FFG Endura/Delica vs. non-FFG?

sqoon

sqoon

Joined
Jan 1, 2010
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I'm really excited to see that Spyderco now has orange versions of the Endura and Delica. I've been very pleased with my Delica since I got it a few months ago. I'm wanting an Endura, and I dig the orange, but aesthetically, I don't care too much for the FFG version. Is there some benefit to these FFG versions of the knives that I'm not aware of, or is an FFG blade lacking in some way? For a fixed blade knife, I prefer flat grinds for chopping and splitting applications, but I don't see what the benefit is for a folder. Any insights on this? Since my retailer of choice is dragging their butt on getting the orange FFG in stock, I'm tempted to just get a plain old black non FFG Endura, but I'd love to hear any insight as to why FFG might be better in the long run for EDC/outdoors.
 
I think the primary advantage of FFG in this application is that it makes it a good slicer, because there is no "shoulder" to drag on the material. In my experience, its a slight, but real advantage.
 
I got an orange endura and I love it. It makes a great slicer due to the FFG blade like powernoodle said. The FFG enduras make great food prep knives, I personally use mine a lot in public instead of using crappy plastic knives which some restaurants give to use.
 
I mostly cut cardboard with my knives, and it's a lot easier to do it with FFG blades. They keep cutting and cutting for a longer time because of the thinner blade profile, making it seem like they stay sharper. When my saber ground blades reach the same degree of sharpness, it's tougher to push them through the material.
 
After losing my saber ground Endura (which I still kick myself about), I replaced it with a FFG Endura. I can echo the above comments about what a great slicer the FFG blade is. I sliced up some tomatoes really easily last night with my Endura. Also, the other advantage I've found with the FFG version is that it feels lighter in weight than the saber ground, making it an effortless EDC knife. Still, the saber ground version I had previously was a great knife - I miss it even though I have my FFG.
 
The FFG is thinner and weighs less than the saber ground version, 3.4 vs 3.7 oz on my scale.
 
FRN FFG VG10 - how can a person complain? Got an orange one coming :)

The flat ground Deli 4 in foliage green G10 was the knife that, even though I already owned a bunch, finally convinced me that Spyderco were a good idea :D
 
sqoon said:
Is all that extra weight coming from the blade alone?

Thanks for the feedback, guys!
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I would say so, the handle scales and liners are the same as far as I can determine. The blade and back lock is thicker.
 
I would pick a saber-grind Endura for outdoors stuff. I've never had a FFG Endura or Delica but the tip looks pretty thin. I would do light prying and some throwing with older Enduras and the current Endura 4 looks like it has a rounder tip that is probably even stronger than they were. Without doing stuff like that on purpose, you still have a chance to damage a tip when you are actually out and about doing stuff with knives. Even a waist-level drop can snap some tips if it hits at a bad angle on hard wood (not saying FFG Endura and Delica are that thin since I can only go off photos)
 
The FFG Endura, echoed from above, is a better slicer than the saber ground version. You lose tip strength, but you should avoid prying with the blade regardless. If you are worried about tip breakage, then you should grab the saber ground version. If you own flat ground blades and are confident that you won't break the tip, then you should get the FFG version.
 
Don't pry with either knife...

The Endura 4 FFG has respectable tip strength compared to the saber ground version.

On the other hand, the FFG Delica has a much, much thinner tip compared to its saber ground counterpart. Be careful with it.
 
My FFG Endura should be here in about an hour or two. I will post impressions as soon as I get it. I went with Gray only because my retailer (it's a really long river) didn't have the orange yet.
 
jacksterp said:
For oudoors - get a fixed blade. For EDC - the Endura FFG is fine. I love mine.
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Oh. Ok. So when I'm outdoors I shouldn't take a folding knife? I should buy one of these, what are they called? "fixed blade" knives? I'll have to look into those. Sounds new. Whats the best one?
:jerkit:
 
Ok, I've been rolling with the FFG Endura all day now. Cut some boxes, had to slice through some thick plastic. Nothing major. The extra handle really helped in getting through that plastic. The knife came razor sharp. No blade play. No problems with the knife. However, I get the feeling I might return it. I'm going to give it a few days, but something about it doesn't feel right. My saber ground Delica has a much more solid feel to the handle. I'm not sure if the colored FRN is different, but the texture and "sound" isn't the same. I don't know if this makes sense, but tapping your fingernails in the colored FRN vs. the Black has a much different response. The colored FRM feels cheaper. Maybe it's the extra inches on the handle, but I don't care for it. Also, aesthetically, that Endura blade is just too large to look good with a full flat grind. I don't care for the flat slab look. It's funny, but I think if I had to do it over again, I would like an FFG Delica better than an FFG Endura.

Again, I will give it another day or two, but so far it's not my favorite.
 
in my experience the ffg is a better slicer and even more so if you finish sand out the grind lines on the flats, excellent for cardboard :) like butter...

on the other hand for a pocket knife i think they're a little weaker simply because they're thinner, but I don't expect to baton with one.. :D

sqoon, maybe the sound deadening has something to do with the colorant dyes that were added?? :confused: keep us posted, regardless..
 
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