- Joined
- Aug 9, 2006
- Messages
- 718
As the title indicates this knife has been with me for about 2 months now cant say I have used it for anything really exciting but it has seen almost daily action in the kitchen as well as a lot of other stuff around the house and yard.
There are other reviews of this knife on Bladeforums including some excellent stuff about the blade steel and its cutting and edge retention properties. I wont attempt to better this Im no steel expert and dont generally engage in controlled testing of knives.
Here is a quick overview of the specs as per Spyderco:
LOA 9.57
Blade Length 4.82
Weight 5.3oz
Blade steel CPMS90V
Blade thickness .118
Scale material G10
Sheath Boltaron
The construction is full exposed tang. The G10 scales are permanently attached. The blade is a trailing point design with full flat grind.
The knife is made in Taiwan its not really what I wanted to see but the problem is more with me than the knife. I still tend to associate it with economy models, not a premium priced product like this. I can live with it.
Out of the box the knife was hair popping sharp. Most Spydercos come sharp but this one was also very symmetrical. Often a blade will look evenly ground until you colour the edge with a marker and run it against a Sharpmaker or the like. In this case the Sharpmaker rods hits the edge in the same place either side.
Fit and finish were fine there is nothing glossy or flashy and it has a rather plain appearance. The grip feels quite smooth and I thought it needed to be a little rougher for stuff like butchering but I wet it out and it didnt get any slipperier. The grip shape and integral guard contribute to a secure hold. It wouldnt be hard to roughen up the G10 surface if you wanted to.
Personally I found the grip to be a little thin but I have large hands.
As for cutting and edge retention well I didnt dress out a dozen Rhinos without sharpening but in the kitchen it sliced and cut as good as anything else I have used. Cutting up hard dry vegetables like sweet potato and pumpkin are a good test of a knife and it excelled. The blade is thin and well ground and the grip works like it is meant to. Edge retention has been good and the knife is not that hard to sharpen if you maintain it.
A work of caution when working over a cutting board it is not uncommon to put some pressure on the spine near the tip with your left hand and chop with the heel, particularly with herbs and soft stuff. This is not recommended with a trailing point design with a very sharp tip. Dont ask me how I worked this out.
Here is a pic next to the Becker BK15 another trailing point offering. Though they look a bit alike the handling and cutting qualities of the knives are quite different
A comparison with Spydercos Temperance 2. Overall length is not that different but there is a lot more depth in the Temperance . I prefer the grip design on the Temperance.
Here are the two blades as viewed from top. The Temperance grip is contoured more than the South Fork.
The thing that did disappoint me about the South Fork is the sheath. Generally I prefer leather but the virtue of plastic in some environments is obvious. The South Fork uses Boltaron which is very similar to Kydex. My problem is not with the material but with the positioning of the G Clip. In my view it is too low and with most carry options I found it to be unstable. It is attached way below the centre of balance of the knife and unless it is worn in a relatively wide, stiff belt it is top heavy. The effect is greater when worn horizontally and I found the handle dropping and the tip raised above the belt when worn on a one and a quarter inch leather belt.
The other issue I have with the sheath is the difficulty in removing the knife. It is ok when the sheath is in the hand but on a belt it is a two handed operation. Most kydex and the like offerings allow the knife to be removed by thumb pressure on the spine side of the sheath. There is nothing for the thumb to catch on with this sheath. Pressure can be applied with the index finger on the blade side of the sheath but this can be hazardous and is not recommened.
Here is a comparison pic with the Temperance2 sheath removing the Temperance from the sheath is simple with thumb pressure.
Conclusion
A well proven design based on a popular custom offering from maker Phil Wilson. The materials and workmanship are first class. The blade steel is as good as it gets.
For me it is a bit thin in the grip but that is a personal thing.
It is as much knife as most people will ever need.
The sheath needs a re-think. I will get a leather replacement and scrap the plastic.
Do I regret buying it? No.
There are other reviews of this knife on Bladeforums including some excellent stuff about the blade steel and its cutting and edge retention properties. I wont attempt to better this Im no steel expert and dont generally engage in controlled testing of knives.
Here is a quick overview of the specs as per Spyderco:
LOA 9.57
Blade Length 4.82
Weight 5.3oz
Blade steel CPMS90V
Blade thickness .118
Scale material G10
Sheath Boltaron
The construction is full exposed tang. The G10 scales are permanently attached. The blade is a trailing point design with full flat grind.
The knife is made in Taiwan its not really what I wanted to see but the problem is more with me than the knife. I still tend to associate it with economy models, not a premium priced product like this. I can live with it.
Out of the box the knife was hair popping sharp. Most Spydercos come sharp but this one was also very symmetrical. Often a blade will look evenly ground until you colour the edge with a marker and run it against a Sharpmaker or the like. In this case the Sharpmaker rods hits the edge in the same place either side.
Fit and finish were fine there is nothing glossy or flashy and it has a rather plain appearance. The grip feels quite smooth and I thought it needed to be a little rougher for stuff like butchering but I wet it out and it didnt get any slipperier. The grip shape and integral guard contribute to a secure hold. It wouldnt be hard to roughen up the G10 surface if you wanted to.
Personally I found the grip to be a little thin but I have large hands.
As for cutting and edge retention well I didnt dress out a dozen Rhinos without sharpening but in the kitchen it sliced and cut as good as anything else I have used. Cutting up hard dry vegetables like sweet potato and pumpkin are a good test of a knife and it excelled. The blade is thin and well ground and the grip works like it is meant to. Edge retention has been good and the knife is not that hard to sharpen if you maintain it.
A work of caution when working over a cutting board it is not uncommon to put some pressure on the spine near the tip with your left hand and chop with the heel, particularly with herbs and soft stuff. This is not recommended with a trailing point design with a very sharp tip. Dont ask me how I worked this out.
Here is a pic next to the Becker BK15 another trailing point offering. Though they look a bit alike the handling and cutting qualities of the knives are quite different
A comparison with Spydercos Temperance 2. Overall length is not that different but there is a lot more depth in the Temperance . I prefer the grip design on the Temperance.
Here are the two blades as viewed from top. The Temperance grip is contoured more than the South Fork.
The thing that did disappoint me about the South Fork is the sheath. Generally I prefer leather but the virtue of plastic in some environments is obvious. The South Fork uses Boltaron which is very similar to Kydex. My problem is not with the material but with the positioning of the G Clip. In my view it is too low and with most carry options I found it to be unstable. It is attached way below the centre of balance of the knife and unless it is worn in a relatively wide, stiff belt it is top heavy. The effect is greater when worn horizontally and I found the handle dropping and the tip raised above the belt when worn on a one and a quarter inch leather belt.
The other issue I have with the sheath is the difficulty in removing the knife. It is ok when the sheath is in the hand but on a belt it is a two handed operation. Most kydex and the like offerings allow the knife to be removed by thumb pressure on the spine side of the sheath. There is nothing for the thumb to catch on with this sheath. Pressure can be applied with the index finger on the blade side of the sheath but this can be hazardous and is not recommened.
Here is a comparison pic with the Temperance2 sheath removing the Temperance from the sheath is simple with thumb pressure.
Conclusion
A well proven design based on a popular custom offering from maker Phil Wilson. The materials and workmanship are first class. The blade steel is as good as it gets.
For me it is a bit thin in the grip but that is a personal thing.
It is as much knife as most people will ever need.
The sheath needs a re-think. I will get a leather replacement and scrap the plastic.
Do I regret buying it? No.
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