always wanted to ask: whats the deal with spydercos?

ive deliberately averted my eyes :)
i cant allow myself the luxury of mooning over a balisong, theyre highly illegal in canada. kindof absurd, really - i can deploy a linerlock faster than a bali. its all the mall ninjas giving them a bad name.

hell i was watching some TV show the other day about sending kids away to some behavioral camp, and one of the kids' 14yr old wannabe goth friends pulls out a balisong and what seemed to be like a 12" bayonet. no wonder theyre illegal. my memory might be a little sketchy, but i remember clearly that the first thought that sprung to mind was 'its because of little dipsh!ts like this that they are passing such strict knife laws these days', and of course why much of society immediately has a knee-jerk 'OMG WEAPON!!!' reaction if you pull out a folder to core an apple.
 
I like those reactions. "Why on earth would you carry a knife" as you're cutting a box or those plastic packages products always come in with the seal around the edges. There used to be a time when people were expected to carry a large fixed blade. What's happening to our tools?
 
kaosu04 said:
I like those reactions. "Why on earth would you carry a knife" as you're cutting a box or those plastic packages products always come in with the seal around the edges. There used to be a time when people were expected to carry a large fixed blade. What's happening to our tools?
Click to expand...

we are losing the right to carry them because of a handful of idiots.

in highschool, i always used to carry a swiss army knife. there are so many uses for them in everyday school, science, sports, etc that it always came in handy. a lot of kids had them. then one dumbass kid threatened another with an SAK, the kid went and squealed to the principal, and they passed a new policy disallowing pen knives, even multitools - with suspension and possible expulsion as a punishment.

laws are generally passed because a few people act like idiots and ruin it for the rest of the responsible populace.

*edited because eye ken spel reel gud
 
Blackhearted said:
we are losing the right to carry them because of a handful of idiots.

in highschool, i always used to carry a swiss army knife. there are so many uses for them in everyday school, science, sports, etc that it always came in handy. a lot of kids had them. then one dumbass kid threatened another with an SAK, the kid went and squealed to the principal, and they passed a new policy disallowing pen knives, even multitools - with suspension and possible expulsion as a punishment.

laws are generally passed because a few people act like idiots and ruin it for the rest of the responsible populace.

*edited because eye ken spel reel gud
Click to expand...

I think it is more than just the idoits really (although I generally agree that the few can ruin it for the many). Our cultures are changing. Schools tend to grow, not shrink and the more kids you have in a given area the greater the chance for problems. Couple that with an alarming increase in broken homes and families and you get more potential problems. Knives in schools are simply not socially or culturally acceptable anymore.

As a parent, I really don't want my kid in a school that allows knives. Too many unknowns...even if it is a Persian (great taste in knives, but)...
;)
 
I've been out of high school for a few years now, but back then, we could carry knives. There was the rule of it had to have a shorter blade length than the palm of your hand....though why does it matter? I mean, I GUESS I'd rather be stabbed with a three inch blade than a five inch, but you won't be wheeling me into the hospital saying "thank god it wasn't a five inch."

Nonetheless, good deal there. No one, as far as I know, ever took advantage of it, and I carried a cheap old lockback daily.

A friend of mine has a little brother (also a friend) who is still going to my old high school, and he carries his kershaw storm 1 edc.
 
As to "why Spyderco", there is (to me) an overriding factor. Yes, there are other manufacturers out there with similar quality, service, etc. Yes, Spydies are generally not the best looking knives. But except for when I'm carrying one of my Kopas (those are great looking knives!), I'm interested in function, period.

So if I want a one-handed opener clipped to my pocket, (which is anytime I'm not showering, naked, etc. :D ) nothing else even comes close. Thumb studs used to open or get hung up in my pocket too often. The round hole solves that problem wonderfully. ;)
 
first post here on bladeforums.

I like spyderco because I'm left handed and I find that these are the easiest to open and the easiest locks to disengage.

I dont like studs or disks or oval shaped holes for that matter, circular holes seem to be the easiest and most comfortable. and since spyderco has a patent on this, people like me are pretty much stuck.
 
with the ease of opening of todays knives, i dont really even see the need for thumbstuds sometimes. ive unscrewed many of them from my knives, its just as easy to thumb them open on the blade (i used to do this on all my old lockblades before studs or holes were invented). many people flip or inertia-open their knives, so they have no need for them either.

i cant believe something as simple as a circular shaped hole on a blade can be patented, but who am i to say. but ive often wondered how the 'knockoff' companies get by with their ripoff designs of popular brand knives (SAK, spyderco, CRKT, etc) without getting into trouble.
 
Blackhearted said:
i cant believe something as simple as a circular shaped hole on a blade can be patented...
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Well, they did. And why not, it serves a specific function, and that can be patented. By now, the patent has expired sometime ago, but Spyderco has now trademarked the hole as a sign of their product line & quality. Therefore other companies can't use the hole.
Before anyone says, 'rediculous, you can't trademark a hole', you can easily find the documents on the trademark sites or here
And, if 3M can trademark the color pink for insulation material, and Microsoft the line 'Where do you want to go today' for software, why wouldn't Spyderco be allowed to trademark a hole?
 
wow, i had no idea.

so how do people get away with making clones and selling them in american stores and online retailers? ive seen direct spyderco clones, CRKT clones, and everyone has probably owned an SAK clone at one time or another. is it just that these clones are made in countries with no respect for patent/trademark/copyright laws, like china?
 
is it just that these clones are made in countries with no respect for patent/trademark/copyright laws, like china?
Click to expand...

that's often the case as far as I know
 
Blackhearted said:
wow, i had no idea.

so how do people get away with making clones and selling them in american stores and online retailers? ive seen direct spyderco clones,
Click to expand...

