Don’t get me wrong. I love Joel, nicest chap out there and I love his work but I think I’m just not comfortable with the current pricing given that for me personally I usually like to clean them up a bit - redo the polish, swap out handle, etc
But the secondary market is a bit soft for his stuff at the moment. I think he will hit an inflection point soon. Once people start taking big losses on selling his stuff they will be less willing to purchase it first hand. Or maybe not, just my opinion. His stuff is attractive at $500 for me...
Trades are difficult for anyone so dont be too hard on yourself. Just keep your eyes open and try to develop some relationships here on KKF and the knives have a way on finding their way to you
I think the pitting and the knife being older (Jiro has certainly evolved for the better as he has produced another 500+ knives) are the reasons why people are not lining up to trade with you. There is also a certain irony that you are looking for something "as new as possible" when yours...
Sounds like potentially a cutting technique issue. If there is a burr it will snag on the paper towel while it is taut as well. If you use the entire edge as you slide across the towel it should snag where there is a burr. The better you get the cleaner the edge will be. If you can’t push cut a...