Should I get a Paramilitary 2?

W

_Wraith

Joined
Sep 30, 2015
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I've been posting quite a lot likely and was considering buying a PM2 for outdoorsy use so I thought what the heck I will ask you guys if you think its worth it. I will be using it for food prep, general utility tasks, maybe light wood use and staring at :D

My only doubt is the steel which some people believe is on the chippy side. How is edge retention, toughness, ease of sharpening and edge holding capabilities on s30v?

Should I get one?
 
If you do a bit of a search you will find the PM in different steels avaliable.
hope this helps
red mag
 
_Wraith said:
Out of all the steels which one would you recommend?
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From what I can tell, any one you can get your hands on. I have a plain-jane, digicam/satin, S30v PM2. It's a great knife and I've not had too much an issue with chipping. These things are going to sell out though, no doubt. I just saw someone has an orange handle w/ a black blade, though I can't remember the steel. I'm not a steel snob, so I generally just go for standard models. But again, they're likely going to sell out pretty quickly.
 
I saw the other models, but I also was mainly interested in the digicam/satin S30v model.
Have you ever carved any hard wood with it?
 
The PM2 in S30V has never let me down. Unless you just want to try out the various steels, realistically, I doubt you'll see much difference in performance.

Note also that the models with other steels are sprint runs, so you're looking at an increased cost and in most cases a lack of availability. The S110V version is currently in stock at KnifeCenter, but I don't expect that to be the case for much longer
 
I think s30V is a nice steel and Spyderco wouldn't produce the knife in this steel if not adequate.
I carry a Seb in S35VN and never had problems. For me stain resistant is important, others love carbon steel blades.
Spyderco has it's own forum and I guess there you can find the answer.
At this time there is a batch avaliable in CTS-XHP with a DLC coated blade.
If not abused the knife should be fine in S30V, and you gat a garanty.
 
S30V has a very good balance of properties and Spyderco has it's HT nailed.
I have only had tiny chips on an S30V edge when it was still a factory edge, after it's first good sharpening it doesn't seem to chip easily, at least with the normal usage I put it too.

The new S110V production variant, if you can find one, is worth looking at, harder to sharpen with superior edge retention.

There are other steels but only in limited numbers of knives, 2 currently available are CTS XHP and Elmax. Love my Elmax Para2 but the price is too high.

Honestly, you won't go wrong with an S30V Para2 IMHO, true value for money. Yes, you should definitely get one.

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No comparison really. It's a nicer knife. I'm up early though, so I snapped a couple of photos real quick.

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To be clear, the Mini-Grip isn't a slouch. I use the crap out of mine, and it's rock solid. The handle is quite small, however, as you can see. It's the one I grab when things may get a little rough/dirty, lol.
 
The PM2 is the true image of EDC perfection. I highly recommend it. Mine has been a favorite since I first held it. It's seen a lot of pocket time and will see much more in the future.
 
Spyderco's s30v is an excellent performer. I just made a thread on this in the Spyderco forum discussing how I prefer it to many of the newer "super" steels. Very easy to bring to extreme levels of sharpness and edge retention is very good. I have had no chipping issues in my use.
 
It took me a long time to come around on the PM2. When I first joined the forum it was all that I heard about, but I just didn't see it. In particular, I didn't think it looked very good, nor was I able to see what all the hype was about.

After enough staring at pictures I came around on the look and decided to try it.

Long story short, my digi cam/satin PM2 has literally changed the way that I look at knife details. Firstly, it redefined "zero play", for me. This thing is the most solid knife I think I've ever owned in that regard. Secondly, the smoothness of the knife (especially considering the zero bladeplay) is absolutely astounding. It's so smooth that it's actually difficult to not flip it open. Breaking the detent with my thumb is enough to push it open the rest of the way.

Also, I've done some carving and had no problems with the S30V. In terms of food prep, it's a born slicer.

I hope you did order one because wow! It has completely surpassed my expectations.
 
VermontEdge said:
It took me a long time to come around on the PM2. When I first joined the forum it was all that I heard about, but I just didn't see it. In particular, I didn't think it looked very good, nor was I able to see what all the hype was about.

After enough staring at pictures I came around on the look and decided to try it.

Long story short, my digi cam/satin PM2 has literally changed the way that I look at knife details. Firstly, it redefined "zero play", for me. This thing is the most solid knife I think I've ever owned in that regard. Secondly, the smoothness of the knife (especially considering the zero bladeplay) is absolutely astounding. It's so smooth that it's actually difficult to not flip it open. Breaking the detent with my thumb is enough to push it open the rest of the way.

Also, I've done some carving and had no problems with the S30V. In terms of food prep, it's a born slicer.

I hope you did order one because wow! It has completely surpassed my expectations.
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I'll second all of this. I was never fan of Spyderco until I actually owned/used a PM2. My opinion has completely changed.
 
I'm with jtho8774 Para 2 is great you will not be disappointed. I've not found s30v to be prone to chipping, I mean any steel will chip especially if it's ground thin with a steep secondary bevel (most spyderco's) but it's not common. I know some have recommended the 110v version which would be okay but not really a less chippy steel, again though unless your chopping on stuff or regularly hitting your blade against really hard stuff you shouldn't have a problem.
 
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