Am I being picky?........Picture heavy (ish)

[sxmolloy]

Following on from this thread http://www.bushcraftuk.com/index.php/Forums.html I went ahead and ordered a 2 bladed clip / castrator pocket knife.

It arrived really quick and I thought I was on a winner. After opening the clip blade though it was evident that something was amiss, the blade never fully opened, it wouldn't lie flush with the bolster top, and after careful inspection I could see the gap between the top of the blade and the bolster.

I rang Premier Cutlery and explained my position to a nice sounding lady who said to send it back, it would be inspected and if needs be a replacement sent out and postage would be refunded. So off I toddled to the post office and a week later a replacement arrived on my door mat.

Unfortunately once I opened the knife again I had exactly the same problem.

So, for approx. £20 delivered have I got what I paid for in your opinion, am I just being picky? I'm not overly happy with the quality of the knife, but on the other hand I do quite like it apart from the issue with the blade, so is there a way I could rectify the problem myself?

Thanks in advance....Stu

 

[Scrimmy]

Not the most experineced to answer, but i would send it back, it might be a faulty line, it looks out of place and could close up, the company should repay the postage aswell.

 

[Jedadiah]

Stu,

i don't think your being picky. Did you order and pay for a knife with these faults? No, i don't think you did. Is it fit for purpose? If it was, you would not be asking the question. If it was me, i'd be sending it back after speaking to some management fella and securing some assurances. Either that or a 'sweetener' or a refund.

 

[IntrepidStu]

Stu,

i don't think your being picky. Did you order and pay for a knife with these faults? No, i don't think you did. Is it fit for purpose? If it was, you would not be asking the question. If it was me, i'd be sending it back after speaking to some management fella and securing some assurances. Either that or a 'sweetener' or a refund.

I agree. In this case the law is on you side. It looks dangerous to me mate.

 

[Bushcraft4life]

I think you should get a refund, that is definately NOT safe and the quality is poor.

Even if it was only £20 i would still expect quality, considering for cheaper you can get some really nice lockers and a prime example although not a lock knife is the Frosts Mora which costs pittance and is yet regarded as one of the best user blades out there.

Refund or assurances that you would be getting the quality blade you ordered if returning it for a replacement.

 

[Barak]

I'd definitely send it back and get a refund. Spend the money on a Victorinox SAK, excellent quality knives and you can even put wood scales on it if you prefer a more rustic feel.

 

[bigjackbrass]

I have the single blade Barlow, virtually identical to your knife but (obviously) with only the clip blade. Looking at it now the knife opens smoothly and clicks into place with the blade nicely in line with the handle. Yours quite clearly doesn't and I'd say that makes it defective.

The quality on the Taylor's knives is decent and I think they're great everyday knives, things to use rather than to collect, but clearly quality control should not have let something so blatant get through. Did you send a photo of the problem or a detailed description when you returned it? Regardless, I'd have thought that the customer services people could have spotted the fault quickly enough.

Complaining that the grain on the wood doesn't appeal to you might be picky. Complaining that the product clearly fails to work as intended certainly isn't.

 

[sxmolloy]

Spend the money on a Victorinox SAK (posted by Barak)

I already have 3 Victorinox SAK's which I'm more than happy with, I just fancied something different this time, thanks though.


Did you send a photo of the problem or a detailed description when you returned it? (posted by bigjackbrass)

I only wrote a letter detailing what the problem was first time, this time I'll send a photo, it's not an easy thing to explain really. That said though receiving 2 knives with the same problems is raising some worries at my end.

Thanks for the replies....ATB....Stu

PS How do I multi quote from the thread?

 

[scanker]

You use the button next to quote that has "+ on it to select the posts you want to quote (they turn red). Then press the quote button as usual.

 

[sxmolloy]

How do I multi quote from the thread?

You use the button next to quote that has "+ on it to select the posts you want to quote (they turn red). Then press the quote button as usual.

