Feedback from BF Native owners

U

Uncle Bill

Joined
Aug 24, 1999
Messages
434
I know this is at one level just a Spyderco question, but what I'm really interested in is feedback about 440v in a small blade. Another thread about this steel has been almost totally given to one man's experience and a bunch of theoretical analysis.

What's actually happening to all those BF Native 440v blades out there? How are the edges holding up to the ravages of letter opening, gluey box cutting, article collecting (including encounters with staples), string cutting, nose hair trimming
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, etc.

I was about to order one of these, until I began following the 440v thread. Then I began wondering whether I should just get a regular one at half the price.

 
i like mine.

remember theres a bit more to this knife than the steel. the fit/finish is top notch, and its diffrent. dont you get sick of black g-10?

mine gets used, but not at work, so its a bagle slicer at church functions, etc...
(where it raises NO eyebrows, btw)

i bought mine in plain edge as its the most people friendly knife i could find. in this role its tops.

no good input on the steel, but it is holding up good as new to the limites duties it preforms, but then if it didnt id be very suprised.

if nothing else it helps the forum, a worthy cause. i get tons of good info here, and this is a good substitute for a membership fee.

...well that got long...

my 3c

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'Till next time,
Rich the kite guy
 
So far, the BF Native has held its edge better than any production knife I have. It's hard to say by how much since I am not CliffS and don't count the number of boxes, envelops, etc. that I cut the BF Native with vs. other knives/steels.

I am quite happy with the knife and the 440v steel so far, and I am among one of the first BF Native owners, picking up the two I have at the Blade show.

sing

AKTI #A000356

sing

 
Of course my opinion does not count
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Mine is holding up great under warehouse conditions cutting card board boxes and the like. The funny thing is, and you just made me think of it, I have yet to sharpen it. No real technical genius needed to figure out this thing can hold an edge. No blade play either. The blue on the clip still looks great. I do have some marks on the G-10 from drops and a magic marker but that's about it.

One comment I can say with some authority is it appears to me the CPM440V holds an edge better than ATS-34.

Shameless plug.... We still have some in the store in both edges!

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Best Regards,
Mike Turber
BladeForums Site Owner and Administrator
Do it! Do it right! Do it right NOW!
www.wowinc.com

 
I have both the Zytel and G10 BladeForums Natives. I personally think the BladeForums Native is worth more than twice the money.

The G10 has a better feel than any other G10 knives I have. The color is great. I wish more knives were available with different colored G10. The 440V steel is very sharp and holds an edge.

I don't think you can go wrong with the BladeForums Native.
 
I've got one of the combo-edged models and am still planning to get a plain-edged one in the next month or so.

I've participated in some of those "theoretical" discussions, but my own experience with the steel has been good, perhaps because I never really stressed it beyond cutting lots of paper.

I've decided that I like the overall design and material. The stock zytel version doesn't have the heft and handling of the BF version, nor the MUCH better overall construction. I know that several people (myself included) had some minor gripes about finish, but these complaints were answered by Spyderco to the satisfaction of the owners, AFAIK. My own knife came with a poorly finished edge which failed to cut paper, and Sal was quite accomodating in offering to fix this (I sharpened it myself).

My personal favorite knife remains the Wegner Jr, due to my preference for its compact size and smoothness. The Native is definitely my 2nd, and the one I intend for use as an outdoor knife (with the neck sheath).

My advice: don't buy this knife expecting the 440V to make the waters part. It looks good and it feels good, and at least for me, it cuts good too (or is that "well"). I think what all the discussions have shown is that YMMV, depending on the kind of service you put the knife into.

I'm also aware that I'm helping to support the forum, but I'm too cheap to buy a POS purely for charitable purposes ... this knife (to me) stands on its own merit.
 
The knifenut on a budget says this one is a keeper and well worth the price!
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That's saying a lot from someone who only has a handfull of $100 knives, but many dozens of good bargain knives in the 30-70 range and even more POS knives.

If you like BladeForums, this is one way to help support it. Just do it!
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I wishI could comment on actual use, but I don't really carry mine much. Don't take that wrong, I love the knife and the quality is excellent, My hand just doesn't seem to fit it real well. Gotta be one of the top few for "Out of the box" sharpness.

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-Tim-

 
Outstanding value for the money. I've been using mine since June and have yet to sharpen it! Rock solid feel and "airport friendly" in the plain edge version.

Mike
 
C'mon Tim,
You need to use this knife
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. It's really not a collector's piece in the true sense of the word....this knife is a user knife: 440v steel, G10 slabs, great lock up.

I have been very impressed with it and I haven't had to sharpen mine either. Fit and finish are fab and it stays sharp...really sharp. Plus the neck sheath system that Mike made makes carrying this kife everywhere really convenient.

