TOPS Knives B.O.B. Fieldcraft Black/Grey Micarta BROS-01

Monday 22 November 2021

Saturday 13 November 2021

Wednesday 22 September 2021

BUYER BEWARE! The TOPS Knives B.O.B. Fieldcraft Black/Grey Micarta is available in 2 versions. TOPS make a model in 1095 steel, and another in 154CM steel. The 1095 knife has stainless steel screws, while the 154CM has the black oxide screws depicted in all the photographs displayed on the Knives And Tools web pages for this knife. Knives And Tools *do not* indicate that they are using photographs of the knife in 254CM for the model in 1095! I was fooled by these photos into thinking that I was buying the B.O.B. Fieldcraft in 154CM. When opening the package, I was dismayed to discover that the knife that Knives And Tools had actually sent me had the stainless steel screws, and was thus the 1095 version. I was very keen to try a knife in 154CM -- most of us will already have knives in 1095. (Apart from anything else, the aesthetics of the knife are ruined by the stainless steel screws, at least they are to my sensibilities.) Of course, if I'd bothered to read the specifications section, I'd have seen that the steel was identified as 1095. In my defence, the photographs do grab one's attention, and in a far more powerful way than does the print in the specs section. The thingofitis is, I would have happily shelled out more in order to secure the knife that I actually wanted. I have been trying to contact Knives And Tools, but it would seem they do not wish to be disturbed. The two routes to the Returns section that I've managed to find online are cul-de-sacs, and, as yet, I've not been able to get anyone to answer the 'phone. Moreover, I read that I would be responsible for the costs of shipping the knife back to the Netherlands, and, if you bother to read the small print, it would appear that Knives And Tools get to decide how much the knife is worth once it is returned! What have I learned from this experience? First, I should point out that I have recently put several orders worth more than £900 the way of Knives And Tools, and everything, until now, has been fine -- one obviously has to wait longer for stuff to arrive from the Netherlands than when purchasing from a 'local' firm. But that has not proved to be a major issue with my orders usually arriving in 3 working days. Nevertheless, this incident, especially the apparent lack of access to Customer Services, has left a sour taste in my mouth. I will need to give it some thought once I regain my composure, but I suspect that I will now be putting *all* my cutlery business the way of Heinnie Haynes with which firm I have not had any issues at all, and I've done business with HH a lot longer than with K&T. My second lesson is the obvious one: Caveat emptor!

Tuesday 16 June 2020

Wednesday 3 June 2020