S90V Military!!

[CarbonFiberNut]

Another interesting question. The pricing is obviously driven by crazy recent aftermarket prices; whether it will have the effect of furthering that trend is an interesting question. Here's a way to think about it that may not make you mad: :) this will be an interesting experiment in supply/demand relationships and pricing.

This is an interesting one indeed - I've theorized that a large reason why dealer exclusives sell out so fast is the combination of flippers buying them to profit on the aftermarket, and people being afraid of flippers buying them all up, so desperately trying to buy from the dealer at original market price - it's a self-perpetuating cycle that drives up demand based on the fear that demand is being driven up. The question then becomes, with BBS charging flipper prices for these upfront, will the flippers buy anyway, hoping that they can hype the knife up and STILL manage to sell for a profit, or will they pass? Will the people who would usually buy instantly out of fear for the flippers gobbling them all up, with the confidence that they can easily get at least what they paid back out of the knife, be more hesitant at this higher price point? It's all an interesting experiment.

I've also had a bit of a suspicion that at least some of the exorbitantly high flipper sales were "faked" in order to drive up hype, and thus collector demand and prices. I can't prove this, obviously, but I've seen that same behavior in other online marketplaces before, for heavily hyped items for sale, so it wouldn't surprise me in the least if somebody got caught doing this.

[akaAK]

I am not a fan of BBS's model which is why I passed on the smurf para 2 when it was made available to Canadians. You will note that the money aspect is not raised here, that is there perogative. I also would like to have easy access to any sprint or exclusive available. I would also like Spyderco to address the current supply issue with regular production knives.

On the other hand, I didn't put up the money for the exclusive so I have no say. I don't run Spyderco so I also have no say in the other issues mentioned. The market will address these things, right or wrong has nothing to do with it. If BBS can't sell these (and I think anyone who thinks they won't eventually is fooling themselves) they will decide for themselves to address the pricing or terms of the deal, or their appetite for future exclusives. If Spyderco can't meet regular production people will move on to other brands or models. Who is to say BBS didn't have this order in for years and Spyderco is working to fulfil their responsibilites with respect to that contract.

It's unfortunate that I don't have the appetite for risk to run an exclusive. I will give the people who put their own money up the benefit of the doubt and let them manage their risks as they see fit. I doubt anyone here has the moral authority to tell others what to do with their own money. Do I miss out on knives I want, yes. Do I sleep peacefully at night, yes.

To all the people who have issues with how this exclusive is run or how Spyderco assigns their production capacity, I eagerly await your very own exclusive. I think when it is your money you will have a little more sympathy for how these get priced.

[FCM415]

What risks? A knife this hot should sell no problem. We are talking about a S90v Millie right? If that can't sell something is up. What they are doing is taking advantage, not just taking risk. Their smaller turnaround compared to other dealers is no excuse, who is to blame that their site gets no traffic other than for these gouged exclusives?

You probably have to be a dealer to commision an exclusive so your suggestion to risk our own money for an exclusive holds no weight as it isn't even possible. And why shouldn't you have a say or opinion regarding BBS's decisions? You do have free speech in Canada dont you? You are correct about being right or wrong on their part is irrelevant, but 300 dollars for a Military exclusive should still be a concern regardless of how many excuses in the book you can come up with.

If money isn't the reason why you yourself wouldn't deal with BBS anyway even though you are defending them...Well that in of itself isn't a strong vote of confidence for them is it? You mean, there are other reasons to not buy from them? Please, do go on!

I'm the guy to be frowned upon, but I will feel better when you are able to buy a nice exclusive for a reasonable price in the future partly because consumers like myself spoke up.

[Senate]

So if you pay and they don't have enough knives to fulfill all their paid orders, they won't refund you?

I'm sure Paypal would refund you if that were the case. "Did not receive merchandise" is almost an automatic transaction reversal on Paypal.

you have only 60days to file a complaint with Paypal to get your money back.
and filing every 2 months until it shows up seems unrealistic.

[akaAK]

I you don't think there is risk involved in this step right up. All reward has associated risks, that is unescapable.

This knife will sell as I mentioned in my post. If the demand is there the price should reflect this as a function of the market. The effects of artificially limiting price are not pretty and won't make this a better situation for knife nuts in the long run. Artificailly limit the prices and you will not see as much innovation and choice. If that is your goal, keep going but don't assume that I need you to fight this battle for me. I have never regretted the price I have paid for any item that I wanted. You can't gouge someone on a discretionary item, no one needs this Smurf Millie. What is reasonable to you is not the benchmark for everyone. I am not frowning on you because you have every right to your opinion, but putting on the superman cape to protect all the poor innocent downtrodden knife collectors and users is not what this is.