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~Greg~


 
FWIW, Sal, over in the Spydie forum, suggested I send my BF Native back for them to check out the steel. He has read of the performance of mine, and feels that I may have gotten one of the very few that didn't get heat treated (properly?). So, I guess I'm going to have to give mine up for a few weeks. DANG!, because I REALLY like this knife, in spite of the fact that I, personally, have gotten quite better edge holding from my BM 710 in ATS-34. I am the one, I think, that is alluded to earlier in this thread as "one man's experiences". Or would that be one dogboy's experiences. Anyway... I would have to say that the knife is worth the money that BF is asking for it, in spite of the fact that i have sharpened my probably 8 times since I received it. A good 3 of those times would have to be a result of my encounter with a staple
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. The G-10 is the best I have felt, compared to BM AFCK, BM 710, BM 145, and one Carnivore that I had the opportunity to examine. By far the best feeling knife I have had in my hand. It would, to me, almost be worth it if the steel was GIN-1! Definitely if it was ATS-34 or ATS-55. Plus, as everyone says, it helps support BladeForums, and that is a great reason. Oh, and did I mention the blades are engraved...?
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Sometimes you're the windshield; sometimes you're the bug.
Outlaw_Dogboy


 
Me too: I haven't had to sharpen mine yet either. I love this knife! I don't think you'll go wrong with it. This is a very worthy BF Knife of the Year.
 
Mine is my city carry knife and i have used it to open boxes, cut paper, cut cardboard, open Tyvek FedEx envelopes, potato chip and candy bags, plastic blister packaging, and I don't know what else. I have not needed to sharpen it and it is still as sharp as when it sliced my finger and I did not notice it until the blood started dripping! This is, to me, the ultimate small knife to date, and it will take some great knife in the future to beat it. Buy one ASAP.

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Walk in the Light,
Hugh


 
I like the BF Native, but I wouldn't buy the standard Native. The Native handle is weird, but with the G-10 slabs on the BF Native, you can fix that by smoothing off the back side of the hole/finger cutout. This modification results in a handle shape that is pretty ergonomic. I don't know if handle shaping is possible with the standard one. I think I would rather have a Calypso Jr., which is very ergonomic in standard shape.

As far as the 440V blade goes, I will have to get back with you on that one. I want to do a comparison between the BF Native and one of my Boye folders in BDS, since those are my two favorite "nice" pocket knives. The 440V Military I had was a super edge holder, but I understand Spydreco is heat treating 440V differently now. Hmmmm. We'll see.

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Take a look where the back of the knife where the tang meets the backspring of the knife. Nicest fit I have on any of the factory knifes I own.
Picked it up at the Blade Show and use it almost daily, still shaves. Once I took the clip off it became a favorite. Sorry Sal, I am just not a clipper.
 
I have both the Zytel and G10 BladeForums Natives. The handle on the BF is much nicer (I like the bright blue). The pivot seems to be different. The BF opens a little easier. Either roll open or flick open like shooting marbles not like a thumb stud. The only thing I cut with the BF is myself twice. The BF is a little expensive but I'm glad I bought it. These are my only Spydercos.

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RICK LEFTIES UNITE


 
Got one. Plain edge. It replaced my old plain-edged Delica for daily carry. I used to sharpen the Delica daily. I touch this one up as needed too, usually every week or so.

The metal clip is hard on the cloth of pockets. I covered mine in heat-shrink tubing.


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Howard Wallace
Khukuri FAQ

 
I realise that I've stated this elsewhere more than once but the BFC Native with it's semicustom features (I say that considering that the forumites as a group selected the color of the handle, handle and blade materials plus the BFC commemorative logo on the blade) is a neat, ergonomic, tight fitting, bargain at the going price.

I want another one but everytime I get ready to make a move something else happens (e.g. paying off a custom knife that had been in the queue and is now finished, buying ARGH a set of 4 s-n-o-w tires with rims<try pricing these in a fairly large size!>, etc.) but eventually I'll make it happen.

Anyone on the fence would be well served to just get one period. They're that good
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!

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-=[Bob Allman]=-

I did NOT escape from the institution! They gave me a day pass!

BFC member since the very beginning
AKTI membership pending
VHA and NRA member

 
My only complaint with the BF Native is the ugly clip. It looks cheap with that paint. Now a black with a gold spyder..that'd be cool.
 
I really like it...its a daily user, hard.
I was cutting down a box and hit some staples. I'm thinking, darn, I chipped it....nope, just some spot edge roll...fixed with a couple swipes on a steel. That was about 1.5 months ago and there is no trace that it happened.
Fantastic edge holding, still shaving sharp with periodic tune ups; the lock up is solid and hasn't loosened.

My only complaint is aesthetics: the blue G-10 seems to stain a bit so its not bright blue anymore and I've washed it numerous times, even scrubbed with soap and toothbrush. Big deal
All in all, best folder I've ever had
 
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