My new Spyderco Butch Vallotton - Dang!

The thumbstud/stop pin looks fantastic to me. I love how the thumbstud goes partially past the bolster to the liners inside. That's a feature I've never seen before and it looks like it adds even greater lateral stability. Even though it doesn't say so in the description, I know this was designed with features that appeal to the XM-18 lovers in the crowd with the thick blade stock, "modified tanto" tip (convex/hollow contrast) and the thumb studs doubling as the stop in. For those who don't like the looks of the thumbstud, make sure you recognized its function also.
 
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Kaizen1 said:
For those who don't like the looks of the thumbstud, make sure you recognized its function also.
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I realize what they are there for. They may very well act as the perfect stop pin, but they still look strange and superfluous when placed right next to the spyderhole. A normal stop pin or even an internal stop pin would have looked much more pleasing to the eye. Well, at least my eye.

Not a big fan of the extended liner lock either. I have no personal experience with it, but it looks very uncomfortable.
 
Yes, it's lovely. I handled the prototype in Amsterdam. Another example of Spyderco's Taiwanese OEM partner making knives at world class standard.
My only irritation with the knife is that the bolsters are threaded, which partly destroys their charm. This is really a pity.
 
I agree , but it wasn't a deal breaker ... If they weren't there would be another camp of people complaining about lack of a 4-way clip lol ...
 
Dagon said:
Yes, it's lovely. I handled the prototype in Amsterdam. Another example of Spyderco's Taiwanese OEM partner making knives at world class standard.
My only irritation with the knife is that the bolsters are threaded, which partly destroys their charm. This is really a pity.
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Agreed all around.

On the holes in the bolsters, some traditional-knife makers use solder between bolsters and liners to make them appear seamless. I bet one could fill the holes on this knife with solder and then sand it to make them disappear. Certainly it would be easier if it came from the factory without them, but for someone who wants the knife regardless and would prefer it without holes, it is something to try.
 
I held this knife at Blade, and was very impressed.....super smooth...well made....will buy one:eek:

(I liked the liospy a little better though;))
 
I love thumbstuds as stop pins, however I would have done it differently on the Vallotton. I would have made it completely hidden when open. I mean why make it half way recessed? I think that just makes it look like an afterthought. It just disrupts the other wise clean lines of the knife.

I did get a chance to handle the knife at Blade and at length. Fit and finish is superb, even better than some of the Golden made knives I handled. Yea, it's a nitpick about that thumbstud, but it's enough that it bothers me. I also dislike the protruding lock bar, although that can be rectified quite easily.
 
softrockrenegade said:
Omg ... This knife can be "waved" open using the studs !!!! Just another cool accedental feature !!! ;)
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The design lends itself well to modding in a wave by cutting away part of the steel surrounding the hole, too. It's really the perfect candidate:

--That piece of steel that would need to be cut is very thin.
--The hole and metal surrounding it doesn't really play a part in the structure of the blade.
--The hole sits well outside the handle when the knife is closed.
--The thumb studs are there to open the blade manually anyway.
 
I love that blade design and handle design more and more every time i see a picture.

dang, I really don't need another ~4" folder right now.... The "googly eye" spyderhole detracts a bit, but as a spydie fan I can overlook that.
 
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