that
It can be done at a lower price point - price=quality is not always the case.
Point - Sanrenmu 710 - the best $6 knife you will ever find, even at 5 times the price.
Some of the models are not as nice F&F wise - but point is, some are. At an incredible price. It can be done.

Never even knew about the Taiwan knives until I bought my 1st Sage - it really opened my eyes up to the worldwide production options.
Marketing, service and name can drive pricing up on anything. Just check your latest offerings prices and place of origin.

The pricing will always push the limits of what a target market will take. That's marketing 101.