Anyone own an ATR?

P

padwan08

Joined
Dec 21, 2008
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82
While the better half was at the salon today, I chanced upon a shop that sold knives.

They had a lot of the older Spyderco boxes (black ones) in one display case, and I thought I'd check it out. I was hoping to find a Li'l Temperance as I really want that knife.

No luck but there were other interesting blades.
  1. Schempp Persian. Nice but I thought it was a little small.
  2. Police in SS. First encounter with this model. Nice knife! There's a lot of blade in that handle but I don't dig serrations.
  3. D'Allara. Substantial FRN handle that feels good in the hand. Naked Ball Lock. Solid knife but I have no use for rescue blades and again, serrations are not something I like.

Then they showed me an ATR. It was stainless in PE. The knife didn't feel the way it looked. I thought it would be slippery, and that the thin handle would not provide a good purchase but the more I held it, the more it attracted my interest.

This has to be one of the smoothest opening knives I've handled. I was thinking of paying for it then and there but wanted to solicit opinions from guys who own ATRs first. The shop has them in black and stainless, with the blacks available in both PE or SE. I'm leaning towards the stainless in PE.

So, for the guys who own or have owned ATRs, how have these worked out for you? Is this an EDC blade for you or do you reserve it for other applications? I've not seen that blade shape before so I don't know how utility friendly it is.

Was this a design for the MBC lineup of Spyderco?

Thanks for any notes of experience that you ATR owners can share.

Looks like I'll also be adding the Police in PE (maybe G10 instead of SS) to my list of knives to buy this year.
 
The ATR has its fans, but I'm not one of them. To me, the only function the hump on the nose serves is to ugly up the knife, which it does admirably. The Cobra Hood is an interesting feature - a solution in search of a problem. I wouldn't mind it if the knife had a tip-down carry option, but it had a habit of waving the knife open unexpectedly. That is particularly a problem with in waistband carry, something I foolishly thought such a thin, smooth knife would be good for. Luckily, it only cost me a shirt and not a kidney to find out how wrong I was, but it was a near thing.

It is hell for stout, and the lock is great, but the whole package left me cold.
 
I love the feel and aesthetics of the ATR, but the functionality was poor for me.

The extremely agressive, steep serrations snagged on everything, and the bulbous tip had the worst penetration of any knife I have ever tested in my collection- it would frequently crush materials rather than piercing them.

Its a beautiful knife that would last several lifetimes, it just isn't that great for any of those lifetimes. There are far cooler Spyderco's to spend your $ on.
 
Wrong on both accounts.

I've had an ATR for about a year, and it is one of my favorite designs to date. The shape is nice, with a straight portion and belly, and the knife is a marvel of engineering. Solid as a rock, with the best lock I believe Spyderco has ever put out: frame-style compression. In fact I am looking for a salsa just for that reason. I think the cobra hood is unnecessary, but interesting. MY only beef is with the clip, I prefer every other clip to the lil' temp and ATR clip.
It's my second favorite Spyderco I've owned, only below the C95 Manix PE. Of those ranking below it include: CPMD2 Military, Delica 4, FFG endura G10, D'Allara and Dragonfly- some of the most well-loved models. These things routinely go for 130$ in PE. I wish I had the foresight to buy a Ti model before they quickly became almost extinct. No broken lockbars or over-traveling liners/frames on this one.

DC
 
I've been reading this and trying to figure out what I'd tell the OP. I have a Ti ATR that I'm unlikely to sell because it's an interesting and uncommon knife. But I can't envision the ATR, in any version, as an EDC. Unlike some big knives (like the Military) that are big but carry "small," the ATR is just plain big. The clip is (sorry Sal) horrible. The blade is find for some uses but doesn't cut it (pardon the pun) for general EDC uses, at least not for mine.I can think of a lot of Spyderco knives I'd buy and use first.
 
I have a black SS ATR. Mine is fully serrated, I wish it wasn't. The serrations on this knife are probably the most aggressive of any Spyderco ever, lots of tearing.
In general I love the handle. The clip can be a little tight on thicker pocket seams, but for the most part works brilliantly, and won't tear up your pants. I've never felt that the ATR handle was too slippery, and the cobra hood is great IMO.
The best part is the integral compression lock, my bet is that the SS ATR has the strongest lock of any folder ever made. Not only is the compression lock dead reliable, but this one is nice and thick. The handle is also open construction with no springs or places for stuff to get trapped.
Overall great little workhorse (under 4" = "small" IMO, though the handle has plenty of room to grip), for a hard use knife in rough dirty environments this is probably the best knife out there.
At least until the Tuff finds a maker.
 
I have been looking for a loooooooong time for a titanium PE ATR but I could live with a SS version but you cant even find those on the internet, would be the best knife for my left hand.
 
I went back to take a look at the ATR and I really wanted to buy it. But logic prevailed and I decided to pass on the knife.

  1. The handle while ergonomic for my hands, is a bit slippery while dry. I know I could go and place skateboard tape on the scales but other knives from Spyderco offer good traction without need of alteration.
  2. The inability to place the clip for tip down carry limits carry options for the knife. Tip up is ok but there are some days where tip down is a better option, normally when I have to clip the knife to my gym shorts' elastic waistband.
  3. Cost. For the price the shop was asking, I could get more recent, more evolved designs, both from Spyderco and from other makers.

I really wanted to like the knife and I suppose from a collector's perspective, it has a lot to offer. Novel combination of engineering and design. But I no longer buy knives to collect. Perhaps if funds and fancy permit in the future, I may go back and get it for its value in Spyderco's design history.

I also reviewed a G10Police today. Nice but the tip struck me as a tad thin. The Endura is more than enough for me at this point, though I'll probably scour the market for a G10 version in Plain Edge.

Thanks for all the inputs and advice.

Padwan
 
I have been trying to track one down for awhile. Any chance you would email me and give me the store's contact info? Thanks!
 
I just can't get past the handle on the ATR. It looks like they forgot to put G-10 slabs on top of skeletonized liners...
 
padwan08 said:
I went back to take a look at the ATR and I really wanted to buy it. But logic prevailed and I decided to pass on the knife.

  1. The handle while ergonomic for my hands, is a bit slippery while dry. I know I could go and place skateboard tape on the scales but other knives from Spyderco offer good traction without need of alteration.
  2. The inability to place the clip for tip down carry limits carry options for the knife. Tip up is ok but there are some days where tip down is a better option, normally when I have to clip the knife to my gym shorts' elastic waistband.
  3. Cost. For the price the shop was asking, I could get more recent, more evolved designs, both from Spyderco and from other makers.

I really wanted to like the knife and I suppose from a collector's perspective, it has a lot to offer. Novel combination of engineering and design. But I no longer buy knives to collect. Perhaps if funds and fancy permit in the future, I may go back and get it for its value in Spyderco's design history.

I also reviewed a G10Police today. Nice but the tip struck me as a tad thin. The Endura is more than enough for me at this point, though I'll probably scour the market for a G10 version in Plain Edge.

Thanks for all the inputs and advice.

Padwan
Click to expand...

Slippery while DRY? That's a first.
 
When I was looking, there were SS ATRs all over the big auction site, at prices around $100 or so. That was late last fall/early winter. Has that changed?

There is also the Spyderco Dealer of Last Resort ;) CountryKnives. Not cheap, but probably the best source for NOS knives in the US.
 
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