QC issues? Rate my OCD/10

[vnvman]

Yeah, it's one of those threads...

Honestly I didn't have much luck with my latest Spyderco purchases in general, and the last knives I bought in order from oldest to newest are:

PM2 in S45VN: perfect
PM2 in Cruwear: perfect
Endela in K390: uneven grind by the tip and dark burn marks on the edge. It was a user so yeah, I just dealt with it.
Salt 2 in LC200N: perfect
Endura SE VG10: perfect
Spydiechef: perfect
Massad Ayoob Cruwear: super uneven tip, very asymmetrical grind, complete disaster. I turned it into a scandivex and got a partial refund from the seller.
Delica Wharncliffe in K390: uneven grind from tip to heel. No biggie, sharpened away.
PM2 in Cruwear: scales looking way different from one another, not only terms of color but in terms of coarseness. Other than that okay. Kept it.
Para 3 LW in 15V: unevenly ground tip, weird grind marks on spine. Kept it because I couldn't find another one anyway and I didn't want to risk missing out on the 15V
Millie 2 15V: one of the screws on the handle has a the hole that is WAY off center, the tip is unevenly sharpened (exactly like the Para3 LW). Also, the tip seems to be a lot thinner than normal, like way thinner than on both the PM 2 and the Para 3 that I have, a real needle point. Action perfect, centering perfect. Given the odds of getting a perfect one, I grabbed a spare screw from an older beater and swapped it (only cosmetic but it irked me on a 300€ knife), and I decided that knock on wood I can live with the thinner tip, although I reckon it could be a total deal breaker for many: me personally I'm using this only for pure slicing and food prep tasks so I don't mind. Also, the liners kinda look "rough" to my eye where they are exposed, like there were some small half ass jimps. I'm posting a sample pic of the M2 next to my Crucarta PM2, if you can tell the difference.

Legit question. In my opinion out of the last ones bough 6/11 have been (some degree of) a lemon so far. Am I just being too picky and or OCD, or something is slightly off with QC as of late?

I've gotten to the point of accepting (at least what what I consider) flaws in order not to miss out on sprints and such in the search for the perfect specimen, that I probably have like 2/10 chance of getting anyway.

Is there something wrong? Is it just me? Or maybe I should just seel medical help?

I'd like to know your opinion and experience on your latest purchases.

 

[uxo2]

OCD
DNR
WALL O TEXT

 

[vnvman]

OCD
DNR
WALL O TEXT

Thanks for your insight.

 

[SwissHeritageCo]

Listen, everyone has varying levels of ocd. If I'm spending $150 on a knife it doesn't have to be perfect but it should be close. Any weirdness with things like lock rock etc (even with just a tiny amount of jiggle) it's going back.

 

[Danke42]

I yeet all my knives as soon as I get them. Even though they appear to be perfect I know there are hidden flaws that will disappoint me.

 

[vnvman]

Listen, everyone has varying levels of ocd. If I'm spending $150 on a knife it doesn't have to be perfect but it should be close. Any weirdness with things like lock rock etc (even with just a tiny amount of jiggle) it's going back.

I second that. Truth be told on all of the knives mentioned above, lock, action and alignment were great, but issues with beveling and uneven grinds were present. Yeah sometimes some things are just cosmetic and I know that these are tools after all, but also SAKs are tools, and cheap ones, yet I have had dozens and not a single one came with even a cosmetic blem.

 

[vnvman]

I yeet all my knives as soon as I get them. Even though they appear to be perfect I know there are hidden flaws that will disappoint me.

Oh well never though of that. I guess that's it man. *grabs gun*

 

[SwissHeritageCo]

I second that. Truth be told on all of the knives mentioned above, lock, action and alignment were great, but issues with beveling and uneven grinds were present. Yeah sometimes some things are just cosmetic and I know that these are tools after all, but also SAKs are tools, and cheap ones, yet I have had dozens and not a single one came with even cosmetic blem.

Same story with a lot of affordable chinese knives arriving near perfect. I think Victorinox has had a lot of experiences honing their process but at the end of the day a slightly off grind doesn't bother me. Mainly because I'm going to blend the shoulders and turn whatever I get into a convex, if the tip is a little lopsided it's not the end of the world.