Cheers Scanker, more sound advice....ATB....Stu

 

[Sickboy]

Things should line up even on a £20 knife. Just bought a Opinel #9 for £7 of ebay and theres no play or gapping on it.
I'd be getting a refund and looking elsewhere for my user

 

[DoctorSpoon]

Sorry, only just spotted this thread. What you're seeing is the result of the long, slow decline of the Sheffield knife making industry. What was a skilled, machine assisted task has become more and more degraded as they increasingly try to compete with Chinese mass-production. The blades and springs are stamped out to a standard pattern but each mechanism needs a little hand-tweaking to make it run smoothly. To retail such a knife at £20 means it is being wholesaled at around £7 so the amount of skilled human input it's going to have had is absolutely minimal.

It's why Spyderco knives cost what they do; each is carefully laser-cut out and then still hand fitted to make them run smoothly. Supply is restricted because of a shortage of skilled craftsmen to finish them.

If you've not sent it back yet it's possible to align the blade yourself. I'll post you instructions later this morning when I'm in work.
Nicola

 

[Kepis]

Personally i would send that one back and demand a replacement or refund.

You might want to have a look at http://www.sheffield-pocketknives.com/Trevor_Ablett_hand_made_pocket_knives.htm I just got me a Trevor Ablett off them for £20.00,

i only came across it as i was just browsing the net, went to the Littlemesters site and a pop up came up stating they were having a sale, all Trevor Ablett pocket knives for £20.00/each inc P&P, and it arrived next day, i did read on the popup that the sale was for one week only though, but, the pop up is still appearing on their site this morning, you might want to drop them them a line to see if they are willing to extend the deal, if, not then £25.00 for an T Ablett is still a steal in anyones book, so much so, i have a further three knives on back order with them.

 

[DoctorSpoon]

Firstly I should explain my knife-geekery! I'm currently working on a university-based research project looking into traditional Sheffield knives, how to save what little knowledge remains and how to pass it onto a new generation of knife makers. So, I'm a little obsessed and know an unhealthy amount about what goes on inside your average folding knife

This is a problem where the end of the spring meets the 'back square' of the blade:

It's caused by the edge of the blade becoming a little distorted as it is stamped out of a sheet of metal and is easily fixed with a little filing as it's being put together, but they don't seemed too fussed about it. If you look at the Trevor Ablett knives here you'll see many are the same.

To fix it yourself you need a file with a square edge and a little patience. If you open the blade to the half-stop it should reveal the back square enough to get the file in there:

It's best to take it very slowly so you don't take too much away. File a couple of strokes, open it and look, file again etc until the blade sits up. Take care to keep the file nice and square - at right angles to the blade.

Good luck!
Nicola

edited to add: maver your Ablett looks just the same to me - the blade is not in line with the handle!

 

[sxmolloy]

Thanks all, especially Nicola for that great insight. I returned the knife yesterday with a letter and some photographs to help with the explanation of why I am unhappy. The knives come blister packed though, so unless they open the packet they can't check the knife before it is sent out.

I will just have to see what they say. I did pick up a nice little 2 bladed Magnum penknife on ebay a few weeks ago, and I have had it in my pocket ever since, so I'm not short of something to use whilst this is sorted out.

Thanks again and I will keep you updated.

Stu

 

[sxmolloy]

Well, I finally got a response to my letter from Taylor's Eye Witness, it goes like this:

"I am sorry you have found our product to be unsatisfactory and enclose herewith a cheque to replace the purchase price and carriage.

yours sincerely"

There was no it was a faulty line and unfortunately.......or we don't know how 2 faulty knives have passed our quality control inspectors......

It's more like they are saying this is the way we make them, this is the quality you should expect. Well, they have certainly lost any further custom from me, and if they keep knocking out knives of this sort of quality I'm sure they will lose much more custom in the not so distant future. Another thing that has peeved me off is that they have refunded me by cheque, I don't see why they couldn't refund my debit card as this is how I paid in the first place I'm not bothering to query this though, it's not worth the hassle and time.

Thanks for all responses....Best wishes....Stu