Can The Spyderco Delica 4 in VG-10 Be Beat?

I like the Endura 4 better than the Delica, I also like the Natives better.
 
D4 used to be available for about $40, now the cheapest is about $50. Did the demand go up about a year ago?
 
To be honest, I prefer the third-generation Delicas. They're lighter, for one thing, and the blade tip was less blunt.
 
As nice as the D4 is, I think the Boker Plus CLB Tance beats it....

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that is if the buyer considers frame locks to be the same value as lockbacks. I am neutral, but I know many guys that despise liner and frame locks and only have lockbacks.
 
I like frame locks well enough. And, in fact, I own a Boker Trance. Nice knife, but, as I expected, AUS-8 is not on-par with either VG-10 or 154CM in edge retention, in my limited experience.
 
No doubt you are correct, but how much of that is the heat treat is a valid question. I've seen some fairly cheap steels give surprisingly good performance but the extra hardening eats up tools, and isn't common.

For years I disliked 440C 'cause I'd seen so much of it overly tempered, soft. My attitude changed a good bit when I encountered some that had been properly forged and treated.
 
I think the old FRN Calypso Jr. beat the Delica (just my opinion/personal preference), but now that it has been disco'd (except for occasional sprint runs) it is a lot harder to come by.


I would say get your friend a Delica 4 with an Emerson Opener (wave) or a ZDP189 version.



Frank
 
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I would recommend against ZDP-189 for a non-knife-knut. This gourmet steel is fun for *us*, but would be frustratingly difficult to sharpen for anyone that wasn't really into knives (and sharpening).

I second (third? fourth?) the recommendation for VG-10.
 
The delica and endura's scandi/saber grinds , are way too much steel for the thin frame. Lateral flex and stiff opening keep me from carrying. Every time I open my endura, I imagine it with a thick fixed handle ( bushcraft). Answer to original post. Yes!
 
benplaut said:
I came home today with $40 worth of tips in my pocket, just about enough for getting a decent knife. As much as I think the Delica looks completely fugly, I'm probably going to get one just because it looks like such a fantastic knife.

The only, the only thing I can find wrong with it is the looks, and that's the only part that I can get over with my thoughts alone.

I also drive and Civic, talk on a Nokia, and type on a Thinkpad. It fits my personality, in a way--I don't buy anything that I'm not going to use every day, and when I do buy, I don't compromise.
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Might look into the Centofante 3 or 4. About $43.
3" Vg-10 blade and thin profiled black FRN handles with grooves..
Very cool inset with a Palladium silver Spyderco logo bug.

yhst-10990493643741_2007_27317277
yhst-48913491780057_2004_47207247
 
440hard said:
Might look into the Centofante 3 or 4. About $43.
3" Vg-10 blade and thin profiled black FRN handles with grooves..
Very cool inset with a Palladium silver Spyderco logo bug.

yhst-10990493643741_2007_27317277
yhst-48913491780057_2004_47207247
Click to expand...

I bought one of these online, never having handled it. I loved everything about the knife -- except that, with the cutting edge going right down to where the blade and handle meet, it was very very difficult for me to close it one-handed using the methods I've used over the years with Delicas or Enduras. Consequently, I never fell in love with the knife and sold it off.
 
I remember when the Delica and Endura first came out. I was amazed at how light they were and how comfortable the pocket clip was for EDC. I went with the Endura because it wasn't much heavier for the bigger blade and comfortable grip. Always amused by the sheeple's reactions. I just ask: "Don't YOU have one of these ? Everyone should have one."
 
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