Boycott Benchmade

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Jusme
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Re: Boycott Benchmade

#31

Post by Jusme »

The Annoyed Man wrote: Fri Feb 22, 2019 2:17 pm
Bitter Clinger wrote: Fri Feb 22, 2019 12:46 pm
strogg wrote: Fri Feb 22, 2019 12:29 pm
TexasJohnBoy wrote: Fri Feb 22, 2019 11:25 am
WildBill wrote: Fri Feb 22, 2019 11:24 am
TexasJohnBoy wrote: Fri Feb 22, 2019 11:18 am
This by itself isn't anti 2a, but it brings other things about the company to light. See my previous post.

edit to add: And regardless of any of this discussion, it was a stupid PR move to have yourself photographed destroying guns as requested by the police (lawfully or otherwise) and posted to Facebook. Here conspiracy theorists -- have some material!
I understand your position. I have never owned a benchmark product. I just don't care for them, but I don't agree with calls for a boycotts such as this. :tiphat:
Full boycott is probably premature, yes. But it does shine a light on them for sure. Maybe the light will encourage them to solidify their support for the 2A a bit more.
:tiphat: to you too, sir
I agree with the sentiment. I am not going to put them on my naughty list. They're doing as their asked, and to be fair, if their stuff is high enough quality to decimate firearms, that's showing something for their quality. Just because some of them donate to the Democratic party doesn't mean anything to me. Anti-2A is not the party's only stance. Until someone with authority or clout in Benchmade come out with a truly anti-2A statement, I'm not going to think of them any differently.
:iagree: Wonder how many of our "boycott Benchmade" advocates also carry an Apple iphone?
:lol: Touché, sir! :lol:

There are SOME things I will boycott, and other things that just aren’t worth the effort to me to boycott. And some protests just make no financial sense at all. I’m not buying anything from Dicks Sporting Goods anymore, since they’re too politically correct for modern sporting rifles...PLUS, they completely shafted bulk ammo makers who manufactured large batches of “Dick’s” head-stamped ammo for them, and then didn’t take delivery on it or pay them for it....which to me is a MUCH bigger issue than their decision not to sell MSRs. I won’t buy anything at Whole Foods for obvious reasons. I don’t own any UnderArmor wear, and won’t be buying any. It’s not that I think all boycotts are ridiculous....it’s just that I think some boycotts are ridiculous tiltings at windmills.

On the other hand, I am NOT going to throw out or destroy perfectly good material possessions I already paid for and use, because of outrage about something that a company or its employees did or didn’t do.....AFTER I bought said item. That’s just dumb. Like I said in my previous post: I’m not going to trash my S&W revolvers because S&W caved on gun locks way back when; I’m not going to chop up my Ruger pistol or rifle because Bill Ruger wrote an asinine letter about magazine capacities to Congress in 1989. I’m not going to trash my Wife’s Jeep Cherokee, because Fiat decided to have a line of jeeps manufactured in China.

Will you burn or crush your Ford or Chevy pickup truck because they were manufactured by UAW labor, whose union dues support the very worst antigun politicians of the democrat party? If you will destroy your Benchmade knife (or Igloo cooler, or UnderArmor shirts), but you won’t destroy your Ford or Chevy pickup truck in protest, then you’re a hypocrite - plain and simple. How many of you went out and had your GMC trucks put in the crusher when GM became “Government Motors” in 2009 under Obama? Please put your money where your mouths are, OR.... calm down and get some perspective.

It’s EASY to say “I’ll never buy [insert widget here] because [yada yada]”, if you never owned any of those widgets in the first place, and probably weren’t ever going to anyway. That’s not really a sacrifice, and without the sacrifice, the protest is pretty empty. And it is equally empty to say, “I’d probably destroy my [widget] if I had one”. You don’t have one, so that’s just blowing smoke. You can EASILY spend upwards of $200-$300 on a Benchmade knife. Anyone who says they’d destroy that $200-$300 knife because it was made by Benchmade? I’d say, “go ahead, but give me a minute to get a lawn chair; I want to watch this.” Time for some truth. You know you wouldn’t, so just admit it and don’t pound your chest about it. It’s not a good look.

Here’s a much simpler way to manage these things - and easier to LIVE WITH too - if you’re that upset about it......don’t buy any more of the hated company’s [widgets] going forward. I buy Wrangler jeans these days, but I still own a couple favorite pairs of Levi’s - a pretty liberal company. I’m not going to burn my Levi’s just to satisfy the outrage of the day.

