Farid K2 = AWESOME! (custom scales!)

Jason B.

Jason B.

Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
Jun 13, 2007
Messages
11,186
I was in the market for a new Spyderco and wanted something a bit nicer. In the past I was nuts about super steel but went back to simpler steels for ease of maintenance and that nice fine edge holding ability simpler steels tend to have. I carry an orange Endura almost every day and while I love VG-10 I wanted something better on a more solid handle. My main idea with this knife purchase was to get a true cutting machine.

So as I looked over several Ti spyderco's I remembered I have a customer who is by far the largest spyderco collector I have known, so I figured who better to get advice from. It was my lucky day and he just so happen to be selling a few of the knives I was thinking of purchasing. Thing is, I had recently sharpened most of the blades including the K2 so I had hands on experience with the knives for sale. So, after a few emails and a paypal transfer I had decided on the Spyderco Farid K2.

I had originally wanted CTS-XHP for a blade steel but I'm not complaining about the 10v :D

Well, I was actually a bit disappointed at first. I resharpened the edge with a Coarse DMT (I WANTED A SAW!) and finished with a bit of stropping to give a nice toothy edge. The next day I was setting up some plastic containment and after a short period I noticed the edge hanging up pretty bad on the plastic sheeting. I inspected the edge and found it was in bad shape, I was a bit shocked because my Endura can make it through several day's before it starts to hang up and this 10v hardly made it a day? I was blaming it on the carbides and thought to myself "well, this is how these steels are and you should have known better" They don't usually hold a very fine edge for very long and this steel was acting no different.

So, I ran my standard sharpening formula in my head and remembered that this steel is non-stainless and very hard, which means this steel will likely do a bit better with a more polished edge. I went back to the sharpening bench and proceeded to use my DMT stones to the EEF 8000 mesh plate. This brought upon a great level of sharpness and amazing toothy bite for how refined it was. The next day I tested out the edge and was very pleased to see the performance living up to the hype. It stayed nice and sharp with just very minor defects showing up in the cutting edge as would be expected. As long as I don't let it go too long I can see the DMT EEF working as a touch-up stone without needing anything else for a while.

I have been cutting everything that needs to be cut and then some and I am in love with this blade. Its grind is thin making it cut like a light saber but tall and thick enough to have no worries about putting it to some serious use. I was worried the Ti lock would have issues because of the blade size but after a little play time I'm very confident in the lock-up and strength. The handles are thin so it rides well in pocket but I'm also finding it's a bit slick and sometimes I really need to try to get it from my pocket. When its out and doing work its pure happiness, the cutting power and sexy looks of the blade bring a huge smile to my face, which is a good thing because I didn't know if I would like such a large blade.

Enough talking, time for porn

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After a touch-up on the EEF,
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Great overview Jason, it sounds like Spyderco really nailed the HT on these. If they ever make a smaller one Ill be picking one up and sending it over to you.
 
GuestWho101 said:
Awesome overview, Jason! Do you use a micro-bevel? On this knife or "any" knife in fact?
Click to expand...

Sometimes I will use microbevel's on kitchen knives but almost never on a folder. My hand sharpened edge, as any, has some convexity which brings the shoulder angle back a bit allowing smoother cutting. Most of the drag in cutting comes from the shoulder of the bevel so if you round it out every so slightly it makes the knife cut better. It's for this reason I never found a need for microbevel's.
 
I support Farid! Very intense person and the quality of his customs speaks volumes.

And this Spyderco K2 is fairly good too! :) I will keep this as my only Spyderco knife made in the 2000s. (My other is an old Police from the mid 90s)
 
I love my Spyderco K2 also. It is a serious cutter though I wouldn't use it in a harsh manner where it would chip. I use 3000 grit sandpaper and a mousepad that keeps it razor sharp! I too wish for a little smaller version so I could carry it in public. Damn CT knife restrictions.
 
Jason B. said:
Sometimes I will use microbevel's on kitchen knives but almost never on a folder. My hand sharpened edge, as any, has some convexity which brings the shoulder angle back a bit allowing smoother cutting. Most of the drag in cutting comes from the shoulder of the bevel so if you round it out every so slightly it makes the knife cut better. It's for this reason I never found a need for microbevel's.
Click to expand...

Thanks!

Even though, I have the slightest idea what you are talking about :-). I guess I'm more of a visual learner. I think I'll go watch some more of your videos (at least I think it's you) and "try" to get a better understanding :). Because that to me (what you relayed) is the equivalent of rocket science :p.

You wouldn't happened to have or are planning to make a beginner step-by-step video, would you ;)?
 
GuestWho101 said:
Thanks!

Even though, I have the slightest idea what you are talking about :-). I guess I'm more of a visual learner. I think I'll go watch some more of your videos (at least I think it's you) and "try" to get a better understanding :). Because that to me (what you relayed) is the equivalent of rocket science :p.

You wouldn't happened to have or are planning to make a beginner step-by-step video, would you ;)?
Click to expand...

I'm MrEdgy on YouTube.

What I was trying to say is hand sharpening makes the edge somewhat convexed which allows for smoother cutting. This result makes using a microbevel not necessary in my book. The only time that changes is with very thin blades and some kitchen knives but they are usually speciality knives anyways.
 
Jason B. said:
I'm MrEdgy on YouTube.

What I was trying to say is hand sharpening makes the edge somewhat convexed which allows for smoother cutting. This result makes using a microbevel not necessary in my book. The only time that changes is with very thin blades and some kitchen knives but they are usually speciality knives anyways.
Click to expand...

Thanks!

Yep, that's you :thumbup:.
 
I fondled one if these at smkw today. It's a very large knife, even bigger than what i was expecting. It's an interesting piece. I doubt I ever own one of these due to the size, but I really dig the blade shape.
 
NOW ITS EVEN MORE AWESOME!

I give you the exceptional work of our very own, Josh of Razor Edge Knives.

Scale edges rounded, textured, and bead blasted.

I love my K2 but had issues retrieving it from my pocket and it had a lot of hot spots in heavy cutting. I don't think I will be having any of those issues now :D


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Very nice! I do love my K2, great knife, great BIG knife.

I do like that treatment - thanks for the pictures and congratulations!

best

mqqn
 
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