Ontario knives have always held up well for me. I don't know anything about the buyer, they may have just bought the name since they are shutting down the factory, firing the experienced workers and may just slap the name on ChiCom junk. History OntarioKnife Ontario Knife Co. in Franklinville sold, 56 employees to lose jobs Ontario Knife to end Franklinville operations after sale Servotronics has agreed to sell its Ontario Knife Co. subsidiary, which will spell the end of the knife maker’s operations in Cattaraugus County. Elma-based Servotronics plans to sell Ontario Knife for $2.1 million to Blue Ridge Knives, a distributor based in Virginia, according to a filing with federal regulators. The deal is expected to close Aug. 1. Ontario Knife, which has made knives for consumers and government agencies, employs 35 people. Some of the employees will be offered jobs at Servotronics, said William Farrell Jr., CEO of Servotronics. “Severance packages have been provided to all current employees which include efforts to help them find new employment in Franklinville,” Farrell said. In late March, Servotronics revealed its intention to sell Ontario Knife, in order to focus on its core motion control equipment business. “This was a difficult decision for the company to make,” Farrell said. “However, the financial conditions of the (Ontario Knife) business are not meeting our expectations.” Servotronics’ consumer products group, which consists of Ontario Knife’s operations, generated $8.6 million in sales last year — a 3% drop from 2021. By comparison, Servotronics’ advanced technology group generated $35 million in sales, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In the first quarter of this year, the consumer products group reported an operating loss of $720,000.The cutlery business had operating losses of $21,000 last year and $1.6 million in 2021. Eighty-four percent of Servotronics’ first-quarter revenues came from its advanced technology group. Ontario Knife traces its roots to 1889 and was founded in Ontario County. The business moved to Franklinville in 1902; Servotronics bought the business in 1967. The Olean Times Herald reported a Springville man, Dave Fenske, led a group of area investors that unsuccessfully sought to buy Ontario Knife, to keep its operations in the region.
I imagine the competition is quite stiff in the knife business - I mean - seems like there is a knife company for every day of the week and then some. It is strange that the purchaser, Blue Ridge Knives, didn't keep the employees on. I have heard of Ontario knives but never heard of Blue Ridge Knives.
Read an article earlier about a bunch of businesses recently bought ,, and others already owned by the chicoms,, I don't know if we'll ever get our country back .
If you want to buy a good knife, then go to Ebay and buy a 20- or 30-years old knife. You will get a quality knife made in the USA of steel, not some foreign junk made of pot-metal. Also, you don't support the Chinese economy. Some of the best knives that I own are those that I have had for 50 years. Knives are like guns, buy good quality and take care of them and they will last forever!
Plus, I gotta wonder, how many knives do you really NEED? I've got a drawer full of knives that I NEVER use. Some belonged to my Grandfather and Father, some I actually use, but most will NEVER be used and are just a waste...of metal, money, and space.
Going through Sevierville,Tennessee we stopped at the Smoky Mountain Knife Works store. A lot of Pakistani, Indian and Chinese junk. The company that bought Ontario looks like it may be similar, as I stated above, hopefully a good US name won't be a name slapped on ChiCom junk. Like this company did with the Winchester name ship ahead to 2:50. Smoky Mountain Knife Works | The World's Largest Knife Store | SMKW
…..why would you not go buy a Busse, Becker, ESEE, Carothers etc that are are all currently made in the US. There is also a website “USA Made Blades”. “Whitty”, the owner of the business, prides himself on only selling blade made in the US. ebay can be a fools paradise if you don’t know what you are looking at !
Mostly, I have a couple of Cases, a Swiss Army knife and some military surplus knives that I actually use. The rest are in a baggie in a drawer. The ones that you mentioned, I have never heard of them. As far as Ebay, I've had very good experiences so far, although I prefer to purchase rather than bid.
If I buy another knife it will be a carrothers brothers with their delta3v steel. There are a ton of US knife makers. the chinese are actually coming out with some really nice knives but for the price I'll stick with a US maker any day of the week. "Ontario" is just a name and doesn't really represent any particular person itself but sorry to hear they sold anyways.
I'm at the stage now in life that I can go custom made or start trying to make my own. I'm really interested in figuring out something karambit/old spiderco hook bladed. My style doesn't work for them well but my subconscious keeps whispering something is better. A big not-bolo, not-kukri, not-karambit, not-bowie-back-blade edge. It's been tickling my mind for 30 years.....
I've always liked the Ontario brand. It's sad that the local group didn't raise enough to purchase the company. Who knows? Maybe this Blue Ridge company will maintain some of the brand. If not, there are still many great U.S. knife companies out there. Remember, some companies (like Spyderco) have an all American line as well as a cheaper Chicom for budget buying. Anyway, I see some of you guys mentioning American knife companies, and the one I can recommend is Bark River. (Can be bought on sale at DLT trading or also buy at Knivesshipfree.com)
