Stohlman Skivers On Sale At Tandy

[miel zaphia]

Building my tool supply on a budget. Just purchased a Tandy head knife on sale for $35.00 (still planning on getting a nice Knipshield french style head knife but thought the Al Stohlman would do fine for the time being).

Does anyone have any opinions as to whether the head knife can perform well as one of these skivers? or is it worth jumping on the sale?

Thanks~

[mojave]

Just because a high priced tool has a famous name on it, doesn't mean its worth the $, The toolmakers charge high $ for their tools because the customer wants the name. Most tools made in other countries are just as good and some that are "hand made" and sale for a lot less $. The well known leatherworkers on this site are Craftsman & Craftswomen, in their own right, and skills have been in their families and past on for years. So, when I read how one tool is better than another because its hand made, well, that is one persons view.

Thats all I have to say about that

[miel zaphia]

Just because a high priced tool has a famous name on it, doesn't mean its worth the $, The toolmakers charge high $ for their tools because the customer wants the name. Most tools made in other countries are just as good and some that are "hand made" and sale for a lot less $. The well known leatherworkers on this site are Craftsman & Craftswomen, in their own right, and skills have been in their families and past on for years. So, when I read how one tool is better than another because its hand made, well, that is one persons view.

Thats all I have to say about that

The knife is handmade in both circumstances; whether crafted by a knife-smith or assembled by hand in a foreign factory (possibly by little children or other under paid laborers- hence the lower price!) The difference is choosing to support someone who has a personal investment in his/her craft and receiving a quality tool as a result rather than investing your money in something mass produced poorly.

For example, I recently purchased a Tandy craftsman industrial knife set which had to be returned as it arrived bent and non-fuctioning- this poorly produced product either had a manufacturing defect, or couldn't even withstand the shipping from China to Canada. Regardless, the knife was returned and I decided to spend my money on something of higher quality instead, supporting a person and not a corporation.

Quality of course is subjective, but it could be argued that a knife hand crafted by one of the more highly recommended knife-smiths is likely to arrive in one piece and if cared for properly, last a lifetime. In most cases I am happy to buy bargain price items but am aware that in some cases, price is a reflection of quality and one must be willing to make that sacrifice when purchasing.

[BDAZ]

My 3 knives arrived this afternoon and all appear to be quite sharp and well made and certainly worth the $19.95 each cost. The speculation that these were made by children is ludicrous! While they are probably not of the quality for a hand made knife by one of the well known makers, they will do the job they were designed for at a fraction of the cost. Once I become proficient with these knives I may purchase a high quality US made one if it is justified by useage.

Cya!

Bob

[texback]

X2 Bob. Got mine in today and they are really nice blades, and seem to be pretty darn sharp.....something I didn't quite expect. For 20 bucks each I think they are well worth the money.