Military vs. Paramilitary 2

I've put pressure on the spine of my military and it held up fine. I don't recommend doing it though.
 
3rdGenRigger said:
I've never put force on any of my knives that way...I've never thought of cutting something by using the spine of my knife as the edge. To the OP: I'm not trying to sound disrespectful, but I can't picture a use I'd have that involves putting significant force on the lockbar that would cause the knife to close...I'm purely curious. I can picture hitting a rib or bone in a self defense role causing pressure on the blade in the negative direction, but short of that (And I carry a knife for purely utility purposes) I can't picture a situation that would cause a blade to try to close against the lock.
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Basically I was using the tip to basically chip/pry a bunch of hard crap from inside the boats engine compartment and thought I was pressing directly forward towards the tip, but the force apparently wasn't exactly centered when it suddenly snapped and the next thing I know there's blood all over. I say it was a defect of some kind because I've seen the lock bars bend before but never snap like that so I'm thinking it was somehow super brittle. Definitely expected to break the blade before something like that happened.
 
Sosa said:
I've put pressure on the spine of my military and it held up fine. I don't recommend doing it though.
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Yeah, I don't really intend for it to be a really hard use knife, I've got my Adamas for that. It would mostly be a more delicate slicer for things like fish and such when I go up backpacking.
 
I don't think the lock is as much of a factor as is the handle and blade size.
 
Sosa said:
I don't think the lock is as much of a factor as is the handle and blade size.
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Very good point, but price is as well for me. If they were the same, I'd have probably already ordered the Millie, but spending an extra $60+ on something that's only got a quarter inch or so larger blade is tough for me to justify.
 
The cheapest I've found so far is $161+ tax and shipping for the black and camo that I'd want to get. Everyone I've been to for the PM2 so far has been sold out still too, ugh. It will easily be at least a week or so until I can afford to get anything anyways so I've got some time to think about it. Maybe I should just practice a bunch and try to get my grinding to the point where I'd be satisfied enough with making myself something instead. Haha
 
Tough call. I have both and which one I consider my favorite seems to vary from week to week. The pm2 has what is probably the stronger lock and is generally a bit more fun to "play with". The Millie is the one I would choose when I'm fishing, camping etc. honestly there is no wrong answer here. They are both spectacular and I highly recommend owning both. Which one you choose to start with probably won't matter too much in the end. Prepare to be ruined. :)

Regarding price on the Millie, you must be looking in the wrong places. I just did a quick search and found most places have them for under $150 and I found several for under $140.

Enjoy whichever you choose,

Lance
 
Have both, like both. But for some reason I can't explain I like the Military more. It just feels better in my had I guess. Also I like big folders. I prefer the Manix 2 XL to all other Manix.
 
3rdGenRigger said:
My top 5 favourite knives are all Spydercos. In no particular order...the Chokwe, ParaMilitary2, Schempp Tuff, Techno, and Manix2. The PM2 really is an exceptional knife. You should definitely take a closer look at the Manix2 as well IMO.
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+ 1 with regard to the Manix 2 (G-10). I also like the Manix 2 XL...
 
TSKWolfe said:
Probably should have. But I don't think they would have covered it since I was so pissed off, I threw it as hard as I could off the boat I was working on and then went inside our office to wrap up the finger it had just sliced open to the bone.
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Please err on the side of caution in the future by not repeating this!

Respectfully Submitted !
 
3rdGenRigger said:
That's something I've never heard until now...there's a reason I prefer knives that have a finger choil because they'll protect you in the event of a failure, but also provide the ability to choke up for finer cutting tasks. I can't imagine putting enough force on the spine on my Tenacious (Or any of my other Spydercos) to cause the lock or blade to fail because I always put force on the edge which forces the blade farther open as opposed to forcing it to close unexpectedly...I've always dismissed spine whack tests because typically when cutting you're putting force in the exact opposite direction onto the lock. Can I ask (Without trying to sound pretentious as the situation has never arisen in my use) what you were doing that forced the blade to try to close against the lock?
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This is an excellent point as to the safety feature of the Manix 2 choil. :thumbup:
 
HorseloverFat said:
Please err on the side of caution in the future by not repeating this!

Respectfully Submitted !
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Trust me, I have definitely strayed away from using knives for anything but their sole purpose since then! I like having all my fingers working! Haha
 
Go for the Military.
It has a mechanically simpler design, and for me that means a more robust knife & longer service life.

I will probably catch a lot of hell for saying this, but I prefer the Military's liner lock to the PM2 compression lock.
I know that the compression lock is immune to catastrophic failure, but I worry about the long-term resistance to lock tab deformation & the onset of lock-rock.
The Military's liner lock seems more adaptable to wear & lock bar deformation.
But, those are just my feelings. I could be totally wrong.

The second thing is that I'm not such a big fan of the PM2 pivot bushing. If you get one with lateral blade play you cannot adjust it out by tightening the pivot screw.
The Military is dead-simple. You might not get blade opening/closing that is as smooth, but you can adjust it to remove blade play.

Just my two cents.

-nate
 
PM2 carries better.
It is drilled for left, right tip up or down carry.

Compression lock wins.


Yes you can drill it. But after spending that much money. Why should you have to.
 
I have 2 Millie's and 3 Para 2's.
If you have to choose, I'd say get the Para 2 for it's ideal size and awesome and highly versatile compression lock.

Then plan to get a Millie when you can, cos they are such an awesome large yet easily carried folder. It took me a while to get a Millie, and when I finally did I quickly found that every good thing I had read about them is true.
 
You probably "need" both, as they are pretty different. I prefer the PM2 for it's more compact form factor and ease of opening/closing. Mil is great, too.
 
If size doesn't matter as you are mostly using it for camping and fishing, I would go for the military. It may not sound like there is much difference in size but when you see hem in person there is. I own the Para2 as well as a Ti Military, the one I use the most by far is the G10 Military, mine has the coated blade but that is neither here nor there. The Para is great if you need to be worried about using the knife in a public place but for utility I find the size of the military and the many grip possibilities of the larger handle better for me. I actually don't carry the Para2 much, I carry the Manix2 far more.
 
The Military looked ridiculous to me when I first saw it.
A decade later and I own 3 with different steels, one of which gets carried on a regular basis.
The Military outperforms most of my custom/mid tech knives as far as slicing is concerned.
I've owned the Para 2 in blue g10/M390 and it was nice but didn't do for me what the Military does.
I prefer the liner lock to the compression lock as well. It's just a more natural, fluid and comfortable method for me.
You can find secondhand (basically new) military's for $100 on the exchange if you are patient.
And I've never had a liner lock come close to failing on me but if you have that problem, and are concerned with clip orientation, then maybe a para 2 would be better for you.
 
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