 

[vnvman]

Same story with a lot of affordable chinese knives arriving near perfect. I think Victorinox has had a lot of experiences honing their process but at the end of the day a slightly off grind doesn't bother me. Mainly because I'm going to blend the shoulders and turn whatever I get into a convex, if the tip is a little lopsided it's not the end of the world.

Oh for sure, I mean I use my knives and as with everything, phone, watch, car, whatever, after a moment dings and dents appear, it's a fact of life. I'm okay with funky or uneven sharpening, those things can be sharpened off, but sometimes like eg on that Massad Ayoob the tip was so off that in order to make it symmetrical I had to remove a ton of material.

SAKs to me are an entirely different story lol. The moment I get a new one I take it to grinder and start modding and stuff, but it's part of the process, something I enjoy, and if I F something up I just don't care or get another one for a few bucks and that's it, no big deal. However evening out a beveling problem on a 300€ S110V pocket knife can be a major PITA, and again, I get it that they're tools but given the price of some they're like luxury tools if that makes sense, finish should matter more, even mere cosmetics IMHO

 

[DA170]

I yeet all my knives as soon as I get them. Even though they appear to be perfect I know there are hidden flaws that will disappoint me.

I had to look it up!

 

[BD_01]

Listen, everyone has varying levels of ocd. If I'm spending $150 on a knife it doesn't have to be perfect but it should be close. Any weirdness with things like lock rock etc (even with just a tiny amount of jiggle) it's going back.

This is a good comment.

I’ve had a few Spydies over the last 10 years that were kinda duds in one way or another.
IMO those knives were justifiable returns, but for one reason or another I kept them, similar to vnvman .

In the last 3 years I’ve bought somewhere between 10-15 either for myself or as a gifts. In spite of my nit-picking, the worst I could say would be a single PacSalt that was very slightly off center, hardly more than noticeable given the asymmetry inherent to the SE grind—aka total a keeper!

My most recent are truly amazing knives and absolutely flawless.
I’m a happy repeat Spyderco customer…but I’ll be even more happy when some of the Salt models are available again.

 

[vnvman]

This is a good comment.

I’ve had a few Spydies over the last 10 years that were kinda duds in one way or another.
IMO those knives were justifiable returns, but for one reason or another I kept them, similar to vnvman .

In the last 3 years I’ve bought somewhere between 10-15 either for myself or as a gifts. In spite of my nit-picking, the worst I could say would be a single PacSalt that was very slightly off center, hardly more than noticeable given the asymmetry inherent to the SE grind—aka total a keeper!

My most recent are truly amazing knives and absolutely flawless.
I’m a happy repeat Spyderco customer…but I’ll be even more happy when some of the Salt models are available again.

And as usual...I decided to "fix" this myself like I usually end up doing.
Before:


After:



Mental on my part do such thing? Maybe. But honestly it kinda feels more like a 300€+ knife now, at least to me.

/OCD rant

 

[stillshot2]

I'm looking at my M2 salt right now and realize it looks like yours too but is a little less noticeable hidden by black coating. I guess I can't be bothered by it because there's nothing I can do without taking off the finish.

 

[vnvman]

I'm looking at my M2 salt right now and realize it looks like yours too but is a little less noticeable hidden by black coating. I guess I can't be bothered by it because there's nothing I can do without taking off the finish.

I guess it's pretty common, I was watching a review on Youtube moments ago and if you look at this frame you can se it's exactly like mine.


Nice review BTW.

 

[brownshoe]

You are too picky since your complaints are about cosmetic items and don’t effect the tool’s function. You are too obsessive since you buy too many similar designs all from one firm.

Relax. Enjoy your tools. Try a different brand…maybe even a slipjoint.

 

[vnvman]

You are too picky since your complaints are about cosmetic items and don’t effect the tool’s function. You are too obsessive since you buy too many similar designs all from one firm.

Relax. Enjoy your tools. Try a different brand…maybe even a slipjoint.

Actually Spydercos are only a small percentage of the knives that I buy. I'll admit that that one detail I posted last actually is merely cosmetic, however many of the ones mentioned in the OP not so much, at least IMHO of course. I do agree that I should focus more on the actual toolish nature of the tool, but sometimes it gets me haha. I do love slipjoints as well by the way... Have you just told me to buy more knives? Sounds like solid advice, I guess I'll just run with that lol

 

[Quiet]

I wouldn't consider anything you listed in the OP as any sort of issue. Spyderco production knives aren't showpieces to me, and so I don't care too much about grinds. The only time I take issue is when there are things like seriously off-center blades, dull, or outright dangerous deficiencies present. For example, I just sent back the new Manix 2 LW 15V that I had received from SMKW because the blade was set in the handle badly, and so it didn't sit in the scales properly. This left the tip of the blade juuuuuuuuuust shy of protruding from the scales when closed. I put in my pocket and when I reached for it, my thumb "meat" got nipped by the quite sharp tip when it inadvertently went in between the two scales. So yeah, back she went and I'm awaiting a replacement. The knife definitely shouldn't have passed QC if I'm being honest.

