S&W Knives made in China

Love S&W handguns…great quality. I hate that S&W knives are made in China and I have none due to just that. I do have tons of made in USA Spyderco folding knives and Ontario Fixed blade Knives that are made in the USA. I think S&W cheapens their name with their knives

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SW1911, MP45, 5906, 3913, BG38

i'll tell you what. i have just about quit buying anything that is not made in the u.s.a. it is ridiculous for 10 % of our population to be out of work, with thousands of factories sitting empty, slowly dilapidating, and we keep filing into walmart to buy chinese t-shirts for 3.99.

i am realistic enough to know that i, alone, can't really make a difference, and that it is basically impossible to buy everything american, but at least it makes me feel better to try to support our labor force as much as possible.

The other day, I was replacing an inductive prox in a machine at work. Balluf brand, German, German prices, made in China. I'm going to find a USA substitute if it exists.

If S&W wants to sell me things, it better be USA or I'll pass.

Szumi

If you only bought American you wouldn't be reading this post because you wouldn't have a computer to read it on......or a TV to watch, or a microwave to heat up that burrito, or a machine to make your coffee..... We are flooded with foreign **** because decades ago, as a whole, America let it happen and continued to support it by buying the ****. People didn't buy an $18,000 Ford when a Honda was $12,000. Can someone tell me where to buy a television made in the USA? I would surely buy one.....

I am 1,000% glad we still have S&W in the US, and they didn't pull a Winchester and sell out to a Japanese company..or pull a Colt and price themselves out of the market and then turn it's back on civilian buyers...lever rifles made in Japan by Howa with the Winchester name stamped on them.....makes me want to vomit....S&W just has some cheap Chinese knife company stamp their logo on some knives so they can charge $30 for a $2 knife, they do the same with the Japanese made "S&W optics line"........the day I ever have to see a Japanese made S&W revolver is when I just give up the whole gun thing and take up fly fishing or something It's bad enough the S&W 2000 or 3000 or whatever it was, the shotgun and rifle made by Howa "to S&W specs" that was around in the 70's-90's had to exist......

Well put, Stan!

it is absolutely true that a lot of stuff we have to have every day is made in china, et.al. it is also true that it took quite a long time for us to end up in this situation (although NAFTA provided a huge wave). in 1985, 90% of the clothes sold in the u.s. were made in the u.s. in 2009, 5% of the clothes sold in the u.s. were made in the u.s.

we CAN find stuff that is made in the u.s. to buy. we CAN refuse to buy stuff made overseas, strictly because it is made overseas. if i need a t-shirt, i CAN find one that is made in the u.s. if i need a new knife, i can definitely find one that is made in the u.s. if i need a new leather belt, i can find one that is made in the u.s. if i need new dinner plates, i can find some that were made in the u.s.

if i need a car, it gets a little complicated. if i need a tv or a computer, it may, very well, be impossible.

my thought is: it took us several decades to come to the point where the vast majority of **** we buy is made somewhere else, and a huge chunk of our population is out of work, or doing some service-type job, instead of actually producing something. it is probably impossible to get back to where even MOST of the **** we buy is made in the good ole u.s.a., but i think it is becoming more important every day to try to do what we can do to support our own economy.

if i buy a knife, i can assure you, it will be made in the u.s.a., and i can assure you that i will NOT buy one that is made in china.

So many of the " name brand " knive's are being made in China now . Check closely before buying . Brand means nothing nowdays .

American business feared the Japanese who feared the Koreans who feared the..... well everybody fears the Chinese and Indians. Don't worry, when labor costs and standard of living in the US finally equals that of China, India, Guatemala... Smith & Wesson will again make their knives here in America.

It is harder these days to buy American, I bought a Dodge Magnum because I have always had American cars, and the Hemi engine was made in Mexico and the rest of the car assembled in Ontario, on top of the fact that it's a 2005 model so it was a "Daimler-Chrysler".......Japanese car makers have factories in the US now so they can say they employ American workers.

We need to educate some new gun buyers too, a lot of younger guys are buying those tacti-cool Springfield XD's thinking Springfield Armory is a US company and they don't even notice the "Made in Croatia" in small print on the slide. I bought a Springfield 1911A1 and it's made in Brazil. Taurus has captured a lot of the "first time" gun buyer market as people suck up those PT1911's and 85 snubs. Each person looking for a .38 snub or .357 revolver, who buys a Taurus probably would have spent a bit more and got a S&W or Ruger if the cheaper import hadn't have been sitting in the case.