Easily HALF of the country right now disagrees to one extent or another with my right to keep and bear arms. If I had to preface every purchasing decision with an investigation into the political practices of a given manufacturer’s or retail outlet’s executives, I’d never buy anything at all. I don’t know for sure exactly how many knives I actually own, but it’s probably into the teens if you include the El-Cheapos. Six of my knives are what I would call “higher quality” knives. (By “higher quality”, I mean any knife which is well crafted out of good tool steel or SV30 or better stainless, and costs in excess of $100.) FIVE of those are Benchmades, and one is a Spyderco. I love the watchmaker’s quality of the Benchmade folders. I love Benchmade’s “AXIS®” system. I like the quality of their steel. I like how they open and close like they were on ball bearings, and how they make all those little clicks, like a Colt Single Action Army being cocked. I really like Benchmade knives. I’m not going to junk the ones I have over this issue.

Funny thing is, as much as I like my Benchmades, my EDC is my left-handed Spyderco Paramilitary 2 with black G-10 scales. LOL. Not because I think it’s a better knife than the Benchmades, but because it’s a really good working knife that I don’t care too much if it gets scuffed up in my pocket, being carried every day. The Benchmades are just too pretty for scuffing. But dress me up and send me to a wedding or a funeral, and I’m carrying my Benchmade 940-2, a proper gentleman’s knife.

Now, hold up while I get ready to watch all you guys burn all your stuff....
Image


Well said TAM as usual.
Suddenly refusing to buy something, you wouldn't buy in the first place, is not a boycott, and would have exactly zero effect, on it's intended target. Before Dick's chose it's path regarding firearms, I had never spent a penny in their stores. Not spending another penny there, is not a boycott. Their prices, prevented my patronage before, so their 2A stance, just provided me another reason not to be their customer.
I feel the same way about any business, that has not gotten my money to date. They will not be hurt, by my continued avoidance. And even those that I choose not to patronize again, Yeti, Levi's, etc, will not go broke because I didn't provide enough income to keep them afloat in the first place.
I don't know the philisophical, or political slant, of the lumberjacks, who cut the trees, used to frame my house. But I'm not going to burn it down, if I find out tomorrow, that they were radical leftwing socialists. JMHO
Take away the Second first, and the First is gone in a second :rules: :patriot:
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SQLGeek
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Re: Boycott Benchmade

#32

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I guess I'll be in the minority and hold it against them. Their political donations obviously show they aren't that 2A friendly.

They could have said no, we won't be destroying guns. They chose to anyway and then Oregon City PD did something stupid and bragged about it for them. Yes I'll hold that against them. No, I'm not going to picket them or anything else beyond post about it in a few places but I will choose to patronize another knife company if the need comes up to buy another knife.

This isn't a giant multinational consumer products organization like Google or Apple. This is a knife company. Might as well compare apples and moonrocks.
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Bitter Clinger
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Re: Boycott Benchmade

#33

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As this thread has raised my awareness, I have decided to boycott all products from Iran and Afganistan.
"You may all go to H3ll, and I will go to Texas." - Davy Crockett
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Jusme
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Re: Boycott Benchmade

#34

Post by Jusme »

Bitter Clinger wrote: Mon Feb 25, 2019 9:55 am As this thread has raised my awareness, I have decided to boycott all products from Iran and Afganistan.
Right there with ya BC! I am also actively boycotting any products made in Antarctica, since they have made no move to declare their political direction, I distrust their motivations. :biggrinjester:
Take away the Second first, and the First is gone in a second :rules: :patriot:

mrvmax
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Re: Boycott Benchmade

#35

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I do refrain from buying from certain companies due to their stances (Starbucks and Target are two) but it’s difficult to know what every company supports. I’ve never heard of Benchmade’s political leanings but it will influence future purchases from them. No, I’m not going to throw out the three Benchmade knives I currently own.

Whether we like it or not, firearms are routinely destroyed and it’s more the PD’s fault than the company doing it. PD’s can auction off those firearms instead of selling them but even if they couldn’t find any business to destroy them they would end up doing it themselves. The issue here is more on the police department than anything else and it reinforces why we need to be careful who we elect.
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Jusme
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Re: Boycott Benchmade

#36

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mrvmax wrote: Mon Feb 25, 2019 11:33 am I do refrain from buying from certain companies due to their stances (Starbucks and Target are two) but it’s difficult to know what every company supports. I’ve never heard of Benchmade’s political leanings but it will influence future purchases from them. No, I’m not going to throw out the three Benchmade knives I currently own.

