Having seen so many SP models go, time to buy another...

PocketKnifeJimmy

PocketKnifeJimmy

Joined
Aug 4, 2013
Messages
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My Ontario made fixed blade knives outnumber all the other brand fixed blade knives in my collection. That said, all of my SP knives, (except my SP-43), are from Ontario's original SP series, (Gen1).
With more and more SP Gen1 and Gen2 models going DoDo Bird on us, I wanted my next OKC knife purchase to be one from their SP Gen2 series. So, I now have an SP-53 Bolo Knife coming my way :)
It'll just be another addition to my "Man Gadget Collection", (which is always fun to add to).
Also, in a very tiny way, my purchases help OKC remain viable and hopefully helps them keep the remaining SP Gen1 and Gen2 series alive a little longer :)
 
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Your going to end up getting another one for real non under glass work its that good!
 
Nah, just another collection gadget :)
There are already a ton of folks that have and will buy them for good old fashioned hard use... While mine will be pampered and kept for posterity ;)
 
Why don't you use one for a year then put it under glass, a real thing to be proud of! A remembrance of the work it did and the work you did with it! :D
 
No need, but thanks for your kind advice anyway ;)

Btw, for those that may be curious as to my collecting hobby... I truly enjoy having most of it protected and displayed under glass. I also love how my creativity in displaying them, adds a truly unique flair to my home.

It's funny how that works... I purchase items with my own money, and then do whatever I please with them... Hmm, ain't that something! ;)
 
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Another reason I chose the SP-53 in the Gen2 series, is because my gut feeling tells me that it will be the next Gen2 knife to be discontinued. I believe there are only four Gen2 models still being made/offered by OKC, (atleast that's what their website shows under that series designation).

http://ontarioknife.com/fixed-blades/spec-plusr-gen-ii-series.html

A reason I believe the SP-53 is going DoDo, is their current pricing. The SP-50 can be had at the same vendor that I placed my order from, but for about $25 more than the SP53. It would seem that the SP53 and SP50 are about the same size overall, and that it takes at least as much effort in manufacturing the SP53 as to make the SP50. But, the SP53 is being offered for noticeably less money, (basically selling for as low as the much smaller SP-43). That could possibly mean that OKC has liquidated them at a bargain price, and that the vendors are passing some of that savings on to the consumer, (especially if it's been a slow seller). I would imagine the SP50 to have been the better seller of the two, and it shows them being in stock at OKC's website, where the SP53 is shown as "out of stock". A lot of guessing on my part, but the signs I'm seeing could mean that the SP53 is basically already DoDo, with the available stock at vendors being all that's left of them.
Again, all guesses on my part, (that gut feeling thing).

So, my going with my gut, I decided I'd better get it before I can no longer do so ;)

I'm hoping my gut feeling is way off, and that the remaining Gen2 line can survive into the foreseeable future. But, my guess is that only some of the more popular remaining of the Gen1 series will survive for quite a while, where as the Gen2 series is likely bound to soon disappear.
 
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They do production runs of certain types of knives that could put it out of stock for a short while.

The 2018-2019 catalogue shows the SP-53 in there...but oddly the only one. Hope they don't down grade the steel...

And your panic mongering made me spend this month's knife budget on that spare SP-53 I been putting off because they have been available as a main stay. I probably gave up a 5160 extra woodsman because of you! :p I just remember the panic buy I did on the SP-51s and then the next day....they went all ~POOF~! Reason is I only got 2 and they get used a lot, so...the 3rd back up is needed. Two I gave a way to people who I KNEW needed them, a sister who goes out to VENT on Vile Vegetation to keep "HER!" Trails clear, and a brother who I knew could use one. He's pretty good axe skill, more than me maybe, but he also does trail clearing for dad and it got him out more in to the wilder wood more often again. He discovered the use of big blades and likes them as they can make things go easier at times, oh he still uses an axe/hatchet but he finds he needs some thing more compact to carry. I gave him an SP-8 I got on the SALE, as an after thought, for taking to some places where large blades with pointy points are frowned upon. Yet a "Chisel" thingy seems ok.
 