I'm at the point now in my "gun collecting and shooting career" that if S&W, Ruger, Remington or Mossberg, Ithaca, Savage, etc. didn't make it, I don't need it. I can tolerate older British guns as collectibles like Enfields and Webleys. I'm also selling off a lot of my military rifles, I had some Japanese rifles and pistols but the fact that they were made to kill US and allied troops disgusted me so I sold them off, I didn't even want to own them. I own 1 K98 and I'm about to sell that one too. And I also won't own another Glock. I know I myself won't make an impact, but it's more personal satisfaction. I may sometime soon buy a "poly" pistol in .40 and .45, and the S&W M&P looks to be just as good as any Block made in Austria.

My 2 cents. I don't want to ignite a S--t Storm about S&W Chinese knives BUT They aren't bad quality. Personally I like Buck and Gerber Folders but for a a small very inexpensive throwaway knife the S&W Chinese line is great! I bought 20 of them 2 years ago at "Big Lots" for $5.00 each. They were the small rubber handle ones, sharp like a razor and hold an edge forever. I gave some to friends for Xmas [I'm cheap] and sold the rest at gun shows for $12 each. The Winchester Chinese line is almost as good but a little more clunkier - not as streamlined. I work at a Harley-Davidson Dealership and see tons of Asian replacement parts. My opinion is if the HD Motor company gives the Asian supplier the blueprints and monitors Quality Control the product will do the same job and last as long as the USA part. HD used to have 2 lines of replacement parts [USA and Taiwanese] because there was so much competition from aftermarket parts suppliers and they were loosing marketshare. Now a lot of HD accessories and parts are just made in Asia and Harley doesn't bother with 2 lines of products. When I worked for Volkswagen in the 1980's alot of our replacement parts came from VW factories in Brazil and Japan. Yamaha even has motorcycles built in Taiwan using Red Chinese parts!!! The bikes are too expensive to be produced profitably in Japan!! I don't like it but everybody does it. GM, VW, Harley and alot of other companies outsource in Asia.

I like Donald Trumps idea on how to fix this trade deficite, put a tariff on Chinese goods and use the money from the tariff to pay back the money we owe them.. Kill to birds with one stone, spur manufacturing in the US and pay off the dept

I have a few China made knives by CRKT, Cold steel, and Spyderco (Byrd line). They are OK. None of them are collectible or things that I care to leave my kids/grandkids. I can think of nothing made in China that I appreciate or cherish. I am not proud to own them they are just cheap China tools. I lose them…who cares! My nice knives (German, UK, USA, and Japanese) I would not leave in the truck. Cheap China knives I do. China knives have there place, but my point is they cheapen the S&W Brand.

All my S&W stainless handguns I expect to hand down. I do admire them. I am proud to own them.

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SW1911, MP45, 5906, 3913, BG38

While I too appreciate Made in the USA, it is a lot more complicated than what y'all are making it out to be. Increase the tariff on Chinese imports then they stop buying our produce and you just put 1,000 west coast farmers out of business. People typically buy what they can afford and if USA products get too expensive compared to similar products from other countries, then guess what happens. The more wages increase, the costlier the goods and services. With the cost of labor it may be that S&W can produce a quality knife here to sell for $50. The same quality knife made in China out of the same steel will sell here for $15. It's a global market and has been a global market since the beginning of the colonies here. S&W could build a factory here with all Japanese and German machines and equipment, to make knives in the USA. If you want made in the USA then do your homework and stick to your principles because of your perception of quality or patriotism. That being said, I do my research on products and buy US made products because I believe the products are better, patriotism, and I'm willing to spend considerable more for the privilege.

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Work hard to get you there.

I bought myself a folding knife for a stocking stuffer. Teeny-tiny 1-1/2" blade in brushed stainless. I made the mistake of assuming (yeah, I know) that since my little S&W Executive cost almost $20 it was USA made. Nope, Chinese.
And I'm sorry to say this, but this was no doubt run on some automated machine by the thousands. If it can't be manufactured in the U.S. and S&W can't show a profit at a $20 price tag, something's wrong on this side of the pond.

Off-shore manufacturers don't have the following opportunities: Occupational Safety & Health Act (OSHA) rules, Environmental Impact Statements (EPA) for everything leaving a facility [waste water, old oil, manufacturing waste], income taxes, property taxes. Work place safety, training, machine tool safety, work place chemicals, MSDS sheets, etc.