This happens one of two ways. Either knockoff artists from overseas make the offending copies and distribute them in the States before anything can be done (_if_ anything can be done), or Benchmade flagrantly rips off Spyderco's trademark and a sizeable portion of BladeForums defends them. Do some searches on the BM Skirmish to see the "everybody does it - it's no big deal - why're you making a big deal out of it" mentality at work.

People tend to be really outraged when Chinese companies or Dark Ops violate intellectual property laws, but don't care much when a company with street cred does it.
 
I think thre are three reasons for Spydercos success:

1. They came out with one of the first if not the first reasonably priced one-handed folders using quality materials.

2. They had a variety of different shapes and styles to suite just about anyone and they worked with a number of custom knifemakers for unique designs.

3. They have a slick marketing department, an easy to remember name and they put that little "tick"? or "chubby spider" on their knives which made them look cool.
 
DGG said:
they put that little "tick"? or "chubby spider" on their knives which made them look cool.
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rofl, 'chubby spider' :)

Grover_Cephas said:
Do some searches on the BM Skirmish to see the "everybody does it - it's no big deal - why're you making a big deal out of it" mentality at work.
Click to expand...

looking around now, ive never heard about that.
 
found the thread. i have sortof mixed feelings about that, to be perfectly honest.

-i dont think that something as simple and elementary as a round thumb hole for opening should be something you can 'trademark'. im not 'debating' this, this is just how i feel.

-however, if the above is legally trademarked, then i believe that other knife makers should respect that trademark and not look for cheesy ways to implement it - such as the 3 holes, 4 holes, etc. wether you agree with it being trademarkable or not, the fact remains that is is trademarked. put an oblong hole or a thumbstud on it and be done with it. if you live in a society that has these laws - which also protect your products - then for gods sake abide by them and stop looking for sneaky ways to get around them.

it also irks me when people do not directly copy something but they obviously are creating derivatives... or combining design elements from other companies into their own knives. for example: if you look at these knives by 'Maxam' you can easily recognise which BM, CRKT, Gerber, Kershaw, Spyderco, etc knife they copied.
http://depotplus.com/category.cfm?mcat=50

SKSTUB_s.jpg


39716.jpg


i work in 3D, and broker my work online. when someone rips off my material directly - mesh, texture, etc - then i can prosecute them under copyright law because i can easily prove i produced the material from scratch. however, its the scumsuckers that do not steal your actual material but steal your style, your design that make me sick to my stomach - because theres nothing you can do to prosecute them. its the same type of thing i see in the knife business.

cheers,
-gabriel
 
Spyderco is awesome. BUT IT IS EASY TO BE FOOLED. Because so many other manufacturers uses lower quality black plastics, and similar materials, it is hard for some us, like me at one time, to appreciate the value of a Spyderco. It is NOT like the others. The plastic parts line up. The clips work well. The handles fit your hand nicely, without rubbing. Unfortunetly, really being able to appreciate a Spyderco can only be done by owning it and a cheap knife. BUT, as all of you should know by now, there are enough believers and converts out there that it is SO worth taking the jump. GLASS FILLED FRN IS NOT THE SAME AS THE OTHERS. It is much more durable, and more stiff that other plastics. The edges of my Calypso jr. sitting right here beside are FLUSH. The edge is flat ground, the lock back is dimpled. The back of the blade is rounded. There are extra threads for lefties. You can choke up on it.
Spydercos are like no other. GET ONE. Buy a used, and then resell it if you're not happy with it, but I think you'll notice that almost every sell that is selling a Spyderco still owns at least one.
 
You should also have a look at the Viele model. Now THAT's a work of art. And the list does go on. Also, look at the Spyker and look at the new models that are coming out this year. Some of them are SO cool
 
It's said, that Spyderco knives were designed in the dark. I think in order to be appreciate them, you have to hold them in the dark. There are some that are a marvel to hold, if not to behold. And I tend to like the steels they are using. The locks are very strong aswell. And they are very reasonably priced. What is there not to like? But I understand that everyone's taste is different.
 
Kbog.......Remember its not the knife that you should be afraid of, but the person behind the knife. What ever happened to people being responsible for their own actions? If someone missuses a knife as a weapon, then that person should be held accountable. A piece of steel cannot move by itself. There are already all kinds of objects that could be used as weapons in a school. What about all those padlocks and gym socks? together they can make quite a fearsome weapon. I sure wouldn't want to get hit in the face with a 8 pound shot-put to many times. And what about all the "assault" kitchen knives that are already in the school cafeteria? What if a group of kids overran the kitchen and gained access to all those knives. I sure mayhem and murder would be a instant result. I certainly wouldn't want my kid to be exposed to a situation like that :rolleyes: I think your child has more of a chance of dying in a car wreck on the way to school ( car accidents kill 43,000 people per year in the united states) or being killed by his or her doctor (medical mistakes kill up to 98,000 per year) than by being killed by a SAK at school. We need to come together and push for a ban on cars and doctors! Just think of all the lives we could save! :rolleyes: Sorry for the off topic rant but uninformed sheeple are one of my pet peeves. :D
 
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