All About Pocket Knives

Hey does anyone have experience with or know about the quality of Marbles Knives? They look good, but appear to be made in China, so you never know. Thanks.

The old USA Marbles are Great old knives.

Harold

I bought a Chinese made large trapper by Marbles awhile back and it seems to be of decent quality.

They're well made knives.
Here's one I just purchased.

I just sold two knives of the same pattern. One was a Puma it brought $1,250.00 The other was a Marbles made in China it brought $26.00.
In my opinion the quality of the two was not that far apart. Both knives were unused and I guess the only true way to tell if they were that far apart in quality would be to use them both for a while and see which one holds up to the test of time.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder I suppose. My opinion of these Chinese "Marbles" knives is that they are very low grade knives. They wholesale for such a low price there is no way they are made of quality materials (steel). To compare one to a Puma is like comparing a Ford Focus to a Mercedes. Not in the same league at all. Marbles never really made folders back in their heyday other than the safety folders. They did have some very nice knives with their logo on them that were made for them by Platts or Case Bros, and some made in Germany but these were all in the early 20th century.

Yes I know it may not be a fair comparison. That is why I made the comment about the test of time. I feel the Chinese knives are hurting the market for new knives. I only sell them if I think they are of decent quality, same with knives made in Pakistan. The rest I give away to grand kids nieces nephews etc. and tell them to have fun.

I only have this one Marbles Chinese made knife, a folding hunter number MR214. The polish and finish is decent, but there are things that are evident that denote it as a cheaper import knife. The blades are thinner that any other new or old folding hunter I have, the bolsters are also thinner. The handle material on the mark side on the pivot end sticks out quite noticeably with any handling of the knife. I bought it at a flea market from a dealer who had acquired it in an estate lot. It was unused and the price was $15, so I thought I'd try one. The tortoise shell-like handles look good, but I am not sure how it would hold up under hard use. And the steel used in these is ??????

Gunsil i agree with your comparison of Puma to Mercedes. Both are over hyped under performers. Last i looked Mercedes had a high incidence of first year problems, higher than Ford Focus.
I have no experience using the China made Marbles knives but i have used Rough Rider and Steel Warrior knives quite a bit. The blades in both hold their razor sharp edges very well, better than Case Tru Sharp.
I began buying/using Rough Rider knives in 2007 when they were under $10 delivered. I don't know how it can be done for so little money, but the blade steel is good, actually, very good. I used a Rough Rider 'Jumbo' Trapper to field dress a deer and cut off the lower part of legs, and skin it. The blade still shaved arm hair after all this. It was the slickest field dressing i ever did.
If RR & S.W. can have good blade steel it is highly likely the Marbles knives use the same steel.
It makes no logical sense so it is hard to believe what i say about these very inexpensive Chinese knives, so i suggest you try one of these Chinese brands yourself. Then you will have an opinion based on first hand experience which is always better than assumptions, even logical ones.
kj

I have had a couple of new Chinese made Marbles and decided to try one out since they are never going to be "collectable". I took the M118 (double bladed hunter) out of it's padded case and cut up a bunch of 8-9 ounce leather scrap and some baler twine. No problems what so ever (maybe 100 cuts). see bottom of cutting board. I know this is not a real good test but the knife made those cuts with a sounding "crunch". I like the jig bone handle material also. Not sure where in China they are made, maybe the same place as Rough riders? Good knife for the money. Terry

Terry, not my thread, but thank you for a very good post. It takes time to set up and complete even a simple knife test, but the results obtained are important especially for the China made knives with so many brands to choose from.
kj