is carbon fiber spyderco military strong enough for self defense?

gamma_nyc

gamma_nyc

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is there a liner in this handle or is it just carbon fiber?

Is it strong enough for SD?

If no liner, does the blade rub against the carbon fiber on opening/closing?
 
The S30V/carbon fiber sprint run had a single nested liner on the lock side. The BG-42 and S90V sprints have a second partial liner nested on the non-lock side. All have washers between the blade and the liner or scale.

The carbon fiber is probably stronger than the steel liner.
 
For an SD knife I'd look elsewhere. The Military is my favorite utility knife, that's what it excells at, but for SD I'd want a compression lock or axis lock and a slightly different design.
 
I was more concerned with breaking handle scales than failing liner lock.

Is the liner lock a concern? The liner lock on my emerson commander appears to be more than stout enough for SD duty...but it is titanium and also has the support of a full frame.

Thoughts?
 
The odds of any regular citizen ( non-military or LEO) having to use a knife for self defense are so infetismally small the question isn't even worth answering. If you ever find yourself in an actual knife fight you'll be in a world of hurt no matter which brand or style of blade you have.

OK - All you armchair commandos can flame away now. :rolleyes:
 
gamma_nyc said:
I was more concerned with breaking handle scales than failing liner lock.

Is the liner lock a concern? The liner lock on my emerson commander appears to be more than stout enough for SD duty...but it is titanium and also has the support of a full frame.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

It wont break.
By the way Carbon fiber has an amazing strength to weight ratio that's why it is used to make things like bicycle frames, and car bodies.
 
Self defense is not always against another human being

I have only been in one situation in life where I wish I had a SD knife, but it can happen nowadays with all the careless dog owners.

I was walking home from school many years ago and I was attacked by a large St. Bernard. They are usually a friendly breed, but this one must have been abused because it was pissed.

I managed to kick it a few times and run but it did give me a nasty bite and I had to get some stitches and a tetnis shot.

I would have loved to have a Millie in that situation

Plus nowadays, it seems every kid in the city has a pit-bull because they think theyre cool
 
5.56 said:
Self defense is not always against another human being

I have only been in one situation in life where I wish I had a SD knife, but it can happen nowadays with all the careless dog owners.

I was walking home from school many years ago and I was attacked by a large St. Bernard. They are usually a friendly breed, but this one must have been abused because it was pissed.

I managed to kick it a few times and run but it did give me a nasty bite and I had to get some stitches and a tetnis shot.

I would have loved to have a Millie in that situation

Plus nowadays, it seems every kid in the city has a pit-bull because they think theyre cool
Click to expand...


I know exactly what you mean, I'am a cable installer and have more "run-ins" with dogs that I need. The last thing I want to do is hurt someone's dog but you can only tell someone to "put your dog away" so many times. I HATE PIT BULLS!
 
Most of these types of posts ask the question in reference to attacks by people, not animals. I'd be very surprised if the OP meant defense against animal attacks.
 
44Magpie said:
Most of these types of posts ask the question in reference to attacks by people, not animals. I'd be very surprised if the OP meant defense against animal attacks.
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Actually, I am most concerned about defense against zombies...you know, the living dead.

But seriously, my reason for asking about the "strength" in a SD situation is that I want have an authentic collection. If this were not a concern then I might as well buy a bunch of chinese knock-offs or even plastic replicas.

For all the obsessing and theorizing that I may do , these pieces will likely spend a boring life in a drawer or maybe opening the odd envelope. I'm a collector, not a practitioner. I just like the idea of a really well designed knife.
 
gamma_nyc said:
Actually, I am most concerned about defense against zombies...you know, the living dead.

But seriously, my reason for asking about the "strength" in a SD situation is that I want have an authentic collection. If this were not a concern then I might as well buy a bunch of chinese knock-offs or even plastic replicas.

For all the obsessing and theorizing that I may do , these pieces will likely spend a boring life in a drawer or maybe opening the odd envelope. I'm a collector, not a practitioner. I just like the idea of a really well designed knife.
Click to expand...

The Millie meets this critieria ;)
 
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I can't even imagine how brutal that blade would be on flesh! Especially with that massive handle design, you could get some major slash and stab going.

Don't want to think about it and would hate to explain that one to the judge.

But yes, the liner is one of the strongest liner locks in existence in my opinion.
 
The Spyderco Military has the best engineered and executed liner lock that I have ever handled, and I have handled quite a few. I carry a Military S90V/CF every day, and it does not get treated gently. It has been dropped on concrete, kicked around, stepped on and used for a prybar (the handle, not the blade) to lift a solid wood door into place to install. If I gave it a bath in something to get the paint off it, the handle would still look new.

With all that said, if you just want something to look at, the peel-ply carbon fiber really isn't pretty enough to justify the price. The Military is a knife that begs to be used, and used hard.
 
I have used a knife in SD, it was a SAK, no lock of any kind, very thin blade, not super strong, no wave or serations or CO2 injectors, but I walked (read ran) away and the other guy was dripping blood and no longer trying to take my bag...moral of the story is that ANY blade will work in SD, especially if you are not actually trying to kill someone but to just give you an edge to escape.
 
Actually, I am most concerned about defense against zombies...you know, the living dead.
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Ohhh, zombies! Why didn't ya say so? SEBENZA! STRIDER!

Seriously, CF is plenty strong enough. Didn't Sal make these as the one knife he could send with his kid if said kid was in the military and deploying overseas? Or something along that line?
I have a pair of Militarys. Love'em both and they handle everything I've used them for so far. My fave is the S30V model though. Don't tell the S90V one, okay?
 
gamma_nyc said:
I was more concerned with breaking handle scales than failing liner lock.

Is the liner lock a concern? The liner lock on my emerson commander appears to be more than stout enough for SD duty...but it is titanium and also has the support of a full frame.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

I'd think twice about using any knife with a liner lock for SD. The Military has proven itself for utility, but that's with keeping a careful eye on it and checking it over if something feels a little off (90% of utility work doesn't stress the lock anyway). If you intend on stabbing something hard I would choose a different lock type.
The liner lock is the weakest and most accident prone lock type out there. The Military has the best example of a liner lock you'll find, but that doesn't mean it'll hold up to the same degree as a more reliable lock design.
The Axis lock and Compression lock have proven themselves quite well, and are very sound designs for high stress situations. I would get one of those.

BTW I've EDC'd three variants of the Military for over a year. It is my favorite knife, and as time goes on it seems more likely that it will be for a very long time to come.
If you haven't owned one you don't know what you're missing.
 
Everybody is talking about having to use their knife in SD...I had no idea that South Dakota was such a rough place!

Seriously, the carbon fiber wouldn't be a limiting factor. As others have said, the liner lock design would most likely torque loose before the CF scales gave way.
 
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