USMC knife value question

[valnar]

I was looking at guns on Simpson LTD and decided to look at some non-firearm items out of curiosity. Just a general question for the knife experts out there.

For knife quality, there is nothing special about this knife to warrant $800, right? I'm assuming the value is based on nostalgia, history and age? (Just like classic firearms?)

 

[JShirley]

You can get one that's a "better" knife for $100 today. Check out Kabar.

 

[valnar]

Right! Hence my question.

 

[rcmodel]

Not for a working knife certainly.

But there are not a lot of WWII PAL USN red-spacer Mark II's in that condition left.
Especially one marked USMC. Most only had the PAL info on one side.
A military knife collector would pay big for one.

I would not say it's worth $800 by any means though.

But on the other hand, I've not seen much of anything on Simpson Limited worth what they are asking for it.

rc

 

[valnar]

not a lot of WWII PAL USN red-spacer Mark II's in that condition left

OK, thanks.

 

[Shoobee]

$50 is my own threshhold of pain for any knife.

This one does about anything you would ever need on a hunting trip.

Plus the 2 blades back each other up, keeping each other sharp, for their own various jobs, gutting or skinning.

 

[ApacheCoTodd]

Rarity of configuration and condition drives this price. It seems a little high but will absolutely some day be worth it. I know several in the knife and the gun world who base their initial pricing on what an item is going to be worth and it often times works for them - odd, but it does.

 

[hso]

That value is based on the collector value which in turn is based on rarity, condition, ...

PAL USMC Fighting/Utility knives are rare.

 

[ArfinGreebly]

Quality & Value

Just a general question for the knife experts out there.

For knife quality, there is nothing special about this knife to warrant $800, right? I'm assuming the value is based on nostalgia, history and age? (Just like classic firearms?)

The short answer -- given the way you asked the question -- is basically "no."

There's nothing from a knife quality point of view that would drive a price of $800 for that knife.


If I were in the market for, shall we say, a survival knife, and I wanted something of serious righteous quality, I might look at something by Chris Reeve.

Let's take, for example, his Shadow knife.

Actually, as it happens, there's one up for auction even as I write this. The current bidding stands at under $240 (10 bids).

Here's what it looks like:

-- -- --


It's made from a single billet of steel. There are no welds or brazing or bolt-together joins. It's a solid chunk of steel that has been machined into a knife. A serious heavy use knife.

If I had serious cash available, I might just crash that party and snap it up. I doubt very much that I'd wind up spending $800 for it.

In my humble and considered opinion, that's a knife whose quality can legitimately drive a $400 price. (Never mind that they aren't made any more and never mind that the not-made-now status status probably makes it a collectible piece, so sprinkle a little more money on it.)

And, by the way, I've always wanted one of those.


Now, if you were just looking for a quality outdoor knife made of modern materials and having been proven in the wild, it's pretty much a given that there are knives of approximately that size that will flat perform in the field available for under $100.

Just a matter of what you're looking for.

 

[rcmodel]

Nice!

But can you sharpen it on a flat rock, or muddy Jeep tire if you have too like a USN Mark I or "Ka-Bar"?

BTDT!

rc

 

[Shoobee]

Shale works well for sharpening, if you first coat it with motor oil.

But I carry a diamond knife shapener with me in my hunting gear, and survival gear.

I need to add a whetting stone to it however, you have reminded me.

And a leather belt works much better for honing the edge.

All of my belts are leather. None is nylon or anything else.