Caspian Salt Pix

J

jaislandboy

Joined
Aug 8, 2005
Messages
1,730
I just got the pointy tip Caspian Salt yesterday and the short story is.... I like it! very ingenious plastic sheath....the "spring loaded" tab seats a one inch round "button" into the Perrin-inspired finger hole for ultra-secure retention of the knife...in fact the sheath fits so well (tightly) that I placed some mineral oil on the blade to facilitate resheathing the knife; to "unlock" the knife from the sheath, all one does is press the plastic "button" down by a few mm with indexfinger and unsheath the knife...in one quick motion, the Caspian Salt is instantly "at the ready" with IF securely in the "Perrin-hole" :cool:
the "volcano grip" texturing on the FRN "slabs" provide excellent purchase....with index finger in the Hole, the knife is balanced slightly handle-heavy... the subtle hawkbill curve combined with a partial Spyderedge should excel at cutting abrasive rope/net/webbing....the spear pointed tip and full length thin spine swedge should satisfy even Doc Snubnose in one of his infamous "meat tests" .... it stabs through cardboard rather easily and effectively ;) :p
This is my first "all H1" knife and it doesn't disappoint.... imho this is another winner from Spyderco ;) :cool: :spyder:

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caspiansalt128.jpg

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Interesting knife. it seems to have a very specific purpose but I bet it would be a good utility piece. Let us know how it cuts rope! Happy Easter!
 
hey thanks for the comments guys ; the knife is impressively sharp; the knife is also comfortable holding (in forward grip) without using the indexfinger hole....instead, using the forfinger choil under the IF hole which is nicely jimped.
But using the IF hole is more "natural to me" and if you need to do something else with your hand (but don't want to put it down/resheath) the knife will rotate tip up (to the sky) in a "safe position" while your thumb and other 3 fingers are "freed up" for other activities... :thumbup:
The blade is 3mm thick per the catalog description but the top spine swedge thickness is only 1mm or less (to my eye with a ruler :o) so it "stabs" extremely well ;) Also, the knife is perfect for general utility use like kitchen chores/food prep....there's about 4cm of spyderedge and 4cm of plainedge....which to me delivers the "best of both worlds" offered in "just the right quantities"; on some of my Clipits I prefer the serrated portions to be a little longer (like the comboedge Delica4) length but the Caspian Salt has a "generous" amount of serrations to be much more useful (like with sawing activities)....then the rustproof steel is like icing on the cake....i may never need another fixed blade for my "edc needs" :eek:;):D

http://spyderco.com/catalog/details.php?product=288

Here's a good review by forumite clovisc over on Spyderco's forums (where I posted these same pix)...

http://spyderco.com/forums/showthread.php?t=32530
 
redneckone said:
Could the sheath be modified for a G-clip for IWB carry? Great pictures, thanks.
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hi redneckone, I'm not really sure... I have a G-clip that accompanied the kydex sheath for my MuleTeam that I got from Scott Gere.....this G-clip doesn't appear to fit the slots on the Caspian Salt sheath....the knife comes with two straps that go through the slots on the sheath....
the other concern is that the handle protrudes a little over 2.5 inches above the "mouth" of the sheath.....so IWB carry might be a little uncomfortable.
the dimensions of the Caspian Salt is slightly longer/bigger than that of the Swick....if I can find my Swick I'll try to post some comparison pix later this week...
 
In that case, it will make an excelllent neck knife with the standard sheath. I will have a leather sheath with clip made for IWB carry.
 
I have been thinking about picking this knife up to replace my old Myerchin offshore, which has served me well enough, but is quite heavy at 7 1/2 oz...probably another 2oz or more with the spike in the sheath.

I like to wear a rigging knife on my floatation vest where it is easy to get at whether you are in the water upside down and disoriented, aloft in the rigging or crawling about waved washed topsides. I really like the positive grip retention design of the Caspian knives. What I am concerned about is how well this rig would carry on my vest. The Myerchin layed very flat no matter what awkward position I would find myself in. I wonder if the angled handle of the Caspian might be somewhat of a rigging snagger...the primary danger I could envision would be a thrashing control line hooking the knife out of the sheath and throwing it across the boat, or even worse...flipping it up into your throat or face. :eek:

So, umm...anyone carrying a Caspian on skiffs or other control line festooned extreme performance sailboats? Does the knife lay fairly flat in the sheath? How is the sheath with respect to positive knife retention? If the handle was momentarily fouled on some rigging lines, what do you think the chances would be that a sharp pull at any non intentional draw angle would dislodge the knife from the sheath? It seems most vulnerable to being accidentally pulled from the sheath if the handle were to be yanked forward, i.e. away from the body, assuming it was rigged for a front of vest (chest) carry.

Sorry for the battery of questions...sadly, I am unable to actually handle many of the knives I am interested in.
 
headroom:
I don't think i can answer most your questions....I have never "field tested" it in the scenarious you mentioned ...only think i can tell you is that the knife lays very flat in the sheath...if the 1inch diameter plastic "button" on the sheath gets pressed in about (my best guess) 3-4mm "downwards" then the knife can be released......the knife fits "extremely" snug in the sheath....so even with the button "depressed" the knife won't fall out of the sheath.....it takes a considerable amount of "force" to unsheath the knife even w/ the button depressed.... resheathing the Caspian Salt takes some "effort" b/c the fit is so "snug"

Ryomaru: the knife is single edged but the top spine swedge is very thin maybe 1 mm thick

redneckone: I'm not sure, but I'd recommend you contact Scott Gere for info regarding your question... he works a lot w/ Kydex ;)

Thanks all for looking :)
 
jaislandboy said:
headroom:
I don't think i can answer most your questions....I have never "field tested" it in the scenarious you mentioned ...only think i can tell you is that the knife lays very flat in the sheath...if the 1inch diameter plastic "button" on the sheath gets pressed in about (my best guess) 3-4mm "downwards" then the knife can be released......the knife fits "extremely" snug in the sheath....so even with the button "depressed" the knife won't fall out of the sheath.....it takes a considerable amount of "force" to unsheath the knife even w/ the button depressed.... resheathing the Caspian Salt takes some "effort" b/c the fit is so "snug"
Click to expand...

Sounds like a good rig, then. I like the fact that there is no strap to pop off in order to get the knife out. Having a strap around the handle does provide some security as it is fairly unlikely that a line could get behind it and cause trouble, but it is one more thing to fumble with to get at your knife, though.

The thing that really appeals to me with the Caspian is the positive grip retention designed into the knife. With that large hole, I think I could still use my knife hand to grab and hold things and not feel like I was going to lose the knife...or have it slide/get knocked back on to my fingers.
 
headroom said:
Sounds like a good rig, then. I like the fact that there is no strap to pop off in order to get the knife out. Having a strap around the handle does provide some security as it is fairly unlikely that a line could get behind it and cause trouble, but it is one more thing to fumble with to get at your knife, though.

The thing that really appeals to me with the Caspian is the positive grip retention designed into the knife. With that large hole, I think I could still use my knife hand to grab and hold things and not feel like I was going to lose the knife...or have it slide/get knocked back on to my fingers.
Click to expand...

hi headroom, yeah the Perrin - inspired index finger hole is a beautiful design ;)
I guess I could envision the sheath getting looser after UV rays and outdoor use "seasons it" some ....
 
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