Another interesting challenge is the knowledge and intelligence of the work force. Don't even get me started on work ethic. Working people between 1948 and 1980 could solve a problem. They wanted to be the best they could be. Today showing up for work on time is a major challenge. Most companies today have an attendance policy that is pages long detailing 'excused' or 'unexcused' absences, arriving late, ................. .

Government is non-functioning or incredibly inefficient at every level, the education system in this country is broke, "do it yourself" and "personal responsibility" don't exist, and we complaining about American made products? Government destroyed corporate initiative and risk taking, everything must be 110% safe, and nobody fails in school.

Now let's all go out and practice our team building skills.

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S&WHF 366

As a teacher I see this "lack of accountability" on a daily basis. It makes me sick to my stomach but there is very little one can do because it is such a big problem and if you try to change it you might as well beat your head into a wall because I have found you will get about the same results. It makes me fear for the future of our country.

pax

This post is not about the Nanny State or dumbing down of kids in public schools. It’s about S&W Knives being land fill and not Brand enhancing.

Tonight I just ordered “FIVE” made in USA Kershaw Ken Onion Leek Knifes and Kershaw Ken Onion Chive Pink Knifes (wife) for $125.08 shipped to my house. Fact, I have a whole dresser draw full of NIB folding knives all made in USA tactical folders that I find online on clearance or on sale and I buy more than one. I found three Buck Knives made in USA on clearance at China-Mart last month. Major knife companies online always have sales and clearances.

Buck Knives are going back to all made in USA (they moved to Idaho)
Spyderco Knives have many made in Colorado
Ontario Knives (NY) make all the big fixed knives in NY many for the military
Kershaw (Oregon) still makes many in Portland
Gerber (Oregon) still makes some in Portland
Too many others to list here. Not a complete list.

Beretta brand uses a high end (Seki, Japan) not China Junk
SIG brand uses a high end Knife Company (Seki, Japan and Italy) not China Junk
Harley-Davidson brand knives have been made by Benchmade, Buck, and Gerber

Smith & Wesson should do the same! This is less about price point and more about a long-term quality Brand. Be Colt not Taurus!

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SW1911, MP45, 5906, 3913, BG38

You are right... I apologize for going off on an unrealted tangent.

I just purchased a couple S&W knives and I think they will serve their purpose. Just for the car and emergencies in my case.

Now on the opposite side of the specturm I have a brother who just graduated from the police academy and I would like to buy him a nice folding duty knife to wear on his belt. I looked at S&W M&P knives but now I am unsure about picking one out due to reading some comments on this post. Any suggestions for this? Obviously quality is important in his line of work...

swDC

I am not saying your brother might not like a S&W knife or that it will not work. I have one S&W Urban Cammo tactical knife that I keep in the truck. I do not care if it gets lost or stolen. That's the point. just another cheap junk tool in my truck.

My good knives I take care of and I will pass down many of them to my family. Sadly, none will be S&W knives.

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SW1911, MP45, 5906, 3913, BG38

The circle will not stop. Americans want products that cost less because their income has gone down. That means products made abroad , which means less production jobs for Americans.

A friend and I received a few veteran hats for Xmas. Very nice , well made hats. Mine , 1 camo and 1 blue w/gold said US Navy Veteran , his 2 , 1 camo and 1 scarlet w/gold lettering said US Marine Corps - Vietnam Veteran.

The tags on all 4 of them said Made in Vietnam!

The S&W knives are actually very well made. Just because they're made in China , don't make them junk.
The Chinese learn quickly , much like the Japanese did post WWII.
Good steel and some pretty cool designs. I've bought quite a few on Ebay. I really like the black 1/2 serrated 24/7 folders. Been carrying one for about 10 years now.

You sound like those people who complain about Jap-Scrap and ride a new Harley.

Wanna really get ticked off? Go into your local Harley Davidson shop. Probably half the componants of a 2011 motorcycle is made abroad. Been that way for many years.

Then go into the H-D fashion boutique. Yeah , the t-shirts festooned with Old Glory , eagles , red/white/blue , and proclamations of all things American. Then look at the tag and see where it was made. The parts , the trinkets , the bling-bling. And yes , many H-D knives are made in China by the same company probably. They both are imported by Taylor Cutlery

Go to the HD factory (for what few items are made there) and look at all the Okuma machining centers. They weren't made in Milwaukee Wi, or Cincinnati OH , or Bridgeport CT.

