Hi guys, I just took the plunge and got myself one of the new ss Kiwis and must say what a lovely little knife it is. I've always loved Kiwis and really regret selling my original stainless one as I can't seem to find a NIB anywhere at a reasonable price.
This new slip joint model is brilliant though especially since I can carry it legally in the UK so, thanks Spyderco for bringing us a great "old fashioned" pen knife with modern attributes. The ergonomics are lovely and it fits the hand beautifully. The design also does away with the fear of it accidently closing on you.
However, there are a couple of criticisms I have.
Firstly, why is it impossible to open it one handed? The old model was great and very ergonomic but the new Kiwi needs both hands to open it. Is this because of the tension of the spring or has there been a design error with regards to the hole placement? It just becomes another pen knife rather than a Spyderco if you can't open the blade with one hand.
Secondly, why in this day and age does the spring/lock bar (sorry I don't know what it's called) stand proud of the scales. Granted, its only a fraction of a mm but with all the modern machinery nowadays it would be nice to have a perfectly smooth spine to the knife and not to be able to catch my finger nail on it. Okay, it could be argued that it's built to a price but I, for one, would rather pay slightly more and have it perfect than cheap and not.
Overall though I really like this Kiwi and can see it becoming my EDC very quickly.
This new slip joint model is brilliant though especially since I can carry it legally in the UK so, thanks Spyderco for bringing us a great "old fashioned" pen knife with modern attributes. The ergonomics are lovely and it fits the hand beautifully. The design also does away with the fear of it accidently closing on you.
However, there are a couple of criticisms I have.
Firstly, why is it impossible to open it one handed? The old model was great and very ergonomic but the new Kiwi needs both hands to open it. Is this because of the tension of the spring or has there been a design error with regards to the hole placement? It just becomes another pen knife rather than a Spyderco if you can't open the blade with one hand.
Secondly, why in this day and age does the spring/lock bar (sorry I don't know what it's called) stand proud of the scales. Granted, its only a fraction of a mm but with all the modern machinery nowadays it would be nice to have a perfectly smooth spine to the knife and not to be able to catch my finger nail on it. Okay, it could be argued that it's built to a price but I, for one, would rather pay slightly more and have it perfect than cheap and not.
Overall though I really like this Kiwi and can see it becoming my EDC very quickly.
although I'm still very fond of the one you did for me...