Whether we like it or not, firearms are routinely destroyed and it’s more the PD’s fault than the company doing it. PD’s can auction off those firearms instead of selling them but even if they couldn’t find any business to destroy them they would end up doing it themselves. The issue here is more on the police department than anything else and it reinforces why we need to be careful who we elect.

I can't speak to the condition, of the guns cut up by Benchmade, but when JCSO, and Cleburne PD combined to get rid of the guns they held from old cases, abandoned, or unclaimed stolen guns, there were very few still usable. Most had been stored for years with no maintenance, often wrapped in plastic, or simply exposed to whatever elements were present in their evidence storage. They were rusted beyond repair, had been rendered unusable, by previous owners, or were only partially assembled. This was in the early 90s and there was not a gun in the lot, that I would have wanted.
Take away the Second first, and the First is gone in a second :rules: :patriot:
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The Annoyed Man
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Re: Boycott Benchmade

#37

Post by The Annoyed Man »

AndyC wrote: Mon Feb 25, 2019 1:01 pm Image
And Kershaw makes good knives too, of which I own a couple. I also own knives by Spyderco, Gerber and CRKT. I already have all the knives I was ever likely to buy from Benchmade. Each fills a niche. I’m not going to throw away/destroy any of them because of this particular kerfuffle, as the cheapest one I own cost me in the vicinity of $120.00 in a one-time bargain sale. Whether this situation would affect future knife purchases? Maybe. Probably. But I’m not going to throw out what I’ve already paid good money for - particularly when it is a GREAT product, regardless of the company owners’ politics.

There’s nothing wrong with letting your conscience be your guide in making purchases. I’m just pointing out the emptiness of those statements when someone says, “I don’t own “X”, but if I did, I would destroy it.” I call bull on that, because (A) talk is cheap, and (B) it hurts nobody but the person who is destroying their own property. I’m drinking coffee from my Yeti mug as I type this - which was given to me as a gift, before the whole NRA/Yeti dispute. It would not only be dumb to get rid of a great product, but it would be insulting to the person who gave it to me.

Yes, there are alternatives for that kind of travel mug; but it hurts nobody but me, and maybe the person who gave it to me, if I burn my Yeti mug. Then I have to go spend whatever the price for an alternative is, just so I can have WHAT I ALREADY HAD. It makes no sense. And that’s how I feel about my Benchmade knives. I feel the same way about my S&W and Ruger firearms. I drive a Toyota, but if I drove a GM, I’d feel the same way.

BTW, my Toyota was manufactured in Japan. But you’d be hard pressed to find a vehicle built in the US, that wasn’t build by UAW Union labor. Would anyone care to examine the politicians and causes supported by the UAW? Like I said, give me a minute to go get my lawn chair before y’all burn your vehicles to the ground.

I believe strongly in the right of protest and its value as political expression, but empty protests have no value. That’s all I’m saying.
“Hard times create strong men. Strong men create good times. Good times create weak men. And, weak men create hard times.”

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The Annoyed Man
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Re: Boycott Benchmade

#38

Post by The Annoyed Man »

AndyC wrote: Mon Feb 25, 2019 4:07 pm
The Annoyed Man wrote: Mon Feb 25, 2019 3:43 pmI’m just pointing out the emptiness of those statements when someone says, “I don’t own “X”, but if I did, I would destroy it.” I call bull on that, because (A) talk is cheap, and (B) it hurts nobody but the person who is destroying their own property.
I've never urged - nor am I expecting - anyone to destroy things they currently own; that's simply foolish. MY form of protesting takes the form of NOT buying things after I know the politics of the manufacturer thereof.
Understood. I was referring to the OP’s statement when he said:
I can thankfully say I do not own any of their products. If I did own any I would most certainly destroy them.
He SHOULD be thankful that he doesn’t own a Benchmade so that he doesn’t have to, IN REALITY, put his money where his mouth is and destroy it.
“Hard times create strong men. Strong men create good times. Good times create weak men. And, weak men create hard times.”

― G. Michael Hopf, "Those Who Remain"

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cmgee67
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Re: Boycott Benchmade

#39

Post by cmgee67 »

I own a benchmade and have owned about 8 of them over the years. Good knives but I prefer other brands. I will not support them anymore. Simple as that. But I will not go destroy a good knife.

parabelum
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Re: Boycott Benchmade

#40

Post by parabelum »

I love my BM’s, especially my Contego. It is a good company, not perfect, but then, who is?
Oh, and Adamas...built like a tank. Love it
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