"complain about Jap-Scrap (that was my fathers generation) and ride a new Harley" (I do not) nor do I need one. I like tangible things that appreciate in value slowly over time and that are generally timeless; gold, silver, guns, nice knives, pro-grade hand tools, etc. I am not against China as I have a Chinese Silver Panda, but silver is silver at .999% pure. Japan started as Harbor Freight type low-end stuff, but now Japan is a leader in high end steel today. Japan is above Germany and the USA in some knife areas. China is no where near this. Someday maybe, but not today and not close. BTY, I have been to China and Japan many times.

I did some missions with a French Foreign Legion officer in Afghanistan and he was very proud to own a S&W .357 revolver in France and said so. He would not be proud to have a S&W knife. He carried a Cold Steel, but wanted a Randall made Knife (Florida) like those from WWII carried.

My only point is the S&W knives are not brand enhancing like the guns are.

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SW1911, MP45, 5906, 3913, BG38

Some of the early S&W knives I have are marked Made in Taiwan , which of course now is under full Chinese control. Bought them from MSC Industrial Supply.

I'm a toolmaker by trade and have Rockwell tested some of my blades and they're right about 60c , they take and hold an edge well.

Now the Winchester branded blades sold at WalMart , yes , they're junk.

A few years back Columbia River Knife & Tool blades were the hottest thing going. Now , CRKT knives are made in China.

CRKT knives have great designs, but the only Soldier I saw in Afghanistan with a rusty knife was a CRKT. It was rusting attached to his vest and he was not happy. They also fall into my buy cheap and leave in truck type knives. The CRKT Carson Design M16-14DSFG was the best size knife for me that I have ever found.

Winchester is Gerber Knives cheap import line and very poor QC.

I read some place that the Taiwain knife factory is the largest in the world.

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SW1911, MP45, 5906, 3913, BG38

I didnt read all the posts in this thread, so forgive me if someone has already touched on this..

How about Springfield Armory. They have a new one out called the XDm40 and molded right into the frame is "Made in Croatia"...

I was gonna look for some Springfields 1911 style micro .45s at the next gun show... But not any more. Ill look at others that are still made here in the good ol USA

Well , in case ya don't know , most of Springfield Inc.s 1911s are made in Brazil. And those models that ya think are made 'here' , are made from raw or semi-finished forgings made in Brazil. Always have been. But thankfully they are NOT made by Taurus. the forgings and finished guns are made by Itajuba , aka , Imbel and are very high quality.

I retired from the Nat. Guard as a full time mechanic and it made me sick to find that a lot of the parts we were using were made outside of the US. For example the radiators on the jeeps were made in Isreal and bearings in Bulgaria. As far as knives go here in TN Smokey Mountain Knife works has knives made in China by the hundreds of thousands and sells them on TV for anywhere from 6 to 20 dollars. They can sell genuine stag handle knives that are good quality for 10 dollars. Just think what the people are getting that make them and you know SMKW is making a profit. I collect a few knives mostly Case and Queen but will not buy a Chinese or any other made with slave labor. JM2C

Oh I don't know about that, I think S&W real problem can be repaired with getting rid of the lawyer lock found on most of their new revolvers,
far as the knives go, they just sold out a lil' bit, not like Ingersoll Rand, Black & Decker and some other companies whose products are synonomus with the words "Planned Obsolesence"

Great comments. I too am sick and tired of imported junk. I'm sorry but I haven't seen any Chinese steel that was worth the effort to forge it. I have one, yes 1, Chinese knife (thought it was made here) and it's in my tackle box - looks nice but won't cut and won't hold an edge. I'm willing to pay the extra money for American made goods because I know the quality will be be there. Bought any hardware (screws, nuts, bolts, etc) lately, don't get me started. Let's modernize our steel mills by being a little more industry friendly, and get them back up and running. If you want me to buy an S&W branded knife, you are going to have to make it here.

The last person said in his last sentence.

S&W branded knife. These knives that you all speak of are most likely all made in the same place. NOT by S&W. (we know that) but S&W is just leasing their name to be put on them. They (S&W) have nothing to do with them other then the name. I work for one of the largest companies in the world, and our name,,, er meatball is on thousand of items that we do not make. They lease the name to other companies.

So just because it says S&W doesnt mean its made by them or even for them. Its just marketing on the china's end to get us to buy it.

Exactly, besides If the knives were really made by S&W you'd know it by the lawyer lock each one would be equipped with.

