EnZo Birk 75 vs. Spyderco Sage 1 (both FFG S30V & CF/G-10 laminate)

RamZar · Aug 30, 2014

My new EnZo Birk 75 with flat grind S30V and CF has a lot of similarities with my Spyderco Sage 1 also with flat grind S30V and CF.

In particular what sets them apart is the width.

Both have excellent fit and finish and are very smooth liner locks.

Sage is a little bit lighter: 3.26 oz. vs. 3.47 oz. and the handle thinner when closed: 0.433" vs. 0.51".

Every other stat favors Birk 75 as far as I'm concerned.

It's shorter closed: 4.08" vs. 4.19".
Blade thickness is 0.11" vs. 0.10".
Blade length is 2.95" with a 2.8" cutting edge vs. 3.00" with a 2.6" cutting edge.
The biggest difference is it's much narrower than the Sage: 1.09" vs. 1.49"

Of course, for those who like wider blades the Sage 1 wins.

Personally, a win for the Birk due to the width. Very nice compact 3" folders. They're priced about the same although the Birk 75 is slightly more being newer.

You can find the Birk 75 CF flat grind CPM S30V at BladeCo.

Check the comparison pictures below and in particular the first one with the Birk 75 sitting on top of Sage 1 showcasing the smaller width.

Aidansdaddy17 · Aug 30, 2014

Dude that's awesome! Very nice

POCEH KOCEB · Aug 30, 2014

Congrats, great looking knives, both of them !
Even I like Spydies a lot, I'd go any day of the week for this particular Enzo, love the blade and the deep pocket clip...
Actually I was looking to find the model that have the Scandi grind and the black Micarta (or G10), kind of rounded up scales, I would looove to have this-one...

I believe this is it:
Enzo Birk 75 g10 and S30v Scandi Grind
(not my picture )

cchu518 · Aug 31, 2014

Very nice comparison! Its really handy to see comparisons like these. Asuch as I love Spydercos...i have a safe 1 sitting in my office. Spydies great ergos do not make for the thinnest edc's so if that's an imperative its great to have comparo's like this one.

bladeco · Sep 1, 2014

Great comparison........both excellent knives! Thanks for the shout out and the business

Bigbluefish · Sep 2, 2014

A nice comparison. I'm a big fan of the Sage 1; it's been my "suit knife" for several years. But the Enzo Birk is high on my wannit list, primarily for its sub -3" blade and slimmer profile.

fielder · Sep 3, 2014

Thanks for the comparison. I like a slim, or rather, narrow knife. They are much better in the pocket.

spyken · Sep 3, 2014

here's one of my favourite:

Bigbluefish · Sep 3, 2014

Very nice. Is that a factory, kit, or pimped Birk?

spyken said:
here's one of my favourite:

flash900 · Oct 4, 2014

Love the Spyderco leaf blade, but darn if that Enzo Birk CF isn't beautiful -- thanks, Ram.

johnnytoxin · Oct 4, 2014

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe they are made in the same plant in Taichung Taiwan.

flash900 · Oct 5, 2014

johnnytoxin said:
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe they are made in the same plant in Taichung Taiwan.

Now that would be interesting.

RamZar · Oct 7, 2014

johnnytoxin said:
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe they are made in the same plant in Taichung Taiwan.

I don't know as a matter of fact but the fit & finish on both are excellent plus the CF/G-10 scales are identical.

Rounic · Oct 7, 2014

POCEH KOCEB said:
Congrats, great looking knives, both of them !
Even I like Spydies a lot, I'd go any day of the week for this particular Enzo, love the blade and the deep pocket clip...
Actually I was looking to find the model that have the Scandi grind and the black Micarta (or G10), kind of rounded up scales, I would looove to have this-one...

I believe this is it:
Enzo Birk 75 g10 and S30v Scandi Grind
(not my picture )

Have you checked out the spyderco nilakka? Love that knife. Hated the color of the scales so RIT dyed 'em. Took the whole knife apart, applied Eesox to every tiny bit. Blacked out centers of all the screws with superblack. Love it now. So perfect.

View attachment 479029

RamZar · Oct 7, 2014

Rounic said:
Have you checked out the spyderco nilakka? Love that knife. Hated the color of the scales so RIT dyed 'em. Took the whole knife apart, applied Eesox to every tiny bit. Blacked out centers of all the screws with superblack. Love it now. So perfect.

Spyderco Nilakka had issues with the Scandi grind although they fixed it later. I have both the EnZo Birk 75 in Scandi and FFG. Personally, the latter is much more useful. The EnZo is a 3" blade vs. 3.5" for Nilakka plus EnZo is about $40 less.

WARNING: Pekko Nilakka Folder!!!!

Insipid Moniker · Oct 7, 2014

Nice. I'm very interested in the Borka, but I wish they made the FFG with the green micarta scales.

Rounic · Oct 7, 2014

RamZar said:
Spyderco Nilakka had issues with the Scandi grind although they fixed it later. I have both the EnZo Birk 75 in Scandi and FFG. Personally, the latter is much more useful. The EnZo is a 3" blade vs. 3.5" for Nilakka plus EnZo is about $40 less.

WARNING: Pekko Nilakka Folder!!!!

I know all about the issue with the steel and the grind. I have the "fixed" version. Regardless, great knives, just thought I'd share an alternative.

RamZar · Oct 7, 2014

Rounic said:
I know all about the issue with the steel and the grind. I have the "fixed" version. Regardless, great knives, just thought I'd share an alternative.

Of course. I just stated some differences. It's all about choice. I'll get a Nilakka eventually since the Spyderco Taichung folders have excellent quality. It was a design issue not manufacturing.

SpeedHoles · Feb 23, 2015

Just found this thread... so a quick bump to find out if anyone knows if in fact these were manufactured in the same Taichung factory?