Something I have learned since posting the O.P.
There are two kinds of people with respect to custom knives, guys who know what a custom really is and those guys who will never know. I have stopped trying to educate the ones who dont know, and when I get a "homemade" comment I just smile and nod. I have customers who know what they are getting when they buy a custom and they just keep coming back. That is true satisfaction for a maker. I was always worried about pricing, afraid that I would price too high. This was because I was dealing with people who shopped at wal-mart or Bass pro for thier knives. After finishing a couple of knives for a customer, he said to me "I dont know how you put so much work into these for so little money" Hmmmmm......That was when the light bulb went off.
Its not worth trying to educate the masses and thats ok. The fact is some guys are going to be happy carrying the $12 Frost, and some guys are not going to be happy with anything less than a top of the line custom. Some guys fall somewhere in between.
Just my $.02
Sean