New Civilian. What the.... ??

R

Rainmaker870

Joined
Feb 1, 2002
Messages
661
So I bought a new Civilian. It's big - much bigger than I thought. That's ok in theory because the lockup is good, blade play is minimal and the knife is thin enough to carry well. But..... one of the things I like is the ability to use a closed folder as an impact weapon. Can't do that with the Civilian because the width when folded is too wide to get a good fist around it. I also notice, when the blade is closed, a large gap between the cutting edge and the scales:

CivieClosed.jpg


Questions for those more educated than I:
1) Is that gap normal?
2) Ever unintentionally caught anything in it? Doesn't look likely, but it's possible.

Overall knife quality is good but I don't know if this is a keeper or not.
1) I've got Keating's Civilian video ordered, my feelings after watching that may be a determining factor.
2) Figuring out the best way to carry this beast may be the other determining factor. Any good suggestions?

Thanks!
 
If the Civilian you feel isn't exactly the knife you were looking for then you might consider it's little brother the MATRIARCH. I personally like the Matriarch a bit better than the Civilian for 2 reasons. I like the shorter blade and I also like the fact that the Matriarch works extremely well with a NECK SHEATH.

I don't know if you are familiar with the Matriarch but the blade design and configuration is totally identical to the Civilian. It is actually a scaled down version.

One negative that a lot of guys don't like about it is that it has an FRN handle. I personally get along well with FRN handles. I have even been carrying a PE Merlin which has an FRN handle and I think that FRN really gets a bum rap in a lot of respects. But it is another option to consider.
 
You can use and image hosting site such as PhotoBucket to post the pic as I would like to see this myself.
 
Thanks Ken.
I Edited my first post, which now contains a link to the picture.

JD, I thought about the Matriarch. I'm still thinking about it. :)
 
TheKnifeCollector said:
I would send it back to Spyderco, because THAT is not right.
Click to expand...

I was really hoping there was some wierd design requirement making that gap necessary. Otherwise, 66% of the NIB Spyderco's I've purchased will have needed factory repair and adjustment right out of the box.

So: is my new knife screwed?
 
My SE Almite looks exactly the same as that, and IIRC, a NIB G-10 SE that I had in my possession briefly had that gap as well. Neither of my two PE CF ones have a gap. So I'd tend to think it's normal on the SE Civilian.
 
Many of the Spyderco's hawkbills and all of thier reverse-S blades have gaps. My Matriarch and Civilian both have gaps.
 
The Deacon said:
My SE Almite looks exactly the same as that, and IIRC, a NIB G-10 SE that I had in my possession briefly had that gap as well. Neither of my two PE CF ones have a gap. So I'd tend to think it's normal on the SE Civilian.
Click to expand...

When you speak of the knives that have the gaps, are they Civilians? And you have Plain Edge knives that don't have the gaps, but their Serrated Edge counterparts do have the gaps? If I'm understanding you correctly, I think I need someone from Spyderco to explain why the closed fit is different between knife edges - I don't understand the necessity for it.
 
deathshead said:
Many of the Spyderco's hawkbills and all of thier reverse-S blades have gaps. My Matriarch and Civilian both have gaps.
Click to expand...

So maybe it's supposed to be there?

I emailed Spyderco's customer service, they were really responsive on the other problem I had. I'll post their answer when it's received.

Thanks guys.
 
I'm sorry, there are several versions of the Civilian. The earliest had uncoated aluminum handles, next came almite coated aluminum - that's what my SE Civilian which has the gap is. There has also been a Carbon Fiber version of the Civilian. I have two of those, both plain edge, neither has the gap. I also purchased and reshipped a serrated G-10 Civilian, like yours, to someone overseas. If memory serves, that had the gap, but I don't have it in front of me, so I cannot be 100% certain. Will post a picture in a bit of the Almite one.
 
I don't own one but prersonally, that should not have a gap as it open in your pocket if something gets in and pulls the blade open. From your pic, looks like there is still room for the blade to go deeper into the handle.Just my opinion.:thumbdn:
 
Mine is exactly the same. The serrations are partly visible when you close the knife. It is not possible to cut yourself with it closed.

It's a normal occurence in the Serrated Edge version of the Civi.

I carry my civilian with a horizontal Kydex sheath.
 
dannyvi said:
I don't own one but prersonally, that should not have a gap as it open in your pocket if something gets in and pulls the blade open. From your pic, looks like there is still room for the blade to go deeper into the handle.Just my opinion.:thumbdn:
Click to expand...

There *is* room, and it honestly looks like something any Joe could fix with a little patience, a file/grinder and a fine stone. Just not sure whether it SHOULD be fixed or not.

Could all be much ado about nothing - Spyderco will probably be able to put it to rest one way or the other when they open tomorrow.
 
Mongo-man said:
Mine is exactly the same. The serrations are partly visible when you close the knife. It is not possible to cut yourself with it closed.

It's a normal occurence in the Serrated Edge version of the Civi.

I carry my civilian with a horizontal Kydex sheath.
Click to expand...


Where did your sheath come from? I can see waistband carry with the clip, but it takes up so much pocket room I'm not sure I'll like it there much of the time.
 
I'll take pictures of the knife and sheath, i have photobucket but how can i upload the pic's from photobucket to this reply?

Scannen.jpg
 
I just learned about Photobucket. Use the "Insert Image" icon at the top of your post's edit screen.

The gap in Mongo-man's knife appears considerably smaller than the gap in mine.
 
The Matriarch has a gap because the handle is actually the handle from the Endura. It was a cost saving decision, so I can see why it may not fit the handle exactly. I don't mind the gap though. There is no way for the knife to open spontaneously or for your finger to get cut. Like I said, my Civilian was bought 2 months ago and it also has a small gap. Not sure why though. I suppose Spyderco could have made the handle in such a way so that there would not be that gap. May be the blade is so obscure that the handle would be funky and possible not fit the hand properly too if the gap would be covered.
 
I would not advise filing/grinding down the kick. At least on my knives, there is very little space between the blade and the backspacer at certain points, and a collision between the blade and backspacer is a far less desirable situation than the gap.
 
deathshead said:
There is no way for the knife to open spontaneously or for your finger to get cut.
Click to expand...

Agreed. I can see an errant dime working its way into the gap and causing some issues. Normally I don't carry anything but knives in that pocket... but y'never know what can wind up in there.

The Deacon said:
I would not advise filing/grinding down the kick. At least on my knives, there is very little space between the blade and the backspacer at certain points, and a collision between the blade and backspacer is a far less desirable situation than the gap.
Click to expand...

Well, if it gets modified it'll be modified by the company that made it. ;) There seems to be a lot of room for adjustment inside this particular speciman.
 
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