Need a recommendation on my first Spyderco

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DCutty

Joined
Oct 25, 2013
Messages
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I am looking for my first Spyderco; considering a short list of Harpy, Civilian, Tasman/Pacific Salt, and Endura.
I am considering these blades for SD/EDC. Naturally, the Civilian would overrule a Harpy in that basic regard, but as a new Spydie fan I am looking for a FIRST knife with some to follow. Also, are there any knives Not on my list that should be? Any help is appreciated!
 
Personally I chose my knife based on hands on interactions with a fellow spyderco collector so I had a little bit of a bias. I chose my first EDC based on blade and handle size as well as weight. I really enjoy the size of the endura, but it seemed, for my hands, just ever so slightly longer than I would need on a daily basis. Through thorough hands on experience (and many fingerprint smudges left on shiny blades later) I actually chose the blade not in my fellow collectors collection; the stretch. While I had overlooked it several times I managed to get my hands on one in a local shop. Now the blade on that one was a combo edge and I wanted a plain blade but it served its purpose of showing me what I wanted. The handle has a very nice feel to it and the blade is a very nice length, not too short as I found the caly and the delica, but not too long like the police, military, or endura. In the end I chose it and it still rides in my pocket daily. Some other choices other than the ones you mentioned above would be; the delica, the caly3 and caly3.5, the paramilitary, and possibly even the manix. All in all I encourage you, if you can, to try to get one or two in our hand before you buy, just so you can have a point of reference when picking out your first spyderco. Good luck!
 
I think you would find something like the civilian pretty limiting for edc. I have a fully serrated pacific salt that I did a regrind on to give it a finer tip. I love the knife and use it as an edc blade quite often. I never carry a knife with the idea of self defense, but I have to admit I have looked down at that 4" serrated blade more than once and imagined it would be a pretty formidable tool should some unthinkable situation arise.

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Also, as moparmatt said, the paramilitary 2 would be an excellent choice for a first spyderco...or even a military if you don't mind a larger knife.
 
Thanks for the response! Unfortunately, I am sort of limited in my access to Spyderco knives I can play with first, which is frustrating. If I wanted to pick out a Gerber or Kershaw, I would spend days just in my town doing that. I appreciate your info and I will try to get my hand on a few!
 
Thank you for the "tip." :) The paramilitary was actually on my list for a while. Great job on the regrind too!
 
As far as the endura/pacific salt option, if you want a plain edge then I would go with the endura, but for serrated, definitely go with the pacific salt. H1 is awesome in serrated edge!
 
What about Tasman? The Harpy is on my list and I am real interested in H1, but maybe not quite enough knife? Enough for SD and EDC dual purpose that is
 
I just got my tasman in about a week ago its also my first salt knife. The blade shape isn't the best for general EDC but it is do-able and for SD it would work for sure. For a first Spyderco I would HIGHLY recommend a Delica/Endura they are an absolutely amazing EDC knife and the lower cost is just icing on the cake :) The VG-10 paired with the perfectly executed FFG blade takes a scary sharp edge that is super easy to maintain. I currently have 3 Delicas and it is the only knife I have more then 2 of and plan on a couple more (gotta have color options :D )
 
From that list I would go with the Endura, it is a great knife that you can not go wrong with it for the money. I really enjoy mine and it makes a great edc. I have the version with the wave on it, that might interest you as it makes deployment very fast. There are a lot of other Spydercos to put on your wishlist but too many to really name plus it depends on price range. Endura is my vote, but it is quite different than the other knives you have listed blade shape wise.
 
Addictedtogear, The wave is a rather new thing isn't it? Its like I went on a buying freeze for a few months and came back to a world where people are breaking out the dremmel just to get on the wave action. I like it, I think, though I'd have to cut myself a few times trying it before I can make a final decision. Any other wave models besides Endura or do I need to order a dremmel the same time I order the knife?:)
 
I don't have a salt myself, but from what I have gathered its not worth getting H1 unless you really need it to be rustproof, regular stainless is fairly low maintenance(rust-wise) but retain an edge for longer.

PS. wave is pretty old actually. Try a "Poor man's wave" to see how it feels.
 
Can't go wrong with the Endura, it's a great knife with a great price from a great company, looks like everything's great. :eek:
 
I tend to agree with you about the reg stainless vs H1, but I spend a lot of time at the river in summer and I would like to take my knife with me, you know, because I can. This isn't the deciding factor however:) On a separate note, I would find a bit of irony in buying a rustproof knife that ended up at the bottom of some body of water so I could imagine it sitting down there all clean and rust free...
 
secte said:
I don't have a salt myself, but from what I have gathered its not worth getting H1 unless you really need it to be rustproof, regular stainless is fairly low maintenance(rust-wise) but retain an edge for longer.

PS. wave is pretty old actually. Try a "Poor man's wave" to see how it feels.
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Agreed if you are going pe. If you are going serrated edge (which I thought the op might since he was considering the civilian) then h1 is the way to go. Better edge performance and you get rust proof as a bonus. :)
 
Here is another question since my list obviously has SE blades on it, is this SE hard to sharpen or can you get away with a diamond sharpener. I seriously used to buy new knives when my old ones got dull because I am not good a sharpening. I guess that's what you get when you have more money than brains, but I am not going to replace a civilian every few months...
 
DCutty said:
Here is another question since my list obviously has SE blades on it, is this SE hard to sharpen or can you get away with a diamond sharpener. I seriously used to buy new knives when my old ones got dull because I am not good a sharpening. I guess that's what you get when you have more money than brains, but I am not going to replace a civilian every few months...
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Good question. I always avoided se blades because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to keep them sharp. I got a sharpmaker a few months ago and that put all those worries to bed. The serrated pacific salt sharpens up to shaving sharp so easy it's a joke. I find the sharpmaker works like a dream on se. Easy easy easy.

I would think it would work perfectly on a hawkbill too, though I haven't tried it.
 
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