Bring Back The Slysz Bowie?

[Mo2]

So much opinion here it's not even funny. Can't make this stuff up.

 

[`br4dz-]

Blah, blah, we've all heard the chanting from disciples of Reeve before. This is the Spyderco Forum.

There are more brands than just Spyderco, or CRK, and competition plays a huge role in why it's gone. I was voicing my opinion on the matter, which you seem to rather act like a temper tantrum throwing child about than civilly discussing. Grow up, show some class; you aren't worth the time.

 

[Mo2]

Discuss the knives guys. Don't want the thread to be closed.

 

[SpySmasher]

My impression of the SB, never having even handled one, is that it was a fabulously well-made production knife. Unfortunately, the marketplace for titanium frame locks is absurdly crowded and doesn't exactly scream "Spyderco" to begin with. I'm not surprised that it only lasted two years, as good as it may have been.

Now, that doesn't mean it can't be a returning success. For example, you could make it more "Spyderco-like" by putting a CF or G-10 scale on the show side and using a bunch of interesting blade steels. My guess, though, is that it becomes cost-prohibitive.

 

[ScooterG]

They're just knives everyone!

 

[willywall]

So do you guys think it was the contoured handles that bumped the price up? Like do you think if they did flat handles it would drop the price down markedly? Or overall, materials, location, and labor are just costly?

 

[5-by-5]

So do you guys think it was the contoured handles that bumped the price up? Like do you think if they did flat handles it would drop the price down markedly? Or just overall materials, location, and labor are just costly?

I don't think that's necessarily what hiked the price.
The Ti Military isn't that much cheaper than the Fluted Ti Military.

 

[Freedom Pullo]

The price increase would have pushed the MSRP to AT LEAST $540 and retail to $325 . I believe this is might have contributed to the decision to retire the great but somewhat pricey Slysz. To be fair that would have made it more expensive than a plain 21 and the same cost as a Small Micarta (semi contoured?) 21. It must have been too expensive to make a profit from.

 

[NickShabazz]

The price increase would have pushed the MSRP to AT LEAST $540 and retail to $325 . I believe this is might have contributed to the decision to retire the great but somewhat pricey Slysz.

I've also been wondering if this could be the reason that Spyderco decimated its high end at the end of last year. With the MAP hike, these already-pricy pieces would have gone from so-so value into hilarious. I mean, the obvious solution there would be to drop MSRP a bit for those pieces, but maybe that's anathema for them or something. So they gut the high end, and introduce some new higher end pieces at SHOT (I hope!) with an MSRP that allows them to be reasonably priced even with the new MAP sheriff in town.

Who knows. But yeah, I'm definitely hoping for the Slysz 2ie. Maybe with a nicer backspacer and a bit of love for the lefties. Who knows though.

 

[Officer's Match]

Who knows. But yeah, I'm definitely hoping for the Slysz 2ie.

That would bring me joy.

 

[ScooterG]

Sounds like the SB had limited appeal with pricing and very high appeal to us knife nuts. How about Spyderco releases a couple of Slysz Flash Batches? With a limited run, Spyderco wins and us collectors win too.

 

[kreole]

^Spyderco says flash batches are only for new designs.

We could see a sprint perhaps a few years down the line, like with the PPT this year. I doubt th e company will want to release anything soon considering it was just discontinued.

 

[GB940Rookie]

SB2 with redesigned blade and get rid of the hook on the back of the scales. Bigger may be better for this blade.

 

[silverds]

I've also been wondering if this could be the reason that Spyderco decimated its high end at the end of last year. With the MAP hike, these already-pricy pieces would have gone from so-so value into hilarious.

My brain is the philosophical equivalent of a bitcoin node in that I retain a fraction of personal insight from processing others' philosophical dilemmas. In other words, I have no actual knowledge of the industry but I have earned two cents from thinking about it.

We know that Spyderco relies heavily on overseas manufacturing for their high-end models. We also know that there is growing incentive for American owned companies to repatriate production from overseas. In the short term, maintaining current levels of overseas production could result in increased import taxes and in the long term, repatriating production could result in greater manufacturing costs. So while increasing prices to ultimately benefit the American worker is a good thing, it's not a painless thing. Unfortunately, the quality of a product is not directly related to the salary of the individual worker, so a worker who earns 2 dollars an hour can produce a product of comparable quality to a worker who earns 20 dollars an hour. Patriotism, and national loyalty are not cheap.

In contrast, take notice of the advancements made by overseas manufactures as a result of decades of practice and refinement. Companies like WE Knives, and Kizer are cleverly poised to take advantage of the transition, offering compelling and affordable alternatives to expensive domestic products.

That said and in a completely separate discussion, I know NickShabazz is preparing a review of the WE 719 Eschaton. It would be great if Nick could directly compare the Eschaton's High form/Low function design against the Slysz Bowie's Low form/High function design. The Eschaton is anything but boring but has questionable utility while the Slysz Bowie is lacking in style while being eminently useful and both knives being close enough in price and quality to be directly comparable.

I make this suggestion in response to the polarized feedback I've seen about both knives, contrasting form/function and cost/value dichotomies.

 

[ScooterG]

^Spyderco says flash batches are only for new designs.

We could see a sprint perhaps a few years down the line, like with the PPT this year. I doubt th e company will want to release anything soon considering it was just discontinued.

Yes, new Slysz designs would be great for Flash Batches

 

[cjbiker]

Hi, I'm fairly new here, and didn't find out about the Slysz Bowie until after it was discontinued. I found this thread by looking for any news or speculation that it might be reintroduced. Seems to me that it would be easy for Spyderco to reintroduce it, and especially since the price on used Slysz Bowies have skyrocketed, it would sell well even at $325.

Please Spyderco, bring back the Slysz Bowie!

 

[lieferung]

I also would like some sort of a re-release of the Slysz Bowie. I don't want another Wharncliffe in my life so the swayback is not my cup of tea. I also wish they could bring the price down, for those of us in the lower range of high end. It's a beautiful design.

 

[Sonnydaze]

I also would like some sort of a re-release of the Slysz Bowie. I also wish they could bring the price down, for those of us in the lower range of high end. It's a beautiful design.

Fat chance of that. The last dealer that I found that had one "in stock" wanted $500. I suppose that is "market" but I still think that's a ridiculous price. I had two of these new back when they were $220 or so, and sold them both for about the same price. That was "before" the price went nuts.

 

[ToxicBot11]

Hi, I'm fairly new here, and didn't find out about the Slysz Bowie until after it was discontinued. I found this thread by looking for any news or speculation that it might be reintroduced. Seems to me that it would be easy for Spyderco to reintroduce it, and especially since the price on used Slysz Bowies have skyrocketed, it would sell well even at $325.

Please Spyderco, bring back the Slysz Bowie!

I wish they would do a sprint of the Tuff..its also skyrocketed in price.

 

[kniferelatedname]

and especially since the price on used Slysz Bowies have skyrocketed, it would sell well even at $325.

It's amazing how much being discontinued affects prices. People might pay a lot second hand now because there's a perceived scarcity and an expectation it will retain value at the going price, but I bet if they came back into production there'd be a small surge of initial buyers followed by the same response that caused it to be disco'd in the first place.

They might also hurt their collector market, which I get the impression is a non-trivial part of Spyderco's business model. If you just paid $4-500 for one because they are getting rare, your investment would be pretty much destroyed if they started churning them out again now. I think Spyderco cares about this collectors market, which is why they don't redo sprint runs and such, and when they do bring models back they do it in a different configuration and after time has passed.