I get that you don't like how this game gets played, but that is all it is on the ELU or collectors end. BBS and Spyderco are putting food on the table for their employees and families I would assume, what gives anyone outside of that circle a right to decide how they should run their businesses? If this knife is overpriced and doesn't sell (unlikely as it is actually underpriced inthe current market) they eat a nice S90V dinner, not you or me.

[FCM415]

So it's all good, $300 Militaries for all people!

I've purchased knives like disco'd models at what the market dictates happily, I know how it works. I also know that other dealers wouldnt sell this exact knife at this price. Bottom dollar is my concern, fault me for not giving a you know what about the inner workings like s90v family dinners that Bento dude has to cook, that is not my concern.

[Clip]

If it was a LH model, just maybe...

[FCM415]

If it was a LH model, just maybe...

Well there's an idea for BBS! Southpaws need gouging too! $300 exclusives for everyone, nothing wrong with that! It's their prerogative!

[FCM415]

Would the forum vets like Deacon freak out if a Kopa exclusive came on BBS for $300? No! Because it's their prerogative!

[akaAK]

Bottom dollar is your concern, but when someone else has that exact same concern its a problem for you. It's good that you acknowledge you don't care what happens to BBS, at the same time you want him to take money out of his pocket because you are personally offended by his business model.

I'm not buying $300 millies, but again you can't gouge someone on a want.

It's tough to take your stance that you are fighting for all the little people seriously.

I'll just walk away, someone once told me to avoid trying to explain gravity to chickens.

[FCM415]

I'll just walk away, someone once told me to avoid trying to explain gravity to chickens.

Someone once told you to not talk to chickens? You must have been on a good trip.

I do not care what happens to BBS, no. I do wish the best and continued success for other dealers though.

[akaAK]

Exactly the point the person was trying to make.

[FCM415]

Exactly the point the person was trying to make.

So when is the I'll just walk away part in your sentence kick in? The bigger man inside of you is fighting the little guy. Maybe the chickens need an explanation.

[chuck_roxas45]

So if you pay and they don't have enough knives to fulfill all their paid orders, they won't refund you?

[Barman]

For as much complaining that's going on in this thread, BBS is getting some serious advertising.
And honestly, they'll sell every one of them at their advertised price and most of them will never see the outside of a safe. :rolleyes:

[CarbonFiberNut]

And honestly, they'll sell every one of them at their advertised price and most of them will never see the outside of a safe. :rolleyes:

Ah, what I like to call "the full Busse"

:D

[Ken44]

I've never bought from BBS, and I never will.

[Ken44]

Ah, what I like to call "the full Busse"

:D

People do use their Busse knives, and many very hard. I suppose there are as many(or more) Spyderco safe queens than Busse.

[Donut]

It kind of sucks that Chuck's and my desire for a Blue CTS-20CP Military turned into this. The picture they have of the military suggests that they are very close to production.

I think the price is interesting. It will definitely disable the flippers from turning a huge profit and it will stop most of everyone else from wanting to buy them. There is no doubt in my mind that many of the people who complain about the pricing are the ones who will try to turn a profit off of them.

I'm sure this one won't sell out in 6 days like the Green Para. I wonder how long they'll stay on Bento's shelves. Does anyone know how long it took Bento to sell out the first run of Blue Paras? I'm betting this one will be much longer.


I will not be buying a Blue Military from Bento unless they have a sale on them. With the way the secondary market has been going, I will probably try to trade an Orange or Blue Para for a Blue Military. $120 or $190 seems like a reasonable price for a Blue S90V Military.

[CarbonFiberNut]

People do use their Busse knives, and many very hard. I suppose there are as many(or more) Spyderco safe queens than Busse.

Sure, many do - but I've never seen the "safe queen" culture so pervasive as it is in the Busse fandom - I've met people with multiple drawers full of argonne assaults in different handles and blade coatings, people who buy tens of thousands of dollars worth of knives and never cut a thing with them.

You suspect that there are "as many" Spyderco safe queens as Busses - I doubt it. And if there are, there's probably not anywhere near the same dollar amount locked away as there are Busses. It's a fandom obsessed with hard-use knives that would rather take pictures of them leaning against a bottle of Pappy than cutting a piece of paper. IMHO, of course.