If only the Ontario/Bagwell Bowie Knife Collaboration were still a thing... Darn it! ;)
Oh well, if my gut feeling is wrong about the SP53, it atleast made me spend some more dollars on my favorite USA fixed blade knife manufacturer :)
 
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Well I needed a back up SP-53 as one is deployed to a neighbor to clean up storm damage and the other where it usually is needed but I can't use it because its there not here, but my spare SP-51 is on deck
 
I received my new Ontario SP-53 today. It certainly is a beast of a knife. Looking down on the spine, it's quarter inch thickness runs almost to the tip. And even when it finally tapers down from that thickness, (maybe about 1/2" to 3/4" from the tip's point), it does not go down to a delicate level. Yup... truly a BEAST! :)
Just like my other recent OKC purchases, this knife came with what seems to be a wax applied to it's edge, (likely for corrosion protection during shipping), which is a nice responsible touch, imo :)
Finish is a black powder coat, a little bit thicker looking than on my SP-43. It has a manufacture date on the box of May 2018, so it is a very recently made knife. Seems that my fear of this knife having possibly gone DoDo Bird on us, is unfounded :)
On one side of the blade, (not shown in my pictures), it's marked with it's steel, (5160).
Again, this is certainly a big beast of a knife, (10 inches of blade that is a 1/4" thick). That, and being made by OKC in the 5160 steel, (with a proper heat treat range to boot), should make any guy that beats the snot out of knives, very happy. Me, I just collect such beasts... which is what makes me happy :)
The design of the OKC SP-53 Bolo Knife is obviously that of being a workhorse. Like most of the other knives in the Gen2 series, styling is very bland. In this case, the phrase that goes "It's just the nature of the beast", is very appropriate ;)


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No thin or fragile look on this knife's tip! :)

5fn3ib.jpg


I'm now waiting for a Tops 'Wild Pig Hunter' knife to be delivered to my home within the next week. It's a big departure from the SP-53, but for the type of knife that it is, it too is a beast, (1/4" thick and having a full fledge tang ). It's something a little different, my making a move to keep my collection interesting ;)
That said, I'm sure there will be more OKC products added in again soon :)
 
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Roguer said:
They do production runs of certain types of knives that could put it out of stock for a short while.

The 2018-2019 catalogue shows the SP-53 in there...but oddly the only one. Hope they don't down grade the steel...

And your panic mongering made me spend this month's knife budget on that spare SP-53 I been putting off because they have been available as a main stay. I probably gave up a 5160 extra woodsman because of you! :p I just remember the panic buy I did on the SP-51s and then the next day....they went all ~POOF~! Reason is I only got 2 and they get used a lot, so...the 3rd back up is needed. Two I gave a way to people who I KNEW needed them, a sister who goes out to VENT on Vile Vegetation to keep "HER!" Trails clear, and a brother who I knew could use one. He's pretty good axe skill, more than me maybe, but he also does trail clearing for dad and it got him out more in to the wilder wood more often again. He discovered the use of big blades and likes them as they can make things go easier at times, oh he still uses an axe/hatchet but he finds he needs some thing more compact to carry. I gave him an SP-8 I got on the SALE, as an after thought, for taking to some places where large blades with pointy points are frowned upon. Yet a "Chisel" thingy seems ok.
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I gotcha covered on an extra sp51! Maybe even a Woodsman! You seem to go through knives like most people go through socks! Partly it’s generosity, which is not a bad thing though, but with the switch, I’ve found more reasons to be less likely to gift blades! Time for me to stock up on the Ontario military machete!
 
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It seems you’re missing the rtak2, an excellent blade(once you put an edge on it) and still made in 5160! Idk if they have any “special editions” left, which would look great behind glass(and have similar sheath to the spax36) but the plain green coated one makes an excellent user if you can get behind a really thin tip. It will need a sheath upgrade if you plan on dragging it through the brush, though.
 
Every time I am close to buying the RTAC2, I wind up getting something else instead. It just does not hold my attention. Before ordering my Tops Wild Pig Hunter, I almost pulled the trigger on the Rtac2, but then almost went with the Esee Junglas instead... And still the Wild Pig Hunter choice came in and won :)
 
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PocketKnifeJimmy said:
Every time I am close to buying the RTAC2, I wind up getting something else instead. It just does not hold my attention. Before ordering my Tops Wild Pig Hunter, I almost pulled the trigger on the Rtac2, but then almost went with the Esee Junglas instead... And still the Wild Pig Hunter choice came in and won :)
Click to expand...

Do you have an ASEK? Four must have Ontario blades IMO, 499 JPSK, ASEK, MK3 Navy and the OKC-3S. All Real deal military blades
 
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