Last summer, I caught a closeout on a S&W Bowie, clearly marked made in China, and it's a darned decent knife in a really decent scabbard. For $27.00 OTD, you'd better believe it came home! Hell, even if it turned into a "throw-down", it's worth that!
Fer all the whinin', how many people over the years have swooned over Belgian Brownings?
To be honest, I'd just as soon pay the Chinese as give money to the unions here! (all ya gots to do is take a look at where a great big old chunk of the Prez's money, and Dingy Harry's election funds came from, and it's reason enough for me to not contribute)
When you hold your finger out and point at someone, take a second and see how many are pointed back at yourself.
I'd have nothing but "Made in the USA" in my house, yard, and my vehicles, if I could afford 'em and they were available, but they're NOT.

At middle age I like nice things. Knives are made in the USA (with no availability or even a real price issue problem here). Yes, its $50 vs $20. I know of nothing made in China that is top rated? Anyone know anything made in China that is top rated? I have pans, water filters, and a few knives made by the Swiss as they make great stuff. It’s not an anti-China thing it's a China produces bottom level products and if I wanted bottom level product (revolvers) I would get Taurus not S&W. Are Taurus revolvers as nice as S&W? I do not think so. They are cheaper and with a cheaper reputation also. Heck, S&W is now coping Taurus with the new .410 revolver, but that does not make me want a Taurus one.

I for one do not plan on leaving my kids/grandkids Taurus and China knives…just me!

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SW1911, MP45, 5906, 3913, BG38

Was just over at Ebay looking thru all things S&W , and could not comprehend the differences in starting prices for some of them.

Why this guy ,

SMITH & WESSON S&W 24-7 KNIFE - eBay (item 380317030273 end time Feb-22-11 06:27:40 PST)

, wants $45 to start for a knife everyone else starts at $0.01 and usually sells for $10,

Smith & Wesson SWAT 24-7 Serrated Linerlock Knife NEW - eBay (item 230586650968 end time Feb-22-11 17:38:48 PST)

is beyond me.

To add to the confusion and complexity, the Kahr company, which also owns Auto Ordnance is owned by the Moonies (Unification Church). The products are manufactured in the US (last I heard), but the company is owned by the Moonies. I don't know about you guys, but I WOULD NOT buy a gun from them. I'm not giving them my money for any reason.

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S&W 645, 3913, 59, 669

Dammit,
Why didn't you tell me that two months ago when I bought all the Kahr guns?

No , it's not. It is owned by the son of Rev. Sun Yung Moon , founder of that Unification church , but he has nothing to do with his father. Supposedly , he's quite embarrassed by him.

Would you rather deal with the pedifile filled Roman Catholic Church

Chinese metalurgy is still in the dark ages. I wouldn't trust my life with anything made of metal from China.

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Go West young man..

china mart sells these for 5-10 bucks around christmas....(woops....holiday time..dont want to piss off any libs) a few years back a gift set was given to me...i carried the knife a few times up until the top quarter of the blade broke right off...i will stick with spyderco, benchmade and cold steel...they have never failed, not the lock, not the blade..they hold an edge even after alot of use/abuse.

This is the kind of head-up-yer-butt thinking behind Americas losing it's manufacturing base. Several US steel and metal companies are doing business in China , with more modern furnaces and cheaper labor. Cheaper mining labor and vast resources too. Millions of tons of steel and other metals are brought from China , rerolled , and marked USA. I used to work for a Mueller plant , one of the worlds largest copper , brass and aluminum companies. We'd get Chinese metals , rework it , and VIOLA , Made in USA.

BTW, The last Boker I bought had a blade made in China.

China does not have all bad steel, but true high end knives and steel come from Japan, German, Italy, and the USA. So far there is nothing made in China that I have that is something that I really like, just use. That day may change, but is not here yet.

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SW1911, MP45, 5906, 3913, BG38

Quote: BTW, The last Boker I bought had a blade made in China.

Yep, me too. Boy was I disappointed.

I've recently turned my attention from guns to knives and decided to buy a new skinning knife and a new everyday carry knife. I own a few knives but decided I wanted something better than the Winchester knives I have been using.

So I went looking with the one stipulation that the knives have to be Made in the USA. I used to make my living in manufacturing and now teach machining at the HS level.

I looked at a lot of knives and even in the same brand you have to be careful. Some Gerbers/Buck/Kershaw etc are made in the US, some are assembled in the US and some are made in China.

What I ended up with was a new Buck 490/590 skinning knife/guthook combo with nylon sheath and a Kershaw Leek for the everyday carry knife. Super happy with both of them. Both are Made in the USA but were on the shelf right next to other knives from the same companies that were made in China.