 

[vnvman]

I wouldn't consider anything you listed in the OP as any sort of issue. Spyderco production knives aren't showpieces to me, and so I don't care too much about grinds. The only time I take issue is when there are things like seriously off-center blades, dull, or outright dangerous deficiencies present. For example, I just sent back the new Manix 2 LW 15V that I had received from SMKW because the blade was set in the handle badly, and so it didn't sit in the scales properly. This left the tip of the blade juuuuuuuuuust shy of protruding from the scales when closed. I put in my pocket and when I reached for it, my thumb "meat" got nipped by the quite sharp tip when it inadvertently went in between the two scales. So yeah, back she went and I'm awaiting a replacement. The knife definitely shouldn't have passed QC if I'm being honest.

I totally see your point. Yeah I'm definitely not a collector myself, as soon as I realize that I have a knife that doesn't get carried I hurry up and sell it unless it has serious sentimental value or something.

I don't mind sharpening away a bad grind, but on the Massad the tip was so off that I had to sharpen away a good portion of it, and even after doing that one side of the blade was still clearly ground at a different angle, so in order to make the whole thing symmetrical I had to take away a bunch of steel and turn the blade into a pure scandivex grind. If one has to go though all that trouble he could also argue that he's not getting what he paid for, because a blade like that will definitely have a shorter lifespan because of all the material removed.

Anyway, that episode you mantiined with the Manix was pretty scary, have you managed to find a good one afterwards? I had a similar accident with the Spydiechef once myself, but that one is know to have the edge run very close to the back of the scales.

 

[Quiet]

I totally see your point. Yeah I'm definitely not a collector myself, as soon as I realize that I have a knife that doesn't get carried I hurry up and sell it unless it has serious sentimental value or something.

I don't mind sharpening away a bad grind, but on the Massad the tip was so off that I had to sharpen away a good portion of it, and even after doing that one side of the blade was still clearly ground at a different angle, so in order to make the whole thing symmetrical I had to take away a bunch of steel and turn the blade into a pure scandivex grind. If one has to go though all that trouble he could also argue that he's not getting what he paid for, because a blade like that will definitely have a shorter lifespan because of all the material removed.

Anyway, that episode you mantiined with the Manix was pretty scary, have you managed to find a good one afterwards? I had a similar accident with the Spydiechef once myself, but that one is know to have the edge run very close to the back of the scales.

That situation you describe with the Massad, I would have been irritated a bit myself, if you truly had to sharpen away enough material in order to get the result you were looking for. That's almost resetting the grinds at that point, which is a chore and definitely not something you should have to do on a new knife. Plus, at that point, material has been removed, lessening the life of the knife. Not great.

At current, the Manix is on its way back to SMKW where I'm hoping they will swap it out with one that's good to go. If not, I'll buy another somewhere else, and send that one back to SMKW for a full refund. About all I can do at this point. I am hoping that their internal communication is on point.

 

[vnvman]

That situation you describe with the Massad, I would have been irritated a bit myself, if you truly had to sharpen away enough material in order to get the result you were looking for. That's almost resetting the grinds at that point, which is a chore and definitely not something you should have to do on a new knife. Plus, at that point, material has been removed, lessening the life of the knife. Not great.

At current, the Manix is on its way back to SMKW where I'm hoping they will swap it out with one that's good to go. If not, I'll buy another somewhere else, and send that one back to SMKW for a full refund. About all I can do at this point. I am hoping that their internal communication is on point.

I see. A friend of mine has that very knife and he wants to sell it to me, I've never owned a Manix so I wonder whether I would like one or not. I would have thought that the P3 LW in 15v could have been the perfect backup companion for the Millie, but I ended up not liking it much, it feels too small in my hand. Maybe the Manix could fill that role better. I'll have to handle it a bit and make up my mind before I pull